How to back up a pivoting axle trailer

[grsthegreat]

those kind of trailers SUCK to back up. had them back in the day on the ranch, and even the old time geezers that ran equipment their entire lives had issues.

i drive a competition CDE horse carriage that has articulating 4 wheels, they always have issues backing up. Some competitors cheat (in my opinion) by using a steering break to lock hitch in place when backing up. Wimps i say

 

[BlueKnife]

those kind of trailers SUCK to back up.

It's not a trailer. It's a wagon. Two different things.

 

[Sportsman762]

I remember the first time I had to back a wagon up. It was a gravity feed wagon which have a short wheelbase and the ground was ice covered. Probably took me 30 minutes to get it just inside a barn door.

It is like playing a piano............Practice, Practice, Practice.

I have gotten pretty good at it now. The key is to go slow and counter steer as soon as you see movement. I am not the best, but I can generally get a wagon were I want it. The worst are semi mounted plows. With the play in the toggle linkage they are a real pig to back up. I can do it. Just takes time and a few pull forwards. First time I tried I gave up. After watching my friend back it out for me I decided to figure out how to do it myself. All I can say is it took me 4 hours to move 5 plows 1.5 miles down the road. Most of that time was trying to get them in a pretty line...

Practice until you get mad, take a break and try again. You will figure it out. Once you do, you will discover it is much quicker to toss the tractor in reverse and back it in rather than hooking to the front or another method.

 

[ruffdog]

Only look at the wagon's front wheels and where you want the wagon to go. Yes, using a hitch on the front is easier because adjustments are quicker. A modern tractor with hydro and power steering is almost cheating.

 

[CH4Ohio]

It's just like the Little Red Wagon you had when you were a kid. And those sucked to back up too.

Used to have competition events at the county fairs where kids would see who could back one through a couple obstacles in the best time. (These would be your standard 16' hay wagons.)

When we're in a hurry and have several that need to be backed into the barn, we just unhitch it -- have someone walk along and guide/steer the tongue while a small tractor pushes on the front of the wagon with the FEL. It's easy to steer it in by hand and put it right where you want it. But our wagons are rough wood and we don't mind scuffing them up a little.

A few years ago when you could still find kids that wanted to bale hay, we just pulled the wagons into the barn and unloaded them, and then pulled the hitch pin and pushed it out by hand. Much easier and quicker to steer it out by hand than try to back it out with the tractor.

2nd best option is to have a hitch on your FEL bucket so you're facing the wagon and can see what you're doing.

If you're hitched to the rear of a tractor, best to put it in low range and go very slow and just focus on getting it lined up and straight and then keeping it there. I don't even try to back it up with a truck.

And if the wagon is empty, and on flat ground, it's usually pretty easy for a couple people to roll it around by hand and just steer it by hand.

What are you planning to use it for? It looks to be pretty high off the ground, pretty heavy duty with duals on the rear. What's the plan?

 

[BlueKnife]

Only look at the wagon's front wheels and where you want the wagon to go. Yes, using a hitch on the front is easier because adjustments are quicker. A modern tractor with hydro and power steering is almost cheating.

Now that you mention it, I don't think I've ever backed a hay or gravity wagon with a tractor younger than I am. I'm in my 40's

 

[LouNY]

Now that you mention it, I don't think I've ever backed a hay or gravity wagon with a tractor younger than I am. I'm in my 40's

I can't say that, I'm older then any of my tractors. The only one's that are older then me on the farm are the AC WD and the Farmall H.

 

[pmsmechanic]

We used to back up hay wagons in a straight line behind a 3 ton truck all the time as teenagers. The trick is to look in the mirror and steer the front of truck the same way the wagon moves in the mirror. A lot of practice and you can put the wagon where you want it.

 

[oosik]

Fourteen years ago I built this farm wagon. Ten ton Horst running gear and LONG tongue. It's taken all that time but I can finally back that @#$% wagon up. It's not fun - it's not easy - but it does go backwards.

