loading tractor Safely

[Propjob]

Two questions; I will be loading my JD2305 with FEL and ballast box on 16ft trailer. Is it best to load with ballast box forward? (About 600lbs in box and also loaded tires. ) If driving straight up the ramps, could the ballast box create a rear tip? Trailer is 16' Big yex with steel ramps. I use to load race cars on trailers in my young and stupid days but, am a little more cognizant now. Thanks
Jim

 

[plowking]

I have the same thing happen when I load my TLB on my 16 fooot PJ trailer,it will try to pick up the back of pickup almost off the ground. I have heard of others using jackstands,blocks of wood under back of trailer to keep it from tipping back while loading. I load my tractor facing forward. so the rear axle on tractor is just ahead of center pivot of rear axles of trailer. I mark my boards with magic marker for a reference when loading by myself. plowking

 

[Propjob]

Marking the trailer sounds like a good idea. Does the front of the tractor feel squirelly when loading with a Ballast Box or does the FEL and motor provide the Counter balance needed?

 

[plowking]

Mine doesn't fell squirrelly or sway when I load,you will see front of trailer raise and hear the suspension creak as the weight is transfering up the trailer. I have to put 4X6 boards under my ramp to keep the backhoe from dragging on the ground because of angle of incline of the ramp,you shouldn't have that problem ,depending of length of your ramps,height of trailer. My truck is a 2500 HD,so it should stay on ground. A half ton could have it's rear wheels pulled off ground while loading. My loader is enough for ballast,I load with my bucket as low as possible without hitting the deck of trailer,I will adjust it as angle changes. I also tie down the tractor with chains,binders instead of using straps. plowking

 

[Propjob]

Plowking;
Good information. I bought the large straps from the trailer dealer but am leaning toward the chains. Looking at the MV laws, it specifies chain with binders, However I believe the guys at Rosencrantz delivered with the Nylon straps. JIM

 

[tx2310]

I carry my MF2310 on the back of my Sprinter pickup. I have since built a trailer. I put mounts for jacks on all 4 corners so I can stabilize the trailer when loading and not put stress on the hitch until it is loaded. Supporting the rear of the trailer is good to help to stabilize the trailer. If I can I still carry the tractor on the truck as to mess with the trailer.

Doug

 

[ampsucker]

the direction you load your tractor (forward facing or backward facing) will probably be made for you by the weight distribution on the trailer once it is loaded. you will need to experiment getting your tongue weight correct for the towing vehicle.

i found with my 20' trailer that there is plenty of tongue weight even when the tractor is set back near the rear of the trailer. this places most of the tractor weight over the trailer wheels and just the weight of the trailer (considerable) on the tongue. depending on which implements are attached, i may load it rear facing or front facing to get the right "squat" of the rear of the tow vehicle.

you'll see what i mean almost immediately once you start pulling it. on my truck, the rear suspension starts to feel too hard if i have too much weight up front on the trailer tongue. i like to shoot for a basically level ride where the truck is just a little tilted towards the rear but the front wheels still have plenty of travel and good ground contact and the trailer is flat from the hitch all the way to the back. you may have to experiment moving the tractor around a little.

the thing you don't want is TOO much weight to the rear of the trailer as that can induce dangerous sway in windy or curvey road conditions.

amp

 

[Soundguy]

I have a 16' big tex, and I routinely load old ford tractors ( 660 / 850 / 951 ) that have fel, plus concrete counterweights... never had a problem with a light front. make sure you block the rear of the trailer though..

soundguy

 

[Propjob]

Thanks for the info. I was looking it over a few minutes ago and think a set of jack stands under the rear frame should do. My ramps edges hooks on the back rail to load. Should I safety chain them.to the rail or should they be ok?? JIM

 

[NFA Fun]

I made a set of drop legs for mine. Have an 18ft that I tow the 110 on. Did not even try to load it without something supporting the back. Took a few hours to fab up and install.

