<VV> new car adventure - trailer weight distribution

[Bob & Kathy Gilbert]

Hi,

Anybody got any advice for towing with a 5th wheel trailer? I just picked
one up used, dual rear wheels with electric brakes, 14,000 lb capacity
(overkill but the price was right) and I'll be mounting the 5th wheel plate
on my F250 3/4 ton.

My plan was to tow my 66 convertible nose forward on it's way to and from
getting the top installed.

Any thoughts or concerns?

Bob
 

-----Original Message-----
From: virtualvairs-bounces at corvair.org
[mailto:virtualvairs-bounces at corvair.org] On Behalf Of vairtec at optonline.net
Sent: April 17, 2005 11:03 AM
To: mhicks130 at cox.net; virtualvairs at corvair.org
Subject: Re: <VV> new car adventure - trailer weight distribution

At 01:58 AM 4/17/05, mhicks130 at cox.net wrote:

>To everyone who said tow with the engine forward - you're right!!!

First, let me add my relief that you, your friend, your Corvair and the
friend's tow vehicle survived this extreme lesson in trailer balance.

Then let me challenge the above assertion and expand on what others have
said about weight distribution on a trailer.

Placement of the car -- forward or backward -- isn't the main issue.  Weight
distribution is.  As has been noted here, something in the neighborhood of
10-15% of the total loaded weight should be on the trailer tongue.  Trailers
are different from one another.  On my open trailer, forward-facing
placement of a Corvair is the only way to achieve proper balance.  On a
friend's open trailer, rearward-facing placement is needed.

But even with having found a good balance (and it's a trial-n-error process,
though usually with not so great an error as you experienced), trailer sway
can still be an issue.  With lighter tow vehicles (today's SUVs, midside
pickups and smaller) the effects of any sway will be greater.  When towing
with a Chevy Astro van, I made the decision to buy a relatively inexpensive
friction anti-sway device.  This decision was based on the white-knuckle
factor.  When towing with my 10,000-lb-plus motorhome, all sway is
controlled by the sheer mass of the motorhome and I can drive with one
finger -- but I use the anti-sway device anyway.

A further lesson for everyone:

>We loaded the car on the trailer nose first and everything seemed fine.  
>It would wiggle a little on downhill slopes but my driver (who has 
>towed before) thought it was fine.

No "little wiggle" is ever fine.  If you get such a condition, re-balance
the load, add an anti-sway device, get a bigger tow vehicle, or park it.

>Moral: TOW YOUR CORVAIR BACKWARDS!!!

No, I'm sorry, but this is the wrong conclusion.  It's BALANCE YOUR TRAILER
PROPERLY!!!

--Bob

Robert W. Marlow
Vairtec at optonline.net

 _______________________________________________
This message was sent by the VirtualVairs mailing list, all copyrights are
the property of the writer, please attribute properly. For help,
mailto:vv-help at corvair.org This list sponsored by the Corvair Society of
America, http://www.corvair.org/ Post messages to: VirtualVairs at corvair.org
Change your options: http://www.vv.corvair.org/mailman/options/virtualvairs
 _______________________________________________