GVW Questions

PeterG said: For the 14K GVW trailer you need a CDL class A to use it, although many home owners just risk it. Click to expand... That may be true in your state, but that is not the federal law. There is a lot of confusion from the wording of the law. Only a handful of states require a CDL for any trailer over 10K, the 26K gross law is nation wide however.

Sorry folks, I think you're right in his state about the trailer 14GVW. My bad. Still, he should say if he's driving as a business and what the weight of his truck is and towing capacity is, and if he is going interstate, and what model/make and weight of his skidsteer. Many track loaders with attachments are too heavy even for a 14 gvw trailer. He may need a DOT number too. Besides his local State DOT laws, he should as you say check out the FMSCA rule book.

MG84 said: That may be true in your state, but that is not the federal law. There is a lot of confusion from the wording of the law. Only a handful of states require a CDL for any trailer over 10K, the 26K gross law is nation wide however. Click to expand... Vermont does both. A trailer GVWR over 10,000 requires CDL. Elsewhere in VT law it states only combined ratings over 26,000 need CDL, regardless of trailer rating.

I rhink the 26k thing came about with single axle moving vans. You could move a house hold of goods with hydro boost and staying under 26k. Summer time jobs, no trailer, just learn how to grind the 2 speed properly.

Those is what I state says about ityou Amy e able to find something similar for your state https://kansashighwaypatrol.gov/find-a-troop/troop-location-map/technical-operations-bureau/troop-i/commercial-vehicle-faqs/#

The 10k trailer doesnt apply im my state, only 26001 +. Im quite one the line of needing a cdl or not depending on which trailer i pick. The 2200# attachment isnt the norm, more like 600lb buckets. So maybe 10.6k the skid weighs, will just have to run numbers.

What truck are you planning to pull it with?

skyking1 said: I rhink the 26k thing came about with single axle moving vans. You could move a house hold of goods with hydro boost and staying under 26k. Summer time jobs, no trailer, just learn how to grind the 2 speed properly. Click to expand... Vermont Store Fixture near me has a fleet of single axle 20 foot van bodied trucks GVWR 25999 LBS. All have Allison automatic transmissions. A 10 year old farm kid could handle one, no speccial license required.

I drove a Culligan truck that was rated at 26,000 no CDL required

MG84 said: What truck are you planning to pull it with? Click to expand... 26 2500. Gvw 10850. Need to look at axle weights yet, haven't gotten that far. Thought about the cdl route or derate a 16k trailer to 15150, puts me at 26k and depending on trailer weight may be in the ballpark of net weight I need 10-11 ideally. Its damn close. This is just personal stuff so no need for cdl unless weight requires it.

I understand your desire for a gooseneck, but that's also part of your problem. They are a good bit heavier than a standard fender equipment trailer leaving you less cargo capacity. My setup is a '19 F250 regular cab long bed GVWR of 9900lb and a bumper pull Kaufman 20' fender style equipment trailer with a GVWR of 15000lbs. Trailer is 3300lbs empty leaving me a legal cargo of 11,700lbs all while staying under 26K.

A local guy dropped out of his family business. I believe weed was a big part of his motivation. His father belongs to a "club". Through the club he gets reduced insurance rates. Part of it means surprize pee samples. There are plenty of insurance companies don't check your urine, this one does. Son chose to surrender his CDL to avoid this. He has gone on his own, keeping his fleet under CDL limits.

CM1995 said: OP just plan on getting your CDL. About to send 2 guys with a dually and 15K lb trailer to get theirs. Here in AL that will get them a Class A pintle/gooseneck with no air brake license. After they get their license I plan on swapping up our 14K gooseneck to a dual 22.5 gooseneck. I have a class A with no restrictions, luckily got mine when it was wide open. Click to expand... can you just go get your license down there. Here anything above a car license, you have to take minimum entry level training to get your license. I wrote my permit on a monday, and did my road test on Wednesday. No more of that since 2024. Too many new Canadians getting into wrecks. I can drive a 1 ton with a car license, and haul a 2 axle trailer same way, but a 3 axle is need a class 1 same as a semi, but no air brake endorsement. But I could jump in a bus sized camper or 3 axle 5th wheel travel trailer with no more than what I need yo drive a car

I think I'm more confused than when I started reading this thread. I have a truck that empty weighs 7,100 lbs GVW sticker on door says 8,900 lbs, so 1,700 lb payload. I have a trailer rated at 11,600 lbs payload it has 2, 7,000 lb axles. As long aI don't put more than 11,600 lbs on my trailer and 1,700 lbs on my truck I should be legal and safe. At 22,900 lbs fully loaded I'm well under the 26,000 limit of a non CDL driver. Where have I fallen off the logic wagon?

hwychild said: I think I'm more confused than when I started reading this thread. I have a truck that empty weighs 7,100 lbs GVW sticker on door says 8,900 lbs, so 1,700 lb payload. I have a trailer rated at 11,600 lbs payload it has 2, 7,000 lb axles. As long aI don't put more than 11,600 lbs on my trailer and 1,700 lbs on my truck I should be legal and safe. At 22,900 lbs fully loaded I'm well under the 26,000 limit of a non CDL driver. Where have I fallen off the logic wagon? Click to expand... I can't find the exact wording, but when your trailer by itself weighs more than 10,000 pounds, you need a CDL to pull it if it's not farm or recreational.