 

[Soundguy]

When your tractor hits those ramps, it will take a couple strong gorilla's to lift the ramps off the trailer.. I think a safety chain is a bit ridiculess... the timber or block or jackstand under the rear of the trailer is good though.. if the trailer squatts.. it picks up the rear of the truck.. if you are on a hill.. the truck starts rolling!

soundguy

 

[MikeD74T]

Propjob, If you use jackstands under the trailer & they still have weight on them after loading how will you get them out? If you use wood blocks you can just pull ahead. Wood is less likely to damage driveway when loading. MikeD74T

 

[MikeD74T]

if the trailer squatts.. it picks up the rear of the truck.. if you are on a hill.. the truck starts rolling! soundguy

In an old thread someone loaded as Soundguy describes and couldn't get back off the trailer when the whole assembly started rolling. Ended up over an embankment. MikeD74T

 

[swines]

Propjob, If you use jackstands under the trailer & they still have weight on them after loading how will you get them out? If you use wood blocks you can just pull ahead. Wood is less likely to damage driveway when loading. MikeD74T

My Big Tex trailer has built-in rear stabilizers. To use them with an unloaded trailer you position them about 1/2-inch above the ground. The trailer will tilt back very slightly before they contact the ground as the tractor is driven up the ramps. With the tractor loaded on the trailer, the stabilizers are about 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch above the ground with the suspension under compression from the load.

When the tractor is unloaded, you can position the stabilizers on the ground because the suspension will lift them slightly off the ground under no load.

I would assume you could use the same sort of spacing between the trailer frame and jack stands.

 

[Propjob]

Yes , My thought would be to set the jackstand a height a little lower than the frame for that reason and maybe placing plywood under them to protect the driveway. If you were going to use wood, do you use 4X4, 4X6 and do you set them on each side or in the middle of the trailer. I envision these being used similar to cribbing.. JIM

 

[plowking]

I had an interesting episode today. I was unloading my machine and trailer tipped enough to take pressure off back of truck,I was sliding down the hill,drove machine forward on trailer and it[truck ,trailer ,tractor] stopped before hitting a fence. I put blocks under ramps but definetly willl block the trailer with blocks,jackstands. Never happened before but truck was on an incline and parked on gravel and hottop. The neighborhood I was in was all hilly,no level spot to unload. I wish there was a way to lock the trailer and truck brakes to unload. plowking

 

[wkpoor]

I had an interesting episode today. I was unloading my machine and trailer tipped enough to take pressure off back of truck,I was sliding down the hill,drove machine forward on trailer and it[truck ,trailer ,tractor] stopped before hitting a fence. I put blocks under ramps but definetly willl block the trailer with blocks,jackstands. Never happened before but truck was on an incline and parked on gravel and hottop. The neighborhood I was in was all hilly,no level spot to unload. I wish there was a way to lock the trailer and truck brakes to unload. plowking

What were you loading and what size truck was the trailer attached to?
I know of a guy that happened to while loading an 8N on a 1/2 ton truck. His didn't turn out pretty though. He balled it all up at the bottom of the hill.

 

[ampsucker]

i suppose if your tow vehicle has 4x4, you could lock that in, then put it in park or set the parking brake. that should lock the front wheels to the back so no rolling even if rear comes off the ground.

i would think the best answer is still to block the rear of the trailer some way. it can't be good on any of the equipment to load it so heavily the rear of the tow vehicle is suspended by the trailer.

amp

 

[plowking]

Hi,ampsucker,my son-in-law who is mechanic said the same thing. Put it in four wheel drive with the emergency brake on. The truck is a 2500HD. The tractor I have now is 2000 lbs. more then the one I originally bought trailer for.I usually park on dirt and level most of the time. I'll block the wheels from now on and I have some blocking I can put under gate to support trailer. I was going to get some jackstands or carry a floor jack but afraid if trailer is in street unattended,someone will walk of with them. By driving tractor forward on trailer while it was rolling,I was able to get weight on back of truck again. It stopped in front of fence at neiighbor's driveway just to the right of neighbor's Corvette Z-06. For ease of use,I would like to have some stablizers installed. plowking

 

[Soundguy]

I had an interesting episode today. I was unloading my machine and trailer tipped enough to take pressure off back of truck,I was sliding down the hill,drove machine forward on trailer and it[truck ,trailer ,tractor] stopped before hitting a fence. I put blocks under ramps but definetly willl block the trailer with blocks,jackstands. Never happened before but truck was on an incline and parked on gravel and hottop. The neighborhood I was in was all hilly,no level spot to unload. I wish there was a way to lock the trailer and truck brakes to unload. plowking

As the others said.. lock in 4wd, set park brake, and BLOCK the rear of the trailer so it can't squat.

if the trailer has electric brakes, it's SUPER easy to install a toggle switch on the trailer to kick power over to the brakes.. just like the brake pedal was pushed..

soundguy