Towing a 5000lb safe

[socallove]

Hi guys, I'm looking to buy a safe for toy storage. I came across an old bank vault that weighs about 4500-5000lbs, I need to tow it home from Rosemead. First problem is I do not have a hitch so anyone around Santa Ana have a hitch for sale or I can borrow, then hit me up
I will be renting a hydraulic AirTow drop deck trailer, I'm not sure how much the trailer weighs but the bed goes all the way down to the ground and I have to find some way to roll the safe onto it. Is that too much weight for the Land Cruiser?

 

[sdnative]

Some things are best not advertised on a public forum

That being said, I would leave something of that size and weight to professionals. Things can go wrong in a hurry.

 

[socallove]

haha, thanks for your concerns, but I'm not putting anything valuable in there. I moved and left my safe behind with my brothers, they have all the goodies. I'm using this one for some ammo and a few beater .22 rifles and mosin nagant, they are worth next to nothing really. I'm just buying the safe bc the bank closed and need to get rid of their vault at a dirt cheap price. If someone can come pick up or brake into a 5000lb safe then they earned it, but they will have to go through a hail of 00 buck shots and a heap of .223s.

 

[Brentbba]

Well...officially LC's here in the states are rated for 3500 lbs as I recall. That being said, I've towed much more than that as have others. Without airbags, you'll sag a great deal, but this sounds like a one time deal, so I wouldn't worry about it.

Can you just rent a hitch from UHaul or someplace like that? I've seen used hitchs for our cruisers sell for $50-$75, but they don't come up that often. Make darn sure the trailer you rent has surge brakes with that kind of weight if you are using your cruiser.

 

[sdnative]

How do you like the mosin nagant? Thinking about picking one up as there are some good deals out there right now and ammo is cheap. I like the sniper version but they are much more $$$.

 

[socallove]

Thanks Brent, that's good to know sir!

mosin nagant is great, i shot a 16" plate at 350 yards with iron sites, they r accurate, cheap and ammo is cheap but heavy. Just makes sure you get a decent one, one of mine is missing the spring for the magazine, but i have another in great condition with a hex receiver.

 

[mig79]

Does the safe/vauly have wheels? We (it was 6 of us) helped a buddy move his 1500# safe with in his garage.... it was a b!tch to move it around.

 

[1FZj80]

use a forklift
may be able to use just a pallet jack, but not likely
front door may be removable to lighten by 1000lb
by the time you rent a trailer, forklift and/or pallet jack you could have it professionally done
heavy equipment movers (lathe, mill, etc.) are less expensive than safe movers

 

[socallove]

Thanks for the tip on the heavy equipment movers.
I called for a quote on the rentals, $100 for the trailer, 40 for the pallet jack and $20 for some super heavy duty pry bars. I was thinking of using the pry bar and some guys to lift it up and put a 4x4 on each side, slide a pallet jack under and bring it to the trailer, use a hand winch to drag it up the trailer.
I called the safe movers, quoted me $550 for the move, which is more than what I'm paying for this safe, equipment rental is less than $200 and a few of my friends is the cheaper alternative.

 

[mig79]

Pay the $550. Its cheap insurance.