I bought a new 18ft flat bed trailer with the works. Melissa and I are gonna do a test run up to Orangeburg this weekend to attend the South Carolina Region Solo2 event. gonna try to work out the bugs before the Divisionals in BAMA. ANy suggestions to a first time tower

 

go slow

 

Dont leave the tounge stand down and smash it on the driveway.

Dont leave straps or tools laying on the trailer and lose them down the road.

Double check everything!

 

Make sure you get the tongue weight right. With an 18ft trailer, you have room to move the car around and position it so that the tongue weight is ideal. It depends on what you're towing with, but you typically want the CG of the car just in front of the front axle of the trailer. If you have a big truck that can handle a higher tonque weight, you might want the car more forward on the trailer. Just make sure that you don't put it too far back and end up with a near zero or even negative tonque weight. You want at least a couple hundred pounds on there or else the trailer will want to start driving the truck. Good luck and be safe. Like BrianZ said, go slow until you really get the feel.

- Scott

 

- Get a brake controller if you don't have one already
- Check and make sure the lights and stuff work before you leave
- After an hour, park somewhere and check your tiedowns
- Double check everything
- Bring a spare tire for the trailer

Enjoy. Getting to an event and not having to change wheels and whatnot is a thing of beauty.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by FlyZlow &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Just make sure that you don't put it too far back and end up with a near zero or even negative tonque weight. You want at least a couple hundred pounds on there or else the trailer will want to start driving the truck.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Boss and co-worker go to Carolina to pick co-worker's newly purchased 1968 convertible Corvair. Tow vehicle is a 1985 'burb with a newly minted 350 and a 14 ft trailer.

Traditionally, you want to tow the Corvair sitting backwards on the trailer ("whyz is the engine in da'trunk?"). But with a convertible, you don't like that because it beats the rear plastic window to heck (and the windshield pops out if the top is down).

So my brilliant boss decides it'll be good enough to put the Corvair on facing front.

An hour into the trip traveling in the rightmost lane on a very busy I-85... the truck, Corvair, AND trailer end up in the leftmost lane, speed = 0 mph and FACING THE WRONG WAY... with eight distinct tiremarks traversing the highway from one side to the other.

How they never hit anything or had anyone hit them or flip the trailer, truck or both or how the Corvair stayed put, the mind boggles.

The Corvair was facing backwards for the rest of the trip.


Tongue weight is important, y0.

 

try not to back the thing uphill around a tight turn.

 

As well as a spare tire for the trailer, bring a lug wrench the correct size for the trailer lugs, and make sure you have a jack that will work on the trailer.

---Coming from me who go a flat on a borrowed trailer in the middle of nowhere, trailer had wheellocks and the wheel lock key broke. Anybody wanna know how to loosen lugnuts with 2 rocks on the side of the road and a 3rd to jack the trailer up? 2 hours later I was back on the road. Always be prepared.....and throw wheel locks in the trash.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LBHgti &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> make sure you have a jack that will work on the trailer.
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dont count on yer HF jack lifting the trailer with the car on it.

like the others said, make sure you have enuf tongue weight. 10% of the trailers gross weight is a good rule of thumb. I almost lost my rig the first time because I didnt have enough tongue weight

 

Make sure the ramps are there when you back the car off of it.

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

 

A cheater way to jack up the trailer is to put a two 1 foot long 2"x6" boards under the wheel that is still inflated on the same side and it will pick up the flat tire. A lot less effort than digging out the jack and jacking up the trailer.

Actually take the time to measure the tongue weight. If you're using a bathroom scale and your tongue weight is higher than it's capacity just put the tongue on a 2"x4" that bridges from the scale to another 2"x4" sitting on the ground. Whatever shows on the scale is then 1/2 your tongue weight.

When you get done tying the car down put it in neutral and set the parking brake. Some people say towing with the car in gear can lead to engine wear as the pistons are moved slightly as the car rocks. Not sure if it's true or not but why take the chance? The parking brake will help hold the car in place on the trailer so the straps don't loosen up.

This one seems a little strange but works for me. For a long time I had trouble with tie downs loosening on long trips. I finally figured out that the problem was that I was pulling the straps tight before I ratcheted them dowm. With only one loop around the ratchet mechanism there wasn't a lot fo friction and the straps would slip. By leaving the straps a little loose before I begin ratcheting them the straps wrap a couple times and provides friction so they don't loosen up.

Keep an eye on your trailer tires. When one goes down you won't usually feel it. The last one I had go down was due to a bad valve stem and I didn't realize it until I saw little chunks of rubber flying into the air behind the trailer.

 

Err, yeah, sooo..

Brake controller....
http://www.brakecontroller.com/primus.htm

$95 proportional brake controller, free direct-plug-in cable for ford/dodge/gm/etc.

What does the OEM "brake controller" do? (05 Dodge Durango in this example) Is it just an on/off switch, typically?

 

Make sure the car is tied down....

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by maxQ &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The Corvair was facing backwards for the rest of the trip.
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When I raced my '68 Corvair, I always towed it with the front facing forward but always put it nearly as far forward as it could go on the borrowed 16 ft. trailer. The weight centerline of the car was about 2.5 ft. forward of the rear wheels to I always put that between the two trailer axles. I used to tow the CRXs on a single axle trailer and the different of a full tank of gas and an empty tank on the racecar could the difference between a well behaved trailer and a scary ride. A Corvair on a single axle trailer would be hairy.

