So after years of pulling around my Kubota/Dump trailer, random mud trucks, broken down neighbors, and all assortments of things I finally did what no sane person with an overly lifted truck should attempt, without beer at least. Last night I got the bright idea to try to tow two of my other full size trucks on an equipment trailer made for pulling behind a big rig. A sad and futile attempt at saving fuel, time, and impressing the non-believers. First of all I'd like to thank my friends for egging me on ( mostly those with powerstrokes/duramaxes who offered, before the endeavor began, that theirs rigs would pick up the trailer after mine broke down ) I'd like to thank cummins for building a wonderful engine and building up my ego while erasing any doubt i would have had in my mind about lack of power to pull said trailer years ago.

So everything went pretty smooth for the two hundred miles, EGT's perfect, floated right over the high elevation gains. Pulled over a couple times to check on load and everything looked great. Then I go to pull into a Safeway for fuel. It was a very poorly designed entrance with a steep approach and a speed bump. Truck go over speed bump, horrible sound is heard as trailer tongue scrapes against ground .. I run out to the rear frame bent and the tow package just sagged there looking like a wet limp noodle [duhhh] Has anyone ever had a similar experience to this? I made a valiant attempt at fixing it a little bit today, but to no avail. Going to a legitimate shop tomorrow.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj8/EagerJeeper/thread_is_worthless.jpg

that hurts.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj8/EagerJeeper/thread_is_worthless.jpg

What he said.

Your frame likely reacted just as it was designed to do in a rear end collision. The bright side is it did not happen with traffic behind you and just beyond the blind crest of a hill out in the middle of nowhere!

I wanna see!

I should have taken some pictures immediatly after before I tried to fix it .. ill get pictures from the shop tomorrow

This is the only picture I have, doesn't quite do it justice or show the whole extent of the damage but more it just shows where the beginning "crease" happened. Same thing on other side of frame causing tow package to angle downward quite severely.

http://img686.imageshack.us/img686/7302/p1010010b.jpg

thats alot of tongue weight.

Honestly I don't know what I was thinking [duhhh] but the shop is building a custom mounted hitch and reinforcing it to the frame to prevent my stupidity from hurting my truck ... for a little while at least.

My truck was almost that bad when I got it. I used longer style hitch that went up further on the frame and boxed that hole area in.

I am the same way with my dump truck, It will pull anything. But I always forget about everything else.

is your truck still for sale

Yeah your hitch looks like it isn't the typical 'long' style that has the extra length that goes up the frame more. I'd be real interested to see the tongue weight cap of that weak hitch receiver.

Brandon,

How many times do I have to tell you to stop holding up that "Pichers" sign.

I tied my hitch into the rear bumper as well so it would have to bend that too. That being said I don't think I would attempt that.[laugh]

Yeah your hitch looks like it isn't the typical 'long' style that has the extra length that goes up the frame more. I'd be real interested to see the tongue weight cap of that weak hitch receiver.


I agree.

Probably 500# did u say u had two trucks on trailer

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj8/EagerJeeper/thread_is_worthless.jpg


so easy a caveman can do it.

Brandon,

How many times do I have to tell you to stop holding up that "Pichers" sign.

[laugh][laugh][laugh][laugh]

That's funny right thar, i don't care who ya are

Is that brandon on the far right? [laugh][laugh]

time to box in the frame after the fix with 1/4" steel plate lol

time to box in the frame after the fix with 1/4" steel plate lol

x2 post pics of the trailer and load!!!!

Is that brandon on the far right? [laugh][laugh]

If it is, boy you need a steak with fat, some taters with alot of butter and a tall glass of whole milk. Often...

I'm built more like the guy holding the "useless" sign [laugh]

If it is, boy you need a steak with fat, some taters with alot of butter and a tall glass of whole milk. Often...

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb252/timmy1_010/4brandon.jpg

You should see what the PO did to the frame of my truck. They welded a 1/4" plate from just behind the front cab mount all the way to the front of the rear leaf spring mount. It is on the outside of the frame, so not boxed (which would have made more sense and been stronger), but he was definatly afraid of tweakin his frame with whatever was on the goose kneck. The only other thing I could think of for the PO doing this was it had a dump bed on it for a while and that was to prevent frame twisting.
DS79

Wow that makes me glad to have built my bed and it only has a gooseball for heavy loads and reciever for the light stuff cause it will bend the 6"channel on the reciever

You asked if we have seen this type of thing before.........I did see a brand new Ferd bend a frame and have a big gap between the cab and box when some people were loading an old JD 830 backwards onto a car trailer. It was ugly when the trailer hitch slammed into the ground. Worst thing is, the owner has big trucks and trailers but went to an auction with the small unit and did not want to make another trip.

Big loads need to be hauled correctly or very bad things can happen. Glad you or somebody else didn't get hurt.

my 90 shop manual says
reinforcement can be made from channel, angle or flat stock of common carbon steel and approximately equal in thickness to the part to be repaired.A reinforcement should provide and adequate section in cracked area and have sufficient overlap with the original part and be properly attached. Reinforcing channel should have flanges shorter than sidemember flanges to preclude welding along edges of rail flange. otherwise longitudinal welds are quite acceptable. complete transverse welds are to be avoided. I know most of you guys would take this as common sense, but Im bored and home drunk so I put it out there.. but it does sound like way to big of a bumper pull. I want a gn for any more than 10k with my pos.

humm.... it seems you speel good for being drunk :-)
Heres a video of a frame bender...
http://www.foundrymusic.com/media/displaymedia.cfm/id/20960