Pulling a pup (28’) with a tandem tractor

I've never understood the fascination of a tandem over a single in the snow. A single is putting more weight down in a given area. In terms of traction that's what you want . I've run all over the NE to include the lake effect snow belts and I've gotten hung up more with a tandem in the snow than I did any of the single axle tractors I've driven. The single axles were day cabs and sleeper tractors. Unless you have full lockers, a tandem doesn't have better traction than a single axle. I could put 20,000 on a single drive whereas it's 34,000 on a tandem. Less weight spread over twice the surface contact means less tractive effort

 

R&L only uses tandems in linehaul service with pups

 

Same here i agree with you. My dad used to have a U model mack with a tag axle. Going to job sites off road he'd lift that tag up and it would make it places twin screws had to get pulled into

 

IDK, better to have a tandem just in case you need it to haul a real trailer,, Me? I'd probably never run a twin screw again. Tag axle or pull the guts out of a drive axle, but if it's so rough you need a 2nd drive axle, it's probably too rough to go anyway.

 

I stand corrected on that part. If I knew I'd bring an empty back I'd use my city single once in a while for a weekend linehul too. I was generalizing a bit.

 

I second or third to take your mudflaps off. As long as you are pulling a trailer, you don't legally have to have them. Reddaway doesn't even have rear license plates since we almost always pull a trailer. The other issue to consider is if you back up and over a curb and your mudflap hangs low, it can get snagged between the curb and your drive tire. I've torn off several flaps that way.

 

The average tandem tractor with a sliding 5th wheel does not allow the 5th wheel to go back far enough to pull a 28 foot trailer. It may if the pup has a 30 inch pin setting. We have to get Ryder rentals when our single axle sleepers break down and they have to remove the mudflaps and the outside rear axle tires .

 

Maybe that's true for a sleeper cab. But on daycabs, we could get the fifth wheel to slide all the way forward. It was actually preferred that you had your fifth wheel upfront, you could get up to 1k lbs of additional gain on your steer tires during the winter time.