Mini Gooseneck “Welding Trailer”

Mini Gooseneck “Welding Trailer” FARM SHOP Welders/Torches 64 Steve Ice does a lot of welding work for farmers in his area often working in farm fields to help with equipment breakdowns So when he decided to build an off-road welding trailer for his Deere Gator he equipped it with a gooseneck hitch     “A gooseneck offers better weight distribution on the utility vehicle just as it does on a pickup I figured that if I have to go out to the field I’d rather get my utility vehicle dirty than my pickup ” says Ice “Also a gooseneck trailer is easier to back up in tight places than a bumper-pulled trailer ”     Ice uses the trailer to haul his Mig welder and another portable welder as well as a big argon carbon monoxide bottle All components are secured by ratchet straps that attach to the trailer’s side rails     The 2-wheeled trailer measures 8 ft long by 4 ft wide and has 1-ft high rails It rides on 13-in wheels Ice used 3-in channel iron to build the frame with 1/8-in sheet metal on the floor and 1/4-in diamond plate steel over the fenders He used 2-in angle iron for the gooseneck hitch welding a 2-in coupler onto it     To make the Gator’s hitch he welded a steel ball onto a rectangular steel plate which he bolted to the bed’s floor A hand-cranked jack mounts on the trailer “I drop the Gator’s tailgate and back up to the trailer then use the jack to drop the gooseneck onto the coupler ” says Ice     He spent less than $400 “Most of that was for the wheels and axle which I bought at a surplus store ” notes Ice     Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Steve Ice P O Box 92 Upland Ind 46989 ph 765 661-8074

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