another tow/car dolley question

[CyberSniper]

So, I've got to find a way to haul a K5 frame home. It's 500 miles. Roughly 250 miles (4.5 hours) on two lane 55mph highways and 250 miles (3.5 hours) on 70mph expressways. At that half way point I'll be crossing the Mackinaw Bridge.

All it's going to have on it is four springs, a gas tank, front and rear axles, and maybe a steering box. Willing to bet somewhere around 800lbs.

I have the opportunity to pick up a tow/car dolley for $200. It needs tires (13" little snots), new lights, new tie downs, and to be rewired. It's 72" wide.

If I put some 235x75r15 tires on stock steel wheels the BACK of the K5 will barely fit on the dolley. I believe the front of the K5 will fit if I run JUST the wheels, no rubber.

I have heard that Nissan, Isuzu, and Toyota used some skinny wheels with more backspacing to narrow it up some more.


Is it feasible to run it backwards on the car dolley? Would it still be feasible if in the future when the K5 frame is done (3500lbs tops) to haul it backwards on the car dolley? Would it be alright to run it on bare rims on the car dolley but forwards?

Is the car dolley even worth buying at $200? I'll probably have another $100 tied up in new rubber, lights, and wiring.

 

[rjfguitar]

It's 72" wide

That sounds offly narrow to me. My K5 is 89" from outside front tire to outside front tire.

 

[ZZ4x4]

I'm kinda wondering if it would be legal to simply flat tow the K5 it on it's own 4 wheels just like a trailer. You could just rent a tow bar and attach to the frame rails. I've towed a few parts trucks this way, and really yours is just a truck missing a few more parts. You'd also need a set of aux trailer lights for the rear.

 

[CyberSniper]

Well, I have a towbar. The problem is that there is like ZERO weight to that frame. I can pick the rear of it up by hand. I had a hard time getting a truck that lacked a motor and transmission to follow my truck nicely. And I don't want to have to deal with that for 500 miles on slippery roads.

A half ton front axle with stock rally wheels and 31x10.50 rubber is 80" wide. A half ton rear axle with stock skinny steel wheels with 235x75r15 rubber is a touch over 72" wide.

I tried to haul my buddy's dad's car dolley with a stripped honda on it and it wouldn't follow my truck for ****. I had to lock the pin on the dolley to get it to not drive like a hay wagon/gravity box. I'm afraid the bare K5 frame would do the same thing. I think if I were to put a motor in the K5 it'd help but it's just too much of a nuissance.

It turns out that there is a large chance I'd get ticketed for not having mudflaps/fenders on it.


As of right now, I'm going to try to sell enough stuff to buy a trailer.

 

[ugly_blazer]

Could you rent a trailer? U-Haul or an equipment rental place?

 

[CyberSniper]

Already called around... $260 one way... that's like throwing money in the trash as far as I'm concerned.

 

[CyberSniper]

That sounds offly narrow to me. My K5 is 89" from outside front tire to outside front tire.

Rear half ton axle is 64" WMS to WMS.

Stock steelie wheels are ~6.5" wide I think... add in bulge and you get 72". This is the rear axle. Half ton front axle with 8" wide wheels with 4" of backspacing with 31x10.50 rubber is 80" wide.


What are you running for rubber? Still the wide 35" Boggers? I'm trying to figure out total trailer width.

 

[kennyw]

Already called around... $260 one way... that's like throwing money in the trash as far as I'm concerned.

Don't rent it one-way, just rent it daily. $35 or $40 per day is the most you would pay.

 

[kennyw]

What do you have for a tow rig anyway? having only a half ton (or worse an S10) tow rig might be the problem.

I just flat towed a K5 rolling frame and body 2500 miles at 60-65 MPH the whole way and no problems at all. Cost me $125 to buy a tow bar. Only problem I found was when I arrived in Texas I found only 2 rear body mount bolts holding the body down to the frame

 

[afroman006]

I agree that flat towing is all about the towing vehicle. I just returned from a trip where I flat towed a 1 ton dually with a bigass utility bed on the back about 300 miles behind a Chevy 2003 2500HD w/ 6.0L. It was great. No problems whatsoever and I went about 65 the whole trip. The only complaint I could make is that when I first left with the truck in tow, the roads were wet from raining and it made acceleration a bitch. If I tried to get going too fast, the rear tires would break free in second gear. Too much weight and not enough traction. Once the road dried off it was fine though.

 

[CyberSniper]

What do you have for a tow rig anyway? having only a half ton (or worse an S10) tow rig might be the problem.

I just flat towed a K5 rolling frame and body 2500 miles at 60-65 MPH the whole way and no problems at all. Cost me $125 to buy a tow bar. Only problem I found was when I arrived in Texas I found only 2 rear body mount bolts holding the body down to the frame

My half ton pickup. I just drove home with a SBC, 3 TH350s, 2 700R4s, 1 NP208, 1 NP205, 4 52" 7 leaves leaf springs, and some wheels in the bed (plus my normal vacationing stuff like tools and winch). Probably 1400lbs or so in the bed more than normal. Wasn't too bad hauling it other than I was running with my car snow tires on (235x75r15) which are way too soft for what I was doing. I did have to add some brake to the rear axle though (4 wheel disc) because with all the weight in the rear the fronts would lock up first.

Towbarring stuff isn't too bad but I don't think it'd be any fun with a vehicle with no weight on it. There'd be less incentive for it to follow. Kind of like a wrong-castor Jeep.


I'd probably at a bare minimum end up running an anti-sway attachment. I'd really rather avoid running a weight-distributing attachment. Maybe I'll put a Ford pickup rear swaybar on my truck to help a little.