Tigers List Archive

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "Anthony & Susan" <(email redacted)>

Listeners,

Just as I have gotten use to tying the Tiger down there has been a change. I
normally loop the tie downs around the rear and cross them to the D rings.
Up front around the bottom "A" arms straight to the "D" ring. Works great,
got me all the way down to South Carolina from PA and back with zero car
movement. Now I have the entire suspension and rear sprayed with black
urethane. Looks great! I am looking for a way to secure the car without
damaging my new paint. Someone told me to use tire bonnets but after looking
at them it seems I'll have to cut the trailer floor and position 8 "D"
rings( 2 per wheel). Also I have LAT 9's which have 13" tires, the bonnets
looked way big. When you need to ratchet them down is there enough room to
operate them with the car that low to the ground? What type of damage would
you see if just using the axel straps anyway? Man I hope I'm not getting to
anal with this, even though a complete restoration will soon be under way I
still want to drive the car and not sweat it. Help!

Thanx in advance.

ANT 66 MK1A
B382001859LRXFE

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: (email redacted)

Anthony & Susan;
When I used to tow my race car I always tied just the wheels. It towed
so much better when the car could use its own suspension. I didn't use
any bonnets. I just just racketed a strap over the wheels (let a little
air out of the tires). Towed may miles this way with zero problems. It
is important to allow the car to use its own suspension (learned that
from experience).
Larry Blackman
'65
B9471018
Purchased 12/2/64

PS; was never tac'd I am the only owner


Anthony & Susan wrote:

>Listeners,
>
>Just as I have gotten use to tying the Tiger down there has been a change. I
>normally loop the tie downs around the rear and cross them to the D rings.
>Up front around the bottom "A" arms straight to the "D" ring. Works great,
>got me all the way down to South Carolina from PA and back with zero car
>movement. Now I have the entire suspension and rear sprayed with black
>urethane. Looks great! I am looking for a way to secure the car without
>damaging my new paint. Someone told me to use tire bonnets but after looking
>at them it seems I'll have to cut the trailer floor and position 8 "D"
>rings( 2 per wheel). Also I have LAT 9's which have 13" tires, the bonnets
>looked way big. When you need to ratchet them down is there enough room to
>operate them with the car that low to the ground? What type of damage would
>you see if just using the axel straps anyway? Man I hope I'm not getting to
>anal with this, even though a complete restoration will soon be under way I
>still want to drive the car and not sweat it. Help!
>
>Thanx in advance.
>
>ANT 66 MK1A
>B382001859LRXFE

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "DrMayf" <(email redacted)>

Ok, LArry, why is it important to let the car use it's suspension? I been
planning on sitting the world's fastest sunbeam on it's frame on blocks and
making it rigid. It is my uderstanding that if the car is allowed tom ove
around, up and down, it is about the same as diving it with regards to the
shocks and springs...they wear out. What did I miss? Awaiting the answer.

mayf, the red necked ignorant desert rat in Pahrump...bought mine in Jan
'67, second owner, not TAC'd either....
----- Original Message -----
From: <(email redacted)>
To: "Anthony & Susan" <(email redacted)>
Cc: "Tigers mailing list (E-mail)" <(email redacted)>
Sent: Wednesday, January 22, 2003 4:48 PM
Subject: Re: Tying the Tiger


> Anthony & Susan;
> When I used to tow my race car I always tied just the wheels. It towed
> so much better when the car could use its own suspension. I didn't use
> any bonnets. I just just racketed a strap over the wheels (let a little
> air out of the tires). Towed may miles this way with zero problems. It
> is important to allow the car to use its own suspension (learned that
> from experience).
> Larry Blackman
> '65
> B9471018
> Purchased 12/2/64
>
> PS; was never tac'd I am the only owner
>
>
> Anthony & Susan wrote:
>
> >Listeners,
> >
> >Just as I have gotten use to tying the Tiger down there has been a
change. I
> >normally loop the tie downs around the rear and cross them to the D
rings.
> >Up front around the bottom "A" arms straight to the "D" ring. Works
great,
> >got me all the way down to South Carolina from PA and back with zero car
> >movement. Now I have the entire suspension and rear sprayed with black
> >urethane. Looks great! I am looking for a way to secure the car without
> >damaging my new paint. Someone told me to use tire bonnets but after
looking
> >at them it seems I'll have to cut the trailer floor and position 8 "D"
> >rings( 2 per wheel). Also I have LAT 9's which have 13" tires, the
bonnets
> >looked way big. When you need to ratchet them down is there enough room
to
> >operate them with the car that low to the ground? What type of damage
would
> >you see if just using the axel straps anyway? Man I hope I'm not getting
to
> >anal with this, even though a complete restoration will soon be under way
I
> >still want to drive the car and not sweat it. Help!
> >
> >Thanx in advance.
> >
> >ANT 66 MK1A
> >B382001859LRXFE

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "Wiseowl" <(email redacted)>

I don't know that you can get to anal about securing the vehicle your
towing.

