Anyone have an opinion on Lifetime Brand Folding Utility Trailer

[NelsonQ]

I'm looking at buying a utility trailer (small) and compact for storage when not used. Anyone with experience with this brand or any folding for that matter. Any and all opinions welcomed. And if you know a better priced location in Canada, I'm all ears.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/browse/p...4443303985&assortment=primary&fromSearch=true

http://www.lifetime.com/trailers/ Select the 4x6 Folding Utility Trailer

 

[reelfishin]

Re: Anyone have an opinion on Lifetime Brand Folding Utility Trailer

I don't think I like the folding part? It looks like the axle folds or comes apart some how? You only save 19" in width from open to folded, that's not much of a difference when it comes to space. I'd think that if you really needed to use a trailer, you would want something a bit more substantial. I'd be afraid of the folding mechanism and axle.

I use a modified pop-up camper for a utility trailer, I originally built it to carry one of those basstracker ABS boats but its been used for everything from ATV's to scrap metal hauling. It's light, was cheap to build and carries plenty of weight.

 

[Tacklewasher]

Re: Anyone have an opinion on Lifetime Brand Folding Utility Trailer

You save a bit more than 19" in width.

Folded out, the width is 48" plus the width of the tires/fenders. Folded up it is 29" including the tires/fenders.

Also is $200 off right now in my area. Not sure if the sale price is across Canada. I have not seen them except at crappy tire.

It's pretty easy to get to 1,000 lbs and the 6 foot bed would be a concern, but that kinda depends what you are using it for.

Never bought one but have looked at them and they seem sturdy enough.

 

[NelsonQ]

Re: Anyone have an opinion on Lifetime Brand Folding Utility Trailer

Also is $200 off right now in my area. Not sure if the sale price is across Canada. I have not seen them except at crappy tire.

It's pretty easy to get to 1,000 lbs and the 6 foot bed would be a concern, but that kinda depends what you are using it for.

Never bought one but have looked at them and they seem sturdy enough.

I checked them out at lunch time. They're $200 off right across Canada until tomorrow.

They're actually quite sturdy and well built. I'm not worried about the weight load as I typically will only use it to haul items back and forth between my home and my campsite 40 mins away. The most weight would be a load of cedar firewood 15 mins away from the site but even then, I'd guess a 4x6 trailer stacked 11" high would be around 500-600 lbs.

To show the extremes for this trailer, I read the online review at Canadian Tire from a person who recently purchased it. One word, INSANE!

"I bought this trailer to haul my piano in, and it worked great for the application. I was able to haul the piano from Florida to Halifax at speeds exceeding 140 km/h, and there were no troubles. The e-z load ramps made short work of loading the 2 ton instrument, and when I was done, it folded up neatly."

I'm sure it'll handle the loads I'll throw at it. Only negative I heard is it bounces around a bit empty but I think that's typical of smaller utility trailers.

Thanks for the feedback so far guys. I really like the storage aspect of it as I can stick it in my 10x10 shed.

Here it is in action (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7832501390571305254&hl=en)

 

[Titanium48]

Re: Anyone have an opinion on Lifetime Brand Folding Utility Trailer

Not sure I'd believe the "speeding piano" review. Any piano that will fit into a 4x6 trailer won't weigh 2 tons. Probably closer to 0.2 tons.

It's too bad that CT only carries the 4 ft x 6 ft size. The 5 ft x 8 ft version still folds down to 29 in wide but would be a lot more useful.

 

[NelsonQ]

Re: Anyone have an opinion on Lifetime Brand Folding Utility Trailer

Not sure I'd believe the "speeding piano" review. Any piano that will fit into a 4x6 trailer won't weigh 2 tons. Probably closer to 0.2 tons.

It's too bad that CT only carries the 4 ft x 6 ft size. The 5 ft x 8 ft version still folds down to 29 in wide but would be a lot more useful.

I question the weight as well but either way, regardless of the weight, 140km+ on the highway. Not too smart.

I actually prefer the smaller trailer as I`m not carrying much and want as small a footprint as possible. But yeah, CTC doesn`t carry all the sizes.

