Prepping a Gen trailer for the road home.

[Bluevic443]

First I would like to thank everyone here for a wonderful forum. Have spent way to many hours reading all the different posts.
I have been kicking around the idea of a standby generator for awhile and stumbled onto the MEP series of gen sets. My wife and I both drive diesel trucks, so a diesel gen set would fit right in. Fuel compatibility does not hurt either.

Well, I won an auction today for a two 5KW gen set trailer out of Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. GP# 3294076.
My question to the group. What special tools do I need to have with me on the day of pickup? 230 mile trip home.

My short list:
Pintal hitch, will be towing with an F-350.
Temp tag from TxDot.
Floor jack, to spin check wheels bearings and brakes.
Grease gun and grease for wheel bearings.
Tie downs for anything loose.
Harbor Freight mag trailer light kit.
Basic hand tools.

Is there anything special that I might need that I missed? Towed trailers all my life, but nothing Military Grade.

 

[Scoobyshep]

Be ready to disable brakes, they are usually air over hydraulic. Last one i messed with i deeded the Jack to get it on the pintle ring as the trailer sits high.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

 

[Coug]

Be ready to disable brakes, they are usually air over hydraulic. Last one i messed with i deeded the Jack to get it on the pintle ring as the trailer sits high.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

For the 5kw it's usually designed for HMMWV tow, in this case it's an M116A3 trailer from the look of it. Surge brakes, not air over hydraulic.

First I would like to thank everyone here for a wonderful forum. Have spent way to many hours reading all the different posts.
I have been kicking around the idea of a standby generator for awhile and stumbled onto the MEP series of gen sets. My wife and I both drive diesel trucks, so a diesel gen set would fit right in. Fuel compatibility does not hurt either.

Well, I won an auction today for a two 5KW gen set trailer out of Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. GP# 3294076.
My question to the group. What special tools do I need to have with me on the day of pickup? 230 mile trip home.

My short list:
Pintle hitch, will be towing with an F-350.
Temp tag from TxDot.
Floor jack, to spin check wheels bearings and brakes.
Grease gun and grease for wheel bearings.
Tie downs for anything loose.
Harbor Freight mag trailer light kit.
Basic hand tools.

Is there anything special that I might need that I missed? Towed trailers all my life, but nothing Military Grade.

Most of us would recommend having a trailer to put it on for the tow home, just in case something happens, but if you are going to tow it then I'd have a spare pair of tires/wheels available if possible. 8x6.5 GM bolt pattern, anything over 16 inch will definitely work (if you don't have a spare HMMWV wheel lying around), not sure if smaller will work (they would also lower it a little bit)

if the hitch is adjustable, you'll want to try to set it for the trailer to be as level as possible, nose down on these can affect the surge braking sometimes.
You might also want a lockout pin to disable the surge brakes (just in case, but not recommended you drive without the brakes unless something happens)

Sounds like you have a pretty good idea of what you are getting into, so just take it slow and easy.

 

[Chainbreaker]

Check out the 1st post in this thread. Some good tips to prepare for your recovery. If you have an IR temperature gun you should take it to read hub temps after about 30 min or so.

 

[Zed254]

Chains on these trailers always seem a little short for my F250 and tires are always low on air pressure. I take an air tank and now have a portable air compressor.

 

[Bluevic443]

For the 5kw it's usually designed for HMMWV tow, in this case it's an M116A3 trailer from the look of it. Surge brakes, not air over hydraulic.

Most of us would recommend having a trailer to put it on for the tow home, just in case something happens, but if you are going to tow it then I'd have a spare pair of tires/wheels available if possible. 8x6.5 GM bolt pattern, anything over 16 inch will definitely work (if you don't have a spare HMMWV wheel lying around), not sure if smaller will work (they would also lower it a little bit)

if the hitch is adjustable, you'll want to try to set it for the trailer to be as level as possible, nose down on these can affect the surge braking sometimes.
You might also want a lockout pin to disable the surge brakes (just in case, but not recommended you drive without the brakes unless something happens)

Sounds like you have a pretty good idea of what you are getting into, so just take it slow and easy.

A trailer would be nice!!! All my other trailers have boats on them or are too small. My F-350 is not set up for a goose neck either. Tongue pull it will be!!!

 

[Bluevic443]

Chains on these trailers always seem a little short for my F250 and tires are always low on air pressure. I take an air tank and now have a portable air compressor.

Have the same set up on the back of the wife's Excursion. Too many different trailers and not enough safety chain.

