Post flatbed load photos here V2.0

Need all your advises (for the future) for this kind of loads.


So I left yesterday with three straps on every stack- one belly strap and two over the top. I usually don't tight straps too much but this time I really did my best. I drove for about 25 miles, stopped and checked - everything was perfect. After about 100 miles I stopped again and everything was still ok except for one top axle in the middle that shifted off the woods. This is how it originally looked
and that one carriage just slipped off the woods on one side but was still ok on the other side. I spent two hours using physics and pipe stacks to bring it back into the place. Tighten everything again. Just ten minutes after I noticed loose straps and had to emergency stop on the highway. The same top carriage completely went off the woods, leaning and now holding by the drums on the under carriage (similar to the picture below). Which was still ok but wasn't held by any straps, too. I used another two straps to cross strap, re-tighten everything and slowly drove to an exit. There I spent another two hours and used all my thirty straps in any possible way to affix all top axles. The finale at the receiver - you wouldn't believe this. I checked a few more times on my way. However, when I finally made it to Navistar in West Point, MS - I noticed how looked the first stack

Meaning two upper axles were absolutely loose with straps just hanging in the air. The rest that I cross-strapped in all possible ways still held (if it's ok to call it like this)


Thanks luck that saved me at least three times during the this trip, that nothing bad had happened. I'm absolutely devastated. I'm pretty sure it was a bad call of the shipper to use the wood and the joky plastic stripes. The later not only didn't help, but made things even worse once the wood was off the stripe.
And so my questions are how do you strap such loads?
Was there anything else I should have done? Like stopping every twenty miles?
I should have probably used the extra straps from the beginning and tighten together the top and the one axle below through link arms or any other unsprung parts. Or use four straps - one belly, one on the third and two over the top.
p.s. sorry for the long read, just really disappointed and stressed. And just to share so someone else can learn from my mistakes.

 

I really like that tractor! It's a bit short for our needs, but it could be stretched to make room for a tag axle!

 

Honestly that load looks like it came straight from hell and I could easily see the wooden blocks move no matter how tight you did the straps with the motion of the road. Now that I see how bad you struggled, if I booked that load I’m going to uturn right back out of that shipper as I cannot throw 30 straps.

 

That was one of my intent to warn others. I also went further and sent feedback reports with pictures to both Stoughton and Navistar trailers. Let's see what (if) they reply.

 

A few questions.

Did the shipper have any instructions for securing the load?

Why straps, do they not allow chains to be used?

 

I'll put $5 on the "we ship them like that all the time and never have a problem" square.

 

Id say you done a good as job as u couldve @badvik_83 .. That is just a crappy load all around. Sounds like u threw everything u had at it and it still wouldnt get tight.. That is not ur fault

 

This is what they said - one belly and two on top "should be good". Like said below, "we always ship like that".
There was one pissed off guy ahead of me, and he used chains on a few stacks to belly them. I thought he just ran out of straps since he put only two straps on stacks with three axles. Straps did their job for belly, so no big point to use chains here. And I'm not sure if there is enough binder play if throw it over the top. Unless to tie it down with straps first and then use a chain. Will then 5,400x2 plus 7k of the chain be enough for this tighten rocket? Even though the stack weight is around 9k. A question though.

 

1 strap per stack is technically enough for the weight, but a belly +2 over the top should be enough, if you are worried (and you should be and obviously were/are)

The problem is that once something starts moving, its going to continue to shift and settle.

If i were you, i think i might have tried to "unitize" the front and rear of the top 2 sets, kind of like you did with the 2" strap, but the way you have that strap, its literally pushing the top one towards the side, id have gone fully around the frames, attaching the strap to itself, not to the trailer. (Not sure how you attached that 2 inch strap in picture)

But the key would be to have done it BEFORE anything could start to move.

Those are a pain no matter how good someone loads them

 

Downtown San Diego Ca.