Bouncin' Betty

[Bob_Young]

Hi,
I tow my equipment on a tandem axle 20 ft. 10K lb. Big Tex Pipe trailer. On rough/uneven roads and over expansion joints it sometimes gets to rocking pretty good. I think this is due to the mass of the tailgate at the back and the pipes up front. Loading tongue heavy helps but doesn't totally eliminate the problem. It seems worst when the trailer is empty.

I pull this thing with a nice old '94 Dodge CTD, 2WD with stick shift and I normally tow in overdrive (no restrictions in Owner Manual, Dodge shop says its OK). The truck is low mileage and used to be my Dad's....so I'm trying to take care of it.

The question is; what should I watch for? What is most likely to be damaged from towing this trailer.....Transmission, rear-end? All of my hauling has been under 20 miles so far; but I bought the trailer with the idea of travelling long distances with it. The way it feels on the road sometimes makes me wonder if it wouldn't put the truck in the shop on a long trip.
Bob

 

[tlbuser]

Some trailers do ride rougher than others. Some things to check, hitch height and truck suspension (shocks). May just need to add a Timbren kit or go up to airbags. Loading tongue heavy doesn't do the truck or trailer alot of good, in the long run.

First check, does the trailer sit level when empty and attached to tow vehicle?

 

[EddieWalker]

Hows the tongue weight? If it's too light, you will get allot of bounce and the trailer can get squirrely on you. Do you park the tractor right over the axles, or all the way forward on the trailer? This can make a HUGE difference in how it handles.

You can also add shock absorbers to your trailer to it to minimize this. Very few trailers have shocks on them, but they do work and it might be something to consider.

Eddie

 

[jwstewar]

I'm thinking using weight distributing bars. I've towed the same camper w/ & w/o them and they make a world of difference in the rocking affect.

 

[Highbeam]

Your truck is a very stout truck with very stiff suspension. But, your hitch isn't rated to take 1000 lbs of tongue weight as would be loaded onto it with a loaded 10k trailer unless you have bought a fancy one, so you'll need the WD system to be within the hitch ratings.

Does it porpoise like that when the trailer is empty? If so, then you just have some crumby roads and an old style truck that lets you know about it. I have found that adjusting speed makes the porpoise go away.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Hi,
I tow my equipment on a tandem axle 20 ft. 10K lb. Big Tex Pipe trailer. On rough/uneven roads and over expansion joints it sometimes gets to rocking pretty good. I think this is due to the mass of the tailgate at the back and the pipes up front. Loading tongue heavy helps but doesn't totally eliminate the problem. It seems worst when the trailer is empty.

I pull this thing with a nice old '94 Dodge CTD, 2WD with stick shift and I normally tow in overdrive (no restrictions in Owner Manual, Dodge shop says its OK). The truck is low mileage and used to be my Dad's....so I'm trying to take care of it.

The question is; what should I watch for? What is most likely to be damaged from towing this trailer.....Transmission, rear-end? All of my hauling has been under 20 miles so far; but I bought the trailer with the idea of travelling long distances with it. The way it feels on the road sometimes makes me wonder if it wouldn't put the truck in the shop on a long trip.
Bob

In 3 paragraphs, you explained just why gooseneck trailers are so popular. They eliminate porpoising. Doubtful you'll do much significant damage, but where the greatest potential for trouble lies is causing a disturbance of "control" (both braking and steering) with weight loading and UNloading from axle to axle while bobbing up and down.

 

[George2615]

As others said.

Trailer must sit level when hooked up empty.

Load must be balanced and slightly forward for proper tongue weight. Too much tongue weight causes the rear of the truck to squat and will affect handling. Not enough tongue weight will cause trailer sway.

Hitch must be rated for the load.

Any time you tow a load there is more stress added to your clutch, brakes, transmission, suspension, etc. I think you Dodge is built pretty tough though. As Highbeam said your hitch probably isn't rated for 1k or more of tongue weight (10-15% of the load). If you get a lot of sway or too much bounce my vote would be to get a WD hitch.

 

[Bob_Young]

Thanks for the replies, everyone. Getting the idea that I might have to just live with it.

The truck's got a Class IV hitch bolted to the frame. Took off a perfectly good Class III hitch and put on a new Class IV when I bought the trailer because the trailer shop said it was needed. Don't really know the load limits of either type...just went by what I was told.

I 'think' it sits perfectly level when empty, but I'll check it the next time I hook up. Certainly, there's no obvious squat.

Loading can be problematic on that trailer. With the tailgate, I don't have the option of rear overhang. When I load the Ford 4000/BB720 combination (barely fits), it's either very tongue heavy if tractor is forward or tongue light if the bushhog is forward. Tongue heavy definitely handles better. Fortunately I don't haul that combination much.

I've got more latitude with the L4300, but generally end up with the rears squarely between the trailer axles and the FEL toothbar butting up to the lip around the trailer deck. Depending on what's on the 3pt., it's either well balanced or somewhat tongue heavy.

I'm going to look into some air bag assists for the truck's rear springs. Googled a Firestone system that appears to run around $500. That's within my budget. Maybe a set of trailer shocks or heavy shocks on the truck would help; but I don't want to spend much if it's still going to be an issue afterwards. Primarily, I'd like to protect the truck.
Bob

 

[George2615]

Bob,
FYI, I see WD hitches priced from $250 and up. Sometimes you find them in local papers for much less. Your class IV hitch should have the weight ratings stamped somewhere close to the receiver usually just to the left of it. New HD shocks for the truck would help if existing ones are over 7 years old. I've also sent you a PM.
George

 

[DirtHauler]

My '95 short bed Dodge does the same thing when I pull my 14' trailer but doesn't do it when I pull my 16'. I think it's got something to with the wheel spacing on the trailer ( the farther the wheels from the togue the better)
Only a thought, not scientific!