annoying bouncy ride pulling trailer

[xtn]

Well, I wouldn't go around saying that as an absolute. There are a few variables in analyzing a rotating mass running against another surface that whack-on weighs just can't account for.

 

[BudinTenn]

The bouncing I am getting happens at just a few miles an hour. Tire balance won't affect it. Tire out of round may. I will check both the tire runout and trailer 'level' behind the truck tomorrow. Thanks for all the advise!

 

[Bird]

This thread reminds me of when I bought a new 18' travel trailer in 1975 with tandem axles that weighed 4,500 pounds. I towed it with a 1970 Olds 88 4-dr sedan with a load distributing hitch. The RV dealer installed the hitch, hooked up the trailer, etc. The hitch head was one of those that could be raised or lowered by putting the bolts in different holes, and it could be tilted forward and back by putting washers on a bolt. When it was all done, the rig appeared to be sitting level and looked good, but when I started down the road, it felt almost like the car was surging, with the trailer jerking fore and aft. The RV dealer didn't know what to do about it, so he told me to take it Joe's Hitch in Dallas, and let them fix it and he'd pay for it. Well, the kid at Joe's Hitch went and got Joe, the old man and owner. He just glanced at it and said it needed to be raised one inch (one set of holes) and have one washer added to tilt the ball back that much; said he could do it, or take it back to the RV dealer and let them do it. I went back to the RV dealer, he did it, and problem fixed.

 

[meburdick]

I'll tell my tire guy that you said he's an idiot. :laughing:

I use a really popular local tire shop. It's one of the biggest I've ever seen. They said I was the first person who had ever asked them to balance trailer tires.

Misfire

Being the first one doesn't make you wrong. How many people insisted they could sail around the "flat" world before it was actually done? Were they wrong just because it hadn't been done before? Were they wrong because they weren't successful?

As mentioned in a post later than the one I'm quoting here, it's a rotational mass and being off balance will make it wobble at different speeds.

 

[Raspy]

The bouncing I am getting happens at just a few miles an hour. Tire balance won't affect it. Tire out of round may. I will check both the tire runout and trailer 'level' behind the truck tomorrow. Thanks for all the advise!

This is a perfect explanation for flat spotting. Tires that sit long enough "remember" the flat spot until they roll far enough and get hot enough to "forget" it. They will definitely vibrate the trailer and the truck at low speeds. The longer they sit the worse it is the next time you use them.

A test would be to, after your next long trip somewhere, jack up the tires enough to get them off the ground. The next time you use the trailer see if it's better. I bet it is.

Balancing is also important, but that's not the problem with your rig at very low speeds.

 

[Misfire]

I am telling you it makes a difference. Think about it, its a 40# spinning disk and then once you have it done you will be amazed at how much weight it takes to balance them. On average trailer tires and wheels are of lower quality than auto stuff.

Chris

Didn't you notice I was agreeing with you? I had them balance my trailer tires.

 

[Misfire]

Being the first one doesn't make you wrong. How many people insisted they could sail around the "flat" world before it was actually done? Were they wrong just because it hadn't been done before? Were they wrong because they weren't successful?

As mentioned in a post later than the one I'm quoting here, it's a rotational mass and being off balance will make it wobble at different speeds.

OK, apparently I was way too subtle in my post. Not something I am usually accused of.

For the record, I told them to balance my trailer tires. I didn't ask them if I should do it, I just ordered it done. They said they never had anyone ask them to do that because trailer tires don't need to be balanced, according to them. I told them to balance the tires anyway, then stood there and watched them do the job. They did it right, but undoubtedly still think I'm nuts. I don't care.

I know they need to be balanced, but first they need to be round, which is what the OP should check first since it is a new trailer and some builders are buying the world's crappiest trailer tires because they're cheap. Guess where they come from.

 

[94BULLITT]

I have got behind some trailers that bounce all the whole time I am following them. I think it may be those trailers with torflex axles but I am not for sure.

 

[schmism]

2 oz of air soft bb's tossed into a tire will work great for ballance media for trailer tires

 

[Diamondpilot]

The bouncing I am getting happens at just a few miles an hour. Tire balance won't affect it. Tire out of round may. I will check both the tire runout and trailer 'level' behind the truck tomorrow. Thanks for all the advise!

Still have them balanced. Its the only wat to find out if you have a bent rim.

Spin balanced.

Chris