How to Scale a Tractor Trailer - Setting Up the Axles

Dave goes through the steps for setting up the axles when scaling a big rig.
It's surprising how many truck drivers don't have a handle on this basic skill.
Check out our website for more information on setting up the axles when scaling a truck www.smart-trucking.com/tandem...
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Music From KZbin Library
Song:Local Saloon

[@mrdave777]

I almost complained! I was looking for a video like this and didn’t think you had one. I STAND CORRECTED. Thank you

[@Tolerantbuddy]

Yes sir, i watched this video like before i started my CDL class and didn’t even know what he’s talking about, but now that I finished my class & got my CDL every word he say is educative & important to remember. Thanks a million brother great lesson great video keep rockin’ it

[@th4uv3tt38]

Thanks Dave. That's some "Smart Trucking" right there.

[@xXyasabeXx]

Excellent video, on my 5th year. We never stop learning.

[@leondecemento4120]

Thank you for sharing the knowledge you gain with your years of experience, I learn a lot with your information even when I been a Truck Driver for 20 yrs. Your videos are excellent.

[@SmartTrucking]

Thank you Leon! Stay safe! Dave

[@proudcanadian9816]

Hi Dave, Thanks for putting this out. The next time I have to scale, I'm going to try it your way. I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge on stuff like this. I've had to scale and slide a few times before, but never wanted to slide the drives. I'm a green green green noob driver, only about 3 months driving on my own, so I have alot to learn, and I want to do it right. I'm saving this video to my trucking how-to folder so I can watch it again when I need to. These types of how-to videos never really get "old" because of the design of the trucks themselves. I work for a large carrier on the 401 near prescott and my route takes me up and down the treacherous 401 from Montreal east to trenton ontario. I'll be watching for your new videos as they come out and I have your channel set on "NOTIFY" as well. Mike

[@diz0973ify]

I really dig your videos. There straight to the point & easy to understand. Bravo! Job well done

[@strikerfired6242]

I’m not a trucker but I love your videos. Interesting stuff.

[@williamcarey8529]

I am an OTR driver out of California and California unfortunately has the strictest bridge law in the US!! This is not always a disadvantage!! I set my axles to California's length anywhere I load; even if I am not driving to California because I know that when my truck is California legal then it is legal anywhere in the United States and at least British Columbia and Alberta!!

[@SmartTrucking]

Best way to do it! Dave

[@williamcarey8529]

@@SmartTrucking Thank you Dave!! You have a great channel and I learn something new every time I watch a video!!

[@almawood4592]

Very very good teaching and I understand his explanation well . He has realy good experience!!!!

[@adam-davidvaught8382]

Just a wealth of knowledge!👌🏽👌🏽 Thank you sir

[@SmartTrucking]

Thank you!

[@macmillion8516]

Great video. Explained quite well. Got a good understanding of it.

[@genru6867]

Good afternoon sir u are a smart man i started looking at ur channel today and now u become my mentor thank u

[@Ukraine-sw7jg]

Awesome!!Thanks for your videos ,learning from it a lot ,I am on my way to have road test next week and get a first job ...very useful )

[@munirahmad9917]

Very good presentation and useful information. Thank you.

[@hotrodharrry2644]

Always great info with an awesome Canadian accent!

[@rodneystewart8958]

I used to use some pins in the trailer slide to speed up time if you want to move two holes put the pins two holes forward or back

[@danielkennedy1524]

Thanks Dave! Excellent instruction and not bad art work! thanks

[@SmartTrucking]

Daniel Kennedy you've got to be kidding but thanks dave

[@danwood7132]

Always good information. Thanks for sharing.

[@DC8FD]

Great information, thanks for sharing!!

[@h.f.4095]

excellent.. great lesson. thanks

[@gusauvensor187]

Sr your videos are very helpful to me thanks

[@SmartTrucking]

Happy to help! Thank you!

[@jerrychristensen9219]

Thanks great information !!!

[@g41thomas]

You are a joy to have as a mentor😀😍😘😇😇😇🐰

[@SmartTrucking]

Well, thank you!

[@brandonholmes1144]

Your videos are so helpful

[@SmartTrucking]

Thanks! Dave

[@theopenroad3650]

Great info i needed this

[@michaelmccoy2621]

Great video Thank you..

[@stephenmathis3299]

Excellent ty

[@BRAZUCANYTV]

Excellent VIDEO :)

[@Soronkulov]

Thank you!

