Pulling a tractor trailer with a jeep

lakill Farm

This year i want to buy a new 12x7 tipper trailer for the tractor for usual turf or small jog of gravel etc. But the problem is moving it from the ventors yard to my own. I have a jeep with a ball and it has the pin also (i say its designed for pulling them large diesel air compressors etc)

But how would i , as safe as possible hitch a trailer onto my jeep?

Is there a different hitch i can get for the jeep? Ill get a few uses out of it as i want to pick up a small slurry tanker in time

vanderbadger

lakill Farm wrote: »

This year i want to buy a new 12x7 tipper trailer for the tractor for usual turf or small jog of gravel etc. But the problem is moving it from the ventors yard to my own. I have a jeep with a ball and it has the pin also (i say its designed for pulling them large diesel air compressors etc)

But how would i , as safe as possible hitch a trailer onto my jeep?

Is there a different hitch i can get for the jeep? Ill get a few uses out of it as i want to pick up a small slurry tanker in time

you can get a hitch in most coops, its has the ball for horse boxes etc but also has underneath the ball a removalable pin that you could clip a normal trailer onto. im not describing too well but you see them on loads of jeeps, its just a case of swapping the hitch head on your tow bar currently with this type of one. by the way what type trailer did you get, very hard to see nice 12x7 type trailers on dondeal

lakill Farm

hi Van,

I have that hitch you described already but i donw think a trailer towing eye will fit it. ILl look in the local hardward tomorrow.

I havent picked up a trailr yet, but when i do, ill be going and bringing it home the one day. The last one i went to look at before christmas the lad sold it to another lad behind my back within 2 hours of me doing the deal. lucky i didnt pay desposit.

vanderbadger

lakill Farm wrote: »

hi Van,

I have that hitch you described already but i donw think a trailer towing eye will fit it. ILl look in the local hardward tomorrow.

I havent picked up a trailr yet, but when i do, ill be going and bringing it home the one day. The last one i went to look at before christmas the lad sold it to another lad behind my back within 2 hours of me doing the deal. lucky i didnt pay desposit.

i towed a baler behind my jeep once with one of those...scariest trip ever :eek:
suppose it will depend on whether the trailer has a big clumsy eye

whelan1

i know a lad with a lorry that will transport it for ya:D a neighbour of mine paid for a lovely new grain trailer before christmas- to coincide with the end of the tax year- still hasnt gotten it, feckers have sold his trailer twice and are now making another one for him , hes going mad... suppose you should never pay for anything until you get it, lesson learned

lakill Farm

would you trust him .

why doesnt he go back for his money and get a credit note with a 2012 date and go off and buy in another spot.

whelan1 wrote: »

i know a lad with a lorry that will transport it for ya:D a neighbour of mine paid for a lovely new grain trailer before christmas- to coincide with the end of the tax year- still hasnt gotten it, feckers have sold his trailer twice and are now making another one for him , hes going mad... suppose you should never pay for anything until you get it, lesson learned

whelan1

i dont know , he's well fed up at this stage :cool:

Bizzum

If you have to draw a trailer behind a jeep let the tyre pressure way down on the trailer to stop it bouncing as much.

JohnBoy

Alternatively, just dont do it.

The tractor trailer is designed to put a lot of weight on the drawbar, your jeep is designed to take 50-100kgs of drawbar weight. you'll have the ass on the ground, nose in the air, a few tonnes of unbraked trailer out back. it's dangerous, and wholesale abuse of a machine.

Dont know where you are in the country, but in cork you can hire a flatbed brian james transporter for 50 euro a day.

get the new trailer reversed up onto it, strap it down and drive home.

alternatives are take the tractor, or pay a truck to do it.

Muckit

I'd agree. No point being a penny wise and a pound foolish. You and your brand new trailer and good jeep fishtailing down a hill..........brown trouser moment.

Make it part of the deal that they deliver it.

idunnoshur

If you did that you'd risk snapping the back axle of the jeep. You could get a dolly, not fully sure of the name but it's a basically another trailer a very heavy axle that you put onto the jeep then the tractor trailer goes onto the dolly. It sorts out the men from the boys in the reversing department too

Attie

Agh come on now folks most jeeps tow 3.5 tonn look at this

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/auto-parts/towing/towing-capacity/vehicle/towing-capacity-chart19.htm

I've towed a lot heaver just take your time

kingstown

I'd be very carefully on what you decide to do....... If anything happens you you wont be insured - why risk the hassle. Get someone to deliver it.

