Can I tow my 12’ flatbed behind my 28 foot TH in CA?

Just do it... what could go wrong???????????  My neighbor has Idaho Id and pulls a Montana 5er and a small trailer with his utv on it. 

 
My father has a Class A and did this for years.  Was never once pulled over.  The middle trailer does have to be either a gooseneck or 5th wheel.  You cannot pull with a ball/ball setup.  As long as you are willing to pay the fine if caught and the tow vehicle is capable of pulling it safely, I say go for it.  I believe @wapawekka father did get popped in Oregon (don't believe it is legal there) and had to make two trips to get the trailers out of the state. 

 
No where in the DMV book in regard of towing doubles that is says the first trailer needs to be a 5th wheel, this law was changed years ago.  The examples above are for commercial towing, which is different as well.

 
John@Outfront said:
and from what i understand the 5er has to be no more than 29' and the overall length max is 65 for all three
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28feet 6 inches is Correct !! OB used to have that set up with a 5th wheel and flatbed...... @SANDPSYCHO said it was ok to do it with a tag trailer. I cant find anywhere that its a 5th wheel only.

:poule:

 
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Your 5th wheel is a Super Lite? Right?

Is the 5th wheel chassis made for towing?

Other questions have been answered.

 
Poule43 said:
28feet 6 inches is Correct !! OB used to have that set up with a 5th wheel and flatbed...... @SANDPSYCHO said it was ok to do it with a tag trailer. I cant find anywhere that its a 5th wheel only.

:poule:
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I wonder what I’d be tip to tail .. 28 foot 5th.

Anyhow… life’s a beach… and then you die!… at Doheny today…

😎

abc

F34796AD-F4B1-4805-AD67-7A0A24535C0D.jpeg

 
Don’t drive like a jackass and you’ll be fine. Plenty of people do it without the proper license. However, to be legal, you must have a Commercial Class A with doubles endorsement. A non-commercial class A does not suffice. That only allows you to go over 15k gross vehicle weight. Law used to say the first trailer has to be 5th wheel or goose neck but that language was taken out a while back. Not sure when. 

 
BENCH said:
My father has a Class A and did this for years.  Was never once pulled over.  The middle trailer does have to be either a gooseneck or 5th wheel.  You cannot pull with a ball/ball setup.  As long as you are willing to pay the fine if caught and the tow vehicle is capable of pulling it safely, I say go for it.  I believe @wapawekka father did get popped in Oregon (don't believe it is legal there) and had to make two trips to get the trailers out of the state. 
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Yup. Not legal for recreation in Oregon. Went there for years and finally one time he gets stopped. Had to drop the third trailer, drive 20 Or so miles out of town, drop 5th wheel, go pick up third trailer and then reconnect them all. Never stopped again. 

 
ANGRYBUTTCRACK said:
So what is a 'doubles endorsement?' Do I have to do some sort of written or driving test? Is that a Class B?

Thanks, yeah I'll probably just roll with it. Worse case I get a ticket or have the flatbed towed. Just no reason to pull my box or flatbed with the Suburban if I don't need to.

Best,

abc
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Yore passenger needs to have Double D's and you need to endorse that they are real and spectacular!  

 
ANGRYBUTTCRACK said:
So what is a 'doubles endorsement?' Do I have to do some sort of written or driving test? Is that a Class B?

Thanks, yeah I'll probably just roll with it. Worse case I get a ticket or have the flatbed towed. Just no reason to pull my box or flatbed with the Suburban if I don't need to.

Best,

abc
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Endorsements are written tests that add to the CDL. I have a Class A, M1 with Passenger, HazMat, Tanker, Doubles/Triples. Always thought it was weird I can get licensed in CA for triples which are not legal in California.

You can use your dually and 5th wheel to get a commercial Class A but you will be limited to non air brakes and automatic transmission. Lots of hot shot transport guys have done this. My son is going to get his but I'm trying to convince him to get the 'real' Class A with no restrictions. Of course CA had to make it more complicated in 2021 and you now have to have 15 hours of behind the wheel instruction before getting a CDL. Not necessarily a bad thing from the latest batch of Amazon Prime drivers I'm seeing on the road lately.

 
In Nevada you need a endorsement,  I have friends with Nevada Highway Patrol, and they did not know you need a endorsement, and they pull double toys, In Utah the legal limit is 65 Feet, In Nevada it is 70 Feet, 

I have only seen and hear of people getting pulled over, for over length.

Now it sounds like you are from CA, and those guys tow slow as chit,  So if you are on the I-15 past vegas you will get pulled over for holding up traffic, stay in the Right Lane, and that will help not stick out like a sore thumb,  Sorry to say this but if you have someone from Nevada or someone from California, Utah is not as friendly to CA as they are to other states.  

I have done this to utah a lot, no issues, even with both trailers with the registration out of date, with no issues, I really dont care if i get a ticket, it makes it way easier to double tow then spend the money on other means, 

For me a ticket and double towing is the cheapest rout, 

In 20 years towing doubles in Nevada and Utah, I have had zero issues, 

Only ticket I have had towing was doing in CA doing 65-MPH,   Doing this in NV or UT on the 1-15 will get you shot or ran off the road, 

 
The endorsement for NV is pretty easy 12 question test can miss 2,  this will be a Endorsement for up to 16,000 lbs or Doubles = 16,000 and you need this same Endorsement for a 5th wheel trailer,

over 16,000 lbs it is a Class A non Commercial  but the test is the same with the exception of no Air Break Test, 

for MOHO you will need a Class B, they do not make this as a non Commercial, so the test for a trash truck, mixer driver or moho are the same,  

Both Non Commercial Class A   or the   Class B will need a Driving Test,

Non Driving Test is endorsement for up to 16K - Doubles under 16K  or 5th Wheel 16K or under.  

 
Been pulling doubles for 30 years, got pulled over once as soon as I got into Cali going to the dunes, $180.00 ticket, (I’m from Az. and was at 74’) the second trailer should have been Red tagged, but he let me continue to the Dunes as is. 
The only thing sketchy is if you are from Cali and they require that license is if you get into an accident what will your insurance company say? 
even mine at 74’ the insurance company could decline if they knew I was towing illegally. . 

 
DOGGY said:
Been pulling doubles for 30 years, got pulled over once as soon as I got into Cali going to the dunes, $180.00 ticket, (I’m from Az. and was at 74’) the second trailer should have been Red tagged, but he let me continue to the Dunes as is. 
The only thing sketchy is if you are from Cali and they require that license is if you get into an accident what will your insurance company say? 
even mine at 74’ the insurance company could decline if they knew I was towing illegally. . 
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This comes up on here a lot, or at least it used to.  If an insurance company could deny a claim because you knew you were over length why couldn't they deny a claim for DUI?  They can't.  If the vehicle is insured then it's insured.   

 
L.R.S. said:
This comes up on here a lot, or at least it used to.  If an insurance company could deny a claim because you knew you were over length why couldn't they deny a claim for DUI?  They can't.  If the vehicle is insured then it's insured.   
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People heard a story on the internet many moons ago and they have been repeating it ever since.  
 

If you are insured you will be fine unless you are doing some really stupid chit. 
 

 
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