cattle trailer

Tomjim

I'm looking to buy a second hand cattlewhich I intend pulling with a tractor, I don't have a jeep.

I will only be using this trailer a couple of times a year so I don't want to spend an awful lot of money on one

The cheapest ones that I can see advertised are something like this where the wheels are underneath.

I have heard that these are not a great job, I'm just wondering would it do my job given that I won't be using it a lot?

https://www.donedeal.ie/cattletrailers-for-sale/12x6-ifor-williams-demountable-cattle-box/27070749

emaherx

Tomjim wrote: »

I'm looking to buy a second hand cattlewhich I intend pulling with a tractor, I don't have a jeep.

I will only be using this trailer a couple of times a year so I don't want to spend an awful lot of money on one

The cheapest ones that I can see advertised are something like this where the wheels are underneath.

I have heard that these are not a great job, I'm just wondering would it do my job given that I won't be using it a lot?

https://www.donedeal.ie/cattletrailers-for-sale/12x6-ifor-williams-demountable-cattle-box/27070749

Would you not be better off looking at a tractor trailer?

Albert Johnson

emaherx wrote: »

Would you not be better off looking at a tractor trailer?

A tractor trailer will probably be a good bit more expensive although it would have extra capacity and stand up to general wear and tear better over time.

As regards the OPs suggestion I think it would be fine for there intended purpose especially if it's only going to be used occasionally. Those trailers are more prone to overturning if not handled correctly but that shouldn't be a problem if driven with due care. Those smaller tyre's require higher pressure and can prove troublesome as regards punctures although some of them were fitted with solid rubber wheels. You should be able to pick up something in reasonable condition around €2,000 especially seeing as brakes wouldn't be as important compared to a trailer that would be going behind a jeep.

funkey_monkey

If you do get one with underslung wheels make sure the trailer is level on your tractor as those tyres have a habit of bursting on tight turns under load.
Grand trailer though. If you are working on major roads or lanes then underslung are fine, otherwise I'd go for the wheels on the outside as its a much more stable trailer.

Charolois 19

Just after picking up a new to me cattle trailer last week 12 x 5 ifor t.a , I was originally planning to buy a d.p but the over turning thing put me off and also I'm led to believe that they are not the best going through a field, which is a nessasary evil for me by times, but if its any addition to you, I just checked done deal regularly each day, and sat with the cash waiting until the right trailer came up, id not be using a cattle trailer regularly I suppose like yourself, but im glad I held out, and I bought at very close money to what was in the ad you put in your post, but moral of the story is if you hound done deal ect you will find what your looking for, mind you I was 3 months looking ��

Hershall

I see Tufmac have a 16 ft. X6 jeep trailer on the market now anybody on here buy one?

Albert Johnson

Hershall wrote: »

I see Tufmac have a 16 ft. X6 jeep trailer on the market now anybody on here buy one?

Porter, Hudson, Profit, Crooks and Tuffmac all offer them in recent year's. The most popular one locally seems to be Porter and like all there products they look very well engineered. I know a few lad's that have them and most would be mainly sheep dealer's so they wouldn't be hauling serious weight compared to if it was full of cattle.

From a legal perspective there redundant unless you were filling them with pet lambs due to being over weight when full. Even if you were to tow them with a tractor your still bound by the hitch being only rated to 3500kg. I've often thought that a 4.2 Toyota Amazon would be a fair combination towing a 16 foot Porter but you'd still be totally illegal when loaded and you'd bring more stock, burn less diesel and stay within the bounds of the law by running a mid sized lorry.

red bull

I kept a search on Done deal it took a few months, like yourself I only needed the trailer a few times a year pulled by tractor. I eventually got an Ivor Williams 12x6 wheels on outside for € 1600 . Time and patience paid off.

memorystick

Any opinion? I was going to buy a jeep trailer but they’re fairly dear and still only hold 6 fat cattle. At least this would hold around 10+big bullocks or 50+ fat lambs.

https://www.donedeal.ie/cattletrailers-for-sale/bracken-livestock-trailers/27452404

funkey_monkey

I've looked at them before online. The lower floor a a great idea and makes loading and stability a lot better.
The main thing i don't like about it is that I'd prefer if they blended the inner wheel arch more into the side of the trailer. It looks like something that could trip up an animal and I wouldn't want an animal down in a trailer if it could be avoided.
Edit: - I should say I've no knowledge of this happening nor have I seen one in the flesh - just basing of the photos. It may well be fine and a non-issue - it's just a feature I'm not keen on.

