Conastoga tips and tricks

Cant speak to roller care, but securment shouldn't change, a flats a flat

 

The conastoga is the flat bed with a framework around it that has tarps like stage curtains, right?

 

Right

 

I had a fasttrack: rollers do need some 3in 1 oil type product every now and again to keep free.

You want to get that tarp as tight as you possibly can for travel. Loose tarp flaps on framework wears out fast.

Set your mirror brackets out as far as they can reach from the sides of your cab- fasttrack on a 102" wagon is 107" outside to outside and it's a wall. Tougher to see round. Like a van I suppose but 5" wider. I gotta be honest I got out an looked a whole lot more pulling that wagon.

Make sure product is lined up good n straight if it's near the edges of the trailer. And get things good and tight: a slight shift and the frame will get caught up.
When that happens loosen front and back of system, slide as close to the issue as possible, lift up edges of tarping system between framework and hae a forklift push product inside together to tighten it up, so you can slide past..or climb inside and grab hold of the framework, do your best King Kong swinging from the rafters impression and try to work the framework past the offending area.

In all likelihood you're gonna sweat just as much as tarping, you'll just be cleaner when you're done.

 

If you have the chain rack inside the nose, fill it full of chains and binders. Your tare weight is higher than a reg flat. May as well have all if what you need.
Build a little 4x4 w chain bulkhead up front, you can store all your straps & extra securement devices between that and the nose plate. I had edge protectors on a bungee (like a candy necklace) and poked 2 little holes in the framework of the nose to set the hooks of the bungee in. Gets them out of the way, but close-by and handy.

 

What he said ^
Depending on what system you get, the setup will be a little bit different as far as the latching and roller mechanism goes. We have 4 different systems by Conestoga and they change things (for the better) every couple of years. The newer ones take 1/2 the time and effort to open/close than the older models.
As far as a tip- if you use the 4" straps with the flat hooks, crush them down -it makes them easier to pass thru the bottom rubber weatherstripping without getting jammed up all the time

 

True- passing those hooks thru can be a pain in the dick, especially if the rubber is cold and brittle. Just doesn't want to spread open.

 

First two things I can think of are get one with a door in the bulkhead, and try to find one that's 50 feet long. If you do most of the time you will be able to go in the front door and check how things are riding and how tight your securement is. A 50 foot deck compensates for the room the bulkhead takes up and still covers a 48 foot load. Nothing I hated worse than trying to drop the back curtain and having a load a foot too long that was already crammed into the bulkhead. Watch lift drivers and keep them from using the track for brakes like some of them like to do. Keep the tracks clean and spray the rollers with penetrating oil to keep them running nice and smooth. Make sure everything is squared up so you don't have to walk the top of the load working the bows around to get it open or shut. Other than that they are the coolest thing ever for legal loads in my opinion. Some shippers don't like them for various reasons and if they complained about it I just left and loaded somewhere else. Had practically all of them at one time or another. Quick Draw was the best one I had overall but they all worked pretty well except the very first Aero conestoga which looked like a flapping garbage bag going down the road. That was over twenty years ago though and that new Aero looks just fine to me.

As far as securement goes they are no different than a flat. Same securement rules apply. If you pull one and it is suitable for the work you do, I suspect you will not want to fool with tarps anymore from that point on.