I towed my Tiger across the states and part way back. (almost 6,000 miles
al-together) Most the time I was traveling in the 70 - 80 mile an hour
range. You can run that fast if you have everything cinched down secure. If
you have towed your Tiger that far already... you know what works.

Axel Straps work great... secure the front of the Tiger, and then use a
come-a-long on each axel in the rear. Drive 15 to 20 miles, stop and take a
pull on the come-a-longs to tighten the slack up...

Michael

-----Original Message-----
From: (email redacted) [mailtoemail redacted)]On
Behalf Of Anthony & Susan
Sent: Wednesday, January 22, 2003 5:48 PM
To: Tigers mailing list (E-mail)
Subject: Tying the Tiger

Listeners,

Just as I have gotten use to tying the Tiger down there has been a change. I
normally loop the tie downs around the rear and cross them to the D rings.
Up front around the bottom "A" arms straight to the "D" ring. Works great,
got me all the way down to South Carolina from PA and back with zero car
movement. Now I have the entire suspension and rear sprayed with black
urethane. Looks great! I am looking for a way to secure the car without
damaging my new paint. Someone told me to use tire bonnets but after looking
at them it seems I'll have to cut the trailer floor and position 8 "D"
rings( 2 per wheel). Also I have LAT 9's which have 13" tires, the bonnets
looked way big. When you need to ratchet them down is there enough room to
operate them with the car that low to the ground? What type of damage would
you see if just using the axel straps anyway? Man I hope I'm not getting to
anal with this, even though a complete restoration will soon be under way I
still want to drive the car and not sweat it. Help!

Thanx in advance.

ANT 66 MK1A
B382001859LRXFE

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: Theo Smit <(email redacted)>

If the masses of the trailer and car are carefully tuned (Mr. Murphy, where are
you?), you can get some really goofy motion going, since you'll have two
semi-independent bodies being bumped around by the road. Using tire bonnets is
probably OK for open-wheel cars where the trailer weighs twice what the car
does, but if the car is as heavy as the trailer, I'd want it to be a rigid part
of the trailer whenever I'm towing it.

Theo

DrMayf wrote:

> Ok, LArry, why is it important to let the car use it's suspension? I been

<snip>

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "Paul R. Breuhan" <(email redacted)>

Listeners,
I just bought my first Tiger and we took it from Kansas City back to Detroit
on an open Uhaul trailer this past weekend...just strapping the car down
with with the front tires strapped (using what the trailer came with) and
the rear axle strapped (one tiedown on each side around the axle tube)
without any noticable paint damage to the suspension. I suppose we could
have add some additional padding/material around axle for extra protection.

The car jiggled around a bit on it's suspension going down our bumpy
Michigan roads but still was a pretty stable ride averaging 60 to 70 mph.

Paul






>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: (email redacted) [mailtoemail redacted)]On
>Behalf Of Anthony & Susan
>Sent: Wednesday, January 22, 2003 5:48 PM
>To: Tigers mailing list (E-mail)
>Subject: Tying the Tiger
>
>Listeners,
>
>Just as I have gotten use to tying the Tiger down there has been a change.
>I
>normally loop the tie downs around the rear and cross them to the D rings.
>Up front around the bottom "A" arms straight to the "D" ring. Works great,
>got me all the way down to South Carolina from PA and back with zero car
>movement. Now I have the entire suspension and rear sprayed with black
>urethane. Looks great! I am looking for a way to secure the car without
>damaging my new paint. Someone told me to use tire bonnets but after
>looking
>at them it seems I'll have to cut the trailer floor and position 8 "D"
>rings( 2 per wheel). Also I have LAT 9's which have 13" tires, the bonnets
>looked way big. When you need to ratchet them down is there enough room to
>operate them with the car that low to the ground? What type of damage would
>you see if just using the axel straps anyway? Man I hope I'm not getting to
>anal with this, even though a complete restoration will soon be under way I
>still want to drive the car and not sweat it. Help!
>
>Thanx in advance.
>
>ANT 66 MK1A
>B382001859LRXFE


_________________________________________________________________
MSN 8 helps eliminate e-mail viruses. Get 2 months FREE*.

