My Tractor Supply experience

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My Tractor Supply experience

Postby kirtsjc » Wed Jan 18, 2006 11:18 am

After researching plans, I went with Steve Frederick's Plans CD.

(Hurry up U.S. Postal service! :worship: )

Anyway, I now need a trailer to put the tear on, and following the discussions, I sense that the 1800# HF is the one best if one goes HF... Additional reading and topic searching now leads me to think that the TSC 5x8 trailer is the way to go, IF, and I repeat, IF one cannot or will not build the trailer him/her/itself.

(La Dee Dah, just driving around making deliveries: oh! Look! There's a TSC, I have time, let's go in and look!)

I showed the clerk at the checkout counter a picture of a tear, and he was very enthusiastic (KEWL DUDE!!! Like, AWESOME!!!) and practically dragged me to the service counter (leaving the register unattended...).

The guy there (a new manager) likewise went Gah-Gah Goo-Goo Drool Drool, and then related that he had seen these before, and wanted not only to help me with selecting a trailer, but wanted to watch/help in building it.

(Let's see, Joe, Red, a TSC employee, my lawyer, a State Trooper Vehicle Inspector, and the rest of the neighborhood does not know yet... Hey, I could sit back and be a project manager :twisted: and not get my hands dirty! NAH!, that would take away the fun..)

TSC Manager even wants to put up pictures in the store to encourage sales of trailers and parts!

Anyway, he typed on his dumb terminal a bit, wrote stuff down, made a phone call, then gave me the URL for Carry-On Trailers
(http://www.carry-ontrailer.com/.) He said to go to the website, get the 800 Customer Service #, and when I call, ask for the custom build people. He claimed that they would know what I mean when I tell them I was building my own teardrop trailer, and that they would work with me on exactly what I want of either the 5x8 or bigger trailers and that they would give me the special SKU number that TSC needs to order and bill out the trailer (including any options like electric brakes or spare tyre, or even my choice of fenders steel-strapped to the trailer for mounting later.)


Price? Yet to be determined, as steel prices have shot through the roof, and my trailer would be coming from Carry-On's Virginia or Georgia plant.

(WHOO HOO! Is there a class of member just above "Dreamer" that I can be promoted to just because I have plans on the way, and a trailer chassis selected? Maybe "Teardrop Committed"?)


My thanks to you all for sharing your experiences, and your encouragement; what a great forum this is! (Special THANKS to Mike for running it all!)

Only thing I did not like about my TSC experience is that the manager said I would get a Certificate of Origin, whilst the TSC catalog says I would get a Title for registration... I shall see when the order time comes - either would work in Ohio, as far as I know.

Thanks again People!!!! :applause:

(These emoticons are fun too!)

John Kirts aka kirtsjc
Cincinnati, OH
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Postby goldcoop » Wed Jan 18, 2006 11:53 am

John-

Your TSC people are friendly bunch!

See:

http://tnttt.com/viewto ... 20&start=0

It sounds like around $457 for a 5' x 8'...

I think you will find that you will get a TITLE!

Cheers,

Coop
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Re: My Tractor Supply experience

Postby Nitetimes » Wed Jan 18, 2006 12:13 pm

kirtsjc wrote:(WHOO HOO! Is there a class of member just above "Dreamer" that I can be promoted to just because I have plans on the way, and a trailer chassis selected? Maybe "Teardrop Committed"?)


Apparently you haven't noticed yet but most of us around here should be/have been/will be "committed" so I don't think it would be fair to give that title to just one person!!! :lol: :lol:
Glad to hear they took care of you tho. Sounds like your off to a good start.
Rich


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Postby Steve_Cox » Wed Jan 18, 2006 5:59 pm

John,
I second what Rich said, the should be/have been/will be "committed" honor is something shared by all of us TD crazys.. Congrats of finding such an unusual couple of guys at the TCS store too, sounds like you're off to a great start. Wish Steve had his plans available before I started my first trailer.

Steve in St Augustine 8)
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Re: My Tractor Supply experience

Postby Gage » Wed Jan 18, 2006 8:30 pm

kirtsjc wrote:TSC Manager even wants to put up pictures in the store to encourage sales of trailers and parts!

