Balancing Axle Weights
Topic 32783 | Page 2
Bruce, out of curiosity when you scaled and recorded the weights you posted, approximately how far forward ( meaning close to the tractor cab wall) were your tandems?
They were slid all the way forward, which is my default setting before I scale. But sometimes I have to adjust back a few holes, as in this case.
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".
They were slid all the way forward, which is my default setting before I scale. But sometimes I have to adjust back a few holes, as in this case.
No wonder you were so light on your drives! Had you had them back in the 6th or 7th hole from the front, you'd have been more evenly balanced and probably wouldn't need to do any sliding to adjust weights.
Laura
That’s what I thought. Why?
The rear overhang this creates isn’t legal in some states. MD and CT are very strict about this and have been known to cite drivers for this. Something to think about. In all the years of running Walmart, I never ran with the tandems that far forward. No need to.
I’d suggest that this setting, if the trailer is cubed-out (pallets from front to door), will have a higher % of weight sitting behind the trailer tandems, negatively affecting ride quality, especially on bumpy and undulating road surfaces.
Again, my preference was to (if possible) have the weight balanced between drives and tandems, with more weight on the drives.
Bruce, out of curiosity when you scaled and recorded the weights you posted, approximately how far forward ( meaning close to the tractor cab wall) were your tandems?
They were slid all the way forward, which is my default setting before I scale. But sometimes I have to adjust back a few holes, as in this case.
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".
G-Town, that is interesting about having the tandems slid all the way forward. I slid mine back 3 holes which amounted to only a little over a foot further back. Would that small distance satisfy the tail swing issue in the states you mentioned?
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".
Great topic, and one I wondered about today. I pulled a trailer with 33k on the Drives and 27k on the Tandems. Wasn't sure if I should try to even it out or just roll as-is. Also, good to know about wanting more on the Drives for winter weather.
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".
Great topic, and one I wondered about today. I pulled a trailer with 33k on the Drives and 27k on the Tandems. Wasn't sure if I should try to even it out or just roll as-is. Also, good to know about wanting more on the Drives for winter weather.
Sandman, I personally like the weights more even. You had a 6000 lb difference, so you could even that out. When I weight out, I consider the distance I have to travel. If it’s just a short hop, I’m less picky.
Then again, I have talked to drivers who say that if it’s legal, they just run with it the way it is. Apparently it’s too much work to make an adjustment.
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".
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.
I’ve been following along and I agree with balancing it out. Far better ride.
As far as the fifth wheel goes, centered between your drives is the rule of thumb generally. I have mine to the rear for clearance on the flatbed and stepdecks I pull. With boxs I move it up a few notches. Tanks was always set for the shortest scale I used. The only state with screwy steer weight limit is Misssissippi. 12k only. Most states just go by the tire rating, or close to it if the specify a weight limit. The atlas will provide you with the info you need for the states your running through.
Stepdeck:
A stepdeck , also referred to as "dropdeck", is a type of flatbed trailer that has one built in step to the deck to provide the capabilities of loading higher dimensional freight on the lower deck.
OWI:
Operating While Intoxicated
Also, good to know about wanting more on the Drives for winter weather.
Just don't go overboard with this. Remember that when you hit the brakes, your trailer brakes apply first. If you don't have enough weight on those trailer tandems , they will be more prone to locking up on slick roads.
Having good balance between your drives and tandems is not really for a better ride, but more so to keep plenty of weight on both sets of tandems, so neither will be prone to locking up under braking.
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.
I'll use all this info when I set them, thanks everyone.
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Bruce, out of curiosity when you scaled and recorded the weights you posted, approximately how far forward ( meaning close to the tractor cab wall) were your 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".