Lowboy Ride Height

[2TrakR]

I believe this is a dumb question, but no manuals/operator guides tell me the answer.
Have an early 90s Eager Beaver 50T NGB RGN lowboy (3 axle). There is one "flip up plate" that is used for the gooseneck pivot to rest against, presuming for normal road travel. That plate flips down and then the neck can fully pivot down to set the trailer on the ground. There are no other ride-height adjustments with a cam or other like I've seen on some other units. This is all spring trailer, same for truck, no airbags.

Can you run the front of the trailer up on just the hydraulics and haul that way, such that the cylinders are taking much of the stress? I presume the answer is no. Can you make up your own plate/block to put in that spot to make the trailer run a little higher?

This new-to-me old trailer has diamond tread plate put over the wheels. When moving my 20T excavator with it for the first time, I had the left front trailer tires rub on that diamond plate to the point that it locked the tire up on flat pavement. I ran the neck up some to put more weight to the back of the trailer and that solved the immediate issue.

Have not looked further to see if there is a failure causing this, nor if the wheel covering is just been knocked down too far from previous loads. No issue when running unloaded and nothing obvious to indicate something is broken or bent.

Obviously I'm concerned that the tire could be rubbing at other times when such a small change (raised neck by 1") appeared to be all that was needed.

 

[farmerlund]

My 2010 Eager Beaver 35T has three different size plates. you can pick witch one you want to use. i would think you could make your own or check with the manufacturer if they are available for yours.

 

[Junkyard]

Common issue. You can make a plate to stick under the one that hinges down. It wouldn’t be a good idea to run it on the cylinders. They bleed off, a hose could blow and they’re not as stable on the cylinders are they are on the blocks. I’d say a good place to start would be a thickness equal to the height you ran to solve your problem. If you want to go one step farther make the plates then use a lighter piece of flat bar to hold them together that way a bungie or something can be used to hold them in place should they want to walk out on a rough road. Seen it happen

 

[brianbulldozer]

You can also shim between the bottom of the gooseneck and the top of the trailer frame rail where they contact, changing the angle of the gooseneck relative to the trailer. I keep a couple of chunks of 1/4” and 1/2” flat bar on my old Eager Beaver 50t to pick the front up a little when I have something heavy on.