trailers/load distrib.

My friend uses a sliding spread for Canada where spreads are prohibited.

 

Like Wargames said, the best thing for you to do is scale your truck and trailer. You should scale your tractor by itself full of fuel too. This way you are familiar with your vehicle and will know exactly what you can handle. Also reweigh after moving the tandems to see how much weight you can distribute per hole. You may want to situate your fifth wheel too. I personally would ride with my fifth half way between the half point and the front. I think most drivers ride with it in the middle. Keep in mind to make it a scheduled thing to do once or twice a month to move your fifth wheel back and forth. They can freeze up and be a real mother to slide when you need to! You also want to be gentle you can crack the pin holes! Make sure you catwalk is clear!

 

I have to keep coming back to this thread, There are things I forget, and listen to all the drivers on this thread , bring back things I should do. Chompi, the part about moving the fifth wheel once or twice a month, is great. Every NEWBIE on this FORUM should be here READING this Thread. Im very impressed with the Knowledge all the drivers have here. Running on the road with the proper weight distribution is very important. Thats what every scale house has, the first thing you do when crossing a scale house is, pressure weight, from those steel plates we run across, then you wait for the green arrow, to the left or right. Usally the right arrow, means your close on weight, Or the scale master has a DOT officer waiting to do some work.

 

How does the tandem adjustment work on Tankers? Just had to ask. I never had anything to do with Tankers, Hey, I still can learn also.

 

In reference to the steers, regardless of interstate and state highway restrictions, you are limited to the tire manufacturer rating. There might be, but I have never seen a tire rated for 10,000 lbs. The most I seen is 7150 lbs which limits your steer weight to 14,300 lbs if you have them tires.

The fifth wheel normal position is different with each brand truck and you have to take in account whether you are pulling a reefer or not. Those things you figure when you first get a truck and head to the scales. Once I set a fifth wheel, I usually don't have to move it again. Maybe once or twice a year on oddball loads where someone loaded the trailer wrong on a drop/hook.

Considering you have a normal load with uniform freight, you can put the end of the last pallet over the rear axle and be pretty close to right.

I thought they were fixed? Tankers are the easiest to get the weight right because all you have to do is know your weight per gallon of what your hauling and then load X amount of gallons.

 

Condo, respectfully, in 658.17, tires are not mentioned as a limit for front end weight, only the manufacturer's rating on the axle. Now, if your front axle is rated for 12,000, and for some odd reason the tires are only rated at 10,000, and there's an accident... let's hope your steers only weighed 10,000 or less.

On the fifth wheel adjustment (for new folks).. MAKE SURE your landing gear is down and your rear suspension is dropped - you're going to have an impossible time moving the fifth wheel with weight on it, even with an empty trailer. Once the weight is suspended, they usually move pretty easily.

 

Every tanker I've pulled (lots) the tandem's were fixed. I haul gas & diesel now, in super b tankers. We get a load sheet that tells us how much to load in each compartment. But it's not always right. Lets say I'm doing 5 trips a week to the same place, I'll scale out on the first load and if it's heavy then I'll load less next time in the compartment that needs less.

 

we have the air release on all trls some 4 years old..never had any issue with them breaking

 

It's a nice system if it works but the company we load here that sends them in has junk trailers. A lot of them have the button broken off so I have to grab them with pliers or a vice grip. Just a pain in the neck - not a fan of them personally..

 

So if you scale your load, then slide the tandems do you scale out again or do you go by what your experience tells you regarding the pounds per hole on the trailer you are pulling? I'm thinking the closer you are to 80,000 lbs the more important it is to rescale.