I went ahead and bought one (sale ends tomorrow) Took me almost an hour to get it while they figured out I needed a Manufacturers Certificate of Origin and the Vehicle docs to register it. (That was a fun activity)

I must say, I`m really impressed. Will snap some photos of the undercarriage, etc tomorrow and post so people can see it. It folds up really nice and small in the garage which is what I hoped for.

 

[reelfishin]

Re: Anyone have an opinion on Lifetime Brand Folding Utility Trailer

I question the weight as well but either way, regardless of the weight, 140km+ on the highway. Not too smart.

I actually prefer the smaller trailer as I`m not carrying much and want as small a footprint as possible. But yeah, CTC doesn`t carry all the sizes.

I went ahead and bought one (sale ends tomorrow) Took me almost an hour to get it while they figured out I needed a Manufacturers Certificate of Origin and the Vehicle docs to register it. (That was a fun activity)

I must say, I`m really impressed. Will snap some photos of the undercarriage, etc tomorrow and post so people can see it. It folds up really nice and small in the garage which is what I hoped for.

I'd be interested to see what they do for an axle? Torsion axles with no beam?

The 8' would be far more useful since it would carry a full sheet of plywood. Very useful if you mess with boats and boat rebuilding. Can it be towed with the two ends removed? (With cargo hanging over both ends? Do they give you any tie down points?
It looks like it may be good for things like transporting a mower or such, but I don't know about a 2 ton anything. I can't imagine the tires taking that for very long, let alone the wheel bearings.

 

[NelsonQ]

Re: Anyone have an opinion on Lifetime Brand Folding Utility Trailer

I'd be interested to see what they do for an axle? Torsion axles with no beam?

The 8' would be far more useful since it would carry a full sheet of plywood. Very useful if you mess with boats and boat rebuilding. Can it be towed with the two ends removed? (With cargo hanging over both ends? Do they give you any tie down points?
It looks like it may be good for things like transporting a mower or such, but I don't know about a 2 ton anything. I can't imagine the tires taking that for very long, let alone the wheel bearings.

reelfishin I'll take some pics of the undercarriage to give you an idea of the axle. As for weight, I'm not carrying much and yes, you can remove the front and rear end panels (need to in order to fold it up)

I don't know if the inside is a true 4' width to handle a full sheet but I suspect you could put a few sheets in there on an angle.

There are about 12tie downs 6 on the outside, and 6 inside (6 inside are actually part of the hinging mechanism to fold up the floor)

It's actually pretty well designed. I'm going through the complete assembly again tonight (I didn't do it so I'm double checking it to be sure)

 

[NelsonQ]

Re: Anyone have an opinion on Lifetime Brand Folding Utility Trailer

As promised, here are some pics.

Fully opened, with front panel removed to allow it to fold.

Fully opened. Notice the front and rear panels remove to be used as ramps if you want to drive your 'toys' onto it

Here is the crank. You can see how the axles are joined in the middle and swing out.

Here it is being closed, you can see the pivot points. Also, there are supports that run between the axle and the main beam in the trailer (seen above and below)

Here is the trailer folded. Notice it's now gone from the 4 foot wide plus tires to a compressed storage width of 29 inches total. Very easy to store

Finally, notice how the hitch, when folded is almost completely retracted so its length is just barely over 6 feet for storage

So far, its a great trailer, will be using it to haul stuff next week. Its very well built with a ton of tie down points. Bounces around when empty a bit, but not too bad.

 

[NelsonQ]

Re: Anyone have an opinion on Lifetime Brand Folding Utility Trailer

Latest update, so it worked great for the few things I hauled around (old pieces of a deck, yard leaves - 9 trailer loads full)

Handled well with a load on it, much more stable even at highway speeds.

However, one thing to be aware of. The clips on the inside of the trailer that hold the crank handle for opening/closing the trailer don't secure the handle all that well.

Somewhere along my 40 minute ride, handle came loose and is somewhere in the 30 miles between my home and my trailer. I'll be looking for ways to improve it.

On the upside, I called Lifetime's 1-800 #. No questions asked, they shipped me a new handle.

Really like the trailer, and I'm even more impressed with the Customer Service at Lifetime.