Tandem Sliding and Pin pulling tool

I would wait on buying that tool because 90% of the time I use a 3 to 4 pound sledge hammer (when needed of course). I do have a tool I got from a Werner driver that had an extra. It is a Tandem bar puller but if the pins aren't lined up with the holes, you can expect to be in the shop getting a repair done on the linkage that connects the pins from the passenger side to the driver's side.

Here is a sure way to get the pins to retract when pulling on the bar and to save your energy (sometimes can be time consuming but works for me).

Make sure at least 3 of the 4 pins are lined up with the holes. To line them up apply the trailer brakes (either by the handle on steering wheel or pull the knob out on the dash. I prefer the latter) and rock the trailer back and forth, gently but forcefully. Go and pull the bar. If no luck, check to see where the pins are. If they are forward in the holes, use granny gear to pull on trailer. If pins are on backside of holes, go in reverse to push the trailer. Once you get pins in the center of the holes, pull on the bar and the pins should retract with ease. If not and they retract better than b4 but not fully, use the sledge hammer to free the pin(s).

If tandems won't slide after pins are in the "retract" position, save your clutch and do this little trick: (Have enough room in front or rear cause you are moving both truck and trailer.)

Have pins retracted so tandems can slide. If moving tandems to rear, move truck and trailer forward and pull only on the trailer brake lever or knob. The forward momentum (if enough) will slide the tandems to the rear. Do the opposite if moving the tandems to the front. You might have to do this if tandems haven't been slid for a while.

Also another little trick for tandems to slide easier is to clean the rails with water, preferably from a high pressure hose. Use water only, nothing else.
With it being winter and all the snow and crud from the roads getting up on the rails, need to keep the rails clean. I usually cleaned mine about every 3 weeks or so.

Lot of info to digest. Hope it helps.

 

Carry a can of PB blaster, I used too and no matter how bad the pins were frozen (with exception of them being jammed) they would then pop loose.
I never bothered with a pin location tool, I just got the tandems loose and then jockeyed the trlr around till the tandems were where I wanted them to be.

 

the tool is your arm and a pair of gloves. it's the only one that works.
sometime you get lucky and the tandem pins are easy. usually they are not. If you need to just ask someone to help pull on it while you move the truck in whatever direction you need to. Nobody will tell you no, we have all been there.

 

Years ago, I drove for a beer distributor and hauled Pabst from Milwaukee to Benton Harbor. I bought a coil spring tool that attached to the side rail of the trailer. It was a good investment. They say that the newer tools do not attach to the side rail and you are not risking stretching the spring. I do not know the name of the newer style tool, but you should have one.

 

I have the Sta Rat tool and have been real happy with it. Once I figured out that you needed vice grips to hold the pulling hook on the handle, it has worked like a dream. It was designed by a former Swift driver, just google "sta rat tandem tool"

 

Normally the handle will stay out, even if the pins are stuck.
If they do not, I use a pair of vice grips on the end of the handle where it goes into the rail, so it will not go back in.
If it is a lift up handle they can be more of a pain. Those I try to hold up with a bungee if they will not stay up on there own.
If the pins are stuck in the rail I will shake the trailer a little with a small forward and rear rock of the tractor. This will get them to pop loose most of the time. If I look and it is only 1 or 2 pins still stuck I use my 2lb sledge to break them loose.
Then Slide the tandems where I want them and release whatever method I used to hold the handle up or out, then pull up or back to get the pins in the hole I want.
Make sure that all pins go into the holes all the way.
This is how they get out of alignment. That and ppl twisting the trailer trying to force them when 1 or more pins are stuck. They can twist the whole frame doing this.
Plus if all pins are not locked in fully it is an OOS violation.

Also be careful to make sure that the stops are in place in the rear of the rail.
I have seen drivers slide there tandems back and loose the tandems. Some yahoo will go and remove them, or break them. Then a driver goes and slides them off of the rail.
I use to not check this as well as I should. Then I picked up a dropped trailer one night and did not check the pins. They were not locked in and on my first downgrade they slid all the way back (in California).
If the stops had not been in place I would have lost my tandems in the highway.
As it was it just scared the hell out of me. The brakes trailer locked up, sliding the tandems back all the way very very hard. I was thrown forward in my seat when they hit the back.
I can say I never made that mistake again, and that I was really really lucky.
Many are not so lucky.

