Trailer Tips?

[emcrace]

Two big things. Tires that are older than 8 years are may pops. Tires that are 10 years old will pop at any moment. The tire can be kept in a plastic bag still have it's titties and it is still a time bomb. The modern rubbers used in sidwalls are marvels but they have a half life and are very dangerous after 8 years. The DOT numers are only one side. A number like 2008 would be week twenty of 2008. No DOT number then it is waaaaaayyyyyy to old.
Second problem from the pictures the fenders to the floor are quite high. Measure from the ground to the bottom of your door then measure the fender hight. I bet ya you would have to crawl out of the window. I did that once never again.

 

[DGRacing]

Here's what I got yesterday.

• Diamond steel throughout
• Chrome toolbox, stoneguard, wheels
• Dual axle brakes
• Radial tires, spare tire
• 9k Winch
• Ramps
• 21'

What was kind of funny was that my Denali has air-ride suspension, so every time they put a hitch on it, the truck would auto-level and tilt the trailer up at the tongue,
so they kept having to get a deeper hitch...

 

[CrazyHorse1847]

Very nice!! Way better choice than the used one you posted pics of.

 

[steveespo]

Nice trailer Darren!

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Looks like I've reached an agreement with the owner of a local shop to buy his used rig at the end of this month. 95 F250 7.3L diesel w/ a 32' gooseneck enclosed trailer. Not the prettiest stuff but everything is well-maintained and in good condition. Pics later this month.

 

[cloud9]

Looks like I've reached an agreement with the owner of a local shop to buy his used rig at the end of this month. 95 F250 7.3L diesel w/ a 32' gooseneck enclosed trailer. Not the prettiest stuff but everything is well-maintained and in good condition. Pics later this month.

Nice. Might have to rethink the Roundup. Would be a great test for it

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Unlikely, but anything is possible...

I can definitely swing it in 2014. Probably.

The last few years of my life have really redefined my perspective of patience and planning.

 

[cloud9]

Unlikely, but anything is possible...

I can definitely swing it in 2014. Probably.

The last few years of my life have really redefined my perspective of patience and planning.

Good thinking and I was the same way when I was your age which is why I can go so often now

 

[VoodooBoss]

Nice. Might have to rethink the Roundup. Would be a great test for it

Or at least Do The Screw In Your 302 at Laguna Seca on August 25th.

 

[blacksheep-1]

Nice rig! if it happens to be tubular steel, take the time to saturate the inside of the tubes with some type of marine lube/ corrosion inhibitor. we used to have to do this on our steel ladder trucks to prevent internal corrosion. Also that used (used up?) trailer back on post #17 at one time was a high dollar piece, in case somebody wants a project, (if it's straight), that would be a good one.

 

[DGRacing]

Thanks for the comps gents.

Since this is my first trailer, I found an expert on my race forums (NASA forums) who I'm hiring to come to me and go through the loading/unloading/towing process with my car a few times until I got it nailed down.

Don't want to make a $70k mistake (car and trailer).

This trailer came in around $5500. From a shop in Pennsylvania. PM me if you want contact info. They were great.

Also, I was thinking of spraying rainex on the chrome as a cheapy way to keep the water off. Is that a dumb idea?

 

[blacksheep-1]

Also, I was thinking of spraying rainex on the chrome as a cheapy way to keep the water off. Is that a dumb idea?

Lucas makes a spray on wax that is fast and good, it's the best I've ever seen, might be a better choice.

http://www.lucasoil.com/products/display_products.sd?iid=79&catid=18&loc=show&headTitle=%20-%20Lucas%20Slick%20Mist%20Speed%20Wax

BTW are you guys allowed to run anti freeze. or do they make you run some kind of "water wetter" while you are at the track?

 

[DGRacing]

Lucas makes a spray on wax that is fast and good, it's the best I've ever seen, might be a better choice.

http://www.lucasoil.com/products/display_products.sd?iid=79&catid=18&loc=show&headTitle=%20-%20Lucas%20Slick%20Mist%20Speed%20Wax

BTW are you guys allowed to run anti freeze. or do they make you run some kind of "water wetter" while you are at the track?

The race groups (I run in NASA) are required to run only water but they will announce that you can use 10% antifreeze if it's snowing outside, like it was at VIR in Feb.

 

[drano38]

Thanks for the comps gents.

Since this is my first trailer, I found an expert on my race forums (NASA forums) who I'm hiring to come to me and go through the loading/unloading/towing process with my car a few times until I got it nailed down.

Don't want to make a $70k mistake (car and trailer).