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "DrMayf" <(email redacted)>

This was my thought also! So why does tying it down make a problem?

mayf
----- Original Message -----
From: "Theo Smit" <(email redacted)>
To: "DrMayf" <(email redacted)>
Cc: <(email redacted)>; "Anthony & Susan" <(email redacted)>; "Tigers
mailing list (E-mail)" <(email redacted)>
Sent: Wednesday, January 22, 2003 10:26 PM
Subject: Re: Tying the Tiger


> If the masses of the trailer and car are carefully tuned (Mr. Murphy,
where are
> you?), you can get some really goofy motion going, since you'll have two
> semi-independent bodies being bumped around by the road. Using tire
bonnets is
> probably OK for open-wheel cars where the trailer weighs twice what the
car
> does, but if the car is as heavy as the trailer, I'd want it to be a rigid
part
> of the trailer whenever I'm towing it.
>
> Theo

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: (email redacted)

I've only towed once, so I'm hardly an expert. But here's a few thoughts to
further muddy the waters.

If you secure your car by pulling down on the body, not the diff or front
wheels, then what happens when you hit a really big bump? The tie downs go
slack for a moment, then when the body comes back up there's a sudden impulse
of force. I'll bet you could break stuff that way.

In my opinion, you really want to secure the car from moving horizontally, and
let it ride on it's suspension. The tiedowns should be as horizontal as
possible, and attached to something that doesn't move up and down too much.

Stu

> Ok, LArry, why is it important to let the car use it's suspension? I been
> planning on sitting the world's fastest sunbeam on it's frame on blocks and
> making it rigid. It is my uderstanding that if the car is allowed tom ove
> around, up and down, it is about the same as diving it with regards to the
> shocks and springs...they wear out. What did I miss? Awaiting the answer.
>
> mayf, the red necked ignorant desert rat in Pahrump...bought mine in Jan
> '67, second owner, not TAC'd either....
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <(email redacted)>
> To: "Anthony & Susan" <(email redacted)>
> Cc: "Tigers mailing list (E-mail)" <(email redacted)>
> Sent: Wednesday, January 22, 2003 4:48 PM
> Subject: Re: Tying the Tiger
>
>
> > Anthony & Susan;
> > When I used to tow my race car I always tied just the wheels. It towed
> > so much better when the car could use its own suspension. I didn't use
> > any bonnets. I just just racketed a strap over the wheels (let a little
> > air out of the tires). Towed may miles this way with zero problems. It
> > is important to allow the car to use its own suspension (learned that
> > from experience).
> > Larry Blackman
> > '65
> > B9471018
> > Purchased 12/2/64
> >
> > PS; was never tac'd I am the only owner
> >
> >
> > Anthony & Susan wrote:
> >
> > >Listeners,
> > >
> > >Just as I have gotten use to tying the Tiger down there has been a
> change. I
> > >normally loop the tie downs around the rear and cross them to the D
> rings.
> > >Up front around the bottom "A" arms straight to the "D" ring. Works
> great,
> > >got me all the way down to South Carolina from PA and back with zero car
> > >movement. Now I have the entire suspension and rear sprayed with black
> > >urethane. Looks great! I am looking for a way to secure the car without
> > >damaging my new paint. Someone told me to use tire bonnets but after
> looking
> > >at them it seems I'll have to cut the trailer floor and position 8 "D"
> > >rings( 2 per wheel). Also I have LAT 9's which have 13" tires, the
> bonnets
> > >looked way big. When you need to ratchet them down is there enough room
> to
> > >operate them with the car that low to the ground? What type of damage
> would
> > >you see if just using the axel straps anyway? Man I hope I'm not getting
> to
> > >anal with this, even though a complete restoration will soon be under way
> I
> > >still want to drive the car and not sweat it. Help!
> > >
> > >Thanx in advance.
> > >
> > >ANT 66 MK1A
> > >B382001859LRXFE

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: (email redacted)

Stu;
Yours is the most accurate assessment of this yet. Make sure that it is
secure horizontally not vertically. Here is an interesting web site for
tie downs for a Porsche race car they will allow the suspension to work.
Wonder why?
p-car.com/products/tiedown/
The rear axle would be great since it doesn't move up and down.
(somebody mention securing both rear axles. wonder what kind of car that
was). Paul said that uhual would have you tie the rear axle then use
tire straps on the front. Again I wonder why a major company recommends
this. (could it be because it works). Paul said that the car jiggled (as
it should) but the ride was still stable over rough roads. Maybe theo
should relay his theory on 2 separate masses to all the racers and
trailer suppliers who don't seem to be having a problem.

