My last trailer inspection post (I promise)

Well I took my letter from Ranger to the court house and they changed my carry weight without batting an eye. While there I mentioned I had a dual axle utility that I guess I'd have to put brakes on and get inspected. She asked me the weight of the trailer and what I carry on it. Told her I didn't know the trailer weight but would bring back the title.

She asked what I haul on the trailer and I told her a Kawasaki Mule that weighs 1600 lb. I asked why she wanted to know and she said she can assign a carry weight based on what you haul. She said folks have horse trailers but don't haul horses, or utility with lawn mowers only. Long story short went back yesterday with title and Kawasaki literature with the weight of the mule and I now have two trailers under the 4501 limit and no inspections. Life is good.

That's the way common sense is suppose to work.

I was told that ALL tandem axel trailers will exceed the 4500 pound limit and I would have to get my boat trailer inspected. Right there on the tounge of the trailer the ID tag clearly states the GVW is 4400 pounds though.

Don't think so. I have a 20' Skeeter on a tandem axle trailer and it is well under the 4500 limit.

Didn't have to get my couger trailer inspected. 4500lb

They're just squeezin' a little more out of everybody.

Brought mine to a certified truck scale to prove to the woman that mine was under the load capacity, showed the brochure of boat with weight and what the I.D. plate said but still wasn't good enough.

Had my lowered just by talking nice to the lady at the tax office and explaining the weight of my boat/trailer. No documentation needed and she lowered it to under the limit. If you don't get the answer you like at one office I would just pay a visit to few other until you find that rare breed of common sense.

How is going to a certified scale proving to them your load capacity?

I took mine to truckstop, filled tank up and put it on the scale. 4380. Mine was registered as 4400. It is a CAT certified scale ticket, good as it gets.

I have a fleet of trailers and trucks over 150 in all. I have registered many trailers and trucks at less than what they can carry. I have registered 2000 gallon water trucks with a GVWR of 31,000#s at 25,900#s just to keep from having to have a cdl to drive them. If you don't need to carry more than 4500#s then you do not have to register the trailer over 4500#s. However, if you register it to carry less and get caught with it weighing more, Its going to get expensive quickly! There is no law that I have seen that says you have to register at the GVWR. If I am incorrect please site the source for correction. I have registered my new Basscat every year and they say the GVWR is 5000#s, but I register at 4500#s each year with no issues.

It's not a new law, they are just enforcing the existing laws. It's like buying over the internet from out of state so it's "tax free". It's not tax free. You are supposed to pay the "Use Tax" on it. It's not enforced so most people do not pay it.

I have a tandem utility trailer with 3500# axles and rear axle brakes. When I registered it, the lady asked what I would normally be carrying on it. I really only needed a trailer for the length, not the weight so I said 1200 pounds so that is what she registered it at. I am told that I could still get it inspected (it should pass easily) and then if I do get pulled over with more weight, I'm not in too much trouble.