ZUL8R, where are you in SC? My in-laws are in Bluffton just off HHI.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Chris F &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Err, yeah, sooo..

Brake controller....
http://www.brakecontroller.com/primus.htm
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the prodigy pwn5 a11. the primus may be good but id spend the extra $30 for the prodigy. oh wait, i already did.

i &lt;3 my prodigy

when I was shopping the place you linked (SW wheel) had the best prices anywhere

 

Alot probably will be obvious so sorry for that:

Not sure what the works entails but if you don't have front fender marker lights, its worth it (to me it was) to run up to Autozone/Napa and buy a set and install on the leading side of the fenders. One of the things that will be most unnerving for a first time (or just relatively new to) tower is not knowing the amount of clearance that trailer has on something that seems tight in passing. It can be a real freight in the dark or in the rain.

If you have the means, use 4 top quality tie downs (the ones that are not bent into their hook shape but constructed that way) - if you have to choose which side to tie "more" down, do it to the rear. I made the silly assumption for years to emphasise the front -- silly me, I never needed that "emergency throttle" from high speed

Tuck in/tie up securely any tow strap ends you want to keep in their current unfrayed state. Also, if you feel the trailer start to wag you around, realize that you have too much weight on the rear. If you feel like you are on a pogo ride as you go down the highway, you have too much weight moved forward on the trailer. Take these as warnings (especially the wagging) - I believe they are a nice tap on the shoulder (and don't be afraid to hit that brake controller if you do start to feel the tail wagging the dog ... and then slow down).

I personally will not tow the car in gear.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by phat-S &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

I personally will not tow the car in gear.


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Me neither.
If the car breaks free of the ebrake and 4 good tie downs all having it in gear is going to do is tear up the transmission along with all the other things its going to tear up as it comes off the trailer.

And seriously note the point above about checking the tie downs at each stop. Even the best ones stretch a bit as you tow.
I check mine at every stop and can typically tighten all of them at least one click, sometimes 2 or 3 clicks on the first stop.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BrianZ &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">go slow</TD></TR></TABLE>


just the opposite....pedal to the metal....

 

tow straps stretch even more in the rain i've found. and like others, on trips of 2 hours or more, i always stop and check the straps. i have no idea how it happened, but i have shown up at the track with one completely detached. also, make sure wherever you tie down on the car itself, make sure that something isn't going to snap in a wreck. a swaybar is not a good spot. i tie down through the wheels. i don't know which school of thinking is correct, but some like to tie down through the control arms or tow hooks so it hunkers the car down on the suspension. some say that wears out the shocks and you should let the suspension do it's thing.

and be sure to check tire pressures before you go anywhere. a blowout is no fun at all.

brake controllers are the best money you can spend if you have electric brakes on your trailer. hell, you can get them for as cheap as $30. i know a couple of dogs tha agree with me.

 

I would wet the straps (dunk them in a bucket of water) before setting the car in place, now if it rains they will not slip and if it does not they will get tight. I go scuba diving and we must wet the strap before securing the gear on.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Bbasso &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I would wet the straps (dunk them in a bucket of water) before setting the car in place, now if it rains they will not slip and if it does not they will get tight. I go scuba diving and we must wet the strap before securing the gear on.
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good thinkin rob. wet strap-ons, now that's a party!


&lt;---runs away quickly.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by tnord &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> but some like to tie down through the control arms or tow hooks so it hunkers the car down on the suspension. some say that wears out the shocks and you should let the suspension do it's thing.
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This is logic I have never been able to grasp. How in the world can it wear out a shock to attempt to hold it in place? Always thought that it was far more likely to prematurely wear the shocks to let the race car effectively work its suspension all the way to the track and back.

 

the argument is that since you're compressing the shock the seals inside are under constant pressure, vs letting the suspension move around and not be under a constant heavy load.

i'm not saying i agree or disagree with it, that's just the argument that was presented to me.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by CRX Lee &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">


ZUL8R, where are you in SC? My in-laws are in Bluffton just off HHI.</TD></TR></TABLE>


We used to live in bluffton, now we live on the island, its closer to my work plus traffis these days are horrible getting onto the island.


thanks for all the replys folks...

 

The most important lesson I can give is just drive the truck. The trailer is sure to follow. While this sounds silly, you will not believe the number of people towing trailers who spend way too much time looking in their mirrors to make sure the trailer is centered in the lane. We all know that when you look left you steer left and when you look right you steer right. So people who look in the mirrors to center the trailer are constantly weving in their lane.

The truck is 7 feet wide. The trailer is no more than 8.5 feet wide. So the trailer is only 9" wider than the truck on both sides. The lane is 12 feet wide. If you keep the truck centered (look ahead - look far down the road) then the trailer will be centered and you will have plenty of room.

Also, plan how you are going to get into gas stations before you turn in.

Also, when backing try to back up so the trailer turns to the driver's side. It's a lot easier to see what's going on with the trailer by looking out the driver's window than the passenger's.

Also, when backing, pay attention to the trailer wheels. Where they are pointed is where the rig will go.

Also, don't be afraid to ask somebody to guide you back into a spot rather than doing it yourself.

regards,
alan "who drove tractor trailer for 10 years and has made every dumbass mistake in the book"