Do you have to cross the safety chains of your trailer? The advantages and disadvantages – Jalopnik

Sigh. Yes, of course you have to cross the safety chains of your trailer under his tongue, if possible. That is the way they are meant to be used, and in fact it is the law in many areas. If we left the answer to that, however, this would be the shortest Jalopnik article ever, so let’s look a deeper look at the how and why the best practices of the trailer chain.

Safety chains can be found on Towables of all types, such as camping supporters, boot trailers or the new Supersized Autoseler from U-Haul. Their obvious function is to keep the trailer on its towing vehicle in the event that the primary coupling method fails. For example, if there is a fracture or casual decoupling between the tensile ball of your vehicle and the coupling of the trailer, the trailer remains connected to the towing vehicle while you go to a safe area, such as the shoulder of the road.

Seems simple enough, right? Trailers usually have a safety chain on each side of the coupling, with a corresponding hole or loop on the towbar of the vehicle. It can be tempting to simply hook every safety chain directly on the loop – after all, that would attach the trailer to the vehicle if the HAPball/clutch connection fails. But it has not been taken into account that the link can fall between the chains and contact the pavement, creating a dangerous danger. Simply put, crossing your safety chains in an “X” pattern offers a cradle to catch the coupling.

For commercial vehicles, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Section 393.70 (D) dictates: “The safety device must be connected to the dragged and towing vehicles and on the towbar in a way that prevents the tow bar to fall to the ground in the event that it fails or is disconnected.” However, that is good advice for anyone who deals with dragging something.

If there is a disadvantage to cross the safety chains of your trailer, it is might be too short. Although they can technically reach their gaps on your trailer tray, you want enough play to prevent binding when making sharp turns (such as supporting a trailer in tight neighborhoods, especially if you have never done it before). If the chains are indeed too short, they can be replaced by longer or be extended with extra chain and/or thread connection (s) with a suitable strength assessment.

Finally, what if you can’t cross your safety chains? On some trailers, the two chains come from the same point of the coupling, which form a “V” shape when connected to the towing vehicle. According to the opinion of this writer, that is not a great design and one that requires a significant change to remedy. With a bit of luck, that kind of setup will have shorter chains to prevent the trailer tongue from turning off the pavement when it comes loose. In summary, cross safety chains when you are able, and consider an extra fuse of insurance a hook with a clip, buckle or other mechanism to prevent the end of the chain from the trailer Hitch bouncing.