# Gooseneck Weight Ratio



## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

I typically haul 14 rolls of hay on a 24 foot gooseneck trailer. Five down each side and 4 on top down the middle. The trailer is rated 7 tons.

If the rolls weighed 1,000 each, is the trailer maxed out?

What percentage of the weight is on the truck and what percentage is on the trailer axels? Am I pushing the capacity limit of the trailer or am I under the capacity with a good bit of the weight on the truck?


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## Farmerbrown2 (Sep 25, 2018)

Depends how much weight you are putting on your drive axel . The guy who hauls much of my hay has a deck on his goose neck and can't use it because he gets over weight on his drive axel. I think you should find a scale and check out where your weight is at before DOT gets you or God forbid you get in a accident and hurt somebody and end up in court. I don't know about AL but in the NE cops are getting serious about farm trucks and weight. What does trailer and truck weigh empty .


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

Tim/South said:


> I typically haul 14 rolls of hay on a 24 foot gooseneck trailer. Five down each side and 4 on top down the middle. The trailer is rated 7 tons.
> If the rolls weighed 1,000 each, is the trailer maxed out?
> What percentage of the weight is on the truck and what percentage is on the trailer axels? Am I pushing the capacity limit of the trailer or am I under the capacity with a good bit of the weight on the truck?


Lots of good questions ther. I received my CDL training many years ago, but I'll do my best.
First, I would say you are putting 14,000lbs on a trailer with a GVWR of 14,000lbs or a PAYLOAD of 14k lbs? if its GVWR, then What you have not taken into account is the weight of the trailer. A gooseneck like yours usually weighs 4,000-5,000 lbs. so you are probably 4,000-5,000 lbs over weight. IF the trailer were sitting un attached in a field, BUT in reality, the trailer is attached to your truck. The truck could bear anywhere from 1-25% of the trailer weight depending on how you load it. If you "front load" it, then you could be 25% or more on the truck, If you "tail load" it, it could be just a few % on the truck. Let's say you put 15% on the truck. 15% of 18,000 lbs is 2,700 lbs, so if you put 14k on the trailer and the trailer weighs 4k, you are 4 k over, but you need to subtract 2,700lbs off that, so now you're still 1,300lbs over weight. 
You would need to shift close to 25% onto the truck or about 4,500lbs to make your rig legal, but that's if you have a truck with a rear axle capable of handling a 4,500lb payload.
I'd say you need to drop to about 12 round bales. That way you have 12,000lbs on trailer that weighs 4k empty. Total is 16k. If you shift 15% of that 16k to the truck, you take 2,400lbs off the 16k total and you're under 14k rating of the trailer (13,600lbs)

Many other things to consider: is your 14k trailer equipped with 2) 7k axles? If you do, the above examples i gave you should work.
Or are they 6k? Lots of trailer builders will make a 14k trailer with 2) 6k axles, assuming you will shift 2k from the trailer to the truck. 
Lots more to this. I just gave you a simplification to help you understand a little bit more.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

Tim/South said:


> I typically haul 14 rolls of hay on a 24 foot gooseneck trailer. Five down each side and 4 on top down the middle. The trailer is rated 7 tons.
> If the rolls weighed 1,000 each, is the trailer maxed out?
> What percentage of the weight is on the truck and what percentage is on the trailer axels? Am I pushing the capacity limit of the trailer or am I under the capacity with a good bit of the weight on the truck?


I use the same trailer and the same amount of bales, my trailer has two 7 k # axles. I load like this when going from the field to the barn. I load like this if delivering within just a few miles of the barn. Anything involving highway speeds and the possibility of the problems, I just skip the top layer. I should add...these bales weigh in at bout 900#

Not very scientific and I would have to defer to JD's complicated simplified dummied down response to the weigh on axle.....I'm sure he's right......sounds right...
However this is what "feels" right to me in the seat of my britches....


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

My goose has two, 7,000 axels.

There are three rolls behind the rear axel, five rolls over the axels and six rolls in front of the axels.

I am pulling with an F 350 flat bed.

Can I pull on scales and weigh just the loaded trailer with the truck tires off the scales to see what the trailer is actually carrying?

One of my concerns is overloading the trailer tires.

I do not run DOT numbers, declined the CDL option, use the farm plate exemption. This is on the advice of the state CDL license and regulation department.


