Author Topic: Towing with a 1/2  (Read 5741 times)

Offline Irish_Alley

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Re: Towing with a 1/2
« Reply #15 on: November 04, 2018, 10:03:38 PM »
Take a look at this video to see what happens when you have a trailer that is too heavy in the back, which really throws off the stability and causes excessive sway.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2fkOVHAC8Q 

And this one shows you how fast that sway can get out of hand.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miE3MOcqn7E

Having the proper weight distribution makes a big difference.

Bruce


^^^^^^^^^THIS^^^^^^^^^^

its all about weight distribution. GM even has a 4.1 and 4.8 (little 6 cylinders) in the 70s 1 tons. if you feel the trailer start to sway slow down by letting off the gas AND DONT press the brakes. if you can pull over and adjust for more tongue weight on the trailer if you cant adjust the weight then keep going at a slow speed and be cautious about lane changes. you can overload a trans with the improper gearing this will overheat the trans and once the fluid overheats you can toast the trans fast, so trans temp is important also and thats directly dependent on where your driving and how youre driving (i.e hills, highways and stop and goes) a higher rear ratio (like 4.10 or 4.56) would be more idea for the harder driving situations like stops and hills. as long as you dont exceed your vehicles GVWR youll be ok with the proper distribution of weight
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Offline roundhouse

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Re: Towing with a 1/2
« Reply #16 on: November 12, 2018, 09:46:12 PM »
When it starts swaying
The best response it to give it more gas and drag the trailer  brakes
Do NOT touch your brake pedal or move the steering wheel until the swaying stops

do NOT try to compensate with the steering wheel , you will just make it worse

Just mash the gas ,  let it sway and drag the trailer brakes until it stops
And if you give it gas and drag the trailer brakes , the swaying WILL stop , then keep dragging the trailer brakes and take your foot off the gas and pull over and fix the problem

Swaying means you don’t have enough weight on the tongue

I’ve towed some trailers that had air compressors and stuff mounted inside and it swayed so bad you could get over 40

I stopped and bought a 55 gallon drum
Strapped it in the nose of  the trailer and filled it with water

That cured the sway

Towing more than 5000 lbs with a shortbed 1/2 ton 50 yr old pickup is just stupid

Not something you want to brag about

I’d say You can tow about 5000 if you have the right weight on the tongue and a weight distribution hitch and maybe a sway control bar
  Good brakes on the trailer
A good quality brake controller   In the cab

And use some common sense and don’t get over 60-65 tops

And keep a safe following distance from the cars in front of you
 
You will get passed by every other vehicle on the road
  You’re not in a crew cab turbo diesel F-250 that is six feet more wheelbase , weighs 3000 more lbs , has twice the braking capacity, and four times the power