hd-10
1/2 ton status
real quick wood or metal deck for towing blazer which is better? thanks and why
CK5
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trailer ?
- Thread starter hd-10
- Start date
MTMike
1/2 ton status
Mine's got wood... I like it, but the treatment on it is now 10 years old and the wood is starting to deteriorate, so I'm gonna Rhino-Line it and never worry about it again 
az-k5
1/2 ton status
Metal lasts longer but has a lot of drawbacks. If your tires are anyhwere near wet you will be winching onto the trailer, metal gets hot (imagine laying under your rig to tie it down and getting 3rd degree burns), and it is heavier. Wood, if properly treated (a good deck sealer) will last longer than the tires on the trailer.
gravdigr
1/2 ton status
We just redecked our wood bed trailer last year. It was 15 years old. We use 2" thick red oak planks and don't need to treat them. I prefer wood for the traction. Many times I have had to drive our backhoe on the trailer with tires covered in mud or snow and wood just gives better traction.
big pappa b
3/4 ton status
Not to mention the added cost of metal especially with todays steel prices. Go with the wood. If it ever does rot it won't cost much to replace it
My vote is for wood. Better traction, doesn't get hot, lighter, and lasts long enough.....
Also, if you start hauling other random stuff on your trailer (which i can guarantee you will), things will slide less on wood and be easier to tie down. Plus you can screw into wood. THis is awesome when trying ot secure things. Like when transporting cabinets, you just sink a few screws through the backs, and put on a strap or too over the top. Or if you want ot screw a tire "stop" block to the trailer it is easy.
Basically, its easier to modify and add things to the surface that arent' really permanent.
Just a few more ideas to consider....
Also, if you start hauling other random stuff on your trailer (which i can guarantee you will), things will slide less on wood and be easier to tie down. Plus you can screw into wood. THis is awesome when trying ot secure things. Like when transporting cabinets, you just sink a few screws through the backs, and put on a strap or too over the top. Or if you want ot screw a tire "stop" block to the trailer it is easy.
Basically, its easier to modify and add things to the surface that arent' really permanent.
Just a few more ideas to consider....
camiswelding
1/2 ton status
Wood....
fixes easily,,,, things dont slide like they do in steel... lighter in the long run
you can nail 2 x 4 s as blocks etc on a wood deck....
fixes easily,,,, things dont slide like they do in steel... lighter in the long run
you can nail 2 x 4 s as blocks etc on a wood deck....
The wood deck on my trailer sucks. You fall on your ass all the time because it's so slippery (painted). I'm going to get some Porch & Floor paint, mix in some silica sand, and paint it sharkskin gray. Because the manufacturer left no room for the wood to "move" some of the boards are raising. I'm going to put some 2x underneath to tie all of them together.
In the future I'm going to have a metal deck with bedliner on it with a removable center.
In the future I'm going to have a metal deck with bedliner on it with a removable center.
I like wood decks better..
I've had both wood and metal trailer decks,and the wood always outlasted the metal ones--1/8 inch diamond plate rusts out in about 3-5 years around here if you ever use the trailer during the winter and you get it salty...and they are slippery too,I had to put strips of plywood over the meatal on a beavertail ramp truck we had so our ice racer with chains on the tires could drive up on it without sliding sideways off of it..walking up it when wet was dangerous too..
We used regular home depot pressure treated 2x8 boards on a trailer and they lasted almost 10 years,one plank cracked when a loader dropped a heavy motor on it too hard,but that wasnt the woods fault!--we left it unpainted for better traction,but if ice forms on the planks,better be careful,it gets slippery too..wood is cheaper than steel now,it used to be just the opposite!..
I've had both wood and metal trailer decks,and the wood always outlasted the metal ones--1/8 inch diamond plate rusts out in about 3-5 years around here if you ever use the trailer during the winter and you get it salty...and they are slippery too,I had to put strips of plywood over the meatal on a beavertail ramp truck we had so our ice racer with chains on the tires could drive up on it without sliding sideways off of it..walking up it when wet was dangerous too..
We used regular home depot pressure treated 2x8 boards on a trailer and they lasted almost 10 years,one plank cracked when a loader dropped a heavy motor on it too hard,but that wasnt the woods fault!--we left it unpainted for better traction,but if ice forms on the planks,better be careful,it gets slippery too..wood is cheaper than steel now,it used to be just the opposite!..
