safety chains drag

[browns40]

Hi bedlam,

You are right, you absolutely DO cross the chains to cradle the tongue in the event of a problem...

For the slack in the chains you can do any of the mentioned ideas, or I'd just weave them around themselves "in the cradle" to take up slack without kinking or altering them...

Odds are you could probably PICK UP a small trailer with a kinked safety chain anyway!

 

[RollTideRam]

"Bungies and wire wont keep the tongue off the ground if the trailer comes off the ball."

The bungies / wire are just to hold the chains off the ground, not to support the trailer tongue. It's just not practical to have many different lengths of chain on a trailer that is towed by multiple vehicles. Although I twist mine I like the bungee idea & plan to try it. Bungies just don't last a long time exposed to weather and don't rebound when frozen. Mike

He is saying, if the trailer came off the ball during tow, the chains are supposed to keep the trailer tongue from dragging on the road. The bungee cords will not support the trailer, they will stretch out or break, then the long chains will let your trailer tongue drag.
Maybe a longer chain run through the hitch and hooked back to the chain would work. I just use a quick link and another piece of chain to lengthen mine when I use my hitch extention. JC

 

[VT_Hokie]

On my boat trailer I have chain just small enough to pass through the eyelits on my hitch. I double it back to the length I need for the vechicle and finish it off with a rated quick clasp. Always cross to make a cradle, I don't want think what would happen if your tongue hits a pot hole! It does work as I had the coupler pop off one day when I was in a hurry to get on the river. Luckly I figured it out by the end of the driveway...

 

[Soundguy]

Hey, great minds think alike. I just added safety chaing to my batwinf mower yesterday.. did as you did.. a bunji cord thru the links to keep it out of the weeds.. etc.

Soundguy

Just wondering if anyone has the problem with the chains dragging on the ground. I have a small utility trailer that sits low. I have twisted the chains to shorten them.I don't like this idea.
I recently used some wire to hold them up.
My idea now , and I'm not sure if anyone has done anything like it is to use a bungee cord and weave it through each link.
This would keep it snug but still let it stretch with turns etc. yet also maintain the purpose.
Any other ideas are sure welcome.
Al

 

[Soundguy]

He is saying, if the trailer came off the ball during tow, the chains are supposed to keep the trailer tongue from dragging on the road. The bungee cords will not support the trailer, they will stretch out or break, then the long chains will let your trailer tongue drag.
Maybe a longer chain run through the hitch and hooked back to the chain would work. I just use a quick link and another piece of chain to lengthen mine when I use my hitch extention. JC

You are seemingly only adressing the extremes.. I have a couple trailers.. both have to work on multiple tow vehicles. Both the chains are of fthe ground and would keep the tounge off the ground int he event of a disaster.. however.. I don't like my chains hanging over halfway to the ground from the rig.. that's why I also bunji mine.. keeps them neat, and there are no downsides, as the chain will stretch right back out under load, ans still carry the tounge if/when needed.

Same on my batwing mower..

Soundguy

 

[Bedlam]

Thats what I am doing now, just a quick cord to keep em from dragging and wearing. But without the legnth being a concern, I was just trying to be fancy and ingenious, and had the thought of running the cord through the chains every other link. So you would somewhat stretch it to hook it on, and the cord would hold it off the ground. You would change the purpose at all.
Mind you this isnt a huge heavy trailer I was talking about. Just a small utility one.
Allan

 

[TwinWillows]

I too use the bunji cord approach as it leaves the chains long enuf for several tow vehicles. I don't put them thru the chain links though - just wrap the chains up w/the bunji. This works fine for me.

 

[3RRL]

None of the bungee cords I have that are strong enough to carry the weight of the chain have small enough ends to thread them through the chain links anyway?

 

[Soundguy]

I just used a black rubber one and made a few loops around my chains to support it. I don't like the fabric coated bungies.. they don't hold up as well.. for me anyway..

Soundguy

 

[MikeD74T]

Bedlam
"As far as crossing them , I remember years ago someone saying that they should be crossed, that way it creates a "cradle' if it should ever come loose."

Crossing the chains does create a cradle that may not keep the tongue off the ground but should keep it from digging in too deep. The main reason for crossing the chains is to minimize tongue sway (ie keep the tongue centered) if it does become disconnected. Sometime try connecting your chains straight & jacknife the trailer. Observe the relationship of each chain to the ground. Cross the chains & repeat. You should see less drop with the crossed chains. Crossing the chains allows enough slack for turning but takes up the slack on the opposite chain. This is more pronounced on a v tongue trailer where the chain attachment point on the tongue is spread by several inches, as opposed to a pole tongue. During a disconnect accident keeping the tongue centered reduces the likelyhood that the trailer will produce enough lateral force to spin the tow vehicle, like the bump maneuver cops & stock car drivers like so much. Mike