If you are determined not to let the suspension work then be sure that
all the springs are compressed. Even when towing something as easy as my
motorcycles I will compress the springs when strapping it down. On a car
you really don't want those straps to go slack then abruptly snap tight.
Good way to lose a car or destroy the inside of an enclosed trailer.
Larry Blackman

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(email redacted) wrote:

>I've only towed once, so I'm hardly an expert. But here's a few thoughts to
>further muddy the waters.
>
>If you secure your car by pulling down on the body, not the diff or front
>wheels, then what happens when you hit a really big bump? The tie downs go
>slack for a moment, then when the body comes back up there's a sudden impulse
>of force. I'll bet you could break stuff that way.
>
>In my opinion, you really want to secure the car from moving horizontally, and
>let it ride on it's suspension. The tiedowns should be as horizontal as
>possible, and attached to something that doesn't move up and down too much.
>
>Stu
>
>
>
>>Ok, LArry, why is it important to let the car use it's suspension? I been
>>planning on sitting the world's fastest sunbeam on it's frame on blocks and
>>making it rigid. It is my uderstanding that if the car is allowed tom ove
>>around, up and down, it is about the same as diving it with regards to the
>>shocks and springs...they wear out. What did I miss? Awaiting the answer.
>>
>>mayf, the red necked ignorant desert rat in Pahrump...bought mine in Jan
>>'67, second owner, not TAC'd either....
>>----- Original Message -----
>>From: <(email redacted)>
>>To: "Anthony & Susan" <(email redacted)>
>>Cc: "Tigers mailing list (E-mail)" <(email redacted)>
>>Sent: Wednesday, January 22, 2003 4:48 PM
>>Subject: Re: Tying the Tiger
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>>Anthony & Susan;
>>>When I used to tow my race car I always tied just the wheels. It towed
>>>so much better when the car could use its own suspension. I didn't use
>>>any bonnets. I just just racketed a strap over the wheels (let a little
>>>air out of the tires). Towed may miles this way with zero problems. It
>>>is important to allow the car to use its own suspension (learned that
>>>from experience).
>>>Larry Blackman
>>>'65
>>>B9471018
>>>Purchased 12/2/64
>>>
>>>PS; was never tac'd I am the only owner
>>>
>>>
>>>Anthony & Susan wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>>Listeners,
>>>>
>>>>Just as I have gotten use to tying the Tiger down there has been a
>>>>
>>>>
>>change. I
>>
>>
>>>>normally loop the tie downs around the rear and cross them to the D
>>>>
>>>>
>>rings.
>>
>>
>>>>Up front around the bottom "A" arms straight to the "D" ring. Works
>>>>
>>>>
>>great,
>>
>>
>>>>got me all the way down to South Carolina from PA and back with zero car
>>>>movement. Now I have the entire suspension and rear sprayed with black
>>>>urethane. Looks great! I am looking for a way to secure the car without
>>>>damaging my new paint. Someone told me to use tire bonnets but after
>>>>
>>>>
>>looking
>>
>>
>>>>at them it seems I'll have to cut the trailer floor and position 8 "D"
>>>>rings( 2 per wheel). Also I have LAT 9's which have 13" tires, the
>>>>
>>>>
>>bonnets
>>
>>
>>>>looked way big. When you need to ratchet them down is there enough room
>>>>
>>>>
>>to
>>
>>
>>>>operate them with the car that low to the ground? What type of damage
>>>>
>>>>
>>would
>>
>>
>>>>you see if just using the axel straps anyway? Man I hope I'm not getting
>>>>
>>>>
>>to
>>
>>
>>>>anal with this, even though a complete restoration will soon be under way
>>>>
>>>>
>>I
>>
>>
>>>>still want to drive the car and not sweat it. Help!
>>>>
>>>>Thanx in advance.
>>>>
>>>>ANT 66 MK1A
>>>>B382001859LRXFE

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: (email redacted)

If you look at how new cars are transported on trucks they are not
compressed. I think the secret with them is that the chains are extremely
beefy and that the trailer is so heavy that the cars can't move it around.
When I see one of those rigs ahead of me with a chained car hanging off the
back...I move...scares the hell out of me.

