This looks handy!

A trailer with crane on eBay. Wish I could afford it, I'd be scurrying all over to grab those bargains.

formatting link
Pete.

Reply to
Peter Mounsey
Loading thread data ...

I'd often wondered about doing something similar on our own trailer, and when we bought the big hydraulic crane a while back it almost went on there, BUT (there is always a 'but'!) the extra weight of the crane can be as much as 50% or more of the trailer unladen weight, and when you have a fixed upper limit on what you can tow, you suddenly start to look at reduced payloads.

Our trailer weighs just over half a ton (513kg) empty, and can go up to 2600kg by axle rating, but only 2 tons is technically allowed behind the van.

The Land Rovers have a much higher trailer rating, up to 4tons or more depending on model, so not so much of a problem.

I noticed that the vendor hasn't mentioned any gross weight for the trailer, but with 760X16 wheels and tyres it is probably a couple of tons max.

Peter Peter

-- Peter A Forbes Prepair Ltd, Luton, UK snipped-for-privacy@easynet.co.uk

formatting link

Reply to
Prepair Ltd

It looks like it may be a converted 3/4 tonne Sankey.

AJH

Reply to
AJH

Is that the Army rating?

Peter

-- Peter A Forbes Prepair Ltd, Luton, UK snipped-for-privacy@easynet.co.uk

formatting link

Reply to
Prepair Ltd

Yes I think so, in which case it's the cross country cargo capability. I'll ask my boss tomorrow what the gross weight of one is. There is something non compliant about the brakes on a standard Sankey IIRC they need a modification for non military on road use. Mind with the pintle height there's not many vehicles that can pull them.

Andrew Heggie

Reply to
AJH

They don't have the energy store handbrake, but they are presumably not required to have them in the military, also there is no damper on the hitch which might make it a little bumpy.

I know when my gas damper fails it makes like very uncomfortable, even when towing empty.

Peter

-- Peter & Rita Forbes Email: snipped-for-privacy@easynet.co.uk Web:

formatting link

Reply to
Peter A Forbes

That'll probably be it. I don't know when it became a requirement to have a full weight plate, probably about 1986, but the sankey 3/4 ton wide track in my boss's field ( he 'phoned to night so I asked him) only says 3/4 ton as a description, no weight plate, so unless it's built earlier I wonder if it is street legal.

AJH

Reply to
AJH

Depends on year of manufacture, but my own experience is that most trailers get little attention from the Law unless they are falling apart or are grossly overloaded, or both!

Peter

-- Peter & Rita Forbes Email: snipped-for-privacy@easynet.co.uk Web:

formatting link

Reply to
Peter A Forbes

A cheaper solution is to buy an engine crane from somewhere like Machinemart. This has the added versatility of being portable so can be used off the trailer. As Peter says, trailer weight can be a problem. A portable crane can be carried in the van.

On the subject of trailer weight, last year I took a generator down to IF for Paul. I had no idea of it's weight. My trailer is 2 tonnes so I was confident there but the car is rated at 1.2 tonnes. As the trailer weighs about 600kg empty (with sides), I was rather concerned. About a mile from home is a VOSA weighing station and it happened to be manned that Sunday. It was quite busy too pulling lots of trucks headed for the local banger races but that's another story. I asked them very nicely if they would weigh the outfit as I had a way to go. They weighed each axle in turn and compared it to the plate on the car. As long as each axle weight and total train weight were within limits, I was OK. That surprised me as a light car with a heavy trailer would have passed. At that point I accepted their ticket to show I was legal and left doing some sums in my head. The trailer was actually OK as it happened but VOSA didn't look at it that way.

John

Reply to
John

As you found it's popular fiction that a trailer must be lighter than the towing vehicle, so long as it's braked you only have to meet the train weight limit of the vehicle, the axle weights of vehicle and trailer, the nose weight range of the tow bar and any license restrictions (particularly restrictive for recently qualified drivers). There are recommendations for caravans to be lighter than the vehicle but that's all they are.

Greg

Reply to
Greg

The crane isn't a Hiab. It's a 1500kg Harvey Frost Easiload (I have a 1000kg one that I'm reconditioning to replace a Lucas swinglift and a mate has a 2.0t HF-Epco one on his scrap hauler). They're a good strong crane but not too heavy, so I doubt it'd hit the trailer payload too hard. To be honest I wouldn't bother with a powered crane unless you're going to use it all the time, one with a hand pump is lighter and more than adequate (also, unless you plan to spend Megabucks and buy one with powered slewing gear, you're stood right alongside during loading anyway). The pump unit on mine is a bog standard Dowty "cube". Since we (Dad & me) bought the old Daf 400 crewcab we haven't used any of our trailers at all. Didn't pay much more for it than a decent trailer would've cost either...

Cheers, Scruff.

Reply to
scruffybugger

I've got one that's a water bowser. You can remove that (I think) NATO hitch and bolt it back on underneath the framework, that's been done by the previous owner on mine.

Julian

Reply to
Julian

That's not quite how I meant it. My car is rated to tow 1.2 Tonnes by the manufacturer. I can legally tow more than that provided the gross train weight for the car is not exceeded. I have always assumed the 1.2 Tonnes was also cast in law. Apparently it's not, but the GTW is.

John

Reply to
John

It depends on when you were issued your driving license. The law changed in 1997, and if you had your license before that you are OK. If you got your license after then best of luck trying to make sense of the towing weight laws. You can find out all about it on the DVLLA website.

Alan

Reply to
Algernon

PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.