These hitches you are speaking of aren't designed for that purpose. The standard type normally only take 3000kg on the pin approx 1500kg on the ball.
Remember you are pulling an unbraked trailer of that size / weight on a public road uninsured.

The guys pulling compressors etc have brake's and use a really HD hitch pic below - and they sometimes have problems also.

As the saying goes ''why risk it, let O'Brien lift it'

kingstown

Attie

Whats the legal max towing weight in Ireland & UK for combined vehicle and trailer??

Just caus the jeep (and i have no doubt that it cant) can pull it isn't a defense if anything happens

JohnBoy

Attie wrote: »

Agh come on now folks most jeeps tow 3.5 tonn look at this

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/auto-parts/towing/towing-capacity/vehicle/towing-capacity-chart19.htm

I've towed a lot heaver just take your time

Most jeeps arent rated to tow 3500kgs.

Most land rover models are, but not many others.

lwb pajeros, troopers, patrols and land cruiser amazons are the other main ones.

Most others are not.


Also that's the braked weight, not unbraked.

that's also for a relatively balanced trailer. car/jeep trailers have the axle in the middle to put little weight on the hitch, tractor trailers have the axle at the back expressly to put weight on the hitch.


so he'd have an unbraked, seriously unbalanced weight hitched onto what I think is a pajero sport.







try that with a 12x7 tractor trailer and see how it ends up.

MidlandsM

You're mad to tow something like that behind the jeep, look what happened here with a normal trailer.........

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDqiR1wOAg8

lakill Farm

Your right i have a lwb pajero sport, with a hitch very similar to what kingswood posted.

I like the idea of the plant trailer and ratch strap it down. ill look at that option . My 2 trailers presently are a 12ft x 6 dp ifor williams cattle and a 10x7ft plant (the bed is 5ft for a mini digger) bith braked and all breakaway systems working.:D

Im in Mullingar area, and i was going to by a secondhand trailer and how many farmers who sell 2nd hand want to deliver. i also like that dolly idea mentioned above.



***Thanks Rovi/Reilig for moving orginal post from Chit chat to a seperate posting. Loads of info so far.

Attie

Taken from Landrover manual.

:eek::eek::eek::eek:

Shall take a good look at the towing policy here

lakill Farm

please note, i havent bought a trailer yet, this is just some PPPPPP

Prior planning prevents piss poor performance

JohnBoy

Attie wrote: »

Taken from Landrover manual.

:eek::eek::eek::eek:

Shall take a good look at the towing policy here

what's your point?

Attie

JohnBoy wrote: »

what's your point?

Johnboy
Will look twice at what i'm towing from now on.

bbam

MidlandsM wrote: »

You're mad to tow something like that behind the jeep, look what happened here with a normal trailer.........

In fairness your man was driving far too fast for the size of trailer he was towing and god knows what load there was in it... He also seemed not to react near quick enough when it started to fish tail...

However I would agree that towing a large tractor trailer behind the jeep would be too dangerous...
Why not drop whelan1 a PM and get a quote from the professionals

lakill Farm

Probably get a 50% discount for been on here.



[...
Why not drop whelan1 a PM and get a quote from the professionals [/QUOTE]

JohnBoy

Attie wrote: »

Johnboy
Will look twice at what i'm towing from now on.

ok, sorry for going off there, but I was the one in that focus.

I used try and be fairly right right towing/ with trailers before that accident, now even more so.

when you start looking properly at what farmers pull behind jeeps and tractors most of them would be locked up in other business sectors.

pakalasa

Depends on what kind of jeep it is;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCR4UOCI9ZA

shanemasseyman

go in the tractor, more fun:)

red menace

pakalasa wrote: »

Depends on what kind of jeep it is;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCR4UOCI9ZA

and the award for best comment goes to:

The Taliban wouldnt do that

sea12

Muckit wrote: »

I'd agree. No point being a penny wise and a pound foolish. You and your brand new trailer and good jeep fishtailing down a hill..........brown trouser moment.

Make it part of the deal that they deliver it.

I agree.I bought one like that and as part of the deal the guy was to deliver it. He towed it behind his jeep. As the jeep was a bit lower he caught it going over a ramp and broke the stand that was welded under the draw bar. Also had to go on the motor way.
Anyway he said he would never do it again. It was swaying all over the road.

