Trailer Deck Stain

lugbolt

Well-known member

Equipment
ZG127S-54
Oct 15, 2015
4,807
1,575
113
Mid, South, USA
Steel deck and be done with it. Not as heavy as you think. Lasts almost forever, well, unless you live in the rust belt. Here, pretty much forever. Treated my small car trailer with a steel deck when the wood was too rotten to haul a car safely, and that's been close to 30 years ago. Still going, no rust to be found aside from a little surface rust in the coupler. Pulls 100 times better with the steel deck!! My next one will have a steel deck too, and will be 18' instead of 16'.
 

GeoHorn

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
M4700DT, LA1002FEL, Ferguson5-8B Compactor-Roller, 10KDumpTrailer, RTV-X900
May 18, 2018
5,579
2,947
113
Texas
Steel deck and be done with it. Not as heavy as you think. Lasts almost forever, well, unless you live in the rust belt. Here, pretty much forever. Treated my small car trailer with a steel deck when the wood was too rotten to haul a car safely, and that's been close to 30 years ago. Still going, no rust to be found aside from a little surface rust in the coupler. Pulls 100 times better with the steel deck!! My next one will have a steel deck too, and will be 18' instead of 16'.
The “C”-purlins shape make them extremely stiff and when laid out to replace that board trailer-bed it’s surprising how it strengthened up the trailer and got rid of flex when hauling heavy/concentrated loads. You’re right, Lugbolt... it really improved the trailer for no weight penalty.
To illustrate the construction, I laid one purlin down and tack welded it’s long left surface to the edge of the trailer with a 2” bead every 3 feet... and the lower right edge to the cross-beams. The next purlin‘s upper left edge to the purlin just mentioned... and it’s lower rt edge to the crossbeam... and so on and so on...
 
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Palmettokat

Active member

Equipment
M6800, B2710, L6060, Volvo 5 ton excavator and implements.
Apr 21, 2020
251
53
28
South Carolina
I would say your trailer decking depends on your trailer use. Mine have always been for tractors and excavator and implements but also mulch and hay. Unless the metal is reasonable strong setting a blade on excavator down for transportation or a disk or plow shank for hauling, I rather have them on wood than metal for wearing edges if nothing else. If you are using the trailer to haul a load on tires would think either surface is good such as my lawnmower trailer with it's expanded metal bottom or the dump trailer with smooth metal bottom for dirt and debris dumping.
 
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