"The customer is looking towards the actual payloads that the trailer is capable of hauling" says Ladner. Sales of heavy weight trailers are starting to slow down. Today, I see a transition coming back in where payload is very important." "They were cheaper to buy because you don't use high-tensile-strength steel and structures that cost money to keep weight out of the trailer. "During the last decade, heavyweight trailers became more popular because they were cheaper," notes Ladner. You also need to consider trailer weight. So you have to sift through the information and come up with the best spec." "If you have a long wheelbase truck, the optimum is a long tandem dump trailer." But you must consider the application. "When a customer looks at spec'ing a dump trailer, I will ask if he is trying to match it up with an existing wheelbase truck," says Wells.
The wheelbase of the tractor directly impacts the best trailer setup. You are always trying to get into and out of places and the shorter tractors and shorter trailers just give you enhanced maneuverability that allows you to go places that you can't take longer vehicles." You always want to take maneuverability into consideration. "A set-back axle naturally moves that axle closer, so it is a good choice.
"That front axle is closer to the load the shorter the truck that you use," says Ladner. Shorter tractors can really help with weight transfer. That means less weight has to be transferred to the steering axle. "Any time you can spec heavy components on a truck as far forward or a set-back axle, that is more optimal," says Wells. "The fifth-wheel height becomes an issue because the closer the trailer can run to level, the easier it is to set ride height on suspensions and get the axles to equalize," says Wells.Ī challenge with longer five-axle rigs is getting weight transferred to the steering axle. "So you want a long wheelbase with a long tandem dump trailer and a short wheelbase with a shorter, multi-axle dump trailer."īut there are setup considerations with multi-axle trailers. or less wheelbase, is optimum with a short multi-axle (three or more axles) dump trailer," Wells states. "A general rule of thumb is a short wheelbase tractor, defined as a 185 in. The length of the trailer influences the best tractor configuration. But when you move toward shorter trailers, you need multiple axles to meet federal and local weight regulations. dump trailers are typically configured as five-axle rigs - three on the tractor and two on the trailer. "That is when you find that a shorter multi-axle dump trailer is better." "You have to keep short for maneuverability in the yard," Wells states. Most construction operations want short trailers. You are losing payload and increasing cost of ownership."
If you can operate within the Federal Bridge with a truck that has a 190-in. "You take away from payload and pull that extra weight down the road all day long. If you use a sleeper cab, you may be 5 or 6 ft. "It doesn't help if you are 1, 2 or 3 ft. The closer to these measurements, the better. With those two lengths, you can gross 80,000 lbs." The inner bridge is the front drive axle to the rear axle of the trailer. from the front axle to the rear axle," says Ladner. "To get your Federal Bridge, you need 51 ft. To maximize the load in many parts of the U.S., you need to follow the Federal Bridge Formula. "It is a growing trend that people marry trucks and trailers together because of the overall efficiency gains," says Jim Ladner, national sales manager, Landoll.Ĭonsider a 39-ft. Many contractors own a variety of trailers, ranging from lowboys to dumps, and try to pull them with the same trucks. "Matching a truck to a trailer is really something that deserves more attention than it is often given," says Charlie Wells, East Mfg. Whether you run end dumps, side dumps or bottom dumps, matching the truck to the trailer influences productivity. While dump trailers and tractors offer advantages over a conventional dump truck in many applications, properly setting up a tractor/trailer combination is more important than you may realize. To ensure they deliver the performance and service life you expect, it's important to determine the appropriate setup for the application, and then operate and maintain the trailers for both optimum efficiency and longevity. A variety of factors can influence the productivity and longevity of the dump trailers in your fleet.
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