I'd also want a solid roof so that it could double up over winter as a place for some straw bales or something. But that's just me - I like to get a few uses out of machines if I can.

Tomjim

memorystick wrote: »

Any opinion? I was going to buy a jeep trailer but they’re fairly dear and still only hold 6 fat cattle. At least this would hold around 10+big bullocks or 50+ fat lambs.

https://www.donedeal.ie/cattletrailers-for-sale/bracken-livestock-trailers/27452404

a lot of money for a trailer ....

funkey_monkey

When buying new its not much more expensive than an Ifor Williams.
Second hand tractor drawn livestock trailers are rarely in any sort of decent shape. Those that are command a high price that would make you consider new if you can work with your accountant.

memorystick

Tomjim wrote: »

a lot of money for a trailer ....

I gave over €1000 in haulage last year. It’s a lot of money. Very few second hand trailers out there. An Ivan Willy would be half that but it’s still a small tractor trailer.

SuperTortoise

Strong money for that trailer but it does look well built, and if so it's a lifetime job.
I will eventually buy something like this, but not for a while yet, going to sort out things like an outside crush which will add a huge ammount of convienience.

Jb1989

Friend here buying a new 14 ft nugent with slurry tank for 7 or 7 and a half incl vat.

jd_12345

Jb1989 wrote: »

Friend here buying a new 14 ft nugent with slurry tank for 7 or 7 and a half incl vat.

We gave 5300 inc VAT for a new 12X5’10 Murphy in 2017

memorystick

I’m not interested in owning a jeep. I could spend 4K on a jeep trailer that would only hold 5 or 6 fats. 10 is a nice load.

Hershall

Jb1989 wrote: »

Friend here buying a new 14 ft nugent with slurry tank for 7 or 7 and a half incl vat.

He got a good deal at that rate I priced one last wek 8,200 without a tank

Jb1989

Hershall wrote: »

He got a good deal at that rate I priced one last wek 8,200 without a tank

She actually . Somewhere in Northern Ireland I'd say. I'll ask her where next week

jd_12345

https://www.donedeal.co.uk/cattletrailers-for-sale/15ft-x-7ft-6-quot-cattle-trailer/27549244

Won't get better value than that imo!

memorystick

jd_12345 wrote: »

https://www.donedeal.co.uk/cattletrailers-for-sale/15ft-x-7ft-6-quot-cattle-trailer/27549244

Won't get better value than that imo!

Brakes?

wrangler

red bull wrote: »

I kept a search on Done deal it took a few months, like yourself I only needed the trailer a few times a year pulled by tractor. I eventually got an Ivor Williams 12x6 wheels on outside for € 1600 . Time and patience paid off.

If you're drawing cattle you need them 6ft wide, bigger cattle can't turn in a 5ft wide but it doesn't stop them trying and can damage the trailer when they get wedged

kk.man

Tomjim wrote: »

a lot of money for a trailer ....

I beg to differ. Price the conventional ones like Broughan etc which are 2 to 3k more. These ones are very versatile and might suit a smaller operator. Some of the bigger ifor ones are not far off that price either.

Edit : Road compliant and a trailer for life.

Tomjim

the trailers that have the wheels underneath, what kind of tyres are they ie does air go into them all or is there is a different type of tyre available?

jd_12345

memorystick wrote: »

Brakes?

I'd have my doubts but the OP seems determined to keep budget low! Won't get as much trailer for the money elsewhere. If it was me, I'd go for the aforementioned new ones though the piece over the wheel would annoy me!

Imo you need a budget of 4k to get anything worthwhile for behind a tractor. The speed you'll lose on a tractor has to be made up for with a bigger load or you'd be all day drawing any amount of cattle!

kk.man

jd_12345 wrote: »

I'd have my doubts but the OP seems determined to keep budget low! Won't get as much trailer for the money elsewhere. If it was me, I'd go for the aforementioned new ones though the piece over the wheel would annoy me!

