The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts 1942 1 1/2 towing recommendations

Hi Guys pizza man here. I have had a few calls to bring my truck to parties 50 miles away plus. I was wondering what or if would be an easy way to tow the truck instead of driving it. Like a flat tow with tow bar on front of truck or dolly like Uhaul rents?? Any thoughts??? oldworldpizzatruck.com Thanks, Jack

What kind of vehicle do you plan to tow with? The problem will be having enough brakes to stop the rig safely, and a 1 1/2 ton is a pretty heavy vehicle. There's no practical way to make the truck brakes work from the input of a tow vehicle, and a tow dolly big enough to carry the front end of a big rig safely would have to be custom-built from very heavy duty components.

I'd guess the tow rig would have to be at least the size and weight of !-ton dually pickup, or bigger,, and the antique truck would need to be carried on a tandem-axle gooseneck trailer with dual wheels and heavy-duty brakes to be safe on the road.
Jerry

Something like this
[IMG]http://thumb9.webshots.net/t/58/458/3/29/25/2811329250080251109DYqOrz_th.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://thumb9.webshots.net/t/62/462/4/30/52/2664430520080251109waGtyD_th.jpg[/IMG]

I flat towed the red COE truck from Washington State to New York, no problems... but

You will need a serious truck to be the lead dog.
If I had tried it with a 3/4 or 1 ton it would have been fun, and not very safe.

The ford I used I had previously updated with huge disc brakes from a Freightliner and a Chevy Top-Kick, the truck weighed 10,000 lb empty, and I had over 3,000 lb extra in the bed, and it had about a 300 hp diesel.
The big brakes were absolutely necessary, and even at that I crawled down some of the bigger mountains (on the interstate) at 25 mph, even slower going up.
The substantial weight of the lead truck helped to keep everything pointed east. If I had less weight the tailing truck would have really pushed me around. Near the end of the trip I unloaded the 3,000 lb I had in my bed, and there was a noticeable difference in how the red truck pushed me around, not a good thing.
The combination of HP and good gear choices (10 speeds) was also helpful. At times on the highway going over a bump or bridge things would start to wiggle a bit, a brief application of fuel would straighten everything out right away. Having closely spaced gears helped to get moving without to much effort.

Your best bet is to use a stout enough trailer with good brakes, and a suitable truck.
The tow bar may be fine if you have a serious lead truck and are careful. Although it is really only good for going in straight lines, and takes turns badly, and really wide.

Grigg

As a rule of thumb, you need the same size vehicle in front, or better yet bigger, as in back. Be sure to drop the drive shaft in the towed vehicle to prevent burning up your transmission and be sure to tie the steering wheel, with a little slack, in the straight ahead position. I have towed a lot, but it is dangerous and I don't really recommend it.

Right, I did pull the axle shafts out, and also checked and repacked the rear wheel bearings (and drained the water out of the rear), replaced and greased the front wheel bearings, also backed off the brake adjusters just to be sure. I did not tie the steering wheel, and did not need to. I drug the front wheels sideways on some of the slow speed tight turns, would not have had much of the tires left if I had tied the wheel, as most of the time they followed pretty good on their own.

I also would not recommend this method of towing a truck, their are safer and better ways.

Have you inquired about having a professional tow / roll back, it may be cheaper than buying a good trailer, and certainly easier for you.

Grigg

If you're only going 50 miles or so, why not just drive it? It might take you an hour and a half, but by the time you load it, tie it down, and unload it again, you'd be halfway there driving it. Plus, the excercise certainly won't hurt it. And you won't have the expense of another vehicle and trailer.

I'd drive it also. Better "PR". Towing it in, would make it look gimmicky. That's just my opinion.

im with you spanky if you see me gettin towed its broke.
and a 1.5 ton truck dont make a good trailer queen

I understand why driving it might seem a lot of trouble, but towing it will be more unless you have a real big truck up front.

I've hauled several 1-1/2- and 2-ton trucks on my 18 foot car trailer with a 1-ton and a 3/4-ton pickup up front. Every time I do it I swear I won't do it again. The last time I did it, with the 3/4-ton pickup doing the towing (my 1-ton was totaled late last year) I ended up towing no faster than the old truck on the trailer would have gone if it ran. I would have felt safer driving the old truck.

The suggestion that the lead truck weigh at least as much as the load is one I agree with, especially when the load has no brakes.

Thanks to all as usual!!! Jack