[@ocasio3024]

Thanks Dave. Explained it like we are all 5 year olds. LoL perfect. Thanks again

[@williamspence1294]

Good video and the drawing is good

[@SmartTrucking]

Thank you!

[@johnross1947]

What if your 5th wheel has manuel slide? What if your fifth wheel is fixed? How about fixed spread axle and adjustable spread axle. Can you do a video on a Wigwag?

[@ZhKSt]

Thank you! Very good explanation!

[@davedixon74]

Good video

[@bamabrindley9897]

I like your videos.One thing I always do is slide my rear tandums about one foot up under the load and 9 out of 10 times it will be legal.Asuming the trl hasn't been loaded and sealed already

[@trucker9157]

Good video as always but can you tell how much weihgt a day cab and a sleeper tractor thanks

[@phox1515]

Most of your videos are pretty spot on by I have to say not this one. For fuel economy, ride comfort, performance and safety you always want more weight on the drives than trailer. You ever seen a trailer (not necessarily a semi trailer) fish tail? That's usually caused by having more weight in the back than the front or exceeding the safe speed. I'm not saying put all the weight you can on drives, just more than tandems. Ideally you want to balance them with a little more on drives. So for 78k gross with 12k on steers you might want 33200 on drives and 32800 on trailer. This will give you the best fuel economy, most ride comfort and most safety. Another way it improves safety, more weight on drives means more weight to hold down tires aka traction. With that example you could still get about 115 gal of fuel if you need. I try to get loaded and weighed with full tanks because you never know what might happen. Plus I don't need to worry about leaving allowance for fuel weight. My advice to new truckers with Android phones, look into an app called trucker slide calc. Once you have axle weights you enter them, submit and it tells you how many holes to slide for best balance and be legal. Sometimes shippers are stupid and load you super heavy on 1 end and you can't balance it. Get a lot of nose heavy and sliding tandems won't help.... So I end up with 5k more on drives than tandems or I get heavy in tail and have to slide almost all the way back to balance and be legal (I once had to slide like 15 holes back)

[@darrylm3627]

GoodStuff GreatTips👍🏿😀

[@HisWordsAreTruth]

This is a pretty old video so I hope you reply…do you start with the trailer tandems all the way back before getting on the scale the first time?

[@ronaldmartin8129]

thank you mr. Dave for that information I am a new driver

[@SmartTrucking]

Hope it helps Ronald! Stay safe! Dave

[@dikoman516]

As mentioned, I always prefer to take maximum weight on trailer axles because of fuel and because the load tends to slide forward in case of hard brakes. My question is, can this kind of weight distribution affect trailer stability on wet surfaces or icy roads?

[@fisheyelens876]

I would like to add that running the trailer tandems pushed all the way back toward the back of the trailer is fine for highway driving but you have to make "much" wider turns when driving through towns, since your tractor drive wheels are farther from the trailer tandem wheels, your turning ability is greatly decreased.

[@edesquivel6105]

Simple and clean, but what is a standard tare weight. Neat stuff on the fuel. You have it down to a science.

[@TidalWaveDan]

I like it heavy on the drives. Feels more solid to me.

[@jeramiekochlefl-bodner5965]

bad video. you scale always to have the drives heavier.

[@AlexD-fq5zm]

Im 250 a hole on the trailer and i always keep the 5th in the same spot ony 2 times in 3 yrs i had to slide it 1 notch

[@johnsantorawluszki715]

Depending on how trailer is loaded I use 500 to 700 to figure weights. Also with apu's now your drives are 35000 i believe so long as you are under 80 total gross.

[@casualgamer92]

One of my mentors told me that on mountains (especially in winter) it's dangerous to have the drive axle lighter than the trailer. Is there any truth to that?

[@SmartTrucking]

Good question and I agree with your mentor! You want the weight on your drives for better traction. Dave

[@ehabismail1387]

Great boss

[@SmartTrucking]

Thank you!

[@cumminsrealpower680]

Good video. Picasso you ain't, but the drawing is just fine. Lol.

[@SmartTrucking]

Got a laugh out of me driver, thanks! Dave

[@donmcmannamy3409]

You forgot Illinois were they split the drives when they weigh the truck at 17,000lb per act. which I know comes to 34,000 on the tandems. And yes you can be over 17,000 on one and under 17,000 the other and under 34,000 on combined for both. I known do to I had that happen to me once years ago. Checked it on a single axle scale when I loaded and fixed it before going though Illinois. Grossed out at over 79,900 and axled out under all weights. Loved the look on the weigh/scale masters face.

