Re: 60/40 Rule Rocks
Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2017 4:30 pm
60/40 looks like it works very well for teardrops. I have a feeling it all has to do with weight distribution so it may be different for other trailers. Doesnt matter how far back the axle is, if there is more weight behind it than in front it will swing.
I think (but i dont know) that if you had a tire come off a trailer that had its axle in the middle but 20% of the weight on the tongue it would still pull straight.
On my trailer i moved the axle ahead quite a ways ahead to be 60/40 on the box but i have significant weight on the tongue so i am going to have issues with keeping the tongue light enough for the tv. However i have a 2ft overhang at the back so it looks goofy.
I have seen fairly light trailers flip pickups on their sides. It depends on how bad you have it loaded and the wheelbase of the tv as well.
I was pulling a borrowed 14ft double axle bumperpull dumpbox trailer with an old f350 that was a full cab and box- 21ft bumper to bumper. The guy that loaded me quite heavy with wet sand put too much weight behind the axles. As i was speeding up i was watching the trailer. As soon as i hit 80kmh the trailer started to swing. I let off the throttle and hit just the trailer brakes hoping to slow down gently and steady. No trailer brakes. By the time i hit the truck brakes and stopped that trailer was swinging back and forth into 4 lanes of (empty) highway and nearly hitting the bumper of the truck on each side. But guess what? If i hadnt of looked back i wouldnt have known it was happening. Couldnt feel a thing in the truck. Luckily no tires blew so i just shovveled sand for a very long time and then finished my trip. But that was interesting.
I also think anything big or heavy is stupid to pull from a bumper instead of gooseneck style, but whatever.
Look at semi trailers. They have the axles all the way at the back because the truck is designed to take a lot of weight. You never see those sway.
Proper weight distribution is key, 10-15% is sort of a minimum, not a maximum or optimal. i used to work for a guy and we had a trailer that just had to be loaded improperly every time. Trailer was too short and with the machinery too much weight ended up behind the axles, no other way to load it. Double axle bumper pull trailer with the axles fairly far back. My boss could drive it fine with his dodge 2500. He would try and get me to drive it when he was drunk but i couldnt. It would start to sway every time i went around a corner. He could drive that better drunk than i could sober, so i would just keep him awake.... :/ i cant believe i rode with him like that...
Anyway, you do want to keep the weight on your front axle of course but how was that 1/4inch guideline come up with? Front axle of an f350 empty is like 4000 pounds but 200 pounds/side will likely move the ride hight 1/4inch. The driver sits a ways back in any suv but them sitting in it will move the front suspension 1/4inch. By that guideline you couldnt anything more than a heavy teardrop with a dodge pickup probably.
It would have to do more with what % of the weight your taking off the front axle i would think.
You loose traction as you remove weight from the front if your tires are properly sized but you get it and more back when you brake and weight is transferred to the front axle from the trailer.
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I think (but i dont know) that if you had a tire come off a trailer that had its axle in the middle but 20% of the weight on the tongue it would still pull straight.
On my trailer i moved the axle ahead quite a ways ahead to be 60/40 on the box but i have significant weight on the tongue so i am going to have issues with keeping the tongue light enough for the tv. However i have a 2ft overhang at the back so it looks goofy.
I have seen fairly light trailers flip pickups on their sides. It depends on how bad you have it loaded and the wheelbase of the tv as well.
I was pulling a borrowed 14ft double axle bumperpull dumpbox trailer with an old f350 that was a full cab and box- 21ft bumper to bumper. The guy that loaded me quite heavy with wet sand put too much weight behind the axles. As i was speeding up i was watching the trailer. As soon as i hit 80kmh the trailer started to swing. I let off the throttle and hit just the trailer brakes hoping to slow down gently and steady. No trailer brakes. By the time i hit the truck brakes and stopped that trailer was swinging back and forth into 4 lanes of (empty) highway and nearly hitting the bumper of the truck on each side. But guess what? If i hadnt of looked back i wouldnt have known it was happening. Couldnt feel a thing in the truck. Luckily no tires blew so i just shovveled sand for a very long time and then finished my trip. But that was interesting.
I also think anything big or heavy is stupid to pull from a bumper instead of gooseneck style, but whatever.
Look at semi trailers. They have the axles all the way at the back because the truck is designed to take a lot of weight. You never see those sway.
Proper weight distribution is key, 10-15% is sort of a minimum, not a maximum or optimal. i used to work for a guy and we had a trailer that just had to be loaded improperly every time. Trailer was too short and with the machinery too much weight ended up behind the axles, no other way to load it. Double axle bumper pull trailer with the axles fairly far back. My boss could drive it fine with his dodge 2500. He would try and get me to drive it when he was drunk but i couldnt. It would start to sway every time i went around a corner. He could drive that better drunk than i could sober, so i would just keep him awake.... :/ i cant believe i rode with him like that...
Anyway, you do want to keep the weight on your front axle of course but how was that 1/4inch guideline come up with? Front axle of an f350 empty is like 4000 pounds but 200 pounds/side will likely move the ride hight 1/4inch. The driver sits a ways back in any suv but them sitting in it will move the front suspension 1/4inch. By that guideline you couldnt anything more than a heavy teardrop with a dodge pickup probably.
It would have to do more with what % of the weight your taking off the front axle i would think.
You loose traction as you remove weight from the front if your tires are properly sized but you get it and more back when you brake and weight is transferred to the front axle from the trailer.
Sent from my SM-G920W8 using Tapatalk