The best solution - plan the use of the wagon so you are always going forward. Forward keeps the smile on my face.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

We used to back up hay wagons in a straight line behind a 3 ton truck all the time as teenagers. The trick is to look in the mirror and steer the front of truck the same way the wagon moves in the mirror. A lot of practice and you can put the wagon where you want it.

Back it around a corner and then I'll be impressed.

 

[LHF2019]

There is no way to explain how. As stated at the beginning. Practice practice practice practice practice. You want something difficult. Have multiple wagons. Multiple tongue lengths. Add a bent frame to the mix and multiple tractors. I have my favorites that I can back up first try and ones that take a lot of time. Wagon wise the worst combination is long tongue short wheel base. Those suck.

This tractor beats any of my other ones for ease of backing up wagons

 

[NoTrespassing]

When I was in high school, I worked before and after school delivering anhydrous ammonia for a fertilizer company. I had to back tanks up with a 3/4 Chevy. As others have said it takes a lot of practice. There were old guys working there that could back 2 of them into a parking spot. It was pretty amazing actually. When I tried to back up 2 tanks they would fold up like a wet noodle.

 

[ruffdog]

When I was in high school, I worked before and after school delivering anhydrous ammonia for a fertilizer company. I had to back tanks up with a 3/4 Chevy. As others have said it takes a lot of practice. There were old guys working there that could back 2 of them into a parking spot. It was pretty amazing actually. When I tried to back up 2 tanks they would fold up like a wet noodle.

Same with the dairy farmers down the road. They are better with 2 of them than I am with one.

 

[LouNY]

Back it around a corner and then I'll be impressed.

It gets done quite often. Nothing special about it, once you learn how and get enough practice.

 

[ruffdog]

It gets done quite often. Nothing special about it, once you learn how and get enough practice.

I find that backing into a shed, and doing it while turning, allows me to see down the side better.

 

[zzvyb6]

Having Left & Right brakes on the tractor is one method I use. This immediately changes the tow angle. If you keep high air pressure in the front tires, then their scrub torque is low. Then you can use chains or straps to eliminate the wagon steer angle and back it up just like a conventional towing arrangement. Works best on gravel or grass. Depends on the wagon's front axle load. Arround here, we have a lot of 'gravel trains' which are a trailer on the back of a long dump truck. Some of these drivers can back up these units at running speed. Some have hitch clamps which eliminate the wagon steer angle motion.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

It gets done quite often. Nothing special about it, once you learn how and get enough practice.

I don't have one and have no use for one therefore I have no need to spend any amount of time practicing, maybe you could make a video for some that have one and need some tips on how to easily back a wagon with a pivoting front tongue that really isn't all that easy to back as some let on.

 

[Farmer495]

I find that backing into a shed, and doing it while turning, allows me to see down the side better.

Yes, especially when you have no mirrors on the tractor. Lets you line the doorway better.

 

[oosik]

Lineman - when you loose control of a wagon - that's where it ALWAYS wants to go. Around a corner........

 

[redman135]

Hello Eebbee. Look on youtube: Truck and trailer reversing in a straight line training video.
Ignore the right hand drive. the principals shown are what matter.
NOTE the small(1/2 turn of steering wheel) corrections. Also, NOTE how he lined up FIRST, then started to reverse.
This driver is very good, he makes it look way easier than it is.
Make sure you are straight BEFORE you start reversing, setup very important.

If your tractor does not have mirrors, then think about getting a pair. Set them wide so you can see the sides of the load. If you are reversing into dark sheds, I reccomend you mount a spot light above the mirror to illuminate the mirrors feild of vision like the trucks do.
Lastly, your wagon has a drawbar that is a similar length as the wheel-base. This is a difficult combination to reverse as the body can out turn the drawbar. Best combination is for the wheel-base to be 1.5(or greater) X length of wagon drawbar See post 31 to see a good reversing wagon. The wheel-base is approx 2 X the drawbar length.
Be patient, as it takes practice.
Good Luck