Imo you need a budget of 4k to get anything worthwhile for behind a tractor. The speed you'll lose on a tractor has to be made up for with a bigger load or you'd be all day drawing any amount of cattle!

You'd get over the wheel thing. I have something similar, no issues. Not everyone wants a jeep either.

AckwelFoley

memorystick wrote: »

Brakes?

Fred flinstones by the look of it

jd_12345

kk.man wrote: »

You'd get over the wheel thing. I have something similar, no issues. Not everyone wants a jeep either.

Oh i know not everyone wants a jeep and the extra maintenance with a jeep but imo you're better off getting someone in to draw your cattle than going any sort of distance with an 8x5 or 10x5ft10 or something similar behind a tractor

Bass Reeves

jd_12345 wrote: »

I'd have my doubts but the OP seems determined to keep budget low! Won't get as much trailer for the money elsewhere. If it was me, I'd go for the aforementioned new ones though the piece over the wheel would annoy me!

Imo you need a budget of 4k to get anything worthwhile for behind a tractor. The speed you'll lose on a tractor has to be made up for with a bigger load or you'd be all day drawing any amount of cattle!

It a compromise if you do not want a jeep. I buy 60 cattle and sell about 60 cattle a year. I have a RAV and and 8x5 trailer. If I can get any few cattle in a mart I try to get transport home. If not I have to collect them. 8.5k is a lump of money I could spend elsewhere.

In OP's case a jeep iS not an option. He is probably not shifting many cattle, maybe a bit of fragmented land. A 12X6 box will carry 4 cows and there calves, it will shift 10-12 250-300 kg weanlings or 7-8 handy stores.

You will buy a fairly decent second hand box for 1500 euro, you might have to tidy up one to two bits on it but if the local mart or factory is less than 15 miles away it will work for that as well 80% of the time. It might reduce an 600 euro transport bill to 250 euro or less and you still have it for handy jobs. O know a lad that has one and this time of year he uses it to take cattle to the fields as he has to put up no fences and can drive right into the field

emaherx

memorystick wrote: »

Any opinion? I was going to buy a jeep trailer but they’re fairly dear and still only hold 6 fat cattle. At least this would hold around 10+big bullocks or 50+ fat lambs.

https://www.donedeal.ie/cattletrailers-for-sale/bracken-livestock-trailers/27452404

Bridgeway trailer is another option, I priced the 18ft in 2019 at €6500. They also have a 16ft. I went for a Tuffmac in the end as I thought the aluminum body would see me out.

http://bridgewayengineering.com/index.php/bridgeway-products/bridgeway-trailers

memorystick

emaherx wrote: »

Bridgeway trailer is another option, I priced the 18ft in 2019 at €6500. They also have a 16ft. I went for a Tuffmac in the end as I thought the aluminum body would see me out.

http://bridgewayengineering.com/index.php/bridgeway-products/bridgeway-trailers

Is that Tuffmac 20 foot? What is it like? The Bridgeway seems like good value when compared to a jeep trailer.

emaherx

memorystick wrote: »

Is that Tuffmac 20 foot? What is it like? The Bridgeway seems like good value when compared to a jeep trailer.

18ft x 7ft, had to get a special order for a 7ft wide trailer, but 8ft would be very wide behind my 390.

The trailer is probably one of the best investments I've made as the farm is very disjointed. I've since sold my for williams jeep trailer as I don't use it anymore and it was sitting deteriorating in the yard.

memorystick

emaherx wrote: »

18ft x 7ft, had to get a special order for a 7ft wide trailer, but 8ft would be very wide behind my 390.

The trailer is probably one of the best investments I've made as the farm is very disjointed. I've since sold my for williams jeep trailer as I don't use it anymore and it was sitting deteriorating in the yard.

Would I be cheeky to ask how much it was? A jeep trailer for a tractor is not the answer

wrangler

memorystick wrote: »

Would I be cheeky to ask how much it was? A jeep trailer for a tractor is not the answer

You should buy it new, it won't be much if you put it over a few years and you'll have a trailer for life AND DON'T LEND IT

emaherx

memorystick wrote: »

Would I be cheeky to ask how much it was? A jeep trailer for a tractor is not the answer

It was about €10,500 I think, which is a lot more than the Bridgeway, but it has welded aluminum sides and floor, sprung drawbar and a higher speed axle. So this trailer will probably see me out even if I upgrade the tractor at some point.

