Fish Tailing

[brown40]

I'd get one of those pet/child GPS thingys, leave another trailer in the same place, and you and your local LEO could follow the signal to the SOB that stole the last one! Thieves are usually greedier than they are smart, and they got away with the first one. There'd be some risk, but odds are you'd get your trailer(s) back and ID the perpetrator. Locks only keep honest people out of things, but there are some nice ones a thief would need a good set of cutters to extract from a new trailer.

 

[ultrarunner]

A buddy buried several large forged hooks from an old dock that was coming down... these are very large and had a welded loop on the trailer with a very large lock... big enough so a 3' long bolt cutter would be too small... of course there is always a torch or carbide wheel...

He said at least he can sleep soundly now....

Towing safely is a combination of speed and conditions.... the more robust with safety features such as 4 wheel brakes, load equalizing hitch increase the margin of safety.

I had a Model A power tote... all of 40 hp that was used to move very large loads around a storage yard... the terrain was paved and lever... the trailers had 40,000 pounds or more... the speed maxed out under 5 mph... similar to the totes used at airports to move 6 trailer trains of baggage.

 

[GLyford]

Friend of mine had a similar issue, and he got people top stop wandering through his yard and peeking behind his barn and in his windows by installing a fence. The fence was there for the early warning system, kibble powered. It's not so much that the dogs were mean, it's that the element of surprise was lost once the barking started...but I wouldn't want to mess with a pair of Rotty's that didn't want me their, either.

 

[JimRB]

You can get insurance on trailers.

 

[jp2code]

You can get insurance on trailers.

Yeah, I know. Too late.

 

[MossRoad]

18' steel floor car hauler trailer w/3500# axles and brakes for $2150.
https://easttexas.craigslist.org/fod/5204241467.html

Another one for $2400
https://easttexas.craigslist.org/fod/5165863977.html

I paid $2000 for an 18' steel car hauler with 3500# axles, brakes, and a 5500# usable load back in 2002. So that really isn't bad for a new trailer.

 

[jp2code]

I've been looking at and lusting over those trailers. At the moment, I'm still trying to pay off the new one I bought last November.

My truck used to have a gooseneck connection in the bed, but my dad wanted to keep it when he turned the truck over to me. He said heavy loads pulled a lot better with it. He mostly hauled cattle. I'm thinking about something like one of these lowboy trailers:

***18 FT TEXAS BRAGG GOOSENECK FLATBED TRAILER***
Flatbed Trailer..Gooseneck '07 Model
*REDUCED* Gooseneck Flatbed Trailer

That last one has mobile home axles. I'm not sure about those.

The right-of-way job ends today, and the tractor comes home. In about 90 days, the pipeline company will pay for the work. I may get a new trailer with the money like I did last year, or I might let that money sit in a bank account until I need it in 2016. Hopefully, no one will steal my money between now and then.

 

[Btown]

The tax man likes to take money.

 

[greggn]

Classic example of the tail wagging the dog on the video below. Like others have said, it's all about tongue weight. I like to see the rear bumper drop about 2-4 inches when the trailer is loaded (as compared to no trailer hooked up). You should have sufficient tongue weight on it then. If you have some good scales, you can put them under the tongue jack on the trailer (after it's loaded down) and jack it down so it's sitting on the scales to see about how much tongue weight you will have.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMkq7PSQhI4

I bet the driver FILLED his shorts.:laughing:

 

[wcampbell47]

OK, what causes fish tailing?

It must have something to do with how the load is setup on the trailer.

I pulled the tractor to a field that needed mowing, and noticed the trailer started fish tailing if I got over a certain speed.

So, I maintained that speed. No big deal.

I finished mowing, loaded back up, and off I went.

Something was loaded differently, though. This time I wasn't able to get up nearly as fast as the first time.

So, is fish tailing caused by the load being too far forward, too far back, too much on the left or right?

It's got to be something.

Reading through the posts it seems you are in the market for another trailer to haul your tractor with FEL and mower. Here are some facts and issues I discovered on a recent trailer purchase.

New licensing rules in Texas require any trailer with a gross loaded weight greater than 4,500 lbs to have at least two wheel brakes. The trailers have to be inspected before a license can be issued.

So you have an L4400 that weighs 3400 lbs.
Front End Loader 1,000 lbs ??
Five foot shredder 500 lbs ??

So lets say your rig with everything attached and full of fuel is 5,000 lbs. Good so far?
So you need a trailer that is rated to haul 5,000 lbs minimum. My 18 foot bumper pull weighs 2,100 lbs, does not have brakes and is registered for 4,500 lbs. That leaves me with 2,400 lbs that I can haul legally and safely. It can handle my B7510 nicely.

My L3901 weighs 2,800 lbs. FEL add (just guessing) 1,200 lbs. Five foot shredder 500 lbs. So I am up to 5,000 lbs as well. (give or take a few pounds). When hauling the tractor is required to be chained at 4 locations (fuzzy on that). Loader has to be chained down (like flat on the trailer deck). Shredder has to be chained down flat on the deck. That whole rig flat on the deck takes up 99% of my 20 foot trailer deck.

So if you have to raise your FEL and your mower to balance the load on a less than 20 foot trailer then you can't possibly legally or safely haul your tractor as pictured in some of your posts.

Do you have a class III hitch attached to the frame of the truck? If not then are you pulling from the bumper alone. Most of the limitations I have read on bumpers limit you out at 5,000 lbs gross trailer weight and load on the trailer.

You are already experiencing fish tailing with a shorter trailer. I would venture a guess that the mower hanging out over the rear is a contributing factor as well.

I found on craigslist a 20 foot shop built trailer for sale. I paid $2200 for it. $480 to bring it up to DOT standards to be able to pass inspection. $350 for decking. $300 for heavy duty aluminum ramps. It took four months to get this trailer licensed after purchase. I had to have it inspected by law enforcement, then inspected for DOT compliance, sent photos off to DMV and applied for a vehicle identification number. It carries my tractor and shredder no problem. Four wheel brakes makes me feel like I can stop it in an emergency. No fishtailing. I have hauled 4 pallets of grass on it with no issues. I have it registered for 10,000 lbs gross. It weighs 2,300 lbs which gives me 7,700 lbs for cargo legally. The two 5,200 lb axles handles the weight great.

If I had it to do over again I would bite the bullet, go straight to Load Trail and buy a 20 foot (or longer) tilt bed trailer with 2 5,200 lb axles and not have to go through the process of registering a home made trailer. Tilt bed because handling ramps gets old and tiresome. Load Trail because they build an excellent trailer and have a great warranty for about the same as some of the other brands.

If you go with one of those run of the mill 18 foot trailers with two 3,500 lb axles I am thinking you will be in the same predicament as you are now.