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How not to load a trailer, overload story....

O

OliverGuy

Well-known Member
I had a manager and crew leader load on one of my 14,000 gvw trailers with 16,000# of decorative stone at a yard on Thursday. Found out about it on Friday. We have rules of hauling 10,000 or less on these, and have discussed the plates I've bought for all the trailers and what they mean. They just blew it. We all had a long talk and thoroughly checked over the trailer and tires. This is a bumper pull too. Glad I buy only solid receiver bars, keep good tires on and am neurotic about electric brakes. Geesh, trying to get screwd by my own guys
 
I left my truck and 7,000# trailer at the rock quarry for a 1 1/2 ton load(I talked to the loader guy before and left him a note to load 1 1/2 ton) That night I went after it, and he had loaded 11 ton, 24,000# on a pick up and trailer.
 
On a job I did while still welding I had to gut out 2 large water tanks. They had floors in them made from 1/2" plate with 10" I-beams under for support. I cut for a day and at the end of the day I loaded the scrap into a trailer with a single 3500 pound axle and on my 3/4 ton pickup with a flatbed. I just loaded til it looked like the tires were squating a bit. I knew I loaded to heavy when I looked in the mirror while driving and could see the trailer axle flexing when I hit a bump. When I got to the scrap yard they pulled 11,000 pounds of scrap steel off the trailer and my pickup. Took smaller loads after that. lol
 
Oliverguy, you are to be commended for being that conscientious about your equipment and "bending the rules". I drove a truck for a drywall firm a few years ago, and it was the other way around. The boss and the warehouse manager seemed to think it was a game to see how close they could come to being overweight. We had "discussions" on more than one occasion. I told them I didn't care if they did pay a ticket, it was MY drivers license that got the bad points.
 

I don't recall "Solid receiver bar" being brought up here before. I have one for my heavier bumper pull trailer. It actually stays on the truck most of the time because it also makes a good cradle for the wire for my gooseneck. I bet that a lot of guys here should be using them but are not aware of them.
 
(quoted from post at 08:17:52 08/10/14)
I don't recall "Solid receiver bar" being brought up here before. I have one for my heavier bumper pull trailer. It actually stays on the truck most of the time because it also makes a good cradle for the wire for my gooseneck. I bet that a lot of guys here should be using them but are not aware of them.
Click to expand...

Enlighten us...???
 
(quoted from post at 23:23:17 08/09/14) I left my truck and 7,000# trailer at the rock quarry for a 1 1/2 ton load(I talked to the loader guy before and left him a note to load 1 1/2 ton) That night I went after it, and he had loaded 11 ton, 24,000# on a pick up and trailer.
Click to expand...


To quote several posters here in the past, "Bah! You'd have been fine if you took it slow and easy. I used to haul that much and more behind my Chebby/Ford/Dodge 1/2 ton all the time......."
 
(quoted from post at 04:53:00 08/10/14)
(quoted from post at 08:17:52 08/10/14)
I don't recall "Solid receiver bar" being brought up here before. I have one for my heavier bumper pull trailer. It actually stays on the truck most of the time because it also makes a good cradle for the wire for my gooseneck. I bet that a lot of guys here should be using them but are not aware of them.
Click to expand...

Enlighten us...???
Click to expand...

Instead of a square tube that slides into your receiver, it is solid bar stock. It has, of course, a much heavier load rating than tubing. I don't know the rating numbers but when I upgraded from a car carrier type trailer to a flat bed equipment type of trailer they told me that I was supposed to have it.
 
We had a hollow bar snap once awhile ago, similar bad story.
I said I had enough and have bought solid bars ever since.
The load rating is 15,000# I believe? Has a hole for the bigger
shank ball too to gain more that way also (1.25" instead of a 1"
I think).
 