In our State, it's need a CDL if your trailer has over a 10,000 GVW. The trailer empty might only have a weight of 2-3K pounds for car trailer, but a empty dump trailer might have a weight of 3-4K. In some States you can use a 14,000 GVW trailer without a CDL. The trailer may have a similar weight to and empty 10K car trailer, but have a empty weight of 6,500k for a dump trailer. A full size equipment trailer with 3 axles and 12 tires may have a empty weight of 10K, and a GVW of over 40K. Also, in some States it may not matter if it's a business or homeowner. To not overload your trailer, you take the GVW of the trailer and subtract the empty weight. That is the weight, the load of the trailer can haul legally.

Good info, I did a little research for the state of Washington. It appears a private party can pull a trailer weighing over 10,000 lbs as long as the total weight of trailer and tow vehicle is not over 26,000 lbs. If the trailer is being used for a business "Equipment for hire" then the limit is 10,000 lbs. This is from an AI bot. I did not read the actual RCW.

hwychild said: I think I'm more confused than when I started reading this thread. I have a truck that empty weighs 7,100 lbs GVW sticker on door says 8,900 lbs, so 1,700 lb payload. I have a trailer rated at 11,600 lbs payload it has 2, 7,000 lb axles. As long aI don't put more than 11,600 lbs on my trailer and 1,700 lbs on my truck I should be legal and safe. At 22,900 lbs fully loaded I'm well under the 26,000 limit of a non CDL driver. Where have I fallen off the logic wagon? Click to expand... You are correct under the Federal Rules. Now States can be more restrictive on their rules. Here in AL the state goes by the Fed rules only so as long as the gross combined weight of a vehicle and trailer are under 26K lbs no CDL is required. I can pull our 14K lb GVW skid steer trailer behind a single rear wheel F350 at 11,500 LB GVW with out a CDL. 14+11.5= 25.5K under CDL. We have a 15K GVW skid trailer that would push that combo into class A territory - 26.5K GCWR. PeterG said: In our State, it's need a CDL if your trailer has over a 10,000 GVW. The trailer empty might only have a weight of 2-3K pounds for car trailer, but a empty dump trailer might have a weight of 3-4K. In some States you can use a 14,000 GVW trailer without a CDL. The trailer may have a similar weight to and empty 10K car trailer, but have a empty weight of 6,500k for a dump trailer. A full size equipment trailer with 3 axles and 12 tires may have a empty weight of 10K, and a GVW of over 40K. Also, in some States it may not matter if it's a business or homeowner. To not overload your trailer, you take the GVW of the trailer and subtract the empty weight. That is the weight, the load of the trailer can haul legally. Click to expand... Peter G is in your state so he knows more about WA CDL rules which appear to be more restrictive than the Feds so I would take his advice.

Shimmy1 said: I can't find the exact wording, but when your trailer by itself weighs more than 10,000 pounds, you need a CDL to pull it if it's not farm or recreational. Click to expand... I have the VT book. If I understand, other States each have their rules, but they align with each other when they can. Vermont states the nameplate GVW of the trailer triggers the absolute CDL requirement at 10,000 LBS. This is not scale weight, this is manufacturer rated weight. Several paragraphs later they list an exemption for truck & trailer nameplate total under 26,000. In VT, you can drive a 14000 LB rated trailer towed by a 12,000 LB GVWR truck without a CDL. A 14,000 ratedtrailer towed by a12,001 LB rated truck needs a CDL class A license. Truth is: many Troopers don't know this. A young friend called me one day. He was working on Martha's Vineyard Massachusetts, his boss sent him to VT to bring a truck load of steel back. Island prices are crazy, they could buy steel in VT, with trucking & ferry fees it was cheaper up here. The truck he drove was rated 25,000 GVWR. It was well under rated load. The driver was a licensed Vermont resident. Vermont Troopers red flagged the truck, quoted a vague law that doesn't exist. No fine, but they wouldn't let him finish his trip to Massachusetts. A Vermont CDL driver was needed to drive the vehicle to the State line. It made no sense. There was no law cited he had violated. It wasn't worth the legal battle. I drove the truck to the Mass. State line, he finished his trip.

Willie B said: The driver was a licensed Vermont resident. Vermont Troopers red flagged the truck, quoted a vague law that doesn't exist. No fine, but they wouldn't let him finish his trip to Massachusetts. A Vermont CDL driver was needed to drive the vehicle to the State line. It made no sense. There was no law cited he had violated. It wasn't worth the legal battle. I drove the truck to the Mass. State line, he finished his trip. Click to expand... He obviously didn't smile and flirt with the troopers like he should have.