A friend with a moving company used to compress the springs when transporting
a car inside of a trailer, but this was so that the car couldn't bounce and
damage the items stacked above.
Mark L.

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "Tom Witt" <(email redacted)>

>>I been planning on sitting the world's fastest sunbeam on it's frame on
blocks and making it rigid.<<

Forget the trailer. Knowing the long, straight Nevada roads I say just make
one long trial run up to Wendover. If the car is all you hope it is even if it
breaks half way there you should have the speed to just coast in. If the
"Fuzz" comes after you just tell them that you were on the flats, but the
throttle stuck and you couldn't stop until it ran out of gas.
All kidding aside I would think that there are advantages to either method
of securing the car. Unfortunately they are dependent upon harmonics of random
and unknown intensity. I would think that with a narrow wheel track, light
weight trailer that just securing the tires could be undesirable. Thus, if
your trailer fits that description the rigid method you had planned seems
best.

>>bought mine in Jan '67, second owner, not TAC'd either....<<
I won't even go there again. All the best in your efforts, hope to see you in
the record books.
Tom Witt

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "Crawley,John" <(email redacted)>

Hi:

I talked to a friend of mine, who was foreman of a trailer manufacturing business and an instructor in our college in the metals department, about tying down cars on trailers. He said that each case should be assessed on its own depending on the relative difference between the weight of the trailer and the weight of the vehicle on it, as well as the spring rate of each. When I asked how to do this he replied: "Common sense and experience" - BIG HELP! He did say that most failures of carried loads come about from the unexpected. In his experience the biggest danger is from cars came off of trailers forwards. People always tend to think of a car falling backwards off a trailer but the most force applied to the tie-downs is foreword under braking or in the event of a collision. He said sideways is second as people seldom tie a car down to account for sliding into a curb or a ditch. His warning, though, is that by far most loads are lost by failure of the trailer to remain attached to the tow vehicle from people simply not doing up the hitch.

Godspeed
Jc

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: (email redacted)

Mark;
I understand what you are saying. Lets not forget that what we are
talking about here is transporting a race car on a small trailer. As far
as inside a trailer or boat. I know of many racers that just control the
horizontal movement. Nothing is stored close enough for the bouncing to
cause any problem and it is a lot faster and easier to load. Also
compressing the springs in a large trailer or boat doesn't effect the
handling of the trailer or boat.
Larry

(email redacted) wrote:

>If you look at how new cars are transported on trucks they are not
>compressed. I think the secret with them is that the chains are extremely
>beefy and that the trailer is so heavy that the cars can't move it around.
>When I see one of those rigs ahead of me with a chained car hanging off the
>back...I move...scares the hell out of me.
>
>A friend with a moving company used to compress the springs when transporting
>a car inside of a trailer, but this was so that the car couldn't bounce and
>damage the items stacked above.
>Mark L.

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: (email redacted)

John;
"Common sense and experience" This is the best answer yet. The
horizontal movement is the most critical.
Larry

Crawley,John wrote:

>Hi:
>
>I talked to a friend of mine, who was foreman of a trailer manufacturing business and an instructor in our college in the metals department, about tying down cars on trailers. He said that each case should be assessed on its own depending on the relative difference between the weight of the trailer and the weight of the vehicle on it, as well as the spring rate of each. When I asked how to do this he replied: "Common sense and experience" - BIG HELP! He did say that most failures of carried loads come about from the unexpected. In his experience the biggest danger is from cars came off of trailers forwards. People always tend to think of a car falling backwards off a trailer but the most force applied to the tie-downs is foreword under braking or in the event of a collision. He said sideways is second as people seldom tie a car down to account for sliding into a curb or a ditch. His warning, though, is that by far most loads are lost by failure of the trailer to remain attac!
>hed to the tow vehicle from people simply not doing up the hitch.
>
>Godspeed
>Jc

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: Craig Wright <(email redacted)>

This is good thinking and very worth considering. The straps are there for two important
reasons. 1. Hold the car in place during normal towing forces (obvious). 2. Hold the car
in place during extreme conditions, panic stops, swerves and collisions (less obvious).
This explains why most articles say to cross the front and rear tie downs to opposite
sides of the trailer. The car isn't going to move sideways under normal conditions but if
something goes wrong you need to control the car from moving sideways. I think I'll move
my tie downs this week end to allow for crossing the straps on future trips. Cheap
insurance.

