Are you in the Northern half of IL and own a Serpent Express?

capteddie · #1 (**permalink**) 06-19-2008, 06:52 AM

I interested in seeing one of these trailers up close. If anyone is in the Northern half of Illinois (say from around Joliet to the WI line) and wouldn't mind me stopping by and checking out your Serpent Express. Please let me know.

I want to buy a trailer, but I'm not crazy about a hard enclosure.

Thanks in advance!

Ed

(count down to car completion...hopefully 3 weeks

)

Jerry Clayton · #2 (**permalink**) 06-19-2008, 07:51 AM

Ed
Gary D. has one of those and I saw it when he brought his car to our shop for some carb work and tuning issues. I thought it overall pretty adquet for hauling a small lite car with my biggest concern was how the ramps set onto the back edge of bed for loading---they had tendency to kick up the front of ramp when wheel went over bottom end possibly then contacting lower body/side pipes or falling off completely.

Bob Brown also has an all alum flat bed with removable fenders that loads and rides nice. You might want to take a look at that

Jerry

capteddie · #3 (**permalink**) 06-19-2008, 07:56 AM

Thanks Jerry.

Is Bob's trailer enclosed or open? Do you know where he got it from?

Thanks again,

Ed

Blas · #4 (**permalink**) 06-19-2008, 11:16 AM

Mark P. in the club as a similar one...cover and framw wise, but a different trailer I believe.

jwd · #5 (**permalink**) 06-19-2008, 12:12 PM

Serpent Express also sells a kit consisting of the frame and canvas so you can retro-fit any trailer. I'm looking for a tilt trailer and will add the cover to it so I don't have to deal with the ramps.

RobertLHaug · #6 (**permalink**) 06-19-2008, 01:16 PM

I bought my trailer last year and pulled it London, Ohio with my 97' Exployer. Love the trailer and talked with Gary about ramps/tilt. Serpent Express has changed design and the one I bought does not have this problem.

capteddie · #7 (**permalink**) 06-19-2008, 01:28 PM

Thanks for the feedback everybody. I didn't know they offered a retro fit kit for the frame and cover. That might be the ticket. I found a really nice open trailer here...

http://www.randpcarriages.com/suretr...carhauler.html

And then I could add the frame and cove at a later date. Would be a lot easier on the budget.

Thanks again, everybody!!!

Ed

hot427cobra · #8 (**permalink**) 06-25-2008, 06:39 AM

Ed,

This Spring I purchased the retro kit from Serpent Express and installed it on a 16' ATC open trailer. All in all I am very pleased with the quality and how it has performed on my trip out to Arizona and Utah. While at the Kirkham Homecoming I had a chance to meet Larry Johnson at the Miller Motorsports race track. Great guy and he expressed a genuine concern to make sure everything was OK with my installation. Matter of fact, I was installing the cover the night before we left town and had a few wrinkles in the fabrics because I was rushed to complete it. Immediately Larry took one look at it and jumped right in the trailer to adjust the frame to tighten things up a bit. It is really nice to see a manufacturer stand behind their product and clearly Larry demonstrated his customer service. I wouldn't hesitate for a moment to purchase from his company again in the future.

I am still in route on my way back home and should be there tomorrow. You are more than welcome to come by and visit to check it out. Just send me an email and I will give you my cell phone# so we can make arrangements to meet.

Mark

Larry N Johnson · #9 (**permalink**) 06-25-2008, 08:39 AM

Thanks for the comments, Mark and everyone. Mark, congratulations on the wedding and I wish you many happy years of togetherness. Wish we could have done something together, but we had that other engagement. Have a safe trip home.

The Serpent Express Retro Kit is nice in that it fits any open car hauler trailer. The downside is that a person has to install it himself. Not everyone can, or wants to do that.

Illinois is a great location in that we can supply the aluminum version from lower Michican, not too far a drive.

As far as a tilt trailer, the H&H "SpeedLoader" is a great trailer. If you spec it w 4 wheel brakes and torsion axles, it should be ok. It comes in both steel and aluminum. We have done 3 aluminim and 1 steel so far. Because of the tilt deck, the height of the deck is taller off the ground than other designs.

The ramps on a standard SE are usually ok. On some, the rear angle was cut 9" back, and they really should be 12" cut back so that the rear tip always sits on the ground. If the ground is not level and the 9" cut is there, then the heel may be on the ground (instead of the rear tip) so that the tires may lift the ramp. Easy to take an angle grinder and taper the ramp a little more.

These little guys are handy to tow, stop, park, and store.

Aerodynamic for good gas mileage, too.

capteddie · #10 (**permalink**) 06-25-2008, 08:53 AM

Larry,

Don't get me wrong. I love your trailers!

Its really just a budget issue. My car has gone way over on my estimates to finish it

and the idea of being able to start out with just an open flat bed and then add the enclosure at a later date, might make it easier on the wallet.

In a perfect world. It would be one of your aluminum trailers without even looking elsewhere. Maybe some day...

Thanks,

Ed