Re: Trailer Safety Chains

["Joe Long" <jlong@mti.net>]

On Fri, 3 Jul 1998 12:07:24 -0700 (PDT), Niccolai Murphy
<niccolai_m@yahoo.com> wrote:

>Sorry, moments are moments and the couple is formed by the tires and
>the hitch.  No amount of gut feeling will overcome this fact. 

However, you're still overlooking the geometry.  Because the hitch is
not nearly as far above the axle as the wheels are apart, the
rotational force is less than the translational force.  If the
rotational force should become large enough to lift the outside
tire(s), the inside tire(s) get their translational (sliding) force
doubled.  So the bottom line is that the tow vehicle is much more
likely to slide than roll, unless some other factor (such as sliding
into an obstuction) intervenes.

Now, if you do slide into such an obstruction, then under that
circumstance I agree the gooseneck is more likely to roll the tow
vehicle than a bumper hitch.  But as you observed elsewhere, that is
only one scenario out of many and overall you are safer with the
gooseneck.

-- 

Joe Long
jlong@mti.net
Business Page  http://www.mti.net
Personal Page  http://www.rnbw.com