Jeep haulers- tow rigs and trailers

[88mjsally]

 I was curious to see what everyone else is towing and hauling with

 

I’ll start:

Tow rig is a 1985 gmc c3500 dually with a small block and th400. It’s really slow but it actually tow pretty decent. It’ll probably get a 6.0 ls when the motor dies which could be anytime

 

trailer is a custom built 16.5’ hydraulic tilt deck with a single 7k brake axle. Has a 2” mount for a winch and I bolted the tool box on the front for straps and it holds a battery maintainer and the hydraulic controls. The pump is mounted up under the deck

[89 MJ]

Right now if I need to tow something, I usually borrow my parents 17 Sierra. I’d like to build an LS swapped squarebody for that though. 

[jpnjake]

@88mjsally

You got a pretty sweet trailer, I dig the tilt function and that you built it exactly how you wanted, nice work 

Currently for anything but Jeeps my tow pig is my MJ, have towed somewhere around 4000 lbs in the trailer and probably 1000 in the bed at the same time 

 

towed on an old homemade car trailer one of my dads friends had and used back in the 80’s-90’s. Eventually I want to be able to move XJ’s and mj’s locally with my Mj but before that I’ll need a better trailer and trailer brakes. 
MJ is 3600lbs across the scale with driver and the trailer is 1400 lbs. 

 

For anything heavy and far we use my buddy’s brothers truck and trailer, that make long drives very enjoyable 

[88mjsally]

11 minutes ago, jpnjake said:

@88mjsally

You got a pretty sweet trailer, I dig the tilt function and that you built it exactly how you wanted, nice work 

Currently for anything but Jeeps my tow pig is my MJ, have towed somewhere around 4000 lbs in the trailer and probably 1000 in the bed at the same time 

 

towed on an old homemade car trailer one of my dads friends had and used back in the 80’s-90’s. Eventually I want to be able to move XJ’s and mj’s locally with my Mj but before that I’ll need a better trailer and trailer brakes. 
MJ is 3600lbs across the scale with driver and the trailer is 1400 lbs. 

 

For anything heavy and far we use my buddy’s brothers truck and trailer, that make long drives very enjoyable 

I can’t take credit for building the trailer, my buddy from college built it but it’s exactly what I wanted because I dislike ramps. The tilt also makes it easy to load stuff that doesn’t run. I used my v8 mj as a tow rig for a long time and it did okay but doesn’t compare at all to the stability and ease of stopping I have in the dually

[gogmorgo]

I’m of a mind that trailers should mostly stop themselves. Tow vehicle shouldn’t be working too hard to stop it sorta deal.

I’m curious how a single axle would be with a longer trailer. No stability issues on the road?

This is my tow rig. 

2004 GMC 2500HD. Base model 6.0 NV4500 4x4. Not the fastest thing out there when towing, but I paid $3000 for it last summer, and it only needed brakes and tires to get it reliable enough, not that it doesn’t still need some stuff, but it did two full trips across western Canada in a week of snowstorms last December when I was moving without skipping a beat. I was planning to sell it again after my move but I kinda like the thing. All the towing capability I need to do and it’s just under the GVWR to need annual inspections here. Beats the crap out of towing with something smaller. 

[88mjsally]

4 hours ago, gogmorgo said:

I’m of a mind that trailers should mostly stop themselves. Tow vehicle shouldn’t be working too hard to stop it sorta deal.

I’m curious how a single axle would be with a longer trailer. No stability issues on the road?

This is my tow rig. 

2004 GMC 2500HD. Base model 6.0 NV4500 4x4. Not the fastest thing out there when towing, but I paid $3000 for it last summer, and it only needed brakes and tires to get it reliable enough, not that it doesn’t still need some stuff, but it did two full trips across western Canada in a week of snowstorms last December when I was moving without skipping a beat. I was planning to sell it again after my move but I kinda like the thing. All the towing capability I need to do and it’s just under the GVWR to need annual inspections here. Beats the crap out of towing with something smaller. 

It’s very stable and balanced very well so it tows great empty or loaded with pretty much anything. My friend towed it with his Tacoma and we could barely even feel it back there. It’s also fairly light (around 1800lbs I think) and does have self adjusting drum brakes so it stops great

[pizzaman09]

I bought the Comanche as a truck and tow rig.  Tow lots with it with the largest thing being a 15ft single axle trailer.  I've had about 5000 lbs behind the truck with an extra 1000 I'm the bed.  When I need to tow heavier stuff I'll grab my parents 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee with the towing package good for 7k lbs.  

 

The one upgrade I've done to the Comanche for towing is a set of Hawk performance brake pads up front, they genuinely make a big improvement in towing.  My truck does have the Dana 44 with the larger drums.

 

The bumper mount ball is the single most stable hitch setup I've come across, it's so nice and solid, rarely do I experience any wobbles behind the Comanche.

[Pete M]

for the last couple decades it was my beloved diesel KJ.  but these days she's more or less retired from heavy duty towing and I just borrow my pop's Durango RT. 

 

 

[GrandBoost98]

I started off towing with my grand cherokee. Honestly did great with a weight distribution hitch and anti sway setup. The trailer is a 18' big tex. Both axles have brakes. And stuck my old warn winch on it

 

 

But around the same time I did the one ton swap, I also upgraded my tow rig to a ram 3500

 

I still have the grand cherokee but I'll never tow with it again after having the dually lol

[derf]

I've been sort of working in my 1997 F250HD. 

 

 

The project stalled this year as other stuff took precedence. 

 

Previous owner butchered the under dash wiring harness but I found a replacement.  It should be showing up today.

 

I'll be messing with it over the winter and hopefully get it running so I can go get plates.  

 

To tow the Jeeps I have a 10K rated car hauler that I'll probably replace the deck on next year sometime.

[schardein]

In 2021, I got a new tow rig, a 2019 Chevy 2500 Duramax.  It is the newest vehicle I have ever owned.  I travel quite a bit for off road trips towing my CJ7.  My trailer is a fairly light duty (rated 7k) unit with a 13' deck and 3' dovetail.  Proper tongue weight puts the rear tires just barely on front of the dovetail.  This makes for a short, maneuverable combination.  With the diesel and exhaust brake, I don't even feel the trailer.  I've put 70,000 miles on this trailer (yes, I track trailer mileage).  Someday I'd like to upgrade to a trailer like the second picture!

[BarracudaBlueXJ]

It is not a very practical hauler nor could I find a picture with a Jeep on the trailer.  But I have hauled a lot of Cherokees and a few comanches over the past few years with it.  

1995 K1500 with a TBI 350, manual trans, Dana 44 front, semi float 14 bolt rear with 4.88 gears.

[Htchevyii]

My Comanche usually hauls itself. My 2005 Ram 1500 handles the bigger jobs.