I rang a lot of places at the time and new tractor trailer prices varied from 5,000 to 16,000 all 18ft.

5000 was a timber clad Eureka Trailer and 16,000 was a fully galvanized chassis from Hudson.

Bass Reeves

I think you would want to spending 3k+ per year on transport before you could consider spending 10 k on a livestock trailer. A tractor livestock trailer is really limited to sub 50 mile trips each way.

wrangler

Bass Reeves wrote: »

I think you would want to spending 3k+ per year on transport before you could consider spending 10 k on a livestock trailer. A tractor livestock trailer is really limited to sub 50 mile trips each way.

Once it's paid for it costs you nothing, it's not a high maintenance machine, it's invaluable if you have a fragmented farm.
The day for walking animals on the road is past, even if you could get the help

Grueller

While I agree with wrangler above, I bought 5 cows a month ago. I couldn't draw them myself as the jeep was in the garage getting a few small bits tidied. I rang a local young lad that hauls cattle before I left. He said no bother, I headed home and started to milk. When I was on the last line in swings the young lad and drops the cows in the collection yard. I milked them with my cows there and then and out with them.
If my jeep was going I would have been 2 hours or more later that evening. I would have spent €20 on diesel. The young lad charged me €50. I think it was the cheapest work I have had done in a long while.

Bass Reeves

It all about organisation. While alit of different pieces of equipment will hold there value and may or may not be low maintenance equipment has to pay for itself.

As I posted earlier you will buy a 12X6 box suitable for a tractor for 1500 euro. Most lads will have some description of a cow box whether it is 10X6, 8X5 or smaller. It amazing what you can do with organisation. For the few time you need to shift a big load there is lot of lads that will shift a load of cattle 20-30 miles for a 100-150 euro and that is paying by cheque. It may not be at the exact time you want it but 8k is a lot of money.

Like I said you would want to be having a bill of over 3k/ year before I spend that kind of money on a trailer. And I have only walked an animal.onnthe road when for some reason they got out

Bass Reeves

Grueller wrote: »

While I agree with wrangler above, I bought 5 cows a month ago. I couldn't draw them myself as the jeep was in the garage getting a few small bits tidied. I rang a local young lad that hauls cattle before I left. He said no bother, I headed home and started to milk. When I was on the last line in swings the young lad and drops the cows in the collection yard. I milked them with my cows there and then and out with them.
If my jeep was going I would have been 2 hours or more later that evening. I would have spent €20 on diesel. The young lad charged me €50. I think it was the cheapest work I have had done in a long while.

The milk off the 5 cows would nearly have paid him. I presume it was cash you paid him if it was by cheque and it may have been it's the point I am.making.

TBH it all about organisation.

memorystick

It’s cruel handy to go to a mart and bring home your own stock. Everything is dear the first day. If you’re paying €1000 or more on haulage per year I think it’s a good investment. There’s lads spending a fortune on 12 foot trailers for the bog and we know where that’s going.

Albert Johnson

Bass Reeves wrote: »

The milk off the 5 cows would nearly have paid him. I presume it was cash you paid him if it was by cheque and it may have been it's the point I am.making.

TBH it all about organisation.

Without knowing the circumstances involved, time taken, distance travelled ect it's hard to comment but at €50 the young lad wasn't at much if he had far to travel. Diesel cost's have skyrocketed again and I'd reckon you'd want €100 for much of a draw but I don't know the ins and outs of the story and Grueller paid what he was asked.

If you had a fragmented farm and a tractor capable and road worthy to do the haulage then I could see worse investments. Some yards aren't that suited to a lorry and a jeep and a 12x6 or even 14x6 isn't comparable to a 18 foot tractor trailer imo. You'll shift twice the stock in roughly the same time with less diesel costs compared to the jeep. I've spent time hauling stock with jeeps and trailers and there grand for handy runs with smaller number's but if you're looking to move groups over a distance you'd be further on with a lorry or tractor trailer, less cost and time involved.

