Pickup driver caught after cops find him hauling 53? trailer

[Fisher_Bill]

Saw this on the web today, anybody else try this?

[94-D2]

Me neither. Just putting it out there to show it may not be as rare as most would think. I see the 4 and 550’s pulling 4-8 cars all the time. I’m sure those are upwards of 30k. I stopped this guy. He scaled out at 53k gross. 33 on the trailer with a 27k GVWR. Cited and out of service for unsafe load (tire ratings).



(I don’t know why it posts upside down)

[laknox]

94-D2 wrote:
1ton pulling a 53’

Ignore the driver using his phone to record or the distraction from the road in front of him....

Actually, it's a 450 and it also looks like the passenger was recording. Just sayin'... Personally, I have no problem with it, as long as it's mostly empty. Hell, empty, it's probably lighter than most FWs people tow, especially with a 450.

Lyle

[94-D2]

1ton pulling a 53’

Ignore the driver using his phone to record or the distraction from the road in front of him....

[BarneyS]

Learjet wrote:
good test for that old rusty receiver on that truck....we know how strong they are 🙂

Looks to me like it might really be a bigger test for that pin holding the drawbar to the tongue.:E
Barney

[Learjet]

good test for that old rusty receiver on that truck....we know how strong they are 🙂

[Kayteg1]

RAS43 wrote:


That air line is hooked to the emergency glad hand which fills the trailer's air tank and releases the parking brake. The other glad hand is the service side which applies the brakes when the tractor foot valve or hand valve are applied. Without an air hose there is no way to apply brakes. Pretty hard to stop with only the pickup brakes.

The way the air brakes work is that once you dump the air, the spring will apply emergency/parking brakes.
Not really useable for traffic driving, but brake is brake.

[RAS43]

ford truck guy wrote:
He has some type of "air set up".. there is an airline that runs from the truck bed to the right glad hand on the trailer..

That air line is hooked to the emergency glad hand which fills the trailer's air tank and releases the parking brake. The other glad hand is the service side which applies the brakes when the tractor foot valve or hand valve are applied. Without an air hose there is no way to apply brakes. Pretty hard to stop with only the pickup brakes.

[fj12ryder]

From what I can see that guy isn't doing any farming, and how much traffic were you encountering with those cotton wagons all those years ago? Believe it or not, times change, and what worked then, isn't so smart now.

And way back when nobody thought anything about driving while drinking a cold one, or two. "Impaired" driving was pretty much a non-issue, a lot of people did it with no accidents or problems. Doesn't mean it was smart then either.

[laknox]

fj12ryder wrote:
"Empty weight would likely be about 10k and we towed that much, and more, all the time back in our pre-module cotton picking days and were using trailers. 1/2t truck, no brakes, 25-30 mph, upwards of a 15 mile one-way tow to and from the gin."

Being able to get away with doing something only makes it do-able, not smart.

Worked for us, accident free, for over 50 years of cotton farming. (shrug)

Lyle

[ford_truck_guy]

He has some type of "air set up".. there is an airline that runs from the truck bed to the right glad hand on the trailer..

[fj12ryder]

"Empty weight would likely be about 10k and we towed that much, and more, all the time back in our pre-module cotton picking days and were using trailers. 1/2t truck, no brakes, 25-30 mph, upwards of a 15 mile one-way tow to and from the gin."

Being able to get away with doing something only makes it do-able, not smart.

[laknox]

Looks to me like there may be a compressor in the truck bed to release the brakes. Not sure what the thing stuck on the tailgate is. Camera? Sending unit for wireless lights? Tank on the tongue is =not= an air tank; looks to be some sort of liquid tank, given the hoses. I know that, were I involved in ag and towing this, I'd claim "implement of husbandry". :B Empty weight would likely be about 10k and we towed that much, and more, all the time back in our pre-module cotton picking days and were using trailers. 1/2t truck, no brakes, 25-30 mph, upwards of a 15 mile one-way tow to and from the gin.

Lyle

[Kayteg1]

RAS43 wrote:
Looking at the article linked, the person had an air tank rigged to release the parking brake but there isn't a hose to the connection that would apply the service brake. So the only braking would be done by the truck which is not legal for the size of the trailer.

There is no confirmation either way.
The cop had no mechanical knowledge to determinate how it worked and the journalist knows even less.
So if the trailer brakes work- the only issue is steering and since trailer is on dolly, there is not much forces required.
I would compare this setup to Australian "Road trains" where a truck pulls dozen of trailers. All legal in AU.
Why this topic is 5th wheels? :S
On other hand, that tank looks like fluid tank, not air tank to me?

[RAS43]

Looking at the article linked, the person had an air tank rigged to release the parking brake but there isn't a hose to the connection that would apply the service brake. So the only braking would be done by the truck which is not legal for the size of the trailer.