Tow chains

[RVJimofOregon]

I have always used and beside it is the law but just was wondering this. Has anyone had a trailer come loose and the safety chains saved the day or would it have been better for it to part way from the tow rig.
If it did come loose same question about the break away brakes?
RV Jim

[Ole_Man_Dan]

I've spent the last 45 years crossing my safety chains in case a trailer did drop off. Hasn't happened so far.
I have seen an ancient Shasta drop off the ball, w/o safety chains.
Fortunately it was in the city, and it only damaged the tongue of the trailer. Man was lucky.

[chasmatt45]

In 1966, when I was young and immortal, I was driving on I-90 in Indiana at night. I saw an unattached travel trailer coming across the center median straight at my car. I stood on the gas and it went behind us - missed us by about 3 feet - continued across the freeway and crashed. Fortunately there were no cars close behind me. When I hook up my TT, I check all of the connections and chains then recheck, and then recheck again. Then my wife checks the hookup after we do the light checks.

[lushy]

Another safety chain tip that I learned early on from a seasoned RV'er.
When hooking your TT chains to your tow vehicle, criss-cross the chains and hook to your hitch. This creates a "cradle" that the tounge of your trailer will rest on, in the event the trailer comes off the ball of the tow vehicle.

[campigloo]

Absolutely use the chains. When I look at mine, my only worry is did the factory use big enough chains?

[NWGaGatorFans]

Not an RV, but had a boat/trailer come off the ball on the boat ramp one day and the chains saved us from losing the rig.

[Gdetrailer]

RVJimofOregon wrote:
I have always used and beside it is the law but just was wondering this. Has anyone had a trailer come loose and the safety chains saved the day or would it have been better for it to part way from the tow rig.
If it did come loose same question about the break away brakes?
RV Jim

I have some very sobering reading for you to look at..

Improperly secured chipper kills family

READ FULL ARTICLE HERE

Chipper accident trial set to start..

READ FULL ARTICLE HERE

Chipper accident driver pleads guilty..

READ FULL ARTICLE HERE

PAY ATTENTION TO THE VERY END OF THE ABOVE LINK WHICH I QUOTE..

"Demitras, who also pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment and several motor vehicle violations, faces up to 17{1/4} years in prison when he is sentenced May 22. Until then, he will remain under house arrest with electronic monitoring."

Improperly secured warning..

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE

So unless you really enjoy risking yours or other motorists lives (or even facing years of prison time and a life time of haunting memories) I would highly recommend FOLLOWING ALL REQUIRED safety rules such as using safety chains...

By the way PA tightened up their rules due to the above accident considerably..

[mhardin]

I remember an incident about 20 years ago when a 16' utility trailer came loose, jumped the interstate median and became airborne. The tongue of the trailer hit a large sedan right at the point where the hood opens. It then peeled off the hood, went through the windshield, removed the top of the car and killed the occupants on the way through. I know this to be true - I was the first officer on the scene.

[RVJimofOregon]

wmoses wrote:

RVJimofOregon wrote:
... or would it have been better for it to part way from the tow rig.

Better for whom? The reason that the chains are there is primarily for the protection of the other people on the road. I hope you are not considering foregoing the use of safety chains or the breakaway cable and control for the trailer brakes. :h

No way just got to thinking.

[wmoses]

RVJimofOregon wrote:
... or would it have been better for it to part way from the tow rig.

Better for whom? The reason that the chains are there is primarily for the protection of the other people on the road. I hope you are not considering foregoing the use of safety chains or the breakaway cable and control for the trailer brakes. :h

[westend]

It's never better to have no safety chains. You don't want the trailer to go off the roadway or into an opposing lane. The safety chains prevent that from happening.

I have been in a truck when the trailer came off the ball. The utility trailer broke the chains loose as the truck was slowing and careened off the right side of the road and through a highway sign, coming to a stop ahead of the truck. If the safety chains and connectors had been in good shape, the trailer would have stopped in back of the truck with much less damage. If that flat bed trailer had swung left and entered the opposing lane, any head-on traffic would have been in dire straights.

[PAThwacker]

Chains help if it bounces off ball. Chains fail when the reciever rips off rig, brakes engage if and only if you hook the brake cable to the frame!

[TucsonJim]

About ten years ago, my uncle was towing a jeep behind a motor home. The toad came loose, but he had safety chains attached. There was very minimal damage to both the rigs.

The problem with letting it go loose is the danger you put all the other motorists in. As the TT is careening down the road or maybe into oncoming traffic before the brakes stop it, it can do catastrophic damage.

[diazr2]

YIKES!!! scary subject there Jim.. I have never had a TT or Fiver come off but I did have a 22ft boat come off the hitch. Safety chains saved my a*#. Not a scratch on the TV or Boat. It happend on the freeway at 60mph I took my foot off the gas did not use the brakes and the whole thing swayed to a rather abrupt stop. Boat was swinging around like a balloon in the wind. It would swing to one side tires on one side would leave the ground then swing to the other side where the same thing would happen. Right while all this was happening I still had cars passing me on the left just like nothing was happening... Ah you got to love California drivers. But to answer your question yes safety chains saved me about 60K