John Kirts aka kirtsjc
Cincinnati, OH
Aw, sounds to me that it is time to talk him into some Sponsorship. Like donate a frame. You'll provide pics of the project, advertise for him and even display the tear in his store for a few weeks or a month. Just be sure you won't need it durning that time period (you set the time) That's what I did when I built up my '97 F150. You'd be supprised, you've got them interested, now start propositioning them. :twisted:

Have a good day.

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Re: My Tractor Supply experience

Postby TomS » Wed Jan 18, 2006 8:51 pm

kirtsjc wrote:TSC Manager even wants to put up pictures in the store to encourage sales of trailers and parts!


A thought just occurred to me. Maybe, we could alert the appropriate product or marketing managers at either TSC's and/or Carry-On. Let them know that we represent a growing niche market for lightweight welded 5x8 utility trailers with no floor as platforms for DIY camping trailers. Instead of having to special order, maybe Carry-On could do small production runs for the teardrop trailer market. Just a thought.
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Re: My Tractor Supply experience

Postby bledsoe3 » Thu Jan 19, 2006 2:35 am

kirtsjc wrote:
(WHOO HOO! Is there a class of member just above "Dreamer" that I can be promoted to just because I have plans on the way, and a trailer chassis selected? Maybe "Teardrop Committed"?)

One more post and you become a builder.
If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got.
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Re: My Tractor Supply experience

Postby goldcoop » Thu Jan 19, 2006 8:27 am

TomS wrote:
kirtsjc wrote:TSC Manager even wants to put up pictures in the store to encourage sales of trailers and parts!


A thought just occurred to me. Maybe, we could alert the appropriate product or marketing managers at either TSC's and/or Carry-On. Let them know that we represent a growing niche market for lightweight welded 5x8 utility trailers with no floor as platforms for DIY camping trailers. Instead of having to special order, maybe Carry-On could do small production runs for the teardrop trailer market. Just a thought.

Tom-

Great idea!

I wonder if TSC is the exclusive dealer for Carry-On?

If they did 'em in production run obviously the price would go down too!

Probably a few minor design revisions to theirs to make it more TD friendly?

Cheers,

Coop
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Not excusive

Postby Guy » Thu Jan 19, 2006 12:53 pm

Dear Coop,

Carry-on is not exclusive to TSC. They have a ton of products and parts, also, 5 different maufacturing locations in the US.

http://www.Carry-ontrailer.com
Regards,

Guy
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Postby larryl » Sat Jan 21, 2006 10:16 am

Guys:

TSC is not the exclusive dealer, seen them at our Lowes and Pep Boy's, but when I called Carry on, the only names they gave me of dealers in my area were TSC. They told me that my local TSC receives shipments every week and were the best place to order a special trailer.

By the way, it came with a title. Went to my local DMV and few minutes later walked out with my tags.

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Postby len19070 » Mon Jan 30, 2006 6:58 am

I got a Title for mine very easily Too. Here in Pa. "the land of complicated issues" I just left the store, went to there notary/tag joint. signed some papers and waa laa about a week later I had a title.

Happy Trails

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Postby GregB » Thu Feb 09, 2006 4:50 pm

Custom trailers such as the 5x8 no floor from Carry On are only available at TSC.
I called Carry On regarding their custom trailers and they stated that TSC is the only retailer who is allowed to sell the custom, no floor trailers. Unfortunately, the nearest TSC is about 700 miles away from me. A 5x8 landscape trailer from TSC at my local Cal Ranch is $779. Guess it means commissioning a custom locally.

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Postby madjack » Thu Feb 09, 2006 4:54 pm

Greg, a couple of options for a custom...check around with friends and co-workers for one with good welding skills and have 'em come around for supper one nite(what we did) alternately, you can cut and jig up your steel and have a weldor come out and weld it all up...he can probably doit inna an hour or two if you have everything setup and ready to weld when he gets there
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Postby GregB » Thu Feb 09, 2006 7:16 pm

Good idea. Do you think I'd save a significant amount after buying the steel and paying the welder? If a commissioned trailer costs about $530 would your way save 20%, you think?

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Postby madjack » Thu Feb 09, 2006 7:48 pm

Greg, you would haveta price it around...we spent around 400 bucks for all steel, coupler, axle, tires and wheels...that was for a 4x8 frame done the way I outlined...steel was 2x1/8th tube for the frame...2x3/16 tube for "A" frame tongue...2in, 50* coupler...Flexirde axle...6x15 modular chrome wheels and 205-79-15 tires
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