I was just working through reading a lengthy article on vehicle recovery.

The following is nothing I haven't said all along.

In the article, over and over, it warns to NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES APPLY A SHOCK-LOAD TO CHAIN, such as a sudden jerk, as the chain will fail and break.


Then, the powers that be, in all their wisdom, demand that most trailers be equipped with "safety chains".

I know what is going to happen when a trailer comes loose and the load hits those slack chains; BANG and the links go flying, probably jerking the trailer off course and into on-coming traffic.


Instead of chains, would it not be more wise to use "safety straps" ??

 

To help combat the "jerk" or "shock" I usually take up some of the chain slack, just enough not to bind up while turning. But what you're saying is something to think about. Here at work DOT reg's require a wire cable between the 10 wheelers and their "wagons" (trailers). Chain isn't allowed.

 

Well I actually did have a 28ft(approx 10k) travel trailer drop off one time. What really happened was my Reese interchangeable ball shank stripped out inside the ball, but anyways, the result was the tongue simply dropped into the cradle of the 2 safety chains, no bang, no shock load, just feeling the trailer had come 'loose'. I just pulled to the shoulder, replaced the shank w/solid ball and went on. The trailer didn't veer into oncoming traffic(it was on the 2 lane), or do anything crazy, it didn't even tap the rear bumper when I braked, which I figured it would. But mind you I always cross my safety chains from side-to-side, forming an X cradle for just such an event(a good practice). DOT reg's requiring cables, and no chains allowed?? I'd like to see where you cite that one please! :-)

 

I too use the cris-crossed method with my safety chains on my bumper pulls. It does a great job of grabbing and cradeling the hitch so you can come to a safe stop.

I don't cris-cross my safety chains on my GN's. Hook them on same side as chain is mounted. I did make sure they did not allow the GN to go past the tail end, that is actually the law, chains cannot allow a GN to get rearward past the rear of the bed.

I would also like to see the DOT on chains not being allowed and cables being required. If that were the case, then you could not chain a load either. Loads can slip and also shock a chain. The min chain allowed by the DOT is 5/16" for both safety chains and binding chains. All my chains are 3/8".

CD

 

I've pulled a number of different DOT combinations. It has been a while since I ran a truck/trailer combo but they always had cables. The doubles used chains on the dollies so they apparently are legal.

 

I use the X chains on the bumper pull.
Anybody use chains or cables on a 5th wheel? If so what type and how are they hooked to the 5er and the truck, I am new at this.

 

There is amajor difference between a safety chain put in place to stop a runaway trailer and a recovery tool which may put one or both vehicle operators in the line of fire. The load securement regualtions stipulate the size and grade of the chain for different tasks. Most places have banned "tow chains" due to the high number of link failures under extreme shock loading and the residual kinetic energy they possess when they break. Steel tow cables as well under under review due to the potential "kill radius" when broken. Synthetic "snatchum straps" lose their energy a lot faster than the metal alternatives unless the metal items they are attached to fail. Some places require Kevlar tow slings coverd in a protective canvas/nylon sheath with both static and stretch load breaking strengths tags to be certified. Safety chains under a tongue are required to be "crossed" in order to basket the load in case of hitch failure or disconnection, this means they must be strong enough to support the load and short enough to prevent the tongue from digging into the road surface. Also a short safety chain crossed will not bind when short due to the tongue swing not true of the short chain to the same side hook point. King pin trailers (true 5th wheels)do not require safety chains due to built in safety accidental release prevention. Ball couplers (gooseneck) trailers do require safety chains of adequate strength to stop the trailer from totally coming unattached from the tow vehicle. YA,YA some juristictions will make you attach safety chains to a kinpin coupled trailer, another misinterpretation of the regulations. A safety chain will be stressed when they get used for the purpose intended but a "tow chain" is shock loaded when jerk towing methods are used to recover stuck vehicles. Certified tow slings are cheap compared to human life in these cases, if you intend to be a good guy and tow buy one. PK

 

A few years ago, at one of the popular local mud-holes, a guy dropped a snatchum-strap loop over the trailer-ball of a stuck vehicle.

