Hudson trailers

upnover

upnover

Grumpy, decrepit Old Man
Moderator
Joined
Mar 20, 2005
Location
Morganton NC
Tell me what yo know about them. THe one I am looking at is 16'X6' I know I will most likely widen it 6" on each side. Put something over the tires to drive across.
I think the frmaes are sturdy enough.
Biggest question is they have mobile home type axles. what kinda weight rating are they?
 
Hudson builds bad ass trailers.
My neighbor moves his backhoe and small dozer on a hudson trailer.

Important difference they use MH style axles but with street high speed rate tires.
My neighbors trailer broke a weld on the drive up amps (it was 10 years old) and he called them to ask for a repair quote, they fixed it free of charge repainted the whole trailer and replaced the coupler while they had it.

As always YMMV but that was a wow moment to me, and he wasnt the original owner!
 
I have not owned one, but all I have seen are HEAVY DUTY. My buddy has one and it alone weighs more than my trailer and Jeep together. Also has 8 lug wheels.
 
Up until about a year ago we had 2 hse 16's with MH axles at my work. We put more than a hundred thousand miles on one of them hauling an 8000 lb skid steer, 1000 lb trencher and a spare bucket every day. Never had a problem other than the tires wearing out way too often. So as far as I'm concerned they are very well built trailers. The only advice I have is to keep the bearings tight and well lubed because it seemed that the looser the bearings got the faster the tires wore.
 
I do know that what ever the poundage is that is stamped on it is what you can haul unlike most trailers. i.e. Hudson:10k lb=10k lb haul capacity. other trailers:10k lb=about 8k lb capacity depending on the weight of trailer.
 
lockedup5 said:
I do know that what ever the poundage is that is stamped on it is what you can haul unlike most trailers. i.e. Hudson:10k lb=10k lb haul capacity. other trailers:10k lb=about 8k lb capacity depending on the weight of trailer.
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Because their axles magically can tow more than they're really rated for? I'll believe it when I see it.
 
My mid-'90s manufactured Hudson Brothers 10k# is a brute! I heard the rebuttal about the way it's constructed, versus some of the other "car haulers", and would put it up against any of them LONG TERM. I bought from a contractor that hauled a Bobcat & skidder (reportedly in the 15K-18k# range) on it for years. At some point, the (mobilehome style) axles were replaced with a couple 4k# axles (use 6 lug Chevy rims ;) and D-range trailer tires) to gain brakes. Eddie Hudson said he'd bump the GWR past the factory 10k# due to the axle upgrade, but I declined for obvious reasons. He still sent me a new VIN tag for it!

Galen used it for a couple years to drag his Jeeps on before I got it. He'll never admit it, but he secretly wishes he'd bought it instead of the carhauler that eats tires & bearings faster than a kid with bag of candy! :lol:
 
I vote for em also. The wiring is just like any other factory trailer though, :poop:.
 
Another vote for them. My dad has a 3 axle that has been through a lot before he bought it and after. I've never seen another trailer any more tough.
 
Chip, from your description, it sounds like the same trailer I have. Mine is rated for 4 tons, and has electric brakes. I'm very pleased with mine.
 
My uncles have a bunch of hudson trailers, mostly the 3 1/2 ton marked ones. also have a hudson gooseneck or two rated higher. they swear by the hudsons, for what thats worth.
 
I called them to find out more about it.
HE said there was no such thing as mobile home axles, it's just the style mobile home builders used, and so do a lot of trailer makers.
The axles are rated for 4500LBS each
The trailer weighs 1950lbs.
They stopped using them because:
1. Hard to center the wheels
and
2. Parts are getting more difficult to find

So 8K is the capacity.
 
braxton357 said:
7k + 7k = 14k lbs axle rating. I'd say 4k is pretty close to trailer weight if not a bit high.
:flipoff2:
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If it has two 7k axles it's a 14k trailer, regardless of what is printed on the side of it.

upnover said:
I called them to find out more about it.
HE said there was no such thing as mobile home axles, it's just the style mobile home builders used, and so do a lot of trailer makers.
The axles are rated for 4500LBS each
The trailer weighs 1950lbs.
They stopped using them because:
1. Hard to center the wheels
and
2. Parts are getting more difficult to find
So 8K is the capacity.
Click to expand...

