First Gooseneck Trailer Question - Diesel Forum

jimsbroncostable · 05-03-2005, 12:38 PM

Hi all,

I just bought my first Gooseneck trailer (32 ft. enclosed car hauler, 2 - 7000lb. axles) aprox. 6k lbs. empty.

I tow a 4500 lb Early Bronco in it.

I took it out for the first time yesterday and it tows good, but jerks a lot going over rough parts of the road.

Is this something I am going to have to get used to, or is there something wrong with the way I am set up?

Right now I dont have any weight in the front of the trailer, but eventually I will build a living quarters in front adding some weight.

My tow rig is a 01 F350 cc 4x4 7.3

Any advice? Jim

Hoss350 · 05-03-2005, 08:12 PM

Where are you placing the bronco iside the trailer? Is it the only thing in there? If so, you need to be placing it so that it's weight is centralized over the axles, with the heavier end up front (ie, make sure that about 60-65% of the bronc's weight is ahead of the axles, and the rest is behind.) It is very jerky to have a front-loaded trailer, as it will pull up and down harder on your truck.

Really dangerous if you get too much behind the axles, so err on the safe side. There isn't any danger to front loading a trailer too much (for the most part, and within reason) but there is huge danger to rear loading it too much.

As far as safety is concerned, you are probably OK pulling the bronc all the way to the front, but it will not be a nice ride...

Bigfoot62 · 05-03-2005, 09:09 PM

Hoss is right. Make sure that you have more weight in front of the axles than behind. Not only will it be "jerky," but it could be outright dangerous. With most of the weight behind the axles, you are putting an awful strain on your g/n coupler. In the worse case scenario, the coupler could fail and you could lose the trailer. (the coupler is made to handle a lot of down-pressure, but not much upward)
Just my $0.02 worth

Nick_Kent · 05-03-2005, 09:55 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Hi all,

I just bought my first Gooseneck trailer (32 ft. enclosed car hauler, 2 - 7000lb. axles) aprox. 6k lbs. empty.

I tow a 4500 lb Early Bronco in it.

I took it out for the first time yesterday and it tows good, but jerks a lot going over rough parts of the road.

Is this something I am going to have to get used to, or is there something wrong with the way I am set up?

Right now I dont have any weight in the front of the trailer, but eventually I will build a living quarters in front adding some weight.

My tow rig is a 01 F350 cc 4x4 7.3

Any advice? Jim

[/ QUOTE ]

I think what you're feeling is just the raw weight of the trailer. I noticed a similar thing when pulling a 34' 5th wheel that only weighed 8000 lbs. My 5th had a slightly heavy tongue weight too. I weighed it. To be on the safe side, weight your trailer with the bronco in it and out of it, and adjust the bronco so you know where it needs to be have have the proper tongue weight on the trailer. Again, I think you were feeling the raw weight of the trailer. 6k empty plus another 4.5-5k for the vehicle is some good weight.

Joshs1100 · 05-04-2005, 09:22 AM

[ QUOTE ]
but jerks a lot going over rough parts of the road.

[/ QUOTE ]

My gooseneck only does this if I do not have enough weight on the ball. Goosenecks need 20-25%. Head down to the scales to see if you have enough. I picked up one of these (scroll down towards the bottom of the page) so I can get an accurate tongue weight any time I need to.

Here is an example of my trailer loaded without enough on the tongue. It jerked enough that I had to reload it.

mgraveman · 05-04-2005, 09:44 AM

if it jerks more than a bumper pull trailer, there is something wrong. It certianly is more bumpy when the trailer is connected than not connected.

I guess it depends what you mean by jerky, but I suspect that all the above guys have hit the nail on the head with their responses.

jimsbroncostable · 05-04-2005, 10:47 AM

Thanks,

I moved the Bronco foward a little last night and it made a big difference!

I think once my living quarters is built up front I will be able to move it back a little.

Jim

Hoss350 · 05-09-2005, 08:30 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Thanks,

I moved the Bronco foward a little last night and it made a big difference!

I think once my living quarters is built up front I will be able to move it back a little.

Jim

[/ QUOTE ]

Just be careful not to overestimate the weight of your living quarters. Read some posts in this forum about rear-loaded trailers and what they can do... You want to make sure that your bronc is far enough forward so that more weight is ahead of the axles than behind (like 20 to 25% more, as posted). Sounds like a neat setup, a lot of fun! Enjoy yourself thouroughly for me, would ya?