?Tips and tricks to backing a spread axle?

I have seen my tire wear get considerably better since I installed my valve. I use it all the time whether i'm loaded or not and have not had any issues.

 

I think not using a dump valve loaded is way harder on a trailer than using it. The strain on tires & suspensionthat gets transferred to the frame is huge. I will dump & inflate to control the rate of turn when backing in to a tight slot.

 

My trainer told me, better to pull it up 100 times, than screw it up once.

 

I've noticed the same on mine,.. particularly the front axle which always wore out when the rear axle still had 30% tread left. Front and rear are within 5% of each other now that I started using the rear dump.

Is there anyway to control the speed at which the air goes out? When heavy,.. it bags the front axle because the rear dumps out in like 1 or 2 seconds. I fear it may blow out the bags on the front axle eventually.

Hurst

 

Very good advice.

Backing is like anything else in trucking. The more you do it, the better you will become and the more confidence you will create.

When I first started pulling trailers my company owner was kind enough to allow me to practice in the yard to my hearts content. I would spend hours and hours setting up different backing scenarios. I struggled and knew it was a weak point that I needed to master. Fast forward to today,.. and its like riding a bicycle. Nothing to it.

For the most part a spread axle is fairly predictable when backing.

Hurst

 

Take a look at your dump valve. Where the air is exhausted it will probably be threaded. Might have a right angle fitting and a short 2" tube. Replace that fitting with a brass pipe plug. Drill a hole in the pipe plug first. The larger the hole the faster the air will dump. Could even put a ball valve Instead of a pipe plug to make it adjustable.

 

I didn't read all 5 pages, so my advice might already have been said:

The set up makes the difference, just yesterday I saw two guys back in next to me, the first was set up way wrong, and even with me helping he couldn't hit the hole (he wouldn't listen) and gave up. The second guy set himself up perfect and hit it on the first shot. With a spread axel you want to get the trailer as straight going into the hole as you can, the pivot point changes depending on how your loaded, so the straighter the better.

Say I'm backing into a spot on the driver side, I'll hug as close as I can to the hoods of the trucks, about the 3/4 point of the trailer I'll crank it to the right, then as the trailer lines up I'll crank back to the left. Leave yourself room to swing the front of your truck around, and start banking it in. Don't pay attention to the axel, pay attention to how it's pivoting and feel it in. Get out and look if you need to. If the spot is wide enough, or there's two open, I'll over angle the trailer, so that if you keep going you'll hit the blind side of the trailer on the truck over there, obviously don't do that, but that way if you crank your wheels to the right and pull up, it'll straighten the trailer out to slide in straight.


This might not make any sense, but with practice you'll learn how to feel it out. Spreads are only hard because the pivot point changes depending on the trailer and how it's loaded. Practice makes perfect

 

There should be a dump valve back there for the rear most axle then pivot the thing on it's forward spread axle. Once you line up shove it straight back. Others have covered this in much detail.

Always get out and check that right hand side. Good luck!