Off Road SHO Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I've got an idea on how to solve the problem of scraping the bottom of my Superformance S-1 on the ramp transitions on my car hauler/Motel 6 trailer. My wifes likes to ride in the car in cool climates, but not the ride through our Southwestern deserts to get to them. I figured out two sets of ramps would be a lot of work, heavy and hard to store in transit and while parked. My trailer is a 40' fifth wheel with a drop down ramp in the back. The floor of the trailer has a beaver tail slope at the very back to lower the floor a little. Those two transitions, one 8 degrees and the other 12 degress, in effect form humps in the path of loading the 7, which only has 3" of ground clearance. My idea is to use a modified tongue jack from a trailer, attached to each front wheel with 2 nylon ratchet straps, with a thick piece of foam between the powder coated wheel and the body of the tongue jack, to keep it from scratching the wheel. Follow me so far? A tongue jack is securely fastened to each front wheel. The top part of the jack has two downward facing, angled legs with curved plates welded to them that "cradle" the tire. Like two hands getting ready to lift the tire. One in front of the contact patch, one behind. The bottom "foot' of the jack has a large flate triangular plate attached to the outside side of the jack with u-bolts. At the front and rear points of this triangle, are bolted two pneumatic hand cart tires. And Voila', I can slide the two "hands" under the tire, strap the cushioned jack to the wheel's spokes, crank down the two hand cart tires until it lifts the car's front tires 6" in the air, then drive the car under its own power into the trailer where I would then lower the car back down for strapping purposes. With these strapped tightly to each front wheel I should have a slight modicum of turning ability to align the car with the trailer's tie-down points. Well? Am I crazy or missing something? Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedwagon Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Basically think -"tilt Trailer" Can offer two suggestions, for the ramp to beaver tail my trailer has a hinged extension to the ramp that folds to the inside(top) of the ramp that helps, then I just either park the truck so that the rear is high or on wheel ramps to bring the trailer dove tail closer to the same plane as the ramp. if the dove tail to trailer still cases problems add a sheet of 3/4 plywood just inside the beaver tail in the trailer to smooth the transition. These puppies can be hard to load, a lot of my problems went away when I raised the car enough to be able to straddle a 4" rock in the road while living in Utah near lake Powell and the new home with 3 miles of dirt roar in golden valley,az will keep it there. Better to not handle quite so good and get home Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderbrake Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I use a pair of plastic ramps under the rear door to eliminate the scraping. I got them at Wal mart, they are about 24 to 30 inches long, and have a small bump on top as astop, which I sawed off. I store them under the Seven once it is in the trailer. This is a low cost and simple solution which does not involve changing the trailer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Off Road SHO Posted March 7, 2015 Author Share Posted March 7, 2015 Yes, I investigated that but would need another set inside the trailer because of the beavertail. Once on top of the inside ramps I thought the car would be too high to anchor securely. I also don't like backing out onto the ramps with such limited visibilty to the rear. The beauty of my idea (if it works as planned) is that I am basically just installing taller tires in front, without having to use a lug wrench and torque wrench, I can still drive the car. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlumba81 Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 How about using a Tilt-A-Hitch? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scannon Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 How about a picture of these tongue jacks? I can't picture what they must look like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbanker Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I have a 7x12 Wells Cargo motorcycle trailer with beaver tail that I haul my Stalkers in. I only have 2-3/4" of ground clearance under the oil pan and have no problem with scraping. I did modify the beaver tail on each side about 13" from the edge. Pics attached that might help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbanker Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Finished with threaded chock stops and loading lines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian7 Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 Well? Am I crazy or missing something? Tom no, just seriously over-thinking it.... we have what sounds like an identical trailer, and a Formula Atlantic with 1" of front ride height... a couple of pieces of 2x4 a few feet long each raises the front wheels as they reach the break point in the floor, and then move the wood back to lift the rears as car moves forward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOTTTCAR Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 I have an electric jack that raises the front of the trailer and the back of the truck so it's a straight shot into the trailer. Works great until you forget to use it. Tares a big hole in the pan. Quick way to drain the oil.:banghead: Gale Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Off Road SHO Posted March 8, 2015 Author Share Posted March 8, 2015 Hahaha, that would be me. My trailer weighs 13,000 lbs empty with a tongue weight of about 2,000 lbs. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klasik-69 Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 I use a set of 6 foot long foam ramps which are very strong and only weigh about 5 lbs each. I also have an electric tongue jack with a 3500 lb rating and my Z06 or Seven load without issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveD Posted March 14, 2015 Share Posted March 14, 2015 I have Superformance #50 and the way I solve the angle issues with the trailer ramp is to raise the front of the trailer. It worked great last year at the track. With the nose raised I could easily drive it into the trailer and use it as a garage. And it coasts out easily. It's not easy to see in this picture but the front of the trailer is high decreasing the angles of the ramp. When I leave the trailer hitched up to the tow vehicle I drive the rear wheels of the tow vehicle up onto a pair of wood ramps I made. It works great. I do not have a beaver tail trailer and I never have to worry about catching the bottom of the car. Not sure this will help for your trailer but for those that have a trailer similar to mine it's the best and easiest solution I have found. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Off Road SHO Posted March 14, 2015 Author Share Posted March 14, 2015 It's hard to explain how big this trailer is. I will try and find a pic of it. David, Nice Roll bar BTW. Any more pics of how it's mounted? Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Off Road SHO Posted March 14, 2015 Author Share Posted March 14, 2015 (edited) How do post pics here? By linking? Tom Edited March 14, 2015 by Off Road SHO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Off Road SHO Posted March 14, 2015 Author Share Posted March 14, 2015 Let's see if this works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Hill Posted March 14, 2015 Share Posted March 14, 2015 Tom Does your bed rise higher than shown? If it lifts the height of the opening then you can effectively double the length of the ramp, cut the approach angle dramatically. Fabricate extention ramps the height off the ramp door, hinge them from the top to flip out when the ramp is down. A pair of jack stands to hold the ramp door up and you're in business. Not many of that style toy hauler are long enough for a Seven....lucky you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Off Road SHO Posted March 14, 2015 Author Share Posted March 14, 2015 Paul, Yes, the bed raises up quite a bit and I was going to add a flip-over ramp lip anyway to smooth the transition from 3" thick ramp to ground, but my big problem lies in the built-in beaver tail that is about 2' inside the trailer. Not visible in the pictures and under a roll up carpet. If it wasn't for that 12 degree bump, I'd be designing a longer ramp and be done with it. As originally built the trailer's ramp was in the same plane as the sloped beaver tail of the trailer. With the axles flipped there is an additional ~8 degee angle at the ramp hinge. I can fit two Rhinos and two dirt bikes in the trailer and still cook, sleep and eat in the front. I picked up four different tires for this invention and should have the welding done tomorrow. I should be able to report success or comedic material one way or the other. I have a grand total of 120.00 in parts in them so far so if nothing else, I can fix four flat wheelbarrow problems and two tongueless trailer problems with my failure. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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