I was travelling at full weight today and it got me thinking. The fifth wheel, chassis, air bags etc are designed to operate safely at 44t so must be tested to a higher weight.
Just wondering if any one knows what the safety margin is?
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Think i read somewhere most of those components are tested upto 60t…sure someone will come along and correct me if i’m wrong
RIPPER:
Think i read somewhere most of those components are tested upto 60t…sure someone will come along and correct me if i’m wrong
No your about right.
Non destructive testing in industry is usually one and a half time safe working load so if tested at 60tonnes with no discernable effects on a components structure then said components should carry 40 tonnes all day long.
It’s quite a complex calculation set out by EC 94/20 and UN Standard ECE-R55 but it approximates to equivalent of 40% above maximum vehicle ratings. Remember a 5th wheel has downward, acceleration, deceleration, horizontal and lateral stresses to adhere to.
Heavy duty couplings use the same calculation based on the maximum load it is permissable to carry.
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There is quite a good write up here about fifth wheel design :-
Most 6x2 units have a design weight of 65t gvw and can be plated up to STGO CAT 2 just by jumping through some administrative hoops and paying DVLA a load of dosh for the new tax band. We did our unit with no changes to the actual vehicle components
El Deano:
I was travelling at full weight today and it got me thinking. The fifth wheel, chassis, air bags etc are designed to operate safely at 44t so must be tested to a higher weight.Just wondering if any one knows what the safety margin is?
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It will tell you the design weight on the plating cert