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Old 08-19-2018, 01:54 PM   #21
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Originally Posted by sharon_b View Post
Somewhere there was a safety video posted that showed when the tail starts to wagging the dog it’s better to speed up than slow down. Once the camper is up on one end of the axle tho, I think it’s a done deal.
At least it was a video!
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Old 08-19-2018, 02:15 PM   #22
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Floyd; I think the current understanding is that it's better to slow down if the tail begins wagging the dog.

It used to be considered common sense to speed up, but in fact once it starts that waggle, speeding up only makes it worse. I saw a video about that, too.

And of course, my video trumps your video.

Maybe I'll check on this issue again. My general attitude is most things are made worse by speeding up. But that's just my philosophy. Then again, hurry up with that answer, I'm WAITING!


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Old 08-19-2018, 02:18 PM   #23
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Floyd; I think the current understanding is that it's better to slow down if the tail begins wagging the dog.

It used to be considered common sense to speed up, but in fact once it starts that waggle, speeding up only makes it worse. I saw a video about that, too.

And of course, my video trumps your video.

Maybe I'll check on this issue again. My general attitude is most things are made worse by speeding up. But that's just my philosophy. Then again, hurry up with that answer, I'm WAITING!


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Check which post to which you are responding, you may have meant Sharon B
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Old 08-19-2018, 02:34 PM   #24
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i thought the best thing you can do if it starts to wag is grab the manual brake override on your trailer brake controller ?
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Old 08-19-2018, 03:42 PM   #25
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Floyd; I think the current understanding is that it's better to slow down if the tail begins wagging the dog.

It used to be considered common sense to speed up, but in fact once it starts that waggle, speeding up only makes it worse. I saw a video about that, too.


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Getting the trailer to pull back, preferably with it's own brakes is the most affective way to stop sway, along with getting rid of speed. But accelerating is the same thing as the trailer pulling back, except for the speed part.

I got myself out of a terrible, out of control, sway problem by nailing the throttle and pulling as hard as the truck would. Then, when it finally straightened out, after using up all lanes on the freeway for a bit, I hit the brakes hard and got rid of speed before it could start again.

That rig had a particular speed where it would suddenly go nuts back there. About 50 MPH and here we go. Fortunately, it was a one time thing, a very heavy trailer on the way to the dump with no trailer brakes.
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Old 08-19-2018, 03:44 PM   #26
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i thought the best thing you can do if it starts to wag is grab the manual brake override on your trailer brake controller ?
This is absolutely right, providing you have trailer brakes hooked to a controller.
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Old 08-19-2018, 03:48 PM   #27
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G...
I got myself out a terrible, out of control, sway problem by nailing the throttle and pulling as hard as the truck would. Then, when it finally straightened out, ..., I hit the brakes hard and got rid of speed before it could start again.

... a very heavy trailer on the way to the dump with no trailer brakes.
Would that not be a perfect recipe for a jack-knife? Braking the truck hard after speeding up, with a trailer that has no brakes?
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Old 08-19-2018, 04:19 PM   #28
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floyd, you're right, it was Sharon B.

"Somewhere there was a safety video posted that showed when the tail starts to wagging the dog it’s better to speed up than slow down. Once the camper is up on one end of the axle tho, I think it’s a done deal."

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Old 08-19-2018, 04:46 PM   #29
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I don't know about anybody else, but myself as soon as I hitch up the trailer it's like taking a valium speed wise...


that makes this video I came across sort of puzzling to me...


the semi is going between 65 and 70 miles an hour in the clip....then a guy goes out to pass him (on a two lane road no less) while towing a rather large/long trailer...(spoiler alert: it ends badly!)


I have to wonder if the guy was just in a hurry to get wherever he was going (on vacation ???)....or if he was one of those people who CAN'T STAND being behind a semi....personally I don't mind being behind a semi AT ALL....because I know that if anything bad happens...I can stop faster than that thing in front of me.





Happy motoring!
This is a divided highway or interstate. The other 2 lanes are above where the semi is. I wonder if the wind currents the semi created caused the sway to begin or get worse. I've had a semi cause some sway when it passed me so if you are passing one at high speed then it would do the same. At any rate the trailer is being pulled to fast, it's to heavy for the small pickup to control and the weight on the rear is a problem.
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Old 08-19-2018, 04:49 PM   #30
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Would that not be a perfect recipe for a jack-knife? Braking the truck hard after speeding up, with a trailer that has no brakes?
Yes it would if braking too hard or skidding. And it was a perfect recipe for a bad crash with uncontrolled sway. Made even worse with speed.

There was a number of possible bad outcomes, but I got out of it a bit shaken up.

It's part of the reason for my constant argument for having working electric brakes.
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Old 08-19-2018, 05:33 PM   #31
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Looks like a "perfect storm." Going uphill; large load on the rear end; passing a large semi pushing some air; tow looks lighter than trailer.

Looks like he didn't deploy trailer brakes or car brakes hooked to trailer brakes immediately, and didn't have time to consider what else to do.

First few sways looked like the last moment to save; didn't, and quick trouble. That's the thing about disasters, they can go so fast.

