Got my Trailer parts..car hauler in the making!!

well i don't think mine are..according to research only 2.5" housings are 3000lb and up so i think 2" housing and below are 2000lb and under i think
 
it is which i thought was pretty cool since i have 6 extra jeep wheels and tires layin around BTW, would i be better off to put the jeep aluminum wheels with 235s on it for better weight carrying or no and can someone fill me in on proper placement of the jeep on a trailer? i know weight distribution is big roll in hauling so where should front and back tires land/sit on a trailer. thank u
 
Back spacing on most jeep wheels won't be useful on a trailer. 235's are probably too big and would hit fender or rub. Make sure you have trailer tires and not car tires.
 
ten 4..i'll leave the trailer tires then. so on the weight distribution have the jeep more towards the rear of the trailer is what your saying...ie front tires close to front and rear right over the axles??
 
BigBody79 said:
10% of total weight should be tongue weight. Ie. 3000pd trailer should have 300pd of tongue weight
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sorry but this doesn't quite say it for me lol...how about tire placement with 15'9" trailer
 
John Fuller said:
ten 4..i'll leave the trailer tires then. so on the weight distribution have the jeep more towards the rear of the trailer is what your saying...ie front tires close to front and rear right over the axles??
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Negative ghost rider


Too little tongue weight will cause the trailer to fish tail and sometimes it can be dangerously out of control.


Put more weight on your tongue
 
On an f150 I would guess that 450-550lb of tongue weight would sink the rear 4-5 inches.

How about that for guessing.

Best way is to take it the the scales. There is a way to do it with a bathroom scale. But, that might be too complicated for me to explain.



....wait until we get to tie downs.
 
well i get the weight rating for tongue and all but is there a way to just ballpark it...surely everytime someone loads a car on a trailer they don't pull out the bathroom scales or drive it through scales lol...cmon now as long as yall been doing it surely there's a "rule of thumb" as far as where the tires should sit..as far as tie downs: i have access to couple come-alongs but i was going to hook chain up to the front tow hooks and put in reverse to tighten them real good then put in park and use the 2 comealongs in the rear to pull it that way....this is the way i've seen several people (including a dealer guy) who brings me cars quite often and he's been doing them this way for a while.
 
Go to Lowe's. Get 80lb bags of concrete. Stack them in the very back of your truck until you get to 480 lbs. Measure the suspension sag. Aim for that. When you load the Jeep.

You should probably invest in some decent straps or at least chain binders.
 
Never seen anybody use a come a long to strap a vehicle. I suggest stopping by a northern or tractor supply and picking up 4 straps. So much easier and they run them on sale for $10 a lot.
 
Please don't use come a longs to hold down a vehicle! Extra forces put in them during transport are like above and beyond what they are rated for. Additionally, most have friction brakes on them that will fail.

Just because someone else does it doesn't make it correct. I once saw a dude carrying a 16" I beam in the bed of his truck. He used a bungee cord to secure it! Does that make it correct!


Use chains and chain binders or good ratchet straps.
 
John, its nearly impossible to say where the Jeep tires should be on the trailer for a number of reasons.
Every trailer is different, axle placement varies greatly between trailers, even among XJs the weight of the vehicle itself can vary pretty wiidely depending on tire choices etc.

No, everyone doesn't get a scale out everytime they load a vehicle, but many of us do when we first get a new vehicle or trailer. hen from there you can play it by eye. The best "rule of thumb" I can give you is this. With the tow vehicle in park, with parking brake set and wheels chocked, get the jeep on the very back of the trailer. Start driving it very slowly forward until it feels "balanced" on the trailer and then continue on until the front of the trailer starts to sink down a bit. Once the Jeep adds 4-5" of sag to he truck you should be about right. Another "rule of thumb" is 65% of the weight in front of the trailer axles.

The trailer should hold the weight, the truck should pull the trailer. But when hitting bumps and such it is imperative that there is enough tongue weight to never allow the trailer to "unload".
 
allright...some good sound advise here and this week i plan on testing it out a few times..i'm also going to hopefully borrow his car hauler for this trip since i kinda wanna upgrade mine with some more iron and replace some of the flooring and still need to weld on some hook points for the straps. thank you all for your help/advise and will post up some info when i get some materials ready for upgrades. thank u. hope all is enjoying your weekend!!
 
Ok. So you are welding on the d rings for the straps??


I'm going to take a shot in the dark and say this is one of, if not the first, of your welding projects...
 
oh no..i'be been welding for about 8 years now and am pretty comfortable with it. bought a new Lincoln 140 just 2months ago.
 
Welding 8 years...

Didn't know what TIG was...


I just want to ensure the d rings are welded properly. You know, seeing how they are one of the single most important items to securing your vehicle on the trailer and all
 
hey hey hey...lol..just cause i didn't know what TIG welding was doesn't mean I'm not a capable mig welder..sure i'm by far a pro but i've gotten pretty good at it but i know it's important piece..i will run several passes on them with good cleaning and grinding in between. thanks
 
Jody Treadway said:
All I have to say is I am glad I'll be travelling east to get to The Flats and not south.
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ha ha ha. don't worry. i'm borrowing a trailer for this event cause mine isn't ready until i upgrade the steel beams, some of the flooring, D-rings and some kind of ramp.
 
John Fuller said:
ha ha ha. don't worry. i'm borrowing a trailer for this event cause mine isn't ready until i upgrade the steel beams, some of the flooring, D-rings and some kind of ramp.
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That's why I'm glad we aren't sharing the same route.
you need to take extra precautions when you are towing. You are putting other peoples lives at risk if not prepared properly.
 
John Fuller said:
hey hey hey...lol..just cause i didn't know what TIG welding was doesn't mean I'm not a capable mig welder..sure i'm by far a pro but i've gotten pretty good at it but i know it's important piece..i will run several passes on them with good cleaning and grinding in between. thanks
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There's a bit more to making a competent weld than this. IIRC you are running FCAW not GMAW.

Yes flux penetrates easier than hard wire but still has the tendency to pile up with little fusion on the base of the weld.

You cannot know with certainty that your are making a quality weld without either testing one through destruction, or other test NDT like XRay or Ultra-sound.

I would typically stay away from these "discussions" but the possible liability of a vehicle coming off a trailer and hurting someone other than yourself is too much for me to ignore.

Either test your own welds,
go somewhere and get plate qualified with FCAW/GMAW with your individual machine,

Or better yet,

Pay a professional welder who is Qualified in that position to make those welds.

Peace of mine, and protection of others is paramount to your convenience or personal economy.

Sorry to be the devils advocate on this, and I know I'm going to catch some heat for this post, but it needs to be said.
 
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