A tractor-trailer is the term given to a combination of a trailer and an on-road tractor, or truck. A tractor-trailer is comprised of two entirely separate units so that the new or used truck can be hooked to other trailers and the trailer can be hooked to other trucks. They are connected both with hardware and electronically so that the truck can control the brakes and all the lights on the trailer.

The new or used tractor trailer for sale is used for transporting goods and materials from one place to the other. It is how groceries find their way to the shelves of the grocery store, for one example.

The truck portion of a tractor-trailer must have enough engine power to pull a significant amount of weight. The weight of the trailer can vary greatly depending on what type of freight it contains. A trailer loaded with empty plastic bottles, for example, will weigh much less than a trailer full of bottled water.

Sometimes the passenger cab of the truck includes a compartment large enough for a bed. This is so the driver of the tractor-trailer can sleep in the truck when delivering freight over long distances. It is common for a driver to own his truck and contract out to companies to transport freight in the company trailers. One driver may haul freight for a number of different companies over a wide geographic area and spend weeks at a time living in his truck.

The trailer portion of the tractor-trailer combination can be one of a variety of designs to serve a variety of different purposes. Probably the most common style is the box trailer. It can vary in length from about 28 feet to 53 feet (8.5 to 16.2 meters) and is totally closed except for the door at rear end and sometimes on the sides.

Another style of trailer is known as a flat trailer, which is basically a platform on which freight is strapped. A tractor-trailer with a flatbed is often used to transport lumber, bricks or other construction materials. A third common type of trailer is a tanker, which carries liquids such as water or milk or dry goods such as flour or grain.

Other terms used to describe a tractor-trailer are “eighteen wheeler” and semi-trailer truck.” The term “eighteen wheeler” is sometimes used because there is often a total of eighteen wheels in the combination. The term “semi-trailer truck” refers to a trailer in which one end is supported by the truck that it is connected to. The other end of the trailer has its own set of wheels.

The trailer posses so many advantages as an auxiliary vehicle that it is coming into use rapidly, particularly in the central and far western states, where industry and commerce are less conservative than in the east. Those who have adopted equipment trailers find that they double their hauling capacity of their mack trucks, greatly reduce waiting time of trucks and drivers, and increase the earnings or cur down the ton-mile operating cost materially.

As an industry, the manufacture of trailers dates back only half a dozen years, but it has grown rapidly until today there are seventy-five or more trailer manufacturers in the country, and several are exporting to foreign countries.

Trailers are made in a wide variety of types and capacities for all sorts of purposes, ranging from the little pneumatic tired two-wheel trailer of 500 pounds capacity, to be attached behind runabouts and touring cars, to ten-ton and fifteen-ton trailers and semi-trailers, hauled by powerful tractors and motor trucks. These include car haulers, dump trailers, utility trailers, equipment trailers, gooseneck trailer etc. Size is one of the main considerations while looking for a trailer. The maximum towing capacity and maximum tongue weight of your tow vehicle are limiting factors.

By use of trailers and car haulers, many hauling jobs can be done that would be impossible with trucks alone, as for example - the handling object too heavy, too big or too long to be loaded on the truck. Weights of ten to twenty tons and more are divided between truck and trailer so that neither is overloaded and the weight is distributed over six or eight wheels instead of being concentrated on four.

Tow trucks are expensive, especially if the distance is great. A utility trailer is a great way to haul vehicles and a good investment if you need to do so regularly. Packing equipment and loading it into a pickup truck bed can get old very quickly. A utility trailer will allow you to drive your equipment right up onto the trailer without the aid of ramps or two strong men. Utility trailers are great for hauling appliances, live stock and recreational vehicles.

Open utility trailers are well suited for many applications including small landscaping businesses that are just starting out and need a way to haul their landscape equipment. As their business grows and they decide to move up to an enclosed trailer, the open utility trailer will still be incredibly useful for hauling all sorts of material such as mulch, rock and plants.

The use of dump trailers has been gaining in popularity as one of the most cost effective means for handling tear-off removal. Licensing fees, insurance costs and maintenance expenses associated with a dump truck are astronomical in most parts of the country. The use of dump trailers is a more cost effective and more versatile method for handling tear-off debris.

Dump trailers can be utilized for other practical purposes as well. Use it to haul equipment and material to and from various job sites. Their crews bring job site debris back to the yard at the end of each day. When the trailer is full, they just hook it up to their truck and take it to the dump.

A marketer for Caterpillar Inc., Mr. Cai is working to crack the China market for earthmovers called wheel tractor-scrapers. Already a decades-old product in America, these dirt-scoopers, which weigh in at 38 tons, haven’t made much headway in China, which still relies on the smaller “hex” — industry jargon for hydraulic excavator — and trucks on most construction sites.

To change that, Mr. Cai and his colleagues have eschewed traditional advertising techniques. Instead they’ve taken their show on the road, adopting a tactic popular in China’s burgeoning market.

For the past year, Mr. Cai has taken more than 40 trips, stopping in different Chinese towns to try to showcase feats that he hopes will fully create some village buzz — and that he knows is a lot cheaper, and believes is more effective, than advertising. “Word-of-mouth is the best form of publicity for the construction industry in China.”