Hershall

Bass Reeves wrote: »

It all about organisation. While alit of different pieces of equipment will hold there value and may or may not be low maintenance equipment has to pay for itself.

As I posted earlier you will buy a 12X6 box suitable for a tractor for 1500 euro. Most lads will have some description of a cow box whether it is 10X6, 8X5 or smaller. It amazing what you can do with organisation. For the few time you need to shift a big load there is lot of lads that will shift a load of cattle 20-30 miles for a 100-150 euro and that is paying by cheque. It may not be at the exact time you want it but 8k is a lot of money.

Like I said you would want to be having a bill of over 3k/ year before I spend that kind of money on a trailer. And I have only walked an animal.onnthe road when for some reason they got out

I bought a triaxle in 2019 as the young lads use it behind the tractor and hated the big cattle trailer for reversing etc.
In 2001 the tractor trailer cost 4500 new and 18 years later i got 4000 for it well minded now.
Amazing how machinery keeps its value compared to cars or jeeps.

funkey_monkey

Bass Reeves wrote: »

I think you would want to spending 3k+ per year on transport before you could consider spending 10 k on a livestock trailer. A tractor livestock trailer is really limited to sub 50 mile trips each way.

Memorystick paid out €1k last year for haulage - not sure what is averages out at over a number of years. Maybe they can reply with more details and stock numbers. I'd say they are definitely in the right position for looking at their own system of hauling animals if they are consistently paying out around that amount per annum.
Not sure what you are basing the €3k figure on. That spending would purchase Emahrex's trailer outright in just over 3 years which is a very short timeframe to get to the break even point.

The depreciation on the purchased trailer would be a lot less than the €1k per annum they are spending currently on transportation.

If it was me, I'd look at purchasing a 14' triaxle with the large wheels - possibly even one of those 16' ones, 6' wide and with a fold down front for ease of loading.
That way you should be able to go get a load of straw or shuttle a cow about with the jeep using a dividing gate. However, if they have large stock numbers then I guess the tractor trailer is the better option.
Really need to know haulage costs paid currently, stock numbers, distance, etc before you could make a judgement on best approach.

Only issue with 14' and 16' trailers is the hitch is only 3.5T. Unless you can get a Hitch-Ezy, McHitch or Lovells system imported and installed/certified. I'd love to know if anyone has done this or even if those hitches are legal here.

emaherx

Bass Reeves wrote: »

I think you would want to spending 3k+ per year on transport before you could consider spending 10 k on a livestock trailer. A tractor livestock trailer is really limited to sub 50 mile trips each way.

I assume your farm is in one or two parcels

Cattle trailer is the most important piece of equipment here. Not sure where you get the 3k+ figure from as it will be written off over 8 years and used for the next 30 years.


Moving 20 plus cattle between out farms is no fun with a jeep trailer and even less so when pulled by a tractor.

wrangler

Albert Johnson wrote: »

Without knowing the circumstances involved, time taken, distance travelled ect it's hard to comment but at €50 the young lad wasn't at much if he had far to travel. Diesel cost's have skyrocketed again and I'd reckon you'd want €100 for much of a draw but I don't know the ins and outs of the story and Grueller paid what he was asked.

If you had a fragmented farm and a tractor capable and road worthy to do the haulage then I could see worse investments. Some yards aren't that suited to a lorry and a jeep and a 12x6 or even 14x6 isn't comparable to a 18 foot tractor trailer imo. You'll shift twice the stock in roughly the same time with less diesel costs compared to the jeep. I've spent time hauling stock with jeeps and trailers and there grand for handy runs with smaller number's but if you're looking to move groups over a distance you'd be further on with a lorry or tractor trailer, less cost and time involved.

Two farmers that were interested in my trailer had lorries of their own and both said you won't get a lorry in everywhere, especially on rented land, Some rented farms still have 10 ft gates
I often had to move 4-500 sheep to a shed when we'd be trying to get shearing done in broken weather and if I was using the tractor it'd be from land that a lorry wouldn't get to.
Until you have a trailer of your own you won't appreciate them.

