Gooseneck or pintle?

[Brute_200]

I have an 03 duramax with the lb7 6.6L and plan to buy a ctl in the 9,000-11,000lbs range. I know a gooseneck trailer would be ideal but I was wondering if anyone hauls around this kind of weight with a pintle hitched trailer just fine? Thoughts?

 

[Tenwheeler]

What is a ctl? The Duramax came in many different weight rated trucks.
I used to pull 10,000 lb load on a triaxle 2 5/16 ball trailer on a regular basis. The truck was a 2000, 3500 single wheel, 4X4, 454.
Normally stayed within 1 hour on state roads. Not sure that is considered just fine. Never trusted it to send anyone else. I moved up. That set up in the rain on the interstate could make a banana peel in a dark kitchen a nice ride.

 

[hosspuller]

That pintle hitch will be a good 2 - 3 feet behind the axle. That's a long lever to swing the back of the truck. You'll want enough weight on the rear axle to keep it planted behind you. (But not so much your steer tires are losing their grip) Location on the trailer the CTL is will be critical to the handling. (as 10wheeler says) Not so with a GN since the hitch weight is always in front of the rear axle.

 

[rondig]

If it is srw better to go gn...pintle shifts a lot of weight to truck

 

[Old Doug]

I Didnt have alot of money and bought a pintle with the plans to build a neck for it. I used it some as is and then built the neck. I was hauling 10.000+ every trip. It had to be loaded just right with the pintle or it was a long white knucle ride. With the GN it was big deal i did it 1000s of times in the 20+yeas i have owned the trailer. GN is the way to go if your hauling over 6000.I have hauled alot of loads that i shouldnt with pintles and bumper hitch trailers i lived and no one got hurt or lost money but every time i see a bad load it makes me think will they have the skil and luck that i had.

 

[renovator]

In New Mexico, according to the back of my drivers license, one can not tow more than the truck's GVW without a Class 4 equalizer hitch or a 5th wheel. It doesn't say anything about a pintle hitch. (I've never seen an equalizer set up with a pintle hitch)
I pulled a 12,000 lb. dump with my old F-250 and an equalizer hitch. Once I got used to it, I really liked that set up. It seemed to pull a lot nicer with some weight on the front axle.
I see a lot, if not most guys running around with big trailers and no EQ hitch (even the City trucks). It's not something the law looks for (they won't pull you over just to look at your hitch around here), but I figured that if something ever did happen and a sharp lawyer got a hold of it, it could have meant big trouble.
All that is to say, if I had a choice, I would go with a gooseneck.

 

[Georgia Iron]

I have an 03 duramax with the lb7 6.6L and plan to buy a ctl in the 9,000-11,000lbs range. I know a gooseneck trailer would be ideal but I was wondering if anyone hauls around this kind of weight with a pintle hitched trailer just fine? Thoughts?

I have an 2006 4 dr F250 diesel single rear wheel truck. I prefer to haul with a pintle because I use the bed space for tools. I have a machine in that size range. It is tricky to keep the 18' trailer decks loaded right. Too much the chains drag, not enough and it will wreck the truck. I have 2 14k pintle trailers, 1 10 ton goose neck trailer which with machine really loads the truck. I also have a 22k 3 axle eager beaver trailer. Which is 4k without a load and an 18k payload.

If I only used one machine then I would just have the 18k bumper pull and fix it as I break it. But I have some wide tractors that will not go in between the trailer tires. The load sits low between the tires and is safest to pull. Mark your trailer deck and pick the perfect spot for the machine to sit it will be fine. Allow park at the mark. The problems come in when you start wanted to carry 2 or three other buckets at the same time.

The sweet spot is upgraded bumper pull trailers running the 17.5 inch wheels with a 18k rating. You can get them with a 18 or 20 foot deck maybe even a 22' deck. I wish mine was a longer for my longer trips to the farm. If you want to carry a 4 wheel and machine with and attachment. ...

something like this

https://texaspridetrailers.com/prod...bumper-pull-no-rails-with-ramps-18000lb-gvwr/

Of course the frame is the same as on my 14k trailers, unless you pay for the upgrades which I would get. Which my 12k machines have trashed. The I beams bend and sag under the wood deck and then the rear of the trailer pulls in and you start bending the main trailer frames in. A upgraded trailer can cost close to 8.5 to 9 k.