 

[rtrask]

First I would like to thank everyone here for a wonderful forum. Have spent way to many hours reading all the different posts.
I have been kicking around the idea of a standby generator for awhile and stumbled onto the MEP series of gen sets. My wife and I both drive diesel trucks, so a diesel gen set would fit right in. Fuel compatibility does not hurt either.

Well, I won an auction today for a two 5KW gen set trailer out of Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. GP# 3294076.
My question to the group. What special tools do I need to have with me on the day of pickup? 230 mile trip home.

My short list:
Pintal hitch, will be towing with an F-350.
Temp tag from TxDot.
Floor jack, to spin check wheels bearings and brakes.
Grease gun and grease for wheel bearings.
Tie downs for anything loose.
Harbor Freight mag trailer light kit.
Basic hand tools.

Is there anything special that I might need that I missed? Towed trailers all my life, but nothing Military Grade.

I recently picked up the genset I won from Fort Carson, and did not have any major issue. The biggest problem I had was that the pin that holds the pintel hook in to the tongue of the trailer was about a third of the way out. (See my post here)

The mag trailer lights are a good idea, but I will warn you to that the trailer is aluminum so you might have a problem finding a place to stick them. It might be a good idea to throw in some duct tape and zip ties in case you have to get creative. I had a good place to stick mine, but it is a different model trailer than you have. As a precaution I put zip ties on my lights too just in case I hit a bump. Longer term you might want to get some 12-24 volt LEDs, ( The ones I bought) you might also be interested in the Pintel hook I got (Reese Tow Power).

The genset I bought has the generator mounted with the center of mass behind the axle, but it towed well with no swaying. With two generators you should have plenty of weight on the tongue. You might want to try to verify the tongue weight for that configuration, but I doubt a F350 will have a problem.

You might also want to pick up some Dot 5 break fluid to top off the surge break reservoir. The military uses dot 5 exclusively so don't put dot 4 or dot 3 in it.

 

[Bluevic443]

looks like I will be able to pick it up tomorrow while still on vacation!!!
including what I listed
DOT 5 break fluid. Check
inspect pintle hitch pin on trailer. Check
7/8" lug wrench for lug nuts. Check
2 spare tires......I drive Fords not Chevys. Will see what Tractor Supply has.

 

[Daybreak]

Howdy,
Make sure you have all your paperwork printed and ready
Check what height your pintle receiver sits at.

M1101/M1102/LTT-TQG any newer aluminum trailer height

Any newer Light Tactical Trailer M1101 / M1102 / LTT-TQG / LTT-Heavy / LTT-Flatdeck / LTT-Cargo based on HMMWV 37 X 12.50R 16.5LT Rims and Tires With the trailer itself being perfectly level. The lunette ring height is almost 25.5 inches from the ground Hook-ups to your towing vehicle will vary.

www.steelsoldiers.com

Towing level is preferred
The air pressure for towing along highway speeds would be around 30-35psi
large adjustable wrench for removing hub grease caps, grease gun
IR thermometer for checking axles and hubs
Chain links to extend safety chains if needed
Plenty of Zip ties for attaching quicky trailer lights
DOT 5 brake fluid
Hook-up and go 2 miles down road and re-check everything, then go some more and check everything again.
Review all pictures of your unit you won, look at all little pieces which could show the pintle, front area, jack area

Because your recovery is 230 miles, I too would suggest a trailer to haul it home. That is a long distance with a unknown trailer.

 

[Coug]

I recently picked up the genset I won from Fort Carson, and did not have any major issue. The biggest problem I had was that the pin that holds the pintel hook in to the tongue of the trailer was about a third of the way out. (See my post here)

The mag trailer lights are a good idea, but I will warn you to that the trailer is aluminum so you might have a problem finding a place to stick them. It might be a good idea to throw in some duct tape and zip ties in case you have to get creative. I had a good place to stick mine, but it is a different model trailer than you have. As a precaution I put zip ties on my lights too just in case I hit a bump. Longer term you might want to get some 12-24 volt LEDs, ( The ones I bought) you might also be interested in the Pintel hook I got (Reese Tow Power).

The genset I bought has the generator mounted with the center of mass behind the axle, but it towed well with no swaying. With two generators you should have plenty of weight on the tongue. You might want to try to verify the tongue weight for that configuration, but I doubt a F350 will have a problem.

You might also want to pick up some Dot 5 break fluid to top off the surge break reservoir. The military uses dot 5 exclusively so don't put dot 4 or dot 3 in it.

Actually, it should be steel, not aluminum, as it appears to be the M116 series trailer which used a steel deck, not the M1101/1102 series with aluminum.
But a 2x4, zip ties, and some bungie cords still aren't a bad idea.

