advise

[DeBang]

Which one to keep?
I have a M101A2 Body on a M116A3 Chassis (left) and a M101A1 but the plate says M101A2.
For a hauler, I have a F-150 6 cylinder truck with automatic. it is rated to pull 5100 lbs total.
I would like to use the trailer as a dump trailer but expect to only use for this maybe 5 to 6 times at most.
I am worried that I may ruin the truck with the weight of the heavy duty trailer. There are no hills or anything more than an overpass. I also worry that the lighter truck will not be able to handle rock or dirt and still dump.

Anyone out there use a 6 cyl full size truck to pull the larger trailer?


Maybe I worry too much.

 

[drgreg]

The M101A2 (left) has brakes. More important than you think if hauling anything.

 

[two.fiveM35]

With the A2 you'll have a much better chance at getting a flat fixed compared to the A1's wheels

 

[texwatercop]

I pull my M101A2 with my 06 Wrangler with a 6cyl/6spd tranny. its pulls it fine, your truck wont have any issues other than reduced mileage. That ford 6 is pretty strong.

 

[DeBang]

thanks

thats what I wanted to hear. I will not do heavy loads very often but did not want to learn hard lessons.

 

[Tlauden]

My f150 had a 4.6 v8. I hauled everything with that truck though, some stuff I shouldnt have... Hauled a big skid loader on an even bigger trailer once, and while loading it picked the rear of the truck right off the ground... once centered on the trailer though it pulled just fine... Also i pulled a dump trailer that was rated for 4 ton, and it was loaded to its fullest. I guess what I'm trying to say is that trucks can do alot of stuff as long as you safely do it! I won't pull much of anything on a trailer without brakes, they make a world of difference!!


Tyler

 

[nk14zp]

Do my deuces count as full size 6cyl trucke? Or my ram 3500 4x4 cyl 5.9?

 

[Bob H]

The M116 chassis is std for a M101 body.
The tag on the body is just that, the tag on the frame is the one to be concerned with.
the max gvwr on those is about 3500lbs ( varies as some had heavier springs) and your truck has a 5100lb tow rating.

Do your research the M101 is not a dump trailer! People have modified them to dump, they will fail, not the 1st or second time maybe but they will fail as they were not designed to function that way. This is not to say that a trailer manufacturer couldn't properly convert one to a dump trailer.

The A3 one has a wider stance, surge brakes and std 8 lug wheels. for your stated intended use this is the one to keep.

 

[Ratch]

Do your research the M101 is not a dump trailer! People have modified them to dump, they will fail, not the 1st or second time maybe but they will fail as they were not designed to function that way.

Bob, what would fail on them? I'm not challenging you, I just want to know what to be aware of, I was thinking of converting a few to dump with hydraulics.
The drawbar bolts that it pivots on to dump have to be at least strong enough to bear the stop-and-go pulling force, so I wouldn't expect them to shear under the slow load of dumping, although without grease, I could see wear being an issue with a lot of dumps.

I'm thinking grease zerks on the drawbar pivot bolts, and additional cross member support for the drawbar would prevent any failures from dumping.

 

[Bob H]

Bob, what would fail on them? I'm not challenging you, I just want to know what to be aware of, I was thinking of converting a few to dump with hydraulics.
The drawbar bolts that it pivots on to dump have to be at least strong enough to bear the stop-and-go pulling force, so I wouldn't expect them to shear under the slow load of dumping, although without grease, I could see wear being an issue with a lot of dumps.

I'm thinking grease zerks on the drawbar pivot bolts, and additional cross member support for the drawbar would prevent any failures from dumping.

The pins at the front of the bed are what pull the weight.
these are what are removed when you try to use it as a dump.
the geometry is all wrong for dumping.
If there is weight on the tongue, one must chock the trailer wheels or lock the trailer brakes and use the tow vehicle to push backwards forcing the trailer to dump or break.
here's a couple pics found (using the search function) that shows what will break.

 

[Ratch]

Good to know, thanks.

 

[DeBang]

all good advice. I will keep the bigger trailer and only dump rarely. With 0.65 acres there is not much room to go too overboard. But I do have a wild imagination.

 

[LongueCarabine]

Well, this is confusing.

Not meaning to hijack the thread, but...................My two trailers are data-plated as M101A2's, both have 5-lug hubs / axles, split ring rims, and neither has surge brakes. Is it possible to adapt surge brakes to these without changing the hubs or axles to 6 or 8 lug? Or is it more involved than that? Do the 5-lug axles not have the capability to convert to surge brakes?

LC

ETA: Could it be the wrong data plates were put on? If I pull this trailer behind a full size pickup, how much weight can I expect to tow without having braking / handling problems?

 

[Chief_919]

The pins at the front of the bed are what pull the weight.
these are what are removed when you try to use it as a dump.
the geometry is all wrong for dumping.
If there is weight on the tongue, one must chock the trailer wheels or lock the trailer brakes and use the tow vehicle to push backwards forcing the trailer to dump or break.
here's a couple pics found (using the search function) that shows what will break.

The only times I have seen a 101 fail ike that it was both severly overloaded and they "dumped" it to a full 90 degrees lifting the wheels off the ground.

If you abuse anything like that it will break..........

 

[RealCavDog]

The pins at the front of the bed are what pull the weight.
these are what are removed when you try to use it as a dump.
the geometry is all wrong for dumping.
If there is weight on the tongue, one must chock the trailer wheels or lock the trailer brakes and use the tow vehicle to push backwards forcing the trailer to dump or break.
here's a couple pics found (using the search function) that shows what will break.

YEP ! Thats my trailer , AGAIN ! Well , one of them !

Exactly why I posted all the info and photos , because when I searched , I had a heck of a time finding what you see in my post !

Thanks so much to everybody for reposting and sharing the warning !

 

[Welder Sam]

I had a 300 six yrs ago and i pulled 16ft trailers w/2 mid-70's ltds stacked once and various other cars and trucks loaded down for scrap. Id trust the motor again but i will always favor the 351w.

 

[DeBang]

I will still convert my larger M101A2 to dump but will use a Ram jack and limit the lift to maybe 40 degrees.
I believe that using the frame bolts to do the lifting (locking the wheels and backing up) may cause way too much torque.
I am not a mechanical engineer but think that torque like that may cause too much stress that was not planned. I think (but am not sure) that just using the bolts to pivot may reduce the stress to a manageable level.
okay now blast holes in my theory....

 

[mrfishaholic]

These trailers were manufactured to have "dump" or "tilt" capability, breakage like that is from abuse, that will not happen under normal use/load. These trailers are only rated to haul 2000lbs in them of cargo, No way that would snap like that with 2000 lbs,

AND

Look at that spring, where the bolt goes through, it pivits on that front spring bolt, there hasnt been any maint performed or fresh grease added for decades.....

Way to get guys bent out of shape and worried, the original contract for these trailers required that they were able to dump or tilt for loading and unloading cargo....

 

[3dAngus]

It could snap with less weight than that if on unlevel ground where one side went up faster than the other. Ground need to be perfectly level, and someone should be in the back to make sure the trailer stays that way during the procedure, while NOT putting himself at risk.

I pulled with a F-150 without issue down the highway many a times, and with larger loads on a 16 foot flatbed.

Pulling a heavy load on rough terrain uphill in slow motion is another story. Be careful about that. Pull 3000 pounds behind you, uphill slowly, will feel like a whole lot more than 3000 pounds to the truck.

 

[therealsundance]

These trailers were manufactured to have "dump" or "tilt" capability

Umm, no they were not. This has been covered many times.