? overlap ramps to improve angle ?

[Persiman]

JD 2210 with JD 54 blower on JD QuickHitch and 210# rear weights and rear tires ballasted. 46" from the front tire, the blower has 9-1/4" ground clearance. That means a trailer loading ramp needs to be less than 11.4 degrees. 37" from the front tire, the ground clearance is only 7-3/8. This works out to a loading ramp of 11.3 degrees. My new CTA 60" blade is worse - 8.4 degrees with skids on, 10.7 degrees with skids off. I'm ordering a PJ 7716 utility trailer with a bed height of 21", improved to 18" with a 2 ft dovetail.
I like spreadsheets, and my leedle charts show that I need 7 to 8 ft ramps to get my load angle. That's expensive, harder to store, and takes more space to unload. But hey - The trailer will come with the removable front sides which function as 51" x 9-3/4 ramps. I can also order 60 x 12 ramps that stow under the dovetail. So. I could put the 60" ramps from ground to dovetail. Then I could put the 51" ramps from the ground to the 60" ramps overlapping by about 24". That puts the first 51" ramp at 8 degrees, which is easy. The second 60" ramp is at 17.5 degrees, but since I'm already up on the 51" ramps, the transition difference is less than 10 degrees. The math all works out pretty well. I'd need to make a bracket to assure the overlapping ramps are locked together. No big deal. The bracket could include a foot to support the point load on the long ramp.
Even though I'm working with 4 shorter ramps instead of 2 long ones, I like that the ramps are easily stored on the trailer and reasonable weight to carry. And I can use a single pair when I'm not using the challenging attachments.
So, is this a crazy idea, and why?
Tractor weighs 1440 empty, entire front snowblower assembly is about 350#, tractor wheelbase is 57".
Any discussion is appreciated.

 

[farmeratheart]

As long as any bracket you fashion locks the 2 portions securely, I don’t see a problem. Personally, I would be worried with one ramp sliding sideways off of the other unless the loading zone was perfectly flat laterally.

 

[bigtiller]

Why such a big trailer?
A 12' trailer would be long enough.
Unless it will be a high mileage use, the trailer you have picked out will be a little overkill for a jd 2210.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

Or just put a floor jack underneath the trailer jack and jack up the front of the trailer (while it's hitched to your truck) enough to decrease the approach angle at the ramps and load/unload the dang tractor.

It doesn't always have to be hard.

 

[Peter 315]

Or just put a floor jack underneath the trailer jack and jack up the front of the trailer (while it's hitched to your truck) enough to decrease the approach angle at the ramps and load/unload the dang tractor.

It doesn't always have to be hard.

I like it redneck math lol :thumbsup:

 

[Persiman]

Hey, thanks for the comments. The snowblower set-up will put me just over 12'; a rear blade would add more length. The reason for the 16' is the 48" BrushBull. It is actually longer than the tractor. Total set-up with RC and front weights is a bit over 16', but I'll remove the front weights when trailering to reduce tongue weight. Trips with the RC will also have the cultipacker, rake, sprayer... Believe me, I spent a lot of time trying to make a shorter trailer work. The 16' can also haul cars.

Yeah, I'm used to raising the front of the trailer to improve loading angle. To start with, I put my car service ramps under the tow vehicle rear axle. According to my math, raising the ball 6" will lower the rear 2" - changing the load height from 18 to 16". That means 7' ramps instead of 8'. It helps, but still doesn't put me in range of the standard 5' ramps.

Agreed any bracket needs to hold it in all dimensions. Steel on steel is way too slick. I'm old enough to have seen many bad examples of setting up ramps. Overall, it seems easy to me. Just trying to make sure I'm not overlooking something.

 

[bcp]

You might work from this idea for four ramps.



4-Bunk Load Leveller/Ramp Kit | Iconic MetalGear

Bruce

 

[CoyPatton]

Hey, thanks for the comments. The snowblower set-up will put me just over 12'; a rear blade would add more length. The reason for the 16' is the 48" BrushBull. It is actually longer than the tractor. Total set-up with RC and front weights is a bit over 16', but I'll remove the front weights when trailering to reduce tongue weight. Trips with the RC will also have the cultipacker, rake, sprayer... Believe me, I spent a lot of time trying to make a shorter trailer work. The 16' can also haul cars.

Yeah, I'm used to raising the front of the trailer to improve loading angle. To start with, I put my car service ramps under the tow vehicle rear axle. According to my math, raising the ball 6" will lower the rear 2" - changing the load height from 18 to 16". That means 7' ramps instead of 8'. It helps, but still doesn't put me in range of the standard 5' ramps.

Agreed any bracket needs to hold it in all dimensions. Steel on steel is way too slick. I'm old enough to have seen many bad examples of setting up ramps. Overall, it seems easy to me. Just trying to make sure I'm not overlooking something.

It will will work at least until the day it fails. What will promote failure is a long list, but the big one I would expect you will encounter quick will be an uneven surface where you need to unload be it a pothole or a sloping lane. On this uneven surface your connecting bracket will experience lots of stress under a force wanting to lean with the uneven surface.
My suggestion is to have ramps built to mount onto the trailer semi permanently that fold and lock together. Baring them locking together, have your rear ramps attached not just hooked to the trailer, then the second set of ramps could hook as the would to the trailer.

 

[4570Man]

I really doubt you need 8 foot ramps to load on an 18” high trailer. If so the tractor would be close to junk because it would bottom out on every little dip.

 

[the old grind]

Or just put a floor jack underneath the trailer jack and jack up the front of the trailer (while it's hitched to your truck) enough to decrease the approach angle at the ramps and load/unload the dang tractor. .. It doesn't always (ever) have to be hard.

.. also bottle jack under the receiver or ball platform ..

I like it redneck math lol :thumbsup:

Some of the most clever 'engineers' rely on it.

Oh, and not to mention backing the tow vehicle onto ramps (eg: any HFT, ergonomic 3-ton, etc) My favorite safe alt to cranking the trailer or hitch to improve load angle. .. "when the buyer shows up with s__ for a trailer .."