(quoted from post at 05:14:34 08/10/14)
(quoted from post at 04:53:00 08/10/14)
(quoted from post at 08:17:52 08/10/14)
I don't recall "Solid receiver bar" being brought up here before. I have one for my heavier bumper pull trailer. It actually stays on the truck most of the time because it also makes a good cradle for the wire for my gooseneck. I bet that a lot of guys here should be using them but are not aware of them.
Click to expand...

Enlighten us...???
Click to expand...

Instead of a square tube that slides into your receiver, it is solid bar stock. It has, of course, a much heavier load rating than tubing. I don't know the rating numbers but when I upgraded from a car carrier type trailer to a flat bed equipment type of trailer they told me that I was supposed to have it.
Click to expand...

like em
I have an old, solid, load leveler bar, adjustable drop hitch from years ago
when I owned late 60's F250's that were way up there even stock.
Beastly heavy to get in, but looking at it, you know the truck would break in half before that hitch would give up.
(good steel in them too. When I started driving normal height 4x4's, I had to cut 4 inches off the vertical solid bar. took a while)
 
(quoted from post at 09:14:34 08/10/14)
(quoted from post at 04:53:00 08/10/14)
(quoted from post at 08:17:52 08/10/14)
I don't recall "Solid receiver bar" being brought up here before. I have one for my heavier bumper pull trailer. It actually stays on the truck most of the time because it also makes a good cradle for the wire for my gooseneck. I bet that a lot of guys here should be using them but are not aware of them.
Click to expand...

Enlighten us...???
Click to expand...

Instead of a square tube that slides into your receiver, it is solid bar stock. It has, of course, a much heavier load rating than tubing. I don't know the rating numbers but when I upgraded from a car carrier type trailer to a flat bed equipment type of trailer they told me that I was supposed to have it.
Click to expand...


Oh, I thought it was something that added to the hitch itself. I don't think I have any tube type inserts. I have managed to rip the hitch bolts right through a rotted frame though!
 
Maybe the manager and the crew leader both slept through that training class? LOL. When employees are left to figure things out on their own, it's often a trial and error process, with a few errors.
 
(quoted from post at 06:26:49 08/10/14) We had a hollow bar snap once awhile ago, similar bad story.
I said I had enough and have bought solid bars ever since.
The load rating is 15,000# I believe? Has a hole for the bigger
shank ball too to gain more that way also (1.25" instead of a 1"
I think).
Click to expand...

Mine is stamped 10,000# trailer, 1000# tongue weight...but I pull a 14k trailer and know I have had 3000# tongue weight on it. I looked for larger, but couldn't find one. I think I would have had to upgrade my frame hitch to use a larger one. This was 10 years ago...and 130,000 miles of towing. Tubular one I have is stamped 7000# trailer.
 
Sure enuff! In the OP's follow up post above there's a guy endorsing overloading. Happens every time. "That GVWR sticker is just to keep the DOT guys happy."

Sheesh. :roll:
 
(quoted from post at 07:55:15 08/10/14)
(quoted from post at 23:23:17 08/09/14) I left my truck and 7,000# trailer at the rock quarry for a 1 1/2 ton load(I talked to the loader guy before and left him a note to load 1 1/2 ton) That night I went after it, and he had loaded 11 ton, 24,000# on a pick up and trailer.
Click to expand...


To quote several posters here in the past, "Bah! You'd have been fine if you took it slow and easy. I used to haul that much and more behind my Chebby/Ford/Dodge 1/2 ton all the time......."
Click to expand...

Slow and easy does not make overloading acceptable.
 
A solid shank drawbar is only half the picture.

Look at your receiver. Most pickup trucks, even 3/4 and 1 tons only come with a receiver rated to 750 or 1000lbs of tongue weight without a weight-distributing hitch.

You need something like a Reese Titan to haul heavy trailers like this.
 
Your totally right. Luckily this is a one ton dump with a very solid plate tying the frame together and holding the receiver tube. Not saying it's perfect, but a heck of a lot better than the factory ones I got on many of these.
 
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