Albert Johnson

wrangler wrote: »

Two farmers that were interested in my trailer had lorries of their own and both said you won't get a lorry in everywhere, especially on rented land, Some rented farms still have 10 ft gates
I often had to move 4-500 sheep to a shed when we'd be trying to get shearing done in broken weather and if I was using the tractor it'd be from land that a lorry wouldn't get to.
Until you have a trailer of your own you won't appreciate them.

A mid sized lorry with something like an 18- 20 foot body is as close to an ideal setup as you'll get imo. Easy maneuvered, capable of carrying a volume of stock, not too hard ran and as comfortable as a car to drive. However it's not meant for anything only tar or concrete yards and it doesn't take much of a soft spot for it to require a tow out.

I wouldn't be a fan of tractor trailers but I see how they suit a lot of setups. If you had a tractor that was capable and reasonably comfortable you'd shift a lot of stock on your ease and not be worrying about mucky gaps, slippy hill's ect. I try to avoid tractor work if possible mostly because the yolks I grew up driving had driver comfort very far down the list of priorities. However with modern tractors that shouldn't be an issue.

A tractor trailer isn't exactly mega money even new and it's not something that depreciates rapidly or requires huge maintenance. Take it that a new Ivor Williams or similar would be more than half the price of most of the trailers quoted in this thread. You'll only carry half the stock on a jeep trailer and tbh there only meant for use behind a jeep. Towing them through land and rough spots behind the tractor doesn't do them much justice over time. If you already had a good tractor that done the rest of the work on the farm and only needed a car or similar for off farm work/commitments then I'd reckon a tractor trailer was a better purchase than a jeep and standard trailer.

funkey_monkey

Problem with the lorry setup is that you have additional maintenance headache of the truck and if it is not in frequent use then it can become a money pit. Unlike a trailer which can be parked up over the winter and left virtually harm free.
Plus you'd need to put the truck through its annual CVRT at €140 - €170.
You'd want something over 7.5T as the lighter ones will only be fit for about 4T payload (~6cows @ 675kg) as their unladen weight is around the 3.5T mark. I think that puts you into HGV license weights. Plus insurance and tank loads of diesel you don't need for a tractor drawn trailer.

Interesting to read all the differing opinions.

memorystick

emaherx wrote: »

I assume your farm is in one or two parcels

Cattle trailer is the most important piece of equipment here. Not sure where you get the 3k+ figure from as it will be written off over 8 years and used for the next 30 years.


Moving 20 plus cattle between out farms is no fun with a jeep trailer and even less so when pulled by a tractor.

How does a jeep trailer handle behind a tractor? I’ve no experience. I’ve seen a few triaxles with the wheels underneath the body for sale. What are they like?

emaherx

memorystick wrote: »

How does a jeep trailer handle behind a tractor? I’ve no experience. I’ve seen a few triaxles with the wheels underneath the body for sale. What are they like?

Grand pulled, but I find it more difficult to reverse a jeep trailer on a tractor compared to the same trailer on a jeep or a tractor trailer, but maybe that's just me.

Albert Johnson

funkey_monkey wrote: »

Problem with the lorry setup is that you have additional maintenance headache of the truck and if it is not in frequent use then it can become a money pit. Unlike a trailer which can be parked up over the winter and left virtually harm free.
Plus you'd need to put the truck through its annual CVRT at €140 - €170.
You'd want something over 7.5T as the lighter ones will only be fit for about 4T payload (~6cows @ 675kg) as their unladen weight is around the 3.5T mark. I think that puts you into HGV license weights. Plus insurance and tank loads of diesel you don't need for a tractor drawn trailer.

Interesting to read all the differing opinions.

You'd need to be using a lorry regularly to justify it's upkeep and I'm not suggesting that there the best option for everyone. IF you had sufficient work then they'd be the best all round solution imo but there's a reason that most lads run jeep or tractor trailers for occasional work.

A tractor trailer offers similar capacity but a fraction of the cost compared to a lorry and you can park it up when not in use without complications like CVRT tests, upkeep, tax ect and anyone can operate a tractor and trailer where as you'd need a C licence for a lorry. To get back to the point a tractor trailer isn't the most expensive bit of kit you could buy, if and when needed it's very useful and most lads would already be running a tractor capable of operating it.