What do you do if you cant get tandems to slide

Ours are air assist. If the pins don't retract it means either the release valve or air bag is bad. In both cases it's a shop fix and no amount of hammering or curbs or whatever will help.

 

Look and see if the spring needs hooked back in from underneath. I had to do it plenty of times on cfi's trailers.

Or you can take it to the shop and they can take three days to get to you to do it.
....if you need a day off...

 

If they're rusted, beat the rails in multiple spots with something heavy to break the bond. Then you can hit them up with a lubricant. I've heard grease and oil based lubricants can attract dirt and grime, which can make it hard to slide again. I've also heard of people using dish soap, which can be reapplied after it washes away. Get some wheel chocks to carry with you, since there may not always be a suitable curb available to use.

 

I use that lubricant stuff u get at the truck stop it's called BLASTER ..comes in a pressurized spray bottle..spray it in all the holes on the tandem, let it soak a minute..if u have to get your mallet and beat moderately on the slide
.usually always works

 

Just for future reference make sure you have the system fully charged before attempting to slide the air assisted pins or they don't like to release

 

If they are that stuck you will just destroy the chocks. Chocks are not really that strong.
A couple 4x4's might do it.

 

pull handle as far as you can. put a pair of vice grips on and lock them as closes as you can to the rail. get in truck and wiggle it back and fourth

 

After the pins are fully retracted, get rolling a little, then quickly pull down on the trailer brake handle, don’t be slipping the clutch.

 

I had air assist with 2 companies, those air assists are pretty weak when it comes to rust. Frequently had to use a hammer.


Here are the tricks:

1. Hammer
2. Curb
3. Rock the trailer with short sharp acceleration forward, then backward. Important to try both directions.
4. Make sure your automatic slack adjusters are adjusted by fully pumping the break pedal down several times.
5. Try a different spot, if the ground isn’t perfectly level, the tandems can sometimes refuse to slide