Should Tandems Be Forward Or Back On Icy Roads
Topic 27406 | Page 1
California you don't have much choice for tandems unless you want to be cited for violating the law.
Normally for snow-covered roads, the furthet to the rear the tandems, the more weight on the drives, so more traction. It's also more stable when encountering higher winds.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Normally for snow-covered roads, the further to the rear the tandems , the more weight on the drives, so more traction. It's also more stable when encountering higher winds.
Yeah, but you want weight on those trailer tandems so they don't lock up when you hit the brakes.
It's not the length of the wheelbase that matters nearly as much as the weight distribution. Ideally, you want as much weight as possible on the steer tires with the remaining weight distributed evenly between your tractor drive tires and your trailer tandems. That way you're getting forward traction on the drives when you're on the fuel and equally good traction from all tires when you're on the brakes.
Your weight looks pretty good where it's at. I hate to contradict PackRat, but I would not move any more weight off those trailer tandems. In fact, I wish you had a little more weight on them but it's fine like it is.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Normally for snow-covered roads, the furthet to the rear the tandems , the more weight on the drives, so more traction. It's also more stable when encountering higher winds.
Say, PackRat, I'm not questioning the tandems to the back idea, but in slick conditions, how do lighter tandems affect the possibility of jackknife? Or is this really a balancing act?
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
I prefer to have weight distributed as evenly as possible between the drives and tandems.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
I'm thinking more of wind for the tandems being to the rearward position.
The OP has at least 35K in the box, so he should have enough weight to the tractor axles already. Steer axle weights don't change as much as the drives or tandems on a trailer. He's in California, so not much movement is going to be legal on the trailer tandems Maybe five holes back from the front, at the most. Anything more and he's overlength.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
I drive that route often probly every week. I would leave the tandomes set for now tell you get to oragen then, reassess how the truck is handling. There are a number of bridges there between weed and yreka, that ice over so watch the trucks in front of you and have your cruise contral off, Jake's off, and hit it after caltrans has sent out the sand trucks. OR is really lax about having you put on chains so check the web site or trip check and see if it looks like you might need chains if you do then chain up or park the truck because there roads are the worst in the winter time.
I would leave the tandems set for now until you get to Oregon then, reassess how the truck is handling
I would ask this. Right now he's lighter on the tandems than on the drives. How might the truck handle that would make him want to take even more weight off the tandems?
I'm thinking more of wind for the tandems being to the rearward position.
Just like with braking, if you take more weight off the tandems they're more likely to break loose with a strong crosswind. Weight holds the tires to the road, not wheelbase.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
I have found on the ice it dose not matter how light or heavy the tandems. With the tires they have there is little to no traction. The abs system should keep the tires from locking up. If he starts to slide the sooner the tandems can find fresh snow to get some traction in the less momentum the trailer can pick up in its skid. In the wind the longer your contact point is the harder the wind has to try to move you. Think of it as a 3 point fulcrum. The fartner away all the pivot points are to each other the harder it is to move the hole system.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
The farther away all the pivot points are to each other the harder it is to move the hole system.
Actually it's the opposite. The longer wheelbase would extend the length of the lever, thereby increasing the leverage the crosswind has to pivot the trailer. Not only that, but the longer the wheelbase the less weight there is on the trailer tandems making them even easier to break loose.
I have found on the ice it does not matter how light or heavy the tandems.
Really? So if the tandems weigh 1,000 pounds they'll have the same grip as 25,000 pounds?
When you hit the brakes on an empty trailer isn't it more likely to break loose on slick roads than if you have a heavy trailer? Of course. That's even in the CDL manual. So naturally the more weight you have the more grip you have, regardless of the surface. Even on ice.
I've lived the overwhelming majority of my life in Upstate New York and spent 15 years driving big rigs. Weight has a profound effect on grip.
Unfortunately, most of this thread is extremely confusing with a lot of misnomers. Plausible theories in some respects, but incorrect.
The correct answer is to keep the weight balanced between the tractor drive tires and the trailer tandems regardless of the wheelbase. That's the safest way to distribute the weight regardless of the road conditions. It gives you the best traction under acceleration, braking, and sideways forces.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
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May be going from Weed, CA to Roseburg, Oregon on I-5. It is icy and grades are 6%. Some for miles. I got a medium load. steers-11860, drives-32180, Trlr-26200, gross-70240. Loaded forward,low with 37197. My tandems are set all the way forward.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".