Trailer hiab project, advice please

[gensetsteve]

I have thought about doing something similar in the past and could only find the following solutions.

 

Get a big 18ft trailer and put the crane in the middle leaving 7ft load space front and back but then crane and trailer weight leave little payload.

 

The other solution is have you seen the big brick lorries where the hiab runs on a track and you can position it in the centre when empty and move it to the front when you have a load on.

 

If you tow with 275kg on the hitch you will kill the sliding coupling in a few hundred miles and probably the rear end of your truck. I doubt that draw bar was designed for that much weight that far forward.

 

12vdc powered cranes are never quick enough a small engine will be much better as said flowfit are a good place for kit and advice.

 

A 12vdc charge circuit on a generator will be less than a tenth of what you need to keep that pump running under load. BT used dc generators where the whole out put of the alternator was dedicated to dc but I think they were 24vdc or 50vdc cant remember now but got a nice Honda one in the workshop been sat there years doing nothing could be for sale but I dont think it will be any good to you.

 

Looks like your trailer will be an excellent tool when done just need to get over the technical hitches

[aspenarb]

The lightweight series Hiab cranes use a valve block with micro switches on the levers so they can use a pump like yours without cooking it. The pump only runs when you touch a lever.

 

H115002 Micro Switch For Valve Blocks

 

The nose weight of the trailer might be ok if as suggested you mount some of the other kit like pump, battery and hydraulic tank at the back of the trailer to counter balance it. I have seen quite a few trailers like yours with a crane on the neck. One area worth looking at is the capacity of the hitch as they are all rated differently.

 

Bradley Doublelock Braked Overrun Couplings for trailers - Western Towing

 

Bob

[Daniël Bos]

Turntable trailer, problem solved!

[gensetsteve]

Turntable trailer, problem solved!

 

You could find with hiab on back and empty trailer it snakes like a pig at best it will lift and shake back of vehicle.

 

Put it on tracks stick it in middle when empty push and lock to front when loading and loaded.

[Daniël Bos]

You could find with hiab on back and empty trailer it snakes like a pig at best it will lift and shake back of vehicle.

 

Put it on tracks stick it in middle when empty push and lock to front when loading and loaded.

 

Why?

 

I've got a turntable trailer. It would be no different to tow if it ad half a ton of crane right in the front of the trailer. Still at least 4.5m of bed left after that, with the rear axles taking the weight of the load.

No nose weight to worry about=much easier on the vehicle.

I never snakes (though it might if I put loads of more than 8m length on)

I find that with enough practise its easier to maneuver and I can get it in places that would be impossible with a fixed drawbar.

[gensetsteve]

Why?

 

I've got a turntable trailer. It would be no different to tow if it ad half a ton of crane right in the front of the trailer. Still at least 4.5m of bed left after that, with the rear axles taking the weight of the load.

No nose weight to worry about=much easier on the vehicle.

I never snakes (though it might if I put loads of more than 8m length on)

I find that with enough practise its easier to maneuver and I can get it in places that would be impossible with a fixed drawbar.

 

I think we are at cross purposes I was imagining the deck swivelling 360 deg. I now get that the front wheels steer so the rear wheels can be at the back. I dont think my reversing skills would be up to that

[scraggs]

If the crane weighs in at 275kg why not mount it at the front of the bed, means cutting some bits of the floor out and other bits but that will get you fairly close to legal then when empty boom out and put it towards the back, mount power pack near the back and I doubt you will be that far out (assuming it's a twin axle trailer)?

You could mock the setup up before committing to cutting anything about first to test the nose weight.

[Marko]

I had a similar trailer. It was very heavy on the nose but very useful nonetheless. The biggest drawback wasn't the weight though... it was prone to tipping over sideways when dropping off builders bags. Unless you were very careful in the sequence of unloading and where the last bag was placed the whole lot would be up in the air. I had a set of Mog mower jacks lined up to make stabilisers but never got around to it as the temporary fix of a sawn off railway sleeper jammed under the unloading side of the bed worked so well. Trailer has gone now but the 4 unused Mulag 4769 jacks (each rated at 2 tonne I think) are still available!

[muttley9050]

Thanks for advice guys. The crane already has stabilisers on it. Looking at getting a petrol powered power pack and playing around with the weight/ballast then. Put on hold for now until I get a power pack.

I like the idea of rails and sliding the crane back and forth. Will keep you all posted as to what I do.

James

 

Sent from my GT-I8190N using Arbtalk mobile app

[Charles Hey Arborist]

You could find with hiab on back and empty trailer it snakes like a pig at best it will lift and shake back of vehicle.

 

Put it on tracks stick it in middle when empty push and lock to front when loading and loaded.

 

Like that idea

 

Recently bought this, anyone want to play guess the overall weight/nose weight?