Just a real world kick in the head to ALWAYS do the safety stuff. WSet out to use my son's small trailer on a short errand with the missing chain. Figured it would be OK until I tried to lock the hitch with my HAND. It broke off. OMG. Grateful to God it happened before it got onto the road.
You were very lucky!
And that's what the chains are for lol! I've had my safety chains do their job twice now in my life of hauling various loads...so I'm religious about them now.
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Don Actually the guy behind you was the lucky one eh. ;D
Or the people in the oncoming lane(s)
disaster AVERTED
If it was diverted---it became somebody else's!
English---such a difficult language!
Damned that was close....as a truck driver Im really anal about checking EVEYTHING when I hook up whether its my truck RV or pick up....it onlt takes a extra minute...check you couplings every time and do a few check as you head down the road DOT calls them safety checks well worth it
Hey Steve T careful you will have 7 ignores like me and eagle, LOL ;D
I know--but I thought "diverted" was funny, like "it didn't happen to me, but some other poor sap was the recipient" I knew what he meant, but it was funny to me!
At my work, they track "near misses" which means they HIT SOMETHING with a forklift.
Logic would say you call that an ACCIDENT!
Not at my work-- 'I nearly missed hitting him, and now he is somewhat dead'
My warped sense of humor strikes again ;D ;D ;) ;)
Steve
Geez. glad to know now there are English teachers here. i like AVOIDED. Simply posted just as a reminder to all busnuts pulling trailers or dinghys to be extra careful checking your equipment, especially we deal with some very old stuff. It really got me thinking about the whole coach being old and even though lots of parts are steel making you think it is all sturdy and safe; that, in fact, there probably is lots of parts that look fine but are ready to snap and fail. Makes me scared to drive the old bucket of bolts now.
Quote from: Dave5Cs on March 15, 2018, 09:50:59 PM
Hey Steve T careful you will have 7 ignores like me and eagle, LOL ;D
LOL. You must have woke somebody up. You are down to 6
As far as the safety chains ... a life saver, pulling a brand new tilt deck trailer. Someone had switched hitches on me down to the 2" I carry in my truck. Worked OK until I went over a bridge at 60 MPH then it was a fast decision whether to apply the brakes and check the tensile strength of the chains or slowly coast to a stop. The skid pad on the tongue jack survived just fine.
I had a boat trailer jump off the hitch (no safety chains fitted) on the motorway once. Fortunately it was the middle of the night and the motorway deserted and I was able stop in the fast lane, hook it back on, and continue on my journey.
As you'd expect though it was a deeply chastening experience; the scariest thing was the almighty bang as the initially trailer dropped off the hitch and the boat's mast banged-down on the roof of the truck. I immediately braked in panic and the trailer actually overtook me; it was a dark night and of course the trailer lights had disconnected, and I have an abiding memory of a shower of sparks going down the road which was the front end of the trailer running on the tarmac. Eventually it ran into the central crash barrier of the motorway and came to a stop, and I was able to pull up in front of it and hook it back on the truck. Neither the boat or trailer was mine but fortunately the damage was limited to a deep dent in the bottom of the boat where the trailer support had pushed into it. I sailed the boat the next day, and amazingly even the mast was fine despite the mast-shaped dent in the roof of my vehicle
Jeremy
Don,
I was just yanking your chain ;D
I had a similar event on my November 2014 trip to Key West.
On the last leg of the trip down between Miami area and Key west, I apparently had a brain lapse.
I had the wife's Kia Soul on the tow dolly, and we pulled into the Naval Air Station camping area, and I went to unhook the car from the dolly.
When I went to pull the pin which keeps the deck from tilting, I discovered it was gone!! :o
Then thinking back, I realized, I must have laid it on the tongue when I loaded the car hours earlier, and not put it in when I finished loading.
Lucky for me the neck snapping acceleration of my 8V71 didn't tilt the deck of the tow dolly. The Home Depot in Key West didn't have one in stock, so I made do with a big bolt and nut until I got to a tractor supply in GA on the way back.
Steve T.
That's why having safety chains are important and should be installed if absent. Also keep them crossed. Provides better control of hitch or ball if it let's loose.
Before Steve jumps in, I'll recommend using MANDATORY! rather than important as that seems nearly not strong enough as even here there are personal experiences with the trailer needing that chain to ADVERT disaster. loL
I have a small grill trailer that I tow behind my minivan. I had a trip last year where I got to my destination 30+ miles away and realized I had never latched the hitch! I had driven on the highway at 70 MPH most of the way too. I was lucky and I did have the safety chains hooked up.
I usually lift up on the tongue of a trailer to verify the hitch is latched, but obviously I forgot this time.
Quote from: chessie4905 on March 17, 2018, 08:01:22 AM
That's why having safety chains are important and should be installed if absent. Also keep them crossed. Provides better control of hitch or ball if it let's loose.
Crossed chains will better cradle the trailer tongue if it comes off the hitch.
Also, crossed chains aren't as likely to bind or drag during tight turns.