Darren,
Nice trailer!
I may be too late on your tiedown solution, but this company makes great products.
http://www.macscustomtiedowns.com/
Gary uses them, and I got a few things form them about a year ago--custom length straps for front A-arms to winch, big bag, padded collar for rear wheel straps, etc. The lady was great helping me upgrade my system.
Having help loading/unloading the car the first couple times is a great idea. I made a checklist and followed it to the letter.
Make sure the car emergency brake is on when it needs to be, and not on when it shouldn't be. (or in or out of gear to prevent rolling). Don't ask me why I know this is important. 8)
And before I tow, I check 2-3 times that everything is hooked up, tilt bed lock engaged, etc. Can't be too safe.

 

[cloud9]

Here's a trailer tip. Don't put your feet under the tongue of the trailer when jacking it up. I was backing into my warehouse tonight to get the trailer for BIR tomorrow and had one of my installers lining me up to the hitch. He had to raise the trailer a bit since I didn't have any cargo in the pickup bed so it was sitting a little higher. He made about one turn when "wham!" the jack failed. Thank God his feet weren't under it or it would have been catastrophic. I've always wondered if those things could fail and have consciously kept my feet at a safe distance. We grabbed a forklift and put it on the trailer and fortunately the camper shop had a jack on hand so I wasn't SOL for BIR.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

 

[drano38]

Wow, that wasn't good. I agree, keep feet and other body parts clear--to include not having them under the spring tension bars in case those components fail and the bar snaps down.
Glad to hear it turned out ok.
Have fun in the cold at BIR.

 

[Fat Boss]

Dang Gary. Glad no one got hurt. Trailers are pretty dangerous. And they're always dangerous in ways you don't expect.

My dad told me a story yesterday. He was unloading the '13 (that's 1913) Oakland Touring car by himself, after he and my mom took it on a tour last weekend where they logged about 200 miles. I'm thinking he's in it and using the brake. Nope. He was next to the car hoping to ease it out the door of the trailer, down the ramp, and be able to slow it before it hits anything. You can see where this is going. He is not able to stop it before it knocks his '35 Phaeton (four door convertible sedan) off all four jack stands and onto the concrete. He had all four wheels off doing some resto work on it. He's extremely lucky he didn't hurt himself or the cars worse. The Oakland suffered no damage, it hit the '35 with the left rear wheel. The Ford was very lucky in that the backing plates on the rear caught the car before it landed on the rear fenders. The front fenders were off and it landed on the backing plates there as well. The front bumper is V shaped now.

I asked him why at the tender young age of 78 he's still learning lessons like this. He said he'd never done that before, so he thought he could pull it off. Geez dad.

Here's the thirty five Phaeton. Pretty rare car. He offered the asking money to the ninety four year old and still had to talk him into selling it for a year before he got it. This pic shows the thirty six sheetmetal that was on the front when he bought it. He's got one new old stock and one good used thirty five fender to put it back to stock.



And here's the Oakland. I'd call it downright modern since it has front doors and a clutch. Note the ultra convenient on board gas, oil, and water cans on the running board.

 

[DGRacing]

Darren,
Nice trailer!
I may be too late on your tiedown solution, but this company makes great products.
http://www.macscustomtiedowns.com/
Gary uses them, and I got a few things form them about a year ago--custom length straps for front A-arms to winch, big bag, padded collar for rear wheel straps, etc. The lady was great helping me upgrade my system.
Having help loading/unloading the car the first couple times is a great idea. I made a checklist and followed it to the letter.
Make sure the car emergency brake is on when it needs to be, and not on when it shouldn't be. (or in or out of gear to prevent rolling). Don't ask me why I know this is important. 8)
And before I tow, I check 2-3 times that everything is hooked up, tilt bed lock engaged, etc. Can't be too safe.

Wayne, I went with the mac's pro pack kit[1], through wheel tie downs. Excellent product and well made. The mix-n-match options on Mac's website is endless so this package made it simple.

Used the whole rig for the first time at Summit last weekend and everything went great (except the loading it back on in the rain Sunday which isn't fun. :-\)

However, during testing beforehand we had to really invent a solution to get my car on smoothly without scraping.

Basically, this involved the use of my race ramps and extenders underneath the steel trailer ramps. AND, 6"x6" blocks under the trailer dovetail to keep it from bottoming out and screwing up the angle. With those things, I can winch the car on without incident (my lowest point is 3" off the ground).

[1] http://www.macscustomtiedowns.com/product/271/All

 

[drano38]

Darren,
Glad you found a good solution. And the storage bag works great too.
With my stock suspension, I barely scrape the splitter using my homemade foam ramps. Once I put the Steeda springs/Koni Yellows on, I may need to throw some blocks under it too, or add a layer of foam to my ramps.
Macs makes great stuff and are very helpful.