That's just a matter of semantics. I can understand why they would say that, but the fact is that style of axle is commonly known as a mobile home axle, regardless of what they want to call it. They can call it a turnip if they want to, but it doesn't change what the axle is. It is a cheaper axle assembly, plain and simple. I'm not saying it's not of good quality, because they are plenty strong, but they are just a pain in the ass as compared to a regular 7k axle. Harder to find parts for, harder to find wheels and tires for, and a pain to mount the wheels on. That's why I'm going to swap the mobile home axles out from under my trailer in a few weeks for regular 7k rated, 8 on 6.5 lug patterned ones.
 
I don't really know why you are wanting to be a jackass about a trailer conversation. I guess you are a trailer God or something. I just stated exactly what was told to me by a Hudson dealer when I was in the market for one. If it has 10k lbs. stamped on the plate maybe it has two 6k lb axles to compensate for the weight of the trailer. Hudson my base their stamped weight on NET weight and not gross weight. My opinion on Hudson trailers is that they are way over priced. Don't get me wrong they are super trailers. I have been extremely happy w/ my "homemade" T&W trailer though. (14k lbs. GROSS)
 
lockedup5 said:
I don't really know why you are wanting to be a jackass about a trailer conversation. I guess you are a trailer God or something. I just stated exactly what was told to me by a Hudson dealer when I was in the market for one. If it has 10k lbs. stamped on the plate maybe it has two 6k lb axles to compensate for the weight of the trailer. Hudson my base their stamped weight on NET weight and not gross weight. My opinion on Hudson trailers is that they are way over priced. Don't get me wrong they are super trailers. I have been extremely happy w/ my "homemade" T&W trailer though. (14k lbs. GROSS)
Click to expand...

Chill the hell out man. Nobody's trying to be a jackass here, just stating the facts. Nearly the entire trailer industry rates their trailers by the axle capacity, but Hudson chooses to do it differently in some cases. Pretty much everyone understands that the standard way trailers are weight rated is a gross number, not a net.
 
Roughshod said:
. Pretty much everyone understands that the standard way trailers are weight rated is a gross number, not a net.
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WHich is why its worth noting...a 10k Hudson probably equals a 12k of many brands in material and strength.....and would probably be equal in cost, but much more than xyz 12k trailer.

I *think* that is the point being made, albeit maybe not in the best way.
 
Roughshod said:
Chill the hell out man. Nobody's trying to be a jackass here, just stating the facts. Nearly the entire trailer industry rates their trailers by the axle capacity, but Hudson chooses to do it differently in some cases. Pretty much everyone understands that the standard way trailers are weight rated is a gross number, not a net.
Click to expand...
So tell me do you agree w/ me or not? Has anyone else ever heard this about Hudson trailers or was the dealer blowing smoke up my butt to sell me a trailer?
 
Mobile home style axle bearings
inner bearing #25580 bore - 1.75
outer axle #LM67048 bore - 1.25

Standard 3500lb. axle bearings
Inner bearing #L68149 bore - 1.3775
Outer bearing #44649 bore - 1.0625

8 lug 7200lb. axle bearings
Inner bearing #25580 bore - 1.75
Outer bearing #02475 bore - 1.25

These are all timken part numbers. I hope this clears up some of the questions about MH axles. I've been wondering about this also so I thought I would do a little research. Now I know the axles aren't the the only thing that decides what the load rating is but this gives you a good idea how much larger the spindles are than standard 3500 lb axles. Plus with the MH axles you have to run a 14.5 tire which I believe is 10 ply and a much higher load rating than the standard load C 3500lb tires.
 
mars fab as my witness i have a 9ton hudson 18000 cap 23580 gvwr gooseneck and the trailer has weighed 32860 by itself un hooked on scales and handled the weight good the brakes had some more to go but i did make that trip at 3am on a sunday mornin for about 22 miles to home
 
chip the deckover that i hauled my fullsize bronco on was a hudson. very nice well built trailer.
 
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