Craig Wright

"Crawley,John" wrote:
>
> Hi:
>
> I talked to a friend of mine, who was foreman of a trailer manufacturing business and an instructor in our college in the metals department, about tying down cars on trailers. He said that each case should be assessed on its own depending on the relative difference between the weight of the trailer and the weight of the vehicle on it, as well as the spring rate of each. When I asked how to do this he replied: "Common sense and experience" - BIG HELP! He did say that most failures of carried loads come about from the unexpected. In his experience the biggest danger is from cars came off of trailers forwards. People always tend to think of a car falling backwards off a trailer but the most force applied to the tie-downs is foreword under braking or in the event of a collision. He said sideways is second as people seldom tie a car down to account for sliding into a curb or a ditch. His warning, though, is that by far most loads are lost by failure of the trailer to remain attac!
> hed to the tow vehicle from people simply not doing up the hitch.
>
> Godspeed
> Jc

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "Wiseowl" <(email redacted)>

Tom... Wendover has always been good to me. They play Blackjack there with a
single deck.

-----Original Message-----
From: (email redacted) [mailtoemail redacted)]On
Behalf Of Tom Witt
Sent: Thursday, January 23, 2003 11:55 AM
To: (email redacted)
Subject: RE: Tying the Tiger

>>I been planning on sitting the world's fastest sunbeam on it's frame on
blocks and making it rigid.<<

Forget the trailer. Knowing the long, straight Nevada roads I say just make
one long trial run up to Wendover. If the car is all you hope it is even if
it
breaks half way there you should have the speed to just coast in. If the
"Fuzz" comes after you just tell them that you were on the flats, but the
throttle stuck and you couldn't stop until it ran out of gas.
All kidding aside I would think that there are advantages to either method
of securing the car. Unfortunately they are dependent upon harmonics of
random
and unknown intensity. I would think that with a narrow wheel track, light
weight trailer that just securing the tires could be undesirable. Thus, if
your trailer fits that description the rigid method you had planned seems
best.

>>bought mine in Jan '67, second owner, not TAC'd either....<<
I won't even go there again. All the best in your efforts, hope to see you
in
the record books.
Tom Witt

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "DrMayf" <(email redacted)>

In fixing the race car to the trailer, I plan on supporting the frame with
fixturing. This way, I do not compres the springs or shocks. It will be
rigid to the trailer. I tought this was what we were talking about. Tying
the car to the transporter via frame and compressing the springs seems like
a disaster waiting to happen. As soon as the spring loads more in
compression then the ties loosen. Yikes...not for me!

Oh, and I only carry three gallons of fuel, so that allows me only a full
run at B'ville. So driving there is well out of the question, but that
stretch between Hiko and Lund would be a blast (SIlver State Challenge run
there).

mayf
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tom Witt" <(email redacted)>
To: <(email redacted)>
Sent: Thursday, January 23, 2003 9:55 AM
Subject: RE: Tying the Tiger


> >>I been planning on sitting the world's fastest sunbeam on it's frame on
> blocks and making it rigid.<<
>
> Forget the trailer. Knowing the long, straight Nevada roads I say just
make
> one long trial run up to Wendover. If the car is all you hope it is even
if it
> breaks half way there you should have the speed to just coast in. If the
> "Fuzz" comes after you just tell them that you were on the flats, but the
> throttle stuck and you couldn't stop until it ran out of gas.
> All kidding aside I would think that there are advantages to either
method
> of securing the car. Unfortunately they are dependent upon harmonics of
random
> and unknown intensity. I would think that with a narrow wheel track, light
> weight trailer that just securing the tires could be undesirable. Thus, if
> your trailer fits that description the rigid method you had planned seems
> best.
>
> >>bought mine in Jan '67, second owner, not TAC'd either....<<
> I won't even go there again. All the best in your efforts, hope to see you
in
> the record books.
> Tom Witt

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: (email redacted)

I towed my Tiger from Chicago to SUNI I in Aspen.
My advice is don't use a single axle trailer like
the one I used. And make sure you have good tires
and a good spare. I wish I had two spares as I
blew two tires in the heat of Colorado. Destroyed
one wheel. Fortuately I was near a Farm & Fleet.
They had lost of used trailer wheel and tires.