I think the mental valium pill when driving a trailer is one good attitude adjustment you can take. I don't deny we have, on occasion, pushed it. But so far, Peanut hasn't swayed. Our tow is 2-1/2 times heavier than Peanut. We load Peanut tongue-heavy, keeping within the 10-15% total weight guideline. We have electric trailer brakes. We load nothing on the back but the spare tire.

Still, things happen suddenly and may have no real fault. Though to me it looks like he was going too fast for the set-up he had. Notice I assume the driver was a man. May have been a woman.
(May have been a space alien. Probably not, though.)

I hope this never happens to any of us, and that the people in the car survived without terrible injuries.


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Old 08-19-2018, 05:51 PM   #32
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...

I hope this never happens to any of us, and that the people in the car survived without terrible injuries. ...
I went to the video on YouTube and found the poster added these comments:
Interstate 82 East Bound at the 9 Mile Marker in Washington State. I'm fully loaded at 104,000 lbs with rebar on a set of doubles. Dad and his two kids were ok. Gives you a good idea of how long it takes to slow down a heavy laden truck going 65mph.
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Old 08-19-2018, 07:35 PM   #33
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Yes it would if braking too hard or skidding. And it was a perfect recipe for a bad crash with uncontrolled sway. Made even worse with speed.

There was a number of possible bad outcomes, but I got out of it a bit shaken up.

It's part of the reason for my constant argument for having working electric brakes.
I believe it is a law to have brakes on a trailer of a certain weight. When we got our Casita at the factory we had to have a brake controller and a sway bar before they would let us have it.
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Old 08-19-2018, 08:24 PM   #34
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here we go again....

When we got our Casita at the factory we had to have a brake controller and a sway bar before they would let us have it.

by "sway bar" do you mean a weight distribution hitch (WDH).....or an actual sway bar system......the two get confused on here A LOT....
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Old 08-19-2018, 09:33 PM   #35
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I believe it is a law to have brakes on a trailer of a certain weight. When we got our Casita at the factory we had to have a brake controller and a sway bar before they would let us have it.
Not sure how the law works with respect to utility trailers. That is what I was towing during my "incident". Maybe someday they will all have working surge brakes if nothing else.

Meanwhile, Ill never tow my Oliver without brakes.
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Old 08-19-2018, 10:21 PM   #36
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Not sure how the law works with respect to utility trailers. That is what I was towing during my "incident". Maybe someday they will all have working surge brakes if nothing else.

Meanwhile, Ill never tow my Oliver without brakes.
the law varies by state. In California and many states, all trailers over 1500 lbs gross must have brakes.

hmm, this, https://drivinglaws.aaa.com/tag/trailer-brakes/ says thats for camp trailers... utility trailers, looks like its 3000 lbs. also has the rules for every state, many of which have a 3000 lb limit.
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Old 08-19-2018, 10:22 PM   #37
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I went to the video on YouTube and found the poster added these comments:
Interstate 82 East Bound at the 9 Mile Marker in Washington State. I'm fully loaded at 104,000 lbs with rebar on a set of doubles. Dad and his two kids were ok. Gives you a good idea of how long it takes to slow down a heavy laden truck going 65mph.
I am thinking this is the long stretch just after climbing the first hill out of Thorp/Ellensburg that runs along the Yakima Firing Range.

I have driven that stretch of road many times. It is a downhill run and can get pretty windy sometimes. There is no civilization for two more hills or about 25 miles. I always think of this stretch in hills, not miles for some reason.

There used to be a sign suggesting that you turn off your air conditioner to avoid overheating your engine at the start of the long steep stretch. Just a bit of trivia for you.
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Old 08-19-2018, 10:41 PM   #38
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Somewhere there was a safety video posted that showed when the tail starts to wagging the dog it’s better to speed up than slow down. Once the camper is up on one end of the axle tho, I think it’s a done deal.
Damned if you do, damned if you don't on this one. Hitting the brakes has a risk of causing a jackknife, and hitting the throttle will straighten the trailer a bit in the short term. Of course, it will also speed you up which makes you even less stable.

Ideally, like Raspy said, you want to slow the trailer down while pulling with the vehicle. If you can't easily reach the brake controller left-foot braking might work (unless you have a modern Toyota that just cuts the throttle and yells at you when you left-foot brake... ). Just gently hitting the gas to maintain speed might help in some cases as well - the trailer's a giant fiberglass airbrake. I've definitely noticed that a little maintenance throttle helps reduce the wobble from semi bow waves.
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Old 08-19-2018, 10:59 PM   #39
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When we got our Casita at the factory we had to have a brake controller and a sway bar before they would let us have it.

by "sway bar" do you mean a weight distribution hitch (WDH).....or an actual sway bar system......the two get confused on here A LOT....
It is a sway bar. It is just a flat bar in 2 parts that hook to balls on the TV and trailer tongue. You adjust the sway protection by tightening a lever. They sell for about $40 at Camping World, Amazon, etc. This is all that is needed for a light weight unit. We have a 17' Casita and tow with a heavier vehicle. We had a 6 cyl Chev Blazer when we got the trailer.
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Old 08-20-2018, 08:39 AM   #40
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Am I the only one who appreciated the video of the beautify scenery in the distance?
That is exactly what I was thinking as I watched the beginning! Such beautiful country and I want to know where it is and when can i go there
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