I’ve just landed a job with a company that run A-frame draw bar trailers.
My understanding is that they are very difficult to reverse.
I’m fine at reversing a normal artic trailer and passed my test in a fixed wheel drawbar.
Can anybody enlighten me a bit on A-Frames?
Slow speed and fast hands 
They’re a doddle once you get the fear out of your head 
Not too bad so long as the trailer is as long, or preferably longer, than the prime mover, a short (the opposite of long, why the swear filter don’t like that word is anyones guess) trailer is as much a pain in the arse as one of those silly little wheelbarrow sized camping/tip run trailers you tow behind your car but without the benefit of being able to unhook and pushing it in by hand.
Remember its a double pivot, so you start a turn by pushing it the wrong way to get the A frame to push the trailer the way you want it to go, and as said using small steering inputs really slowly…Christ knows what one with an Arsetronic with on/off clutch control would be like 
…but as with all these things a bit of practice where you have space before you find yourself in a really tight place would be time well spent.
Your lorry might have a towing eye on the front as well, very seldom should you end up somewhere that tight you need to use it though.
Might sound silly but a quick peruse of a toy shop (if hellisus hasn’t put them all out of business) and buy a steerable model with an A frame might be worth it to get the gist of things into your head.
One thing they do well though is follow you nicely on the road, and you get the benefit of a coach like ride quality due to the long wheelbase.
Keep your foot off the throttle when reversing, position the vehicle as you would a rigid & not an artic.
If you can see more than a foot of the trailer headboard in the mirror you’re stuffed. You start by turning the wheel the same way you would if it was just a rigid.
Mate who I worked for had one with a shorter trailer. He could put it anywhere he wanted and would get it into places you couldn’t get an artic in. Took me an age just to get to be able to reverse it round a corner.
Best advice- get someone else to do it.
Just keep an eye on the position of the trailer and of the front wheels of the trailer, and use the ridgid to steer those wheels.
As you can see more then a third of the trailers headboard, stop, and get out to have a look on the a frame itself, before it gets expensive 
The truth is that as with any driving of any large vehicle, it’s a matter of learning by experience, no amount of tips are really going to help you, just take it as it comes and good luck.
It won’t spin on a sixpence like an artic if the need arises
Took me about a year to get proficient
Carry a length of chain if you really come unstuck dog the trailer round as much as possible unhitched turn the motor round get to other side of trailer pull a frame round with chain re hitch bobs your uncle
Only ever had to do it twice but a real lifesaver
Thanks for all the advice. Amv not starting for a couple of weeks but just wanted to find out a bit more as I’d heard they can be difficult to get the hang of.
Always enjoy learning new things so am kind of looking forward to the challenge.
WheelzRturnin:
Always enjoy learning new things so am kind of looking forward to the challenge.
That attitude is more than 50% of sorting it.When you’ve got your head around the different steering inputs needed and way the trailer behaves relative to the prime mover compared to an artic you’ll then wonder what all the fuss was about and just get on with the advantages like being virtually over load proof for one.The main rule as others have said being don’t allow the drawbar/trailer bogie to get too far out of line.The offset between the respective rear corners and front corners of the prime mover and trailer being a good guide in that regard.
Basically it is two rigid vehicles with one steering wheel
I could drive anything exept A-Frame, I just could not get my head around them, they were a nightmare especially de-mountable’s, yet my friend could do whatever he wanted with the ■■■■ things, you will either do it or call it quits, be careful where you go with one, one of the agency drivers at Magnet Joinery at Keighley got one stuck in a showroom yard in London and they had to send a driver by Taxi to get it out and bring it back, and if you turned up at British Bakeries at Thornbury in Bradford and you had not driven one before they would not let you drive one full stop no ifs no buts as they had had that much hassle with them.
I’ve got no advice for reversing, but if it’s Tufnell’s then I’ve got plenty of advice for going forward: don’t let the needle drop below 56 unless you’re within 100ft of a depot.