What kind of truck should I look for?

If you don't haul a lot or are on level ground you can get by with a half ton but I would prefer a three quarter or one ton in your situation.

Because you want an automatic then get a Ford or a Chevy with an Allison. If you do go Dodge then look for one with the extra heavy duty transmission or plan on replacing it right away. And remember not to try and pull the trailer in overdrive unless you can maintain speeds in excess of 55. Otherwise you will burn the transmission out....regardless of the make.

I myself do not like duallies.....they are too wide and I hauled a 32 foot trailer for years that was probably heavier empty than yours will be loaded.....with a one ton Dodge which I pulled the duals off of and ran singles. With ten ply tires I never had a flat that way.

The reason I do not like duallies is that I drive a lot of gravel roads here with large rocks that tend to get lodges between dual tires and cut the sidewall.

You can get a goose neck stock/horse combo that will weigh in at 3500 lbs on the high end.

It generally costs about 250 to put in a ball.

If you go diesel try for a dodge or ford. The duramax is ok but just that ....ok.

Fords have the best transmissions for automatics, but little things need repairs more frequently

Chevy doesn't get the gas mileage of ford but bodies and small parts hold up better.

Dodge terrible gas mileage but great engines...problem is they use the same tranny as chevy BUT put a bigger engine to the same tranny so they end up tearing out transmissions....especially if you tow a lot or drive hard....tow a lot and drive hard and you really get hammered.

edit

Almost forgot to mention.....Dodge GAS engines get terrible mileage but their diesel gets better than any other.....AND they will outlast any other diesel if they are taken care of.

I haul a Dodge dually diesel with a very heavy stock trailer. Downsides are stuff like oil changes and other routine maintenance is more expensive, Oil changes for example cost more with a diesel. Although around where I live (South central Texas) gasoline prices are quickly catching up with diesel prices. I used to haul with a Chevy gasoline dually and I got 9 to 11 mpg when hauling, My diesel gets 24 when it is not haling and 21 to 22 when I am. Diesels I am told also get better with age; I'm not going to get rid of mine until it has 300,000 to 500,000 miles on it. As with anything, how long a truck lasts depends on how you take care of it. There were some advantages to the gas powered truck; it started a little faster in the cold weather and it was a bit quieter to run. It only needed one battery under the hood instead of two. But I love my diesel dually.

PS -- I never haul anything more than a two horse with a bumper pull trailer. They just aren't as stable.

3/4 ton truck can pull what you want.

any (ford, gmc, dodge)....personal choice really. they can all haul what you want.

a dually is not necessary

I wouldn't recommend deisel. If you live in a cold climate (colorado, etc) then you'll have to warm it up all the time before you go. don't have to do that with gas.

Also diesel is great for really super heavy hauls. that's not what you'll have. don't bother.

diesel can be more expensive plus you can easily find gas everywhere you go, but have to look sometimes harder for diesel.

get a regular size bed, not a short bed if you're going to get a gooseneck trailer

if not, get a short bed for bumper pull

the fifth wheel cost depends on who you ask, where you are located

I've got a GMC. It's awesome. pulls anything. I got the fifth wheel put in permanent by a friend.

you can find anything good at $26,000

The best trucks on the market right now are Ford trucks (I would go with a Super Duty, the F-150 probably doesn't have enough towing capacity for 2 drafts) and the Chevy Silverado. Chevy Silverado even has a hybrid option, which shuts down some of the cylinders when full-power is not needed to save gas- it gets 20mpg city/ 23 highway which is excellent for a truck (my personal car only gets 15mpg city/18mpg-20mpg highway- not even a truck!). I don't think you need a dually, they make trucks less efficient if anything. as for towing capacity, I would go for anything 10,000lbs and above- any mid-size truck can pull 10k.

I think you'd need at least a Chevy 2500HD, Ford F-250 or Dodge 2500.

I have a Chevy 2500HD with a 6.0L gas engine. It's a nice truck but gets bad gas mileage, especially when towing. When I pull two non-draft horses with it, I can barely tell they're there.

You can get an extra wide/extra tall trailer that will probably work for drafts. You have to look at stock trailers carefully to make sure they're tall enough for the horses. Many are kind of short.

i would not recommend a half ton truck if your hauling a gooseneck, unless its worked over.. it would just be easier to get a 3/4 ton or 1 ton truck, you can get a ford(i prefer) or a dodge or chevy. its personal preference... fuel is gonna kill you in a diesel. but as long as you get a TURBO diesel, it will pull good.

automatics are great but keep in mind, they wont pull quite as good as a stick shift truck.

as far as working on a truck... if you have a gas truck that breaks down.. pull out the check book... if you have a diesel... you better get the credit card. (diesels will about break the bank if somethin bad goes wrong with em)

Diesels= the newer Fords, you have to pull the cab to work on parts of the engine which stinks, and it'll about cost you an arm and a leg. my advise.. if your gonna get a diesel get a 7.3 ford(they stopped making those in 2004 so youll have to buy used), or a cummins which are also really good. i dont recommend ANY chevy.

Gas jobs= V10 fords pull good but suck the gas.. dodge, pulls ok in a gas job, better in a diesel. but they are cheaper to work on(usually) and they wont cost as much in gas, diesels at 4 bucks a gallon.

NO you do not need a dually. consider your budget and how far you will be traveling, if you buy used, dont get one with high miles because you will be putting alot of miles on it. diesels will go to like 800,000 miles, atleast. so its nothing for them to have 250,000 when you buy em. gas trucks will go about 300-350k miles if you baby them around. Good luck and God bless!

Look on craigslist or i a local newspaper to see what you can get.I've see used truck from the 80 mostly for 2grand or under but most of them needed some body work or other repairs

You will need at least a 3/4 ton 4 wheel drive and I would suggest the Dodge for better fuel millage and pulling power.

I have a similar situation. I love hauling with my Chevy Sierra. To stay under budget, but used. Dually's guzzle gas, and this pulls just like one. It has pulled a big stock gooseneck easily, and my two horse slant stuffed with horses and tack. It drives nicely and warrantees save you when it comes to repairs.

Check it out, do a little research, love it, buy it!

http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=X&biw=1...

Ford pickup diesel!