Turning With A Long Bumper Pull Trailer

TCBear wrote:
If your trailer has a long overhang behind the rear axle, your rear bumper's gonna swing out a bit during a sharp turn, so you may need to allow space for that as well. And you'll definitely need an adult spotter watching all four corners of the rig from the outside.

This is the biggest hazard as to damage.

Combined length on my rig is 62’ (RV Max is 65’ in Texas last I checked). 35’ TT & 163” WB pickup.

“Rear swing” gets my attention more than anything else. One swings wide to make a u-turn in a tight area, for instance, there’s a moment the trailer will back itself slightly. That’s one way how things get hit. (U-turns not recommended; a firing offense if on a public road some truck firms).

Backing into a spot is where it’s easy to lose track of one side of the trailer or the other.

Some tow vehicles worse than others for “wheel cut”. (Tighter is better; expressed in degrees). This determines how to set up the backing maneuver.

The rest isn’t bad. Backing or RH turns are usually where problems surface. (Always inspect starboard tires at every stop).

The hoary joke among truck drivers is that anyone can get them down the road. They’re paid to get them backed in.

Doesn’t matter how many attempts necessary to get backed, in a manner of speaking. Some days one is a whiz. Other days, a schmoe.

Your pickup “steers” from the rear axle (circle of the turn). Your trailer just alters that dimension farther rearward. See, “Ackermann Angle” as applied to trailers (Ackermann Steering Geometry).

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