Check your 5th wheels

[389 Hood]

Check and double check them for complete lock closure or a high hook.
This poor guy drove this unit empty 105 miles from Ft. Pierce to Port Canaveral. He loaded 7500 gallons of ULSD and left the terminal. Upon his exit onto the main road that serves the port and Cape Canaveral Space Force Base, the trailer became detached from the 5th wheel. Word has it that the landing gear on the passenger side punctured the bottom of the #1 compartment. I can't see it from my vantage point, but the Indian River is just on the other side of those trees.

It's going to be into tonight before that is cleaned up. They'll need and 80 ton rotator or a crane to lift the nose out of the woods. Palmdale has a damned good safety record too.

 

[Mike]

River on the other side, ouch! Gonna be expensive!

We had to replace all of the 5th wheels on our trucks at a tanker outfit once. Trucks were all new or fairly new, but the company was saving money with lighter duty 5th wheels.

Had a few detachments, including my truck when I was demonstrating to a new driver how to visually inspect for a good connection.

Areas like this is no place to save money.

 

[Rigjockey]

That is definitely a bad day!

 

[Uncle Birchy]

That is definitely a bad day!

Could've been worse...went in the river

 

[BlackBart]

Check and double check them for complete lock closure or a high hook.
This poor guy drove this unit empty 105 miles from Ft. Pierce to Port Canaveral. He loaded 7500 gallons of ULSD and left the terminal. Upon his exit onto the main road that serves the port and Cape Canaveral Space Force Base, the trailer became detached from the 5th wheel. Word has it that the landing gear on the passenger side punctured the bottom of the #1 compartment. I can't see it from my vantage point, but the Indian River is just on the other side of those trees.

It's going to be into tonight before that is cleaned up. They'll need and 80 ton rotator or a crane to lift the nose out of the woods. Palmdale has a damned good safety record too.View attachment 86490

That sux royally.

Somebody messin with him, or just an accident?

 

[Rigjockey]

We had one truck that would randomly drop trailers. I know for a fact that the drivers does a stretch test every time, with every trailer.
We got pretty good at scooping up the trailer with the landing gear rolled up before the cops showed up. Probably could get it back up and gone in under 4 mins.
I am not a mechanic and I have no idea why it would drop trailers at random.
Eventually they changed the fifth wheel on the truck.

 

[BlackBart]

We had one truck that would randomly drop trailers. I know for a fact that the drivers does a stretch test every time, with every trailer.
We got pretty good at scooping up the trailer with the landing gear rolled up before the cops showed up. Probably could get it back up and gone in under 4 mins.
I am not a mechanic and I have no idea why it would drop trailers at random.
Eventually they changed the fifth wheel on the truck.

If the jaws were gettin dry and not closing all the way and it was lettin trailers go because of that, that’s one thing. But if it wasn’t, it shoulda been swapped out the FIRST time that happened.

Just my .02

 

[Electric Chicken]

We had one truck that would randomly drop trailers. I know for a fact that the drivers does a stretch test every time, with every trailer.
We got pretty good at scooping up the trailer with the landing gear rolled up before the cops showed up. Probably could get it back up and gone in under 4 mins.
I am not a mechanic and I have no idea why it would drop trailers at random.
Eventually they changed the fifth wheel on the truck.

Before I had my 5th wheel rebuilt, getting a full lock was hit or miss. It would pass a tug test and if you looked under there it would at first glance appear locked, but if you actually took a moment and with a good bright flashlight you could see the teeny tiniest amount of dry jaw that didn't make it across.

I'm talking millimeters not even the obvious half inch or whatever it is that the mega carriers take photos of for the safety slideshow.

It was pretty wild.

 

[Rigjockey]

If the jaws were gettin dry and not closing all the way and it was lettin trailers go because of that, that’s one thing. But if it wasn’t, it shoulda been swapped out the FIRST time that happened.

Just my .02

Yes the fifth wheel should have been replaced the very first time that happened but, you know how it goes 1, drivers fault, 2, not in the budget, 3, let's wait and see if it happens again.
Drivers fault, not in the budget.

 

[Electric Chicken]

Yes the fifth wheel should have been replaced the very first time that happened but, you know how it goes 1, drivers fault, 2, not in the budget, 3, let's wait and see if it happens again.
Drivers fault, not in the budget.

Schneider loves to blame the driver.

I have zero regrets buying my own truck because even if I'm wrong and I have something fixed for no reason, it's only money I've wasted and I've regained peace of mind.

 

[BlackBart]

Schneider loves to blame the driver.

I have zero regrets buying my own truck because even if I'm wrong and I have something fixed for no reason, it's only money I've wasted and I've regained peace of mind.

Ya I hear Schneider’s good for that shit. A high hook will get you fired

 

[AK7]

Check and double check them for complete lock closure or a high hook.
This poor guy drove this unit empty 105 miles from Ft. Pierce to Port Canaveral. He loaded 7500 gallons of ULSD and left the terminal. Upon his exit onto the main road that serves the port and Cape Canaveral Space Force Base, the trailer became detached from the 5th wheel. Word has it that the landing gear on the passenger side punctured the bottom of the #1 compartment. I can't see it from my vantage point, but the Indian River is just on the other side of those trees.

It's going to be into tonight before that is cleaned up. They'll need and 80 ton rotator or a crane to lift the nose out of the woods. Palmdale has a damned good safety record too.View attachment 86490

This is the plate we run.
Has the secondary lock which is the safety.
I still get under and check with a flash light.

 

[Electric Chicken]

View attachment 86519
This is the plate we run.
Has the secondary lock which is the safety.
I still get under and check with a flash light.

It's cute.

I mean handsome. It's very handsome.

 

[Rigjockey]

View attachment 86519
This is the plate we run.
Has the secondary lock which is the safety.
I still get under and check with a flash light.

Cool!
I havn't seen two pin fifth wheel since the 90's.
I didn't know they still made them like that.

 

[Electric Chicken]

Cool!
I havn't seen two pin fifth wheel since the 90's.
I didn't know they still made them like that.

I see it's obviously a Holland and the plate on my Ford is a Holland, but I don't know how those dual handles work. Do you have to pull both to get out from under a trailer or what?

 

[Rigjockey]

I see it's obviously a Holland and the plate on my Ford is a Holland, but I don't know how those dual handles work. Do you have to pull both to get out from under a trailer or what?

Yup you got to pull both. It's been a while but I think you pull the one up front first and then the other one.

 

[AK7]

I see it's obviously a Holland and the plate on my Ford is a Holland, but I don't know how those dual handles work. Do you have to pull both to get out from under a trailer or what?

Yes

 

[AK7]

Cool!
I havn't seen two pin fifth wheel since the 90's.
I didn't know they still made them like that.

It's rated for 95k and 225k pull.

 

[quillcom]

Just listen to this man, you'll never have a disconnect/dropped trailer again!

As windy as it sounded how the heck did those cardboard pieces not fly off.

 

[Electric Chicken]

It's rated for 95k and 225k pull.

Almost heavy duty enough for the rail!