What Is a Lowboy Trailer?
A lowboy is a specialized trailer with a low deck height designed to transport tall and heavy machinery while reducing overall loaded height.
The deck sits roughly 18–24 inches off the ground between the gooseneck and rear axles — the lowest deck in common use. That height budget is the lowboy’s purpose: a machine standing 11′ tall rides legal where a flatbed would put it over the 13′6″ limit.
Many lowboys are also RGNs (the detachable-front kind), which is why the terms blur together in the field. What matters when booking is the machine’s height, weight and how it loads — the trailer name follows from those.
Last reviewed: August 2026 · Reviewed by the Dobie Transport logistics team
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