The eager beaver is awesome it is heavy, expensive, and a deck over.... and you really need a F550 or F750 to pull it with a heavy load


https://www.eagerbeavertrailers.com/products/easyloaders/b9dow/

 

[bdog1234]

I pulled a Deere 333E on a Belshe pintle hitch trailer behind a 2016 duramax dually. It worked fine. I wouldn’t try it with a single rear wheel.

 

[Badmanfarm]

I have a 2016 ram 3500 srw and pull a 16 ft 10000lbs skid steer trailer with a pintle. I also pull a 14 ft dump trailer rated at 14000lbs. I have never had a problem with either. The dump trailer weights about 4000lbs empty and I have 8000lbs of stone in it and the pintle worked fine.

 

[OTG AuGres]

May be a little off topic, but what is the meaningful difference between a pintle and 2 5/16” ball when talking identically rated trailers? I’m talking from a performance or safety perspective.

I pull a 15000# lb tandem axle trailer, 2 5/16” bumper pull with an F250 Powerstroke. Either loaded with my Bobcat E42 (approx 10000#) or my Bobcat T595 (approx 8000#). Loading position is fairly critical. I have airbags on the truck that I adjust to fine tune the load and ride height. Not using an equalizing hitch. Tows really good...straight and true. Not the least bit dicey.

 

[ianholt150]

gooseneck all the way for me. You can see where you are backing, and you dont have to worry about crushing your bumper by turning too sharp. It also centers the load over your rear axles. of course, i pull it with a dually, but it doesn't really matter. just make sure the ball is centered. we had an old ford pickup, and the ball was off by an inch. that really screwed with things

 

[Shimmy1]

May be a little off topic, but what is the meaningful difference between a pintle and 2 5/16” ball when talking identically rated trailers? I’m talking from a performance or safety perspective.

Pintle hitches are almost always going to carry a higher weight rating, and have a much greater range of movement. Beyond that, personal preference is about the only other difference.

 

[OTG AuGres]

Thank you.

 

[ianholt150]

Pintle hitches are almost always going to carry a higher weight rating, and have a much greater range of movement. Beyond that, personal preference is about the only other difference.

How does that work? with a gooseneck you are centering the load over a weight bearing point in the frame. With a bumper pull, you are putting a lot of weight on a couple welds/bolts. Plus, the gooseneck adds traction. A pintle has limited movement. You can turn a new gooseneck flatbed over 180°. Plus, depending on who makes your trailer, you can haul a lot more. We have an Econoline tilt deck, and a Custom Built flatbed equipment trailer. Very happy with both, but had to rebuild the rear end of the econoline, because stupid me tried to jump a tractor from a step deck into that trailer.

 

[Shimmy1]

How does that work? with a gooseneck you are centering the load over a weight bearing point in the frame. With a bumper pull, you are putting a lot of weight on a couple welds/bolts. Plus, the gooseneck adds traction. A pintle has limited movement. You can turn a new gooseneck flatbed over 180°. Plus, depending on who makes your trailer, you can haul a lot more. We have an Econoline tilt deck, and a Custom Built flatbed equipment trailer. Very happy with both, but had to rebuild the rear end of the econoline, because stupid me tried to jump a tractor from a step deck into that trailer.

I guess it probably wasn't clear, but I wasn't referring to gooseneck style. I was comparing ball vs. pintle on a receiver hitch, and was assuming that was what OTG was asking.

 

[ianholt150]

Yeah that makes sense now. sorry for the confusion.

 

[RTSmith]

I guess it probably wasn't clear, but I wasn't referring to gooseneck style. I was comparing ball vs. pintle on a receiver hitch, and was assuming that was what OTG was asking.

The few times I've pulled a pintle behind my pick up, the "slop" in the hookup made for a very unhappy pull. Every time you start or stop, the ring moved in the hitch. A ball mount has none of that.

On another point- unless you are using a weight distribution hitch, you will probably find the weight rating on your receiver isn't very high. Like in the 5-7K range. It generally doubles with a WDH. At least with the factory receivers I've seen.

 

[colson04]

@RTSmith

I had the same experience with a pintle behind a pickup truck. Made for an unnerving and uncomfortable ride. I still have the trailer, but I don't pull it with my pickup anymore.