[@danielcristiangarcia2881]

Hey man your one of the best. So 34 34 and 12 I get that part but on some trailers I haven't seen on the side what hole to put it in depending on state. Also how can someone determine how much each hole weighs? And also I was told you move the tandems towards the problem .

[@Bendigo1]

You have to measure the axle distance to find out what hole you need there isn't really a standard setting some may be the 5th hole for 40' some may 7th or 3rd just depending on the trailer setup. Standard weight shift per pin is about 250 to 350 pounds on the trailer and 300 to 500 pounds per nothch on the 5th wheel. You can figure out how much yours are by scaling, moving the pin setting 5 or 10 notches and re scale. Divide the weight change by how many notches you moved.

[@jonathanbellows113]

Hi Dave can you do a video on why more trucks in the US are not doing tandem trailer hauling ? Louisiana just proposed a bill that would fix this problem and it got me thinking why this is not done in all 50 states? One would think that this would fix the supply issue pretty much overnight or in quick order but also being a truck driver it’s a little concerning that it might put more drivers out of jobs.

[@marciac6752]

Can the 5th w be moved on a Volvo 780?

[@troy9834]

Please explain,,,, step deck trailer vs standard flat deck trailer....

[@buckyflex1]

I never move my 5th wheel cuz it's such a hassle trying to make such small moves I usually end up jerking the thing too far n throwing everything way off not to mention I always get the pins in on one side but not the other. I never thought of lowering landing gear though seems so obvious now that you said it.lol

[@truckerhershey7042]

I think evert truck is different. I'd swear eack hole on my 5th wheel changes weight 250 lbs. Move 10 holes? I only have a total of 8 positions I can put it in! I leave mine in a spot where I have 11,600 on the steers with full fuel. I think that was with 78,500

[@darenjohnson1357]

I'm still in driving school, do to finish up with school beginning of Jan. We have not learned about this. Is this something that should be done with every load??

[@SmartTrucking]

Yes it is!

[@Anthony_T.]

Im going for my cdl soon with a company after doing tons of research on different companies before making my decision, but, after all that and going 6 weeks with a trainer and I get assigned my truck I was told by my uncle who's an o/o that as soon as i get my truck to get an empty and fill up my truck to full and then scale it so I know how much weight i can carry before going too heavy and going over gross. Is this helpful to do?

[@stevenjohnson2273]

Anthony T. Half to three quarters full is best. You won't run much on full tanks as your constantly using fuel. I do agree that you should get an empty weight.

[@CHESTURCH]

So to adjust the trailer tandems weight, I don't need to dump the air suspension before adjusting them?

[@Bendigo1]

No

[@kingsleysarfo.]

So I see that it’s different from the tandems …on the fifthwheel the place you slide to is where your giving weight to?

[@johnross1947]

How do you check the air pressure on the 5th wheel?

[@southernpyro504]

Yea but i watch a lot of videos of the guys with the custom trucks and when they shift the truck never jerks and i use to ride with my dad and his truck jerk on almost every shift

[@Solitaryman70]

Dave you we were going to slam you if you didn’t say drop the landing gear. LOL 😆

[@anthonyrich4763]

What about the trucks that have 20k lb steers or Higher?

[@TangoUniform300]

44K in Florida. Standard load is 80K in America

[@mactheslovac8673]

Check paperwork, make sure you're not overloaded, one's loaded set tandems, drive away, on highway c scale house on scale pull away.. doesn't take a rocket scientist

[@fredestinadodejesucristofr3591]

😀🇩🇴 blessings 😀🇩🇴

[@fredestinadodejesucristofr3591]

😀🇩🇴 Hello champ 😀🇩🇴

[@southernpyro504]

How do i shift a 18 wheeler smoothly?

[@iseedeadppl79]

Practice, and clam your nerves everyone grinds them starting out just relax and learn what sound or rpm your truck likes to take the next gear in. I've been doing this for years and occasionally I daydream or go from being loaded to empty and scratch a gear

[@SmartTrucking]

Timothy Gagliardi we all do it once in a while, just part of being human. drive safe. dave

[@iseedeadppl79]

Yes sir, that's why we have the nick name "gear grinders" lol. You keep that Pete on all 10. Really enjoy your videos.