He had his wife and kids in the cab with him.

The stuck vehicle was VERY stuck.

After a couple of un-successful attempts, he really made a run at it.

The hitch-ball jerked through the stuck vehicles old fatigued bumper-plate, nut and all, and sling-shotted through the back glass of the pulling vehicle, striking the driver in the head and killing him as dead as four-o'clock.


Many, many, safety and common-sense rules were violated in that situation.

 

I think the main difference between using a chain for vehicle recovery vs. trailer safety chain is that for recovery, the loads are x10 higher and applied abruptly when jerking (8,000# truck, stuck, 3,000# of torque in low gear etc).
Trailer safety chain is a different story, all it has to do is support a max of what, 1,500# is the tongue is VERY heavy, normally more like 500#. And there are two of those chains, so I think they are quite safe for what they are for.
-P

 

I guess my take on this is that your talking about a 15" chain vs a 15 foot chain. Also when that trailer breaks loose you have to remember that at the point before it came loose it was travling the exact same speed as the truck that is pulling it. I would think that makes for a much less dramatic pull on the chains.

I have personally had a few trailers (not being mine) come loose from trucks. I am leary to pull other peoples trailers with worn couples now, lol. Last one that came loose I didn't even know it. 18' deck with two pallets of brick pavers on it. The only reason I knew was that i could no longer see the jack top in my rear view. Simply pulled over and found that it had popped loose from the ball. Stuck it back on, duck taped the latch down and went on my way.

 

Why do goosenecks use safety chains but fifth wheels don't?

 

Good question.


The ones making laws know nothing about what they are governing.

The only similarity between a goose-neck coupler and a bumper-hitch is that they both use a "ball".


A gooseneck is FAR less likely to seperate from a truck than a fifth-wheel.


Most fifth-wheel set-ups (we are not talking about big trucks here) I have seen are an afterthought, with about a dozen temporary connections between the king-pin and the frame of the truck.


Most aftermarket fifth-wheel hitches are composed of all sorts of little clip-pins stuck in little holes, any one of which could be missing in action.


I have NEVER seen a gooseneck seperate from a ball, unless some idiot forgot to drop the pin.

I have, however, known of several fifth-wheel outfits coming apart.


Also, as an across-the-board general rule, most fifth-wheel set-ups are being used by people who are not of a truck-driver frame of mind, most often retirees or soccer-mom types who are merely taking a vacation, and the farthest thing from their mind is walking the truck/trailer at every stop, inspecting hitches and such, they figure if it was hitched two weeks ago, it should still be hitched, and never give it a second look.

Most---not all---goosenecks are being used by people who work with them on a day to day basis, people that will make darn-sure that the pin is dropped, and look at it the last thing before taking off EVERY TIME.


Keep in mind that I am not "mud-slinging" at fifth-wheel users/owners, but pointing out the fact that a majority of fifth-wheel equipped trailers are oriented more at the "let's take a vacation" crowd.

I, myself, have occassion to tow a fifth-wheel and have two trucks equipped for fifth-wheels.


Now of the two, which do you guys figure is the most apt to have a trailer seperation.

 

I also use the crossed chain method but I'll be honest & say that IF the trailer were to come detached from my truck I might prefer to have the chains leave at the same time b/c it's way tooooo much fun to try to get off & stopped safely, & yes I have had it occur once & that was twice as many as I need.

 

not another gooseneck safety chain thread! This brings back some old debates!

FWIW, I have safety chains on my GN. I attach them for looks only. I dont think they will work and would actually tear things apart. If my GN were to come off, the nose would hit the ground and the trailer would come to a halt pretty quick. A GN/5th is very different from a bumper pull. I am a firm believer of chains for a bumper pull; GN/5th is decor.

 

???...did that make sense to anyone?...