Re: Flat towing? What about? Long response


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Posted by Paul on November 09, 1999 at 19:32:16:

In Reply to: Flat towing? What about two wheel car dollies/carriers???? posted by DAVE on November 09, 1999 at 08:14:13:

{{I thought about renting a 2 wheel car dolly from U-Haul and trying this.. Anyone ever try it... Results? Its gotta be a little bit better than flat towing, as the front wheels won't be
free to go everywhere they wish.. Does a truck the size of a power wagon fit on one of these dollies? Is it safe???? Can it
be done?

WHile on the subject, if all else fails I guess I am gonna have
to break down and buy a good trailer... I know nothing of trailers... so any advice on what to get would be apreciated..}}


If you want to tow, you'll need the heaviest tow dolly you can find. You'll also want a linkage steer rather than a swivel steer as there won't be enough room for the dolly to swivel as the truck will take all the room you've got.

For a trailer, you'll want at leat one set of brakes on the trailer, preferable both axles but one will usually do the trick. I prefer electric brakes and you can get an electronic brake controller which will keep you from having to cut the brake lines. It also allows you to control the brakes by hand. Be sure to seal the connectors really good. I didn't once and water got inside and rusted the screw holding the wires to my left turn signal. Whewn ever it flashed, it activated the brakes. No problem with no trailer but a loaded one will jerk the heck out of you.

Another method of braking is surge brakes. This activates when you slow down. Both brake systems need to have a break away safety feature. On electrics, it's a wire hooked to an auxillary battery and on surge brakes it hooks to the master cylinder. If the trailer comes unhooked, it will apply the brakes and stop the trailer.

On hitches, you want AT LEAST a class III (3) or better yet, a class IV. You also want an equalizer hitch assembly to spread the weight around on your front as well as rear wheels.

On wiring, usually your standard wires will take it but you'll need to go with a heavier duty flasher unit. I like the electronic ones as they really will; handle the power loads.

On trailers, you want self storing ramps if possible, a flat solid floor is heavier but allows the trailer to be used for other things too. You want at least the left fender to be detachable so that if you load a lower slung vehicle, you can open the door and get out without leaving the window down. A PW will sit high enough but you'll probalby want to haul something else later.

I no longer have a trailer of my own. I usually rent a U-Haul car trailer. The one problem with them is I can't use my equalizer hitch as there is no place to hook the lever bars. I also bought an adaptor that plugs into my regular wiring connector so I don't have to use the light bulbs with wires hanging out. Just plug the adaptor in and hook the trailer wires to it.



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