Try get it delivered properly if you can. No point having an accident to save €50-€100

Farmer Pudsey

When you buy the trailer do the deal that they deliver it to your yard most places that make or sell farm equipment have ways of delivering them and willl not lose a deal because of it no matter how far

Muckit

bbam wrote: »

He also seemed not to react near quick enough when it started to fish tail...

So what is one supposed to do when a trailer starts to fishtail???

Answer: make sure you've your seatbelt welll fastened, hold on well to the steering wheel and prepare to cack your pants. Jack sh*t else you can do. Been there, done that (didn't cack my pants though;)) and written off the car and trailer.

It's easy for hurlers to give advice from the ditch

fanadman1

often seen tractor trailers pulled with jeeps :L the way we do it is put it on the ball and get a end of a draw bar put it down over the top its a far steadyer job imo ! have a bit of sense and dn't be driveing flat i also seen a 1100 star tanker wit 38" rear tires pulled with a renult master and he got it home (with some duel carrige way )

johngalway

JohnBoy wrote: »

ok, sorry for going off there, but I was the one in that focus.

What happened to get to the photo above JB? I wouldn't have thought a trailer like that would do so much damage!

vincenzolorenzo

red menace wrote: »

and the award for best comment goes to:

Written by our own fellow boardsie fastrac too!

pakalasa

If it starts to fishtail - would it not be better to take your leg off the brake, and then accelerate again. If you have enough road that is. Don't know, just wondering.
I was passed one day going to Dublin by a guy in a saloon car pulling one of those inflatabile boats used for diving on the back. He must have been doing close to the 90 MPH mark when he passed me. I was just waiting for it to lift off the ground. Madness...:mad:

Dupont

pakalasa wrote: »

Depends on what kind of jeep it is;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCR4UOCI9ZA

we pulled a dump trailer like that behind an old type hiace;)

fastrac

vincenzolorenzo wrote: »

Written by our own fellow boardsie fastrac too!

And coming out of my yard.

JohnBoy

fanadman1 wrote: »

often seen tractor trailers pulled with jeeps :L the way we do it is put it on the ball and get a end of a draw bar put it down over the top its a far steadyer job imo ! have a bit of sense and dn't be driveing flat i also seen a 1100 star tanker wit 38" rear tires pulled with a renult master and he got it home (with some duel carrige way )

big whoop, some people get away with doing stupid things things all the time.


they're still doing stupid things though

JohnBoy

johngalway wrote: »

What happened to get to the photo above JB? I wouldn't have thought a trailer like that would do so much damage!

Driving home for my lunch one day, doing 50mph on a straight stretch, car coming against me, only doing around 20 or so.

lovely sunny day (was actually going home at lunch to spray the spuds for blight) sunroof open, music on, sweet jesus trailer, Bang

his hitch failed and lifted up off the ball. there were timbers tied to a ladder rack that acted like a sail. trailer crossed to my side of the road. I only braked for around 20 feet or so before I hit the trailer head on. pushed it back up the road for a bit and came to rest in a daze.

Thankfully the timbers kept going and launched right out over the roof of the car.


One of those scary what if moments, obvious what if's were if I'd been ten seconds earlier or later I'd probably have been fine, but more worrying was that if I'd been driving the jeep the timbers would probably have come through the windscreen!


Some fun ringing the sister in law to tell her I'd borrowed her car while she was on holidays cos my jeep had broken down. And she wasnt getting her car back!




So yeah, that's made me even more particular about towing than I used to be.

O.A.P

That photo will certainly make me take it easy with the trailer. Its very easy to get complacent at a job when you do it often. I have a heavy right foot and when the trailer is empty I give it stick forgetting its still almost a tonn behind me.

johngalway

Jb,

Ah yes, now it makes sense with the timbers on the trailer. I was trying to figure out how the hitch got up like that. Your obvious bad luck aside, you were very lucky that day. Like you said, in a higher vehicle like a jeep who knows where the timber would have flew off to. One of those sobering images.

bbam

O.A.P wrote: »

That photo will certainly make me take it easy with the trailer. Its very easy to get complacent at a job when you do it often. I have a heavy right foot and when the trailer is empty I give it stick forgetting its still almost a tonn behind me.

Too much of it round...
Lad I worked for would often have a 12ft Ifor flat behind the transporter..
Empty back from dublin she'd sit at 110 in the fast lane on the M3 :eek: and I don't mean KPH either...

Damn it, his license is clean and I have 4 points for doing no more than 15kph over the limit :mad:

warmsand

pakalasa wrote: »

If it starts to fishtail - would it not be better to take your leg off the brake, and then accelerate again. If you have enough road that is. Don't know, just wondering.

