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Old 05-12-2015, 07:08 PM   #1
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Post your mishaps / challenges

So... this happened to me today...



5 points if you can guess what happened. Hint: the problem is the thing on the right.

Bonus 5 points if you can guess what I did with the rope. Hint: this quote from the Pirates of the Caribbean comes to mind: "This is either madness or brilliant..." "It's remarkable how often those two traits coincide."

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Old 05-13-2015, 12:36 AM   #2
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Don't see rope on the right, but it's safe for me to assume you didn't hang yourself with it (unless you published this before you did it)

Are you still alive....hello TASKSWAP, are you okay?
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Old 05-13-2015, 04:07 AM   #3
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Question

A seal a burnt bearing and a broken bearing all that is left is the inner race...mm....you needed your 5 x 8 trailer back on the road for trash duty so you greased up the rope and wrapped around bearing race, more grease and good to go

Then you stopped at tractor supply or northern tool and picked up new bearings
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Old 05-13-2015, 04:09 AM   #4
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What do I win?
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Old 05-13-2015, 06:51 AM   #5
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Ding ding ding, Bansil takes this one. You win 10 points! Points are redeemable for snarky comments, useless trivia, and free advice. Cash value $0.0001.

I had a very lucky day yesterday - if you can count disasters as lucky. I had a bearing seize on my trailer, which is super dangerous because the OUTER bearing is pretty much the only thing holding the wheel on. I'm calling it lucky because it was the inner bearing that went, and I pay real close attention to my loads while towing so I caught it almost instantly.

As you can see, that's the bearing race with no bearings in it. When this came apart, the wheel fell inward toward the trailer and obviously wasn't drivable. I was about 10 miles from home and didn't have much in the way of tools with me - I certainly didn't have a bearing kit in the trunk! But I didn't want to get a tow and it was only 10 miles...

I still had a good outer bearing, so the trick was to keep the wheel pressed against it so it wasn't riding on the axle itself (which would destroy it and/or the wheel). The only thing I had with me was rope, but it couldn't have been a better thing to have. It was good cotton clothesline rope so it held grease well. I wrapped it tightly around the inner side of the axle for 2-3 layers to force the wheel to stay pressed "out" against the outer bearing, greased it, and made my way home at 5mph the whole way. Luckily I made it without burning anything else up. (Remember, the trailer was still loaded!)

The axle is in pretty good shape, considering. It was hot to the touch when I pulled over but not too hot to hold my hand on so I figure it was mid-100s and I probably didn't anneal it. Its surface isn't terrible either. The hub is also usable, at least for now. Unfortunately the auto parts store didn't have a perfect match for the bearing kit - the bearing is fine but the rear oil seal is only a partial match.

Given all this, I'm going to risk another trip or two and keep a super close eye on it. I don't really have a choice - we have to be out of here in a week. Then I'll put a replacement axle kit on it. They don't cost much more than the parts to replace the hubs and bearings and then I'll know it's good to go for another long while. This trailer is 12 years old and I got it for $100, so I figure I'm still ahead of the game!
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Old 05-13-2015, 07:20 AM   #6
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You might be a redneck...if you know the answer....and tried to be first to hit the buzzer
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Old 05-19-2015, 09:07 AM   #7
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I will see your frozen bearing and raise you a broken coupler with an Excursion riding on the trailer. I think that's even better than the shredded tire.
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Old 05-19-2015, 09:13 AM   #8
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Yikes! I hope it 's all working out for you Crazycal.

Glad your fix and repair worked taskswap. (Making notes and listing new supplies in the emergency repair manual... )
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Old 05-19-2015, 01:10 PM   #9
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Ouch! Yeah, can't fix that with rope. What'd you end up doing?
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Old 05-19-2015, 04:35 PM   #10
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Spent the night in a town I didn't want to waiting for businesses to open. No place had the right coupler. Had to shift the coupler to put more weight on the tongue and limp to Amarillo. Shredded a back tire on the way. Another fiasco. Finally got what I needed from Hawkins Trailer in Amarillo. Now that is a trailer store. They had everything. This trip has been a complete disaster.

Let this be a lesson children, inspect your equipment thoroughly before any trip. I thought I inspected the trail up and down. I suspect the coupler was damaged before I left on my trip but don't know for certain.
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Old 05-19-2015, 05:45 PM   #11
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I had done a complete service on a Type 'C' bus with a tilt hood.

I proceeded to do a brake test only to discover I had closed the hood but had not latched it down.

The laws of physics say a body in motion will stay in motion. So while the bus was stopping the hood did not.

The cables that kept the hood from opening too far didn't stay attached for very long and took a hunk out of the reinforced part of the hood when they came adrift.

I make sure I double check all compartment doors and latches now before I get behind the wheel.
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Old 05-20-2015, 01:11 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by crazycal View Post
Spent the night in a town I didn't want to waiting for businesses to open. No place had the right coupler. Had to shift the coupler to put more weight on the tongue and limp to Amarillo. Shredded a back tire on the way. Another fiasco. Finally got what I needed from Hawkins Trailer in Amarillo. Now that is a trailer store. They had everything. This trip has been a complete disaster.