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

Tim/South said:


> My goose has two, 7,000 axels.
> There are three rolls behind the rear axel, five rolls over the axels and six rolls in front of the axels.
> I am pulling with an F 350 flat bed.
> 
> Can I pull on scales and weigh just the loaded trailer with the truck tires off the scales to see what the trailer is actually carrying?


Yes, then you will know your pin weight (weight carried by truck).



> One of my concerns is overloading the trailer tires.
> 
> I do not run DOT numbers, declined the CDL option, use the farm plate exemption. This is on the advice of the state CDL license and regulation department.


Smart man. I have CDL and apportioned tags. What a mess. 
Single tires scare me on a hay trailer. I frequently see one side or tire up in the air when fully loaded exiting a field and cringe at the load on the tires, but I have a single tire and dual tire trailers I use.


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## Gearclash (Nov 25, 2010)

> I typically haul 14 rolls of hay on a 24 foot gooseneck trailer. Five down each side and 4 on top down the middle. The trailer is rated 7 tons.
> 
> If the rolls weighed 1,000 each, is the trailer maxed out?


Rather than guess I would pull across a scale and observe the weight on each axle, and the pair of trailer axles. If you would do it both loaded and empty you would know what your net weight can be and about how to distribute it.

It is my feeling that it is pretty easy to exceed the axle weight rating hauling hay with a pickup/trailer combo.


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## Hayman1 (Jul 6, 2013)

This is a good conversation. I suspect all of run overloaded at least most of the time. I had a vehicle inspector tell me that a State weight cop told him the 14K trailer could have 14k in payload. Now that is not the definition of GVWR and my betterbuilt 14K trailer is over 5K in trailer weight. I unusally run 210 squares or 8-11 rolls. Get a little surging on the heaviest hay.

if the squares are running 50#, that is 10,000 # payload adn if the rolls are running 1,000, it is 11,000#. Your local landflll may offer a easy place to get a weigh on your loaded trailer without the weight police.


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

When you are forced to overload the trailer, I would front load the trailer to push more weight onto the truck. I do that cause I have a f550 with a 13,800lb rear axle. I have lots of "reserve" on my trucks rear axle. A lot more than the 7k rear-rear axle on a 14k trailer. 
Also prevents swaying. 
I don't encourage anyone to overload, but in the world of farming......you know what really happens sometimes.
Depending on TimSouth's rear axle capacity, he might be better off loading the top rolls in pairs up front, than a single line down the middle. Tough to determine without weighing each axle loaded.


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## Fowllife (Sep 10, 2010)

Tim/South said:


> Can I pull on scales and weigh just the loaded trailer with the truck tires off the scales to see what the trailer is actually carrying?


Really, the right way to check is to weight it multipul times. Weight your empty truck first, front axel, total weight, and rear axel. Repeat this process with your trailer both loaded and empty, but with also getting total combination & just trailer weight. If your goosneck is placed 6" in front of your rear axel you should be adding load to both your front & rear truck axel. Buy looking at all the weights you can figure out how your load is being carried in each area.


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## cmd (Oct 26, 2012)

Just about everywhere there are CAT truck scales. You pull your whole rig on and it automatically reads each axle and you get a print out. So I'd start there. Now I and probably most of us do not know if your tags allow this as a combination unit or not, if not, your trailer is limited to probably 10K. Over 10k typically is CDL land or atleast combination type registration BUT you have farm tags. So determine all of your individual axle capacities, (truck and trailer) and your registration or license restrictions on GVWR and then hit the scales.


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## T & R Hay Farms (Jan 19, 2012)

We all know the trailer and pickup can handle it just fine. The legality of the load is the only issue. We cannot control the other people driving on the roads which makes hauling the bales dangerous. We ourselves understand the necessary time that is needed to slow down something weighing this much. We also take into consideration everything that is going on around us. I say this, because I have a scale ticket from last fall when we finally decided to weigh a load of 21 5X6 large round cornstalk bales that I was delivering about 2.5 hrs away. I tipped the scale at 49,500#. That may not seem too bad, but this is on a 1ton dually duramax and a 40ft gooseneck trailer. To cut the story short, we now deliver the big loads with a semi I purchased last winter.

I would just like to repeat what has already been said. Load the trailer like you usually do and go to your local scale. Drive just the front axles on the scale, then the vehicle, and then the whole trailer and do some calculating and you will be able to figure out what weight is located and where on our vehicle and trailer.

Good luck, and avoid those DOT! 

Regards,

T & R Hay Farms


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