M101a2 not dumping !!

[Chief_919]

Other than on the data plate, do you know what TM/FM/TB/PS or any other reference material that info is in? I have been looking off and on for over a year now.

I know I have seen it somewhere. Let me do some digging- I ahve over 9 gigs of TM's and such on my external dirve.

Here is one showing that the rearmost bolts can be removed and the tongue laid flat on the ground when shipped.

 

[KsM715]

Where did you find that? I've never seen that before. (bolts pulled and tongue laid flat) thats even better. I have seen a data plate where the bolts are pulled and the tongue is folded up in front of the box and kind of holds the front like a stand.

 

[Chief_919]

Where did you find that? I've never seen that before. (bolts pulled and tongue laid flat) thats even better. I have seen a data plate where the bolts are pulled and the tongue is folded up in front of the box and kind of holds the front like a stand.

http://www.atsfrr.com/resources/BarryJohn/ArmyTiedown

TM 55-2200-001-12 Page E-131

Most interesting is that it shows that the distance beween wheel centers is just 7'1" between each one when transported in this manner. So 4 trailers can go on a trailer just 22 feet long if you don't mind the last one hanging off the end....

 

[derf]

Mine is in this thread:
http://www.steelsoldiers.com/trailers/59482-m101a1-standard-3500lb-axle-swap.html

I consider it more of a tilt to load than a dump trailer.
I don't have brakes so the lines are not an issue. I can chock the wheels if necessary to make it dump. However, as stated above, the trailer was not engineered to dump. If you look at the geometry and makeup of the pivot points you can see they are not really made to handle much load. I would not hesitate to carry several thousand pounds in my trailer with the proper tow vehicle but I would not consider dumping that much weight. If I needed to dump large loads I would rebuild the pivot points. Pulling the pins and tilting to load and unload is a nice feature but IMO some engineering and mechanical changes are necessary to make the trailer a true dump trailer.

If you were to redo the pivot points, strengthen them and make them perpendicular to the length of the trailer, then you could add a hydraulic, pneumatic, or screw actuator and have a true dump trailer.

 

[willjumps]

It Dumps

Attached are pics of a trailer I just got.

When we dump it the tale gate is kinda in the way.
Not sure what we are supposed to do with it.

Also, the reason the trailer has to be unloaded is because
the bed has nothing to hold it up in the air when you pull forward.
We are going to use a piece of pipe with holes on both ends in the
holes where the pins come from. I also feel that there should be stops under the front of the bed on top of the frame to keep the bed from going down in the front when the pins are pulled.

There was mention of the trailer cracking if you use it this way,
WHERE does it crack and how can we reinforce it before this happens?
I noticed the brackets on the A-frame where the pins go seem to have
gotten a little wider.

 

[RealCavDog]

Please look at post# 16 in this thread, then decide if you really want to use your M101 as a dump trailer and tow it on the road where other people drive. http://www.steelsoldiers.com/trailers/24414-m101-dump-bed.html



Replacing it when it breaks, is economical.

Controlling it on the road when the front A frame breaks free from the trailer may be impossible.

If GL is indeed advertising them as a dump trailer, I see a huge group law suit coming soon!

HEY ! Doghead ! Thats me !

Not worth the damage done , but still have one that now has a restricter cable to limit the travel , but not really recommended for heavy loads OR repeated use !

That is why I spent so much time posting that photo essay, to an EXISTING thread I might add !

 

[RealCavDog]

Yeah, if you do what he did and way over load it then push it so hard you lift the tires up, when you know the frame is already cracked, you will break it.

It was a pre-existing damage situation, as noted in my post, so who's to say what caused the original crack ? Wanted to see what it would take, and though it was work to do, I was not hauling at road speed or over bumps, and no panic stops involved !

How much are most folks willing to gamble ! I may haul and dump some mulch or manure, after a complete inspection, but the guys with the dump trucks can haul it as cheap and faster, and no liability to me !

 

[Jump Start]

Take a crow bar and pry the trailer body away from the frame. I am not sure how well the trailer will dump with a load. You most likely will want the eyes on the trailer bed to be bent so that they will go below the holes in the braces welded on the trailer frame, this way you will not have to fight lining the holes on the bed up with the ones on the frame. Hope this helps. Please let me know how well the trailer dumps with a load.

 

[willjumps]

There are pics empty and Totally Loaded with Wood neatly stacked in the trailer then bigger logs dumped on the top, OVER the bed sides.

 

[Dezdan]

When we dump it the tale gate is kinda in the way.
Not sure what we are supposed to do with it.

The trailer was never meant to be used as a 'dumping' style trailer; that's why the tailgate is in the way.

I also feel that there should be stops under the front of the bed on top of the frame to keep the bed from going down in the front when the pins are pulled.

There isn't any stops as the trailer was never meant to be used as a 'dumping' style trailer.

There was mention of the trailer cracking if you use it this way,
WHERE does it crack and how can we reinforce it before this happens?
I noticed the brackets on the A-frame where the pins go seem to have
gotten a little wider.

It cracks on the piece of cast iron that connects the tongue with the frame. You'd have to replace those pieces with something similar that would allow the tilting movement.

 

[quickfarms]

Use a heim joint to relieve the stress

 

[mrfishaholic]

I had a problem getting mine to "tilt" at first, then I just put a 3 ton floor jack right between the pins under the box. 1 pumps and it broke free, the trailer hangs up from where the bolts go through the U shape on the frame and the box meet. I bang'ed my U inward a bit and put some pins in there, now I can tilt it at the dump for easier unloading and for loading up my quad or lawn mower.