Let this be a lesson children, inspect your equipment thoroughly before any trip. I thought I inspected the trail up and down. I suspect the coupler was damaged before I left on my trip but don't know for certain.
Your also using a ball mount beyond it's intended rating.

I have ripped the welds apart doing this.

That looks like a hollow class 3 welded ball mount in your receiver hitch.

With a trailer that big carrying a truck that size, I would have used a solid forged class 5 ball mount.

Glad your safety chains did their job.

Did you make it home yet?

Nat
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Old 05-20-2015, 01:12 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cowlitzcoach View Post
I had done a complete service on a Type 'C' bus with a tilt hood.

I proceeded to do a brake test only to discover I had closed the hood but had not latched it down.

The laws of physics say a body in motion will stay in motion. So while the bus was stopping the hood did not.

The cables that kept the hood from opening too far didn't stay attached for very long and took a hunk out of the reinforced part of the hood when they came adrift.

I make sure I double check all compartment doors and latches now before I get behind the wheel.
Owch, how bad did it break the hood?

Pic's of this costly mistake?

Nat
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Old 05-20-2015, 03:16 AM   #14
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Your also using a ball mount beyond it's intended rating.

I have ripped the welds apart doing this.

That looks like a hollow class 3 welded ball mount in your receiver hitch.

With a trailer that big carrying a truck that size, I would have used a solid forged class 5 ball mount.

Glad your safety chains did their job.

Did you make it home yet?

Nat

Nothing hollow here. Solid 2x2 steel. Ball rated at 10,000#. Receiver is 2 1/2 x 2 1/2 with spacer rated at 12,500#. 8x Grade 8 -5/8 bolts, 8x Grade 8 nuts, 8x Grade lock washers, 16x Grade 8 washers. Trailer rated at 9990# with 2x 7000# Torkflex axles. I may have been pushing it but not dangerously. Tires were the weak link but I took possession less than 24 hrs before leaving. When I get some spare cash, I am installing 14 ply G load range tires. The other weak link was the AT545. I left the bus in Texas. I will fly back and pick it up. This has been the trip from hell but I finally got home 3 hours ago.
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Old 05-20-2015, 07:12 AM   #15
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The only damage to the hood was underneath. When the hood was closed you couldn't tell anything had happened.

That bus was sold and sent down the road a long time ago so no pictures.
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Old 05-20-2015, 07:52 AM   #16
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Remind me to look at the underside of the hood when I'm browsing to buy. ;)

Great stories, folks. Keep them coming!
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Old 05-20-2015, 11:40 AM   #17
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My bad crazycal.

Keep the pics coming guys.

Nat
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Old 05-20-2015, 12:38 PM   #18
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That rope bearing was some clever work, taskswap.

A couple years ago I had my tandem-axle dump trailer rented out and received a call at 11:30 pm informing me it had a breakdown. The front eye of the slipper-type leaf spring at the right rear corner had broken and the spring escaped its hanger. This allowed the axle to twist on a diagonal relative to the direction of travel, which brought the tire on the opposite side into contact with a bolt head. That sliced open the sidewall in a matter of seconds... What a mess!

I loaded a generator, welder, and misc other tools into the bus with the wheelchair lift and drove to the location. The bus air system came in handy for running the impact wrench so I didn't have to transport the big shop compressor. I replaced the ruined tire with the spare and welded a scrap of steel to re-close the spring eye so that at least we could get it off the interstate, unload it, and move it back home for proper repair. Fortunately it wasn't loaded anywhere near its 12k gross rating!

I must be missing something painfully obvious... but I still can't see what went wrong with crazycal's coupler. The ball, mount, and hitch look intact, and the safety chains seem to have done their job. I see there's no jack so it's tough to get that tongue off the ground, and I see the handle on the top of the coupler looks like its handle is broken away, but the safety pin is still there. So.. what happened?
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Old 05-20-2015, 12:54 PM   #19
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I forgot. The coupler was rated at 14,000#. It's my fault for not laying on the ground and looking inside the coupler. The latch was there on the top but nothing inside. The monkeys at the business where the trailer came from clearly broke the coupler but were too stupid to do something about it.

When it comes to towing, I try to not screw around. Yesterday on my way home, someone lost their trailer and it had gone through the fence on the side of the freeway. I guess his chains weren't up to the task of hanging on to the trailer.
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Old 05-20-2015, 01:29 PM   #20
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I must be missing something painfully obvious... but I still can't see what went wrong with crazycal's coupler. The ball, mount, and hitch look intact, and the safety chains seem to have done their job. I see there's no jack so it's tough to get that tongue off the ground, and I see the handle on the top of the coupler looks like its handle is broken away, but the safety pin is still there. So.. what happened?
This is why I missed the fact that the coupler was broken. The latch was still there. Looking back, I commented to my friend how easy it was to close the latch. The inside was missing. The jack is a massive Bulldog which was mounted too low. With it all the way up, scraping on the way into a driveway was a common occurrence. This is why the the jack was bent. I am going to go through the trailer now that I am home and fix what needs fixing.
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