 

[Coug]

looks like I will be able to pick it up tomorrow while still on vacation!!!
including what I listed
DOT 5 break fluid. Check
inspect pintle hitch pin on trailer. Check
7/8" lug wrench for lug nuts. Check
2 spare tires......I drive Fords not Chevys. Will see what Tractor Supply has.

If your ford is old enough then it might also have the 8x6.5 bolt pattern.

also, everything that Daybreak said I thoroughly agree with, except needing the IR thermometer. If everything is good it shouldn't get so hot that you can't touch it with your hands. If it's too hot to touch, you have issues.

 

[Chainbreaker]

,,,also, everything that Daybreak said I thoroughly agree with, except needing the IR thermometer. If everything is good it shouldn't get so hot that you can't touch it with your hands. If it's too hot to touch, you have issues.

I agree not really necessary to buy one if you don't have one, but if you do have one take it as it takes the subjectivity of what feels hot to one might not to another. It also makes it easy to determine temp spread between opposite side wheel's bearing/hub so you know something is up with hotter side. Then you can decide whether it might be necessary to take preemptive action including stopping again to take a reading to see if temp continues to rise or levels off.

 

[Chainbreaker]

You know...there really should be a "Generator Recovery Sticky" made with Genset ck list and Trailer Ck list within.

Seems Recovery questions get asked often enough and there are lots of historical posts as to what needs to be checked to harvest the tips from. Just needs to be accumulated all in one place as a Sticky.

Perhaps a more Generic Generator Ck list & Generic Trailer Ck list at top of sticky and then a breakout section below that listed by Model #'s for any added items unique to those models.

 

[Bluevic443]

If your ford is old enough then it might also have the 8x6.5 bolt pattern.

also, everything that Daybreak said I thoroughly agree with, except needing the IR thermometer. If everything is good it shouldn't get so hot that you can't touch it with your hands. If it's too hot to touch, you have issues.

Well, it looks like the change from 6.5" to 170mm happened in the 99' and newer model year when they went "SUPER DUTY". Mine are 2002 and 2013.

 

[Curtisje]

My trailer was missing the lip seal (washer) and cap on one side. I pulled the cap on the other side and it was missing the cotterpin. Spares of those may be needed.

 

[Bluevic443]

Finely have everything that I think I will need:
Three copies of the release forms. -Check
Truck, full tank of fuel and a once over. -Check
GPS. -Check
Pintal hitch, will be towing with an F-350. -Check
Temp tag from TxDot. -Check, They wanted my exact route I was taking!!!
3-1/2 ton floor jack, to spin check wheels bearings and brakes. -Check
One jack stand.- Check
12v air pump. -Check. Tires were up in the pics.
Grease gun and grease for wheel bearings. -Check
DOT 5.1 brake fluid, Thanks RTRASK. But damn that stuff is expensive!!! One small container. -Check
Tie downs for anything loose. -Check
Harbor Freight mag trailer light kit. Tractor Supply -Check
SST safety wire and tool. -Check. Thanks Curtisje. Would never thought of a bearing job complete without a cotter pin!!!
Basic hand tools. -Check
Metal and rubber hammer. -Check
Pry bar. -Check
Length of heavy chain with threaded loops for safety chains. -Check
Various lengths of 2x4's for... -Check
Road mat to lay on (hope I don't need). -Check
Knee pads, for bad knees. -Check
Duct tape.- Check
Flash light. -Check
Valid Texas ID. -Check
Pick up address. -Check
Pick up contact and number. -Check

Spare tire/s. -Wish me luck!!! They look good in the pictures. They are also run flats right!!!

Now to go to bed and try to sleep!!! Need to be up at 4am for the 4 hour drive there.

 

[98G]

Dot 5.1 is different than dot 5 and is incompatible with dot 5.

 

[Bluevic443]

Dot 5.1 is different than dot 5 and is incompatible with dot 5.

WELL !!!!! That stuff was too damn expensive!!!!! Will be placed in the return to store pile when I get home. Was thinking to just lock the brakes out and take the back roads home. Nice and slow!!!

 

[98G]

You're making too big of a deal out of this.

Brakes should require no intervention. If they do, just disable them.

Tires will probably need some air, but can be aired up at the first stop. That first stop should be no more than 20 miles.

Bearings are almost certainly fine. Feel them up at the first stop and intervene only if they're warmer than they should be or if one is warmer than the other.

Lot of things you should do to it once you get it to your driveway, but not so many for that initial trip home.

I've recently dragged one of these trailers from TX to KS and another from CA to KS. Oh, and yet another from TN to KS. They tow just fine behind a 1ton pickup. You'll be fine.