 

I guess I'm lucky... all of our trailers have an air release. When the trailer air is all the way up, pop the valve in the truck, go to the trailer and pull the little silver button in front of the tandems. If they don't retract all the way, get back in the truck and rock it a bit. You will hear them retract. Slide 'em to where you want 'em, then get out and push the little silver button back in. The pins will pop back out. If not perfectly centered, use the spike to hold the trailer while creeping forward. You will hear them lock.

I did find one handy thing... a set of what could best be described as big metal dowel pins that slide into the holes on the trailer slide. You use them to set the position you want the tandems in. Use one on each side to avoid getting the trailer out of alignment. I don't think they were worth $26, so I made my own from an old set of leaf spring bushings from an old Chrysler.

 

I've been doing this little trick for over 25 years after darn near pulling my shoulder out of socket. An old flat bedder showed this to me and instead of just having 1 "tool" for only 1 job it has many uses!

Tools needed:
1 pair of vice grips (get the REAL thing and not some cheap Chinese knock off!)
10' of rubberized rope (made by tarp manufactures and sold at trailer shops)
2 end pieces for making the loop in the end of the rope, They are made of ABS plastic

USE:
1- clamp the multi use vise grip on the side of the trailer above the pin release handle.
2- Hook one end of the rope on the pin handle and pull the handle out as far as you can without straining yourself.
3- Wrap the rope around the vice grip and back around the handle of the pin and repeat until you reach the other end of the rope and attach this end to either the pin handle or the vice grip.
4- Walk to the cab of the truck and set the trailer brake and then LIGHTLY bounce the trailer forward and backwards while watching the vice grip and LISTEN for the handle to release and you will see the rope fall loose.
5-STOP! Set tractor brake and walk back and finish pulling the pin out and lock it down. If the arm is worn and it doesn't want to stay in the slot then use that multi use tool vice grip and lock it around the handle and then finish the job and slide tandems where they need to be.

If you have the pull up type of release use the same process but you will lock the vice grip on the bottom lip of the floor joist (some call them a cross menbers) and there you go.

DO NOT slide the tandems with the rope still on the handles as you will bend the handle and break it off or break your rope. Yes I HAVE done both!

The rope can also be used as your door security device when parked in bad areas or for holding a blown tire in the rack if there is no chain and many other uses!

I'd rather have tools that have many uses and are EASY to use! I watched a pretty big guy almost drop his family jewels using one of those so called pullers with the piviot arm!

Using anything other than water on your rails such as PB Blaster, WD40 or other dirt attracting things only make your job harder. Water is really cheap and you can use a lot to wet the rails down! How much does a can of that other stuff cost and you also have to "get in there" to apply it! I prefer to stay clean!

But having to use anything on your rails is telling you one thing. Your brakes are out of adjustment! If they were then that trailer WILL slide! Ain't no amount of dirt or rust between those rails going to stop 400+ horse power from sliding those tandems! If those tires turn then adjust those brakes!

Self adjusting brakes are just that and are easy to fix: roll forward and put AT LEAST 30 pounds of pressure on them and repeat several times roll forward hit brakes then roll forward and hit the brakes (you don't have to JAM them) let air pressure build and then do this in reverse several times and you will feel them going into adjustment! When they are set you WILL feel and see the difference! A tip: do the 30 pounds of air pressure several times a day when you are coming to a stop and those brakes will stay in adjustment especially in hlly driving conditions. If they don't then you need to get to the shop as they are faulty and could cost you a DOT write up.

Now for you who think you are wearing out your brakes, that's a wives tale! When you are at maybe 2-3 MPH coming in to a stop and you apply your brakes just do the 30 pound deal. And to those of you who think that trailer brake handle is for stopping then some one has been lying to you and yourself! For you O/O's who don't want to "wear out YOUR tractor brakes." Ok, i'm being an arse, but how do you keep them adjusted? Crawl under the truck? Go ahead!

You can use tarp straps but I've found that you need several different sizes as some pins stop at different distances from the vice grip and tying knots in them really is hit or miss! Flatbedders have a whole lot of tarp straps and don't need to buy the rope or vice grips as they have those nice side rails to hook to! LOL