Also remember you are probably towing in excess of
3000 lbs. 2000 for the car plus 1000 for the trailer.
This mean a Class III or good Class II hitch and
a vehicle that can tow that much.

No such thing as too much cuation when you pride and
joy is one a trailer.

Dave Johnson

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Mail From: Tony McNulty <(email redacted)>

I towed my Tiger from NY to CA 20 some-odd years ago -- my $0.02 is
simple -- make sure you have super shocks on the rear of your towing vehicle
and make DAMNED sure you are 1000% on the trailer brakes! If you can put in
some redundancy -- do it.

I nearly lost the whole rig going down a steep hill in TN, which is when the
trailer master cylinder chose to give it up. You haven't experienced real
fishtailing until you've tried to slow down with just the car brakes on a
steep hill with a load that wants to just keep on going .....




----- Original Message -----
From: <(email redacted)>
To: <(email redacted)>
Cc: <(email redacted)>
Sent: Thursday, January 23, 2003 6:39 PM
Subject: Re: Tying the Tiger


> I towed my Tiger from Chicago to SUNI I in Aspen.
> My advice is don't use a single axle trailer like
> the one I used. And make sure you have good tires
> and a good spare. I wish I had two spares as I
> blew two tires in the heat of Colorado. Destroyed
> one wheel. Fortuately I was near a Farm & Fleet.
> They had lost of used trailer wheel and tires.
>
> Also remember you are probably towing in excess of
> 3000 lbs. 2000 for the car plus 1000 for the trailer.
> This mean a Class III or good Class II hitch and
> a vehicle that can tow that much.
>
> No such thing as too much cuation when you pride and
> joy is one a trailer.
>
> Dave Johnson

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "Stephen Waybright" <(email redacted)>

Stu has it right... the reason you must tie down the car by it's "unsprung"
components (wheels, control arms, axles) is because there would be
over-loading (possibly extreme) on the tie downs whenever you go over bumps
or swooping dips. When the car's springs compress during the bump/dip, there
will some amount of slack in the tie downs, that is then suddenly "jerked"
tight during rebound. At some point, a tie down breaks, allowing slack in
the remaining tie downs which then break and it's anyone's guess where the
car ends up. It won't be pretty.

This is also why you want to really snug the car down so as to minimize the
"available compression" of the tire sidewalls going over the same bumps.
This is true no matter the relative weight of the car and trailer. The only
exception I know of is if you tie down the car to where the springs will no
longer compress over bumps.

Stephen Waybright

>From: (email redacted)
>Subject: Re: Tying the Tiger

>If you secure your car by pulling down on the body, not the diff or front
>wheels, then what happens when you hit a really big bump? The tie downs go
>slack for a moment, then when the body comes back up there's a sudden
impulse
>of force. I'll bet you could break stuff that way.

This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: "Chris Hill" <(email redacted)>

".....by far most loads are lost by failure of the trailer to remain attached
to the tow vehicle from people simply not doing up the hitch."

Yeah, I've got a Tiger tub with a seriously ugly front end. Rumor was that it
sheared a phone pole on the way to running through a plate glass window in a
showroom (the sort of call that insurance men dread). Someone didn't quite do
up the hitch.

cph

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Mail From: (email redacted)

This all reminds me of an incident at SUNI 2. It was getting near the end of
things, so one fellow decided to put his Tiger back on the trailer to prepare
for the trip home. The trailer was right there in the parking lot so it should
have been easy, right?

The only problem was that his tow vehicle was not there at the time. As he
tried to drive onto the trailer, it suddenly squirted forward across the
parking lot, only to be stopped by, yes, you guessed it, the trunk lid of
another Tiger. I didn't see it happen, but I saw the trunk a few minutes later.

So I guess most accidents DO happen because the trailer isn't properly secured
to the tow vehicle....

Stu

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Mail From: "Doug & Rett Leithauser" <(email redacted)>

Some new vehicles are shipped tied down tight with the suspension pretty
well bottomed out.
New Corvettes with the magnetic fluid shocks have spacers in the shocks so
the car can be tied down tight without fully compressing the springs.
This still leaves the question of how heavy is your car, and how heavy is
your trailer?
We have a heat wave here in Michigan, it is over 10 degrees today.
Doug Leithauser