That is the general advice, though it's best to keep the speed down in the first place.

READ THIS VERY VERY CAREFULLY: DO NOT, I REPEAT DO NOT, PUT YOUR FOOT ON YOUR TOW VEHICLE BRAKES IF YOU FEEL YOUR TRAILER START TO FISHTAIL. I know it seems counter-intuitive but, in reality, braking will just make the problem worse. You actually need to put your foot on the gas pedal and essentially “pull” your trailer out of the fishtail. Once your trailer has straightened out, THEN you can stop.
http://trailerchix.com/trailer-lifestyle/ask-mona/travel-trailer-towing/

johngalway

bbam wrote: »

Too much of it round...
Lad I worked for would often have a 12ft Ifor flat behind the transporter..
Empty back from dublin she'd sit at 110 in the fast lane on the M3 :eek: and I don't mean KPH either...

Damn it, his license is clean and I have 4 points for doing no more than 15kph over the limit :mad:

The positive for you in that is by the time he has a wreck, your four points will be gone off your license These things catch up with people eventually.

greysides

Thanks Warmsand, it seemed to me from the video clip that the trailer started fishtailing badly once the brake lights came on.

What effect would allowing the combo to slow by easing up on the accelerator have ?

fanadman1

JohnBoy wrote: »

big whoop, some people get away with doing stupid things things all the time.


they're still doing stupid things though

op asked if it could be done. i simply said i had seen it done. i did state that he should be carefull

kincaid

could i ask, my friend purchased a new holland square baler( not sure what these weigh) to take home approx 20 miles, its fairly wide but would it be ok to tow this behind a jeep ie 3.1 trooper

moy83

kincaid wrote: »

could i ask, my friend purchased a new holland square baler( not sure what these weigh) to take home approx 20 miles, its fairly wide but would it be ok to tow this behind a jeep ie 3.1 trooper

I was a passenger in the old lads jeep last summer when we towed home a square baler about thirty miles . If you offered to pay my mortgage off in return for moving a square baler with a jeep now i wouldnt do it .
They are way too much off centre, no matter how close to the verge you go with the jeep there is still a good bit of the baler sticking out the far side .
We didnt just have one close call but three , never again .

Dupont

i always wondered if it were to start fishtailing could you turn it slightly like on a wide dual carraige way with nothing coming do a slight turn to the other side would this straighten it out?

pakalasa

The problem with the brakes on the trailer is that they work on a plunger. When you hit the brakes on the jeep, the trailer keeps going, pushes the plunger and then the trailer is braked. You can't bring the trailer brakes on slightly like you do with the jeep. It's all or nothing. This makes the whole thing very unstable if anything at all goes wrong.
Just drive slowly and tow only what the car or jeep is spec'd to pull.

In fairness, if you look at the video, the guy does take his leg of the brake when he starts to loose control. The brake lights go out anyway.
He was only a few feet from going out over the flyover. He could have killed a lot of people.

If you change down gear and keep the revs up, you grip the road better, especially on a permanent 4 wheel drive. All the bus drivers and police car drivers are trained to do this.

Muckit

Dupont wrote: »

i always wondered if it were to start fishtailing could you turn it slightly like on a wide dual carraige way with nothing coming do a slight turn to the other side would this straighten it out?

It all happens in a split second. You don't get time to think. You are relying on your instincts

JohnBoy

warmsand wrote: »

That is the general advice, though it's best to keep the speed down in the first place.

READ THIS VERY VERY CAREFULLY: DO NOT, I REPEAT DO NOT, PUT YOUR FOOT ON YOUR TOW VEHICLE BRAKES IF YOU FEEL YOUR TRAILER START TO FISHTAIL. I know it seems counter-intuitive but, in reality, braking will just make the problem worse. You actually need to put your foot on the gas pedal and essentially “pull” your trailer out of the fishtail. Once your trailer has straightened out, THEN you can stop.
http://trailerchix.com/trailer-lifestyle/ask-mona/travel-trailer-towing/

have had a few speed wobbles in the past, have managed to fight the braking urge, lifted off gently and lived to tell the tale. I've heard the drive it out suggestion before, but have yet to try it.


amazing how low a speed they can happen at sometimes, got one at 40mph with less than a tonne behind the jeep once. load was high, trailer softly sprung and I'd come down a sweeping on-ramp too fast.