# Anyone ever used a mobile home frame to build flatbed to haul hay?



## ih4me

Anyone ever transform a old mobile home frame into a flatbed to haul hay? I saw one for sale on craigslist but it sold before I called, but seems like it would be pretty heavy duty frame and capable of hauling a decent amount of hay. Any ideas or input?


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## slowzuki

The frames are flimsy, not worth the effort. Both the I beam and the box style. I've seen a few done but very sensitive to rust. For all the work easier to use real steel.


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## mlappin

Not only that, but make sure if you do built/buy a trailer like that don't let anybody borrow it, it'll come back fubared for sure. Don't ask how we know.


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## NDVA HAYMAN

As cheap as some flat bed trailers are these days, I would use one of those before I would use a mobile home frame.


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## Tim/South

I still have one around from the old days. We could get frames cheap back then and made trailers from them.

The tongue is short, can not turn as sharp as a regular trailer and take more skill to back up. We had to move the axels forward, did not need a 60' trailer.

The trailer tires are held against the rim by air pressure. Have to keep them aired up with a lot of pressure. Here, you have to run low boy tires on mobile home converted trailers. Some states have banned the axels all together.


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## slowzuki

The i-beam ones that are the long frame cut in half then use the i-beam doubled side by side are strong enough for big loads but twisted very easy.

The box section ones are like sheet metal thickness. One guy had cut some into 10 ft sections for little bridges on his roads but they just fold up and break the stitch welds on the seam.

Everyone and their dog tries to sell the frames for big money but with the light steel and the welded backing plates/small bearing style mobile axles instead of the newer mh axles why would someone buy?

On the flip side, the mini-home moving trailers that the home building companies have are built much better and use rebuildable axles with regular 7000 lb backing plates and bearings on the axles. They turn up for sale frequently but watch out for why they junked them. Very wide too, 10-12 ft, good for 5x5 bales I guess.


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## German Farmer

NOOO! We have one bent to hell and back in the cow lot loaded with old poles.

Moved to real trailers. Every complaint above, times two!!!

Honestly, if you were doing thirty bales a year, close to home, four footers, then ok, but fifteen hundred to ton bales will make life expectancy very short.


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## ih4me

Thanks, was weary of the idea because you don't see many around. Can that idea...


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## RockmartGA

I once had a gooseneck made from a mobile home frame. They cut it in half and doubled the i-beams. Had a LOT of flex to it. Did okay in the field hauling square bales, would only get it on the road for short distances at slow speeds.

I did see one where they put the front running gear from a hay rack and used the two back mobile home axles. As I recall, that wasn't too bad.

Bottom line, it would probably do okay for a field trailer, but not something you would want to load up and get on the highway with (provided you could get it registered and tagged).


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## TessiersFarm

I've got 2 of them, cut down and doubled up, as stated. I treat them like hay wagons, slow short trips, but they handle a lot better behind a 1 ton than a wagon, easier to back into my equipment shed. I really like them. I built a little trailer dolly, short tongue with a trailer ball just about over the axle, so I could haul them behind the baler, we mostly load by hand anyways, or with a pop up loader. To each his own I guess, I can buy a house trailer frame around here for under 500, don't see much for wagons under a grand. By the way, farm trailers here are exempt from tags


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