Fishtailing tow vehicle?

Yeah, like back in my first reply to the thread. For being full of shit like Tbone would like to believe, I not only was the first post to say that, but almost everyone thinks the same thing, except for Snoman.

Some things never change.

Very true. Most utilty trailer those only have 2900 to 3500 pound rated axles and a cord would overload it and the tires on it making it less forgiving couple with a soft tow vehicle with soft springs and tires spell trouble. Also I guess the previous poster has not cut and hauled much wood to make the statement that it likely does not weigh over

3000lbs. It takes a serious P/U to haul a cord of it in the bed without dragging its tail.

You really are clueless here arent you. Towing is not cut and dried and lots of varibles to consider mas weight goes on on a LD SUV like that (like hitch weight) and the 6000lb "rating" is not worth the paper it is printed on as I have a 2000 K3500 tht is only "rated to tow 8K but it will handle 13k (I have done it with no stabilty issues at all) a LOT better than that truck will handle 6K

There are two things that are pretty much cut and dried when it comes to stable towing: 10% of the loaded weight on the hitch and a 3:1 ratio of tongue length (hitch to axle) to track width.

But one variable has been completely over looked: How far is it from the truck's rear axle to the hitchball? The greater the distance, the more sway from hinge effect, and if the truck's tires were deflated for a soft ride . . . .

That was why the wagon didn't tow well behind the 54 Chevy for me, soft, tall tires and a big hinge effect. I'm still thanking God I didn't let my 19 year old nephew drive the rig home.

Budd

TheSnoMan wrote:

Tom.. I have the same Dakota.. 4.7, 3:55 gears... it's max tow according to Trailer Life is 5,200 pounds... goes up to 6,400 with

4:10 gears..

mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

I know that feeling.... we took several wood cutting trips to the local forest this year and a few times were what I would consider overloaded... Pine and fir cut to 18" in 12" to 20" rounds, stacked a little above the top of the bed... VERY wet wood, been downed by storms and under the snow for months.. I'm guessing that we had just a little over 1/4 of a cord, but it had to weigh close to 800 or 900 pounds...

We didn't weigh it, but when a ram 1500 levels out and grips the road like a sports car, you're overloaded.. lol

The wood cutting permits from the forestry service come with 4 stickers per cord and encourage you to limit each load to 1/4 cord...

mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

I heated with wood for 10 years. Even given the table of weights, we still don't know what wood he was hauling.

Even with an overloaded trailer, if the weight is properly distributed it'll pull straight, but sluggishly.

I feel sorry for the rest of you if your half tonners weren't "serious" enough to haul a cord of wood.

Maybe thats why I've always driven a Dodge, not just switched over in the past decade.

Thus proving that the overloading issue you claim was part of the problem isn't really part of the problem.....

On flat ground with a tail wind maybe and no curves

It's that apparent, huh? :)

So you're admitting to pulling more than 50% over your vehicle's legal limit, but I'm the one who's clueless because I point out that the OP wasn't pulling more than his vehicle was rated for.

Got it...

My dad occaisionally hauled a full bush cord of wet hard maple in a

1/2 ton Ford. Had six plies and they had to be over 45psi. It DID drag, but if loaded high at the front of the box, it was the whole truck that squatted. I occaiasionally hauled over a yard of crushed stone in the trailer ( back half of and old F100) behind my Aerostar.3200 lbs if I remember correctly. Thats about 2700 lbs per yard. It was a balancing act getting the tougue weight right. I remember( the first load) shovelling some of the load forward to stop the swing - which had the added advantage of getting the axle off the bump stops.

I also remember moving my tool box on my '57 Fargo Custom Express. I had the roll cab and top box right back at the tailgate, and the truck drove like it had sloppy linkage and power steering. Could spin the steering wheel with one finger. Good thing I wasn't going far.

We had 3 1/2 tons of gravel once in a J20 Jeep P/U many years ago. I still have that truck and it did no damage to it. It did not squat much but the tires were buldging with 80 PSI in them too.

I heated with wood for around 20 years and have hauled my share. It starts out weighing somewhere over 3,000 pounds after you cut and load it. But by the time you haul it home it will have gained at least 100% more weight depending on how far it is to the wood pile. I think that damed stuff soaks up all the energy out of your back and arms, gaining weight in leaps and bounds. I had a camper one time that had the fresh water tank at the back under the bed. After I loaded the trailer the way I wanted it, towing was nice and stable, until I would get close to the destination. You see I was smart enough to know that water weighed a considerable amount and there was no need to haul it all the way across country. But when I made my water stop and filled the tank it made the trailer lighter on the tung and would fish tail after you got up around 45 or 50. I would think his trailer was a toy hauler type with the single axle near the center as they sometimes are. If he loaded it evenly it would not have enough weight on the tung, that should be around 12 to 15 % of the overall weight to give a stable pull.