[@bobcat1690]

What do you do if you don't have scales were you load or anywhere near and your in a state that calculates the fine by how many miles you drove and how much you were over ? I was once fined $160 dollars for being 600 lbs over weight hauling gasoline. I was 50 miles from my drop and I had to wait for dispatch to send someone who could off load 100 gals of gasoline then I had to rescale to prove I got legal

[@fredestinadodejesucristofr3591]

😀🇩🇴 hopen you wife an familia are ok😀🇩🇴

[@outbacktraveller58]

This is incomprehensible to us Aussies, because we don't move axle groups, we put the weight in the correct place ON (or in) the trailer(s), each and EVERY load. It's called PLANNING and knowing your gear. I load extensively off farm with NO available weighbridges at loading point, up to 68,500Kgs, often journeying past DOT weighbridges regularly, with 99% of receivers weighing you AND being regulated and audited by our equivalent of DOT. All I have is pressure gauges on the airbags (rather than load cells) and I am always within about 500 Kgs of my gross legal mass, with my splits being within tolerance (we are allowed a maximum of +250Kgs). I am NOT making out I'm something special, because I am NOT! EVERY driver in the company I work for is the same, and all drivers at all other companies but a handful of linehaul (hook and drop drivers) ONLY drivers do the same. It is NORMAL for us. It doesn't matter if you drive a 6 axle single trailer here, a 9 axle B-Double (what I drive), a road train (18 axles), it's all the same deal! Many years ago we used to slide axles, but I actually believe that it's now ILLEGAL to do that right throughout the Commonwealth (but don't hold me to that) and, in fact, all our axle groups are fixed (unless under permit with specialist floats and the like) and some that MIGHT slide, but ONLY for the purposes of unloading (and a few minor exceptions). When the trailers are loaded on docks , AGAIN the responsibility for the loaders is to get the axle weights RIGHT ... and if they don't THEY are held accountable and MUST move the freight to adjust the axle weights. What I am really saying is that as a matter of course, EVERYONE in Australia puts the damned product, whatever it is, no matter what type of trailer (flat top, tipper, van, fridge etc etc) and no matter what the configuration in the right place to ensure proper axle weights, so it is eminently achievable. ...... which begs the question why it doesn't happen there, because every change of the placement of axles alters the dynamics (handling and swing etc) of the combination, and the more times the pivot points are altered, the more variation, whereas the number of variations in dynamics is greatly limited when you actually just stick the damned product in the right place! ROTFLMFAO Kindest regards Indy

[@frankcentofanti9317]

Is it worth being a driver if you don’t become a owner operator. Looks like that’s the best option for income

[@chuckmarquart]

The front axle is good for 13,920

[@Bendigo1]

Depends on the axle rating, tire size and state laws.

[@theodoreedwards7497]

I'm a new trucker, and this is my major problem. Help

[@LukeLGK]

Oh boy...complicated math stuff!

[@SmartTrucking]

Luke Grekat not too complicated or I couldn't do it dave

[@mattmurphy8288]

Can’t an accurate number from KZbin on how much weight is shifted per hole when you slide the rear tandems… 200, 300, 400lbs … I pull a reefer trailer and my company tells me 250lbs… I’ll take their word…

[@madbear3512]

Why does it matter if I have more than 34000 pounds on one alrxe. Or that it even

[@SmartTrucking]

States have axle weight restrictions as well as overall gross restrictions. Dave

[@madbear3512]

@@SmartTrucking Oh thanks

[@truckerdaddy-akajohninqueb4793]

Scaling a truck? My boss told me I must have my tandems at 41 feet?

[@fisheyelens876]

Arg, a day cab, ugg, not a fan, ha ha, they use less fuel and you get paid the same yet your spine is not, lol.

[@rickyharvey6315]

Way to much work ??? Never slide your fith wheel for one when you get a heavy beer load or water set your tandem at the 41 ft mark and roll

[@johnross1947]

What if your tanks are mounted forward? Then your lesson don't work cause you add fuel its going on the front axle now your over. Not to mention, if you slide your 5th wheel up on most trucks your trailer will hit the back of the cab or rip off your cab extenders or cut your spare if you carry on behind the cab. Come on Dave you need to be more complete these are rookies they need complete info or you will get them in trouble. What about bridge laws. You can't put a generic video out about this subject unless you explain in detail all the variables . What about set back axles, I can go on and on. Good lesson I know you meant well but you have them just enough to get them into big trouble.