So you think you know how to

[betty_swallox]

Don-Bur:

Norfolknewbie:
Been there done that at Asda those trailers are the worst of the lot and the tensioners never get the curtains snugly tight. In fact they cause more trouble than they solve!

Don-Bur does not build for Asda. We cannot therefore comment on competitor products or the performance of their features. Without exception, all operators using the Don-Bur buckle-less curtain system have continued to specify it for ease of use, low maintenance and durability.

I’ve been using Don Bur lightweight buckle-less teardrop trailers for the last 18 months or so, the problem with them is that when you have a heavy load on the flex on the trailer bed means that the cable isn’t long enough to capture all the curtain anchor points.

Even using the internal straps to bring the roof & trailer bed closer together doesn’t do a great deal.

Once you get used to the system & with an empty trailer, the system is quick & easy but with a load on, as i’ve said, it doesn’t work properly.

I suspect that the problem is not with the manufacturer but with my lot, lightweight trailers means increased payload for our lot, so it’s purely a decision based on getting the max £££££’s profit, rather than speccing the correct trailers in the 1st place.

[saaamon]

Fatboy slimslow:

Saaamon:

lizard:
You secure your load using internal straps?

make sure you do next year, vostapo clamping down bigtime with big fines to go with it! MMTM! and on the DCPC course as well! and before I forget, Beverley bell as well at A556 weighbridge at lymm yesterday!

Trailers i use dont have internals, they’ve got side boards and lots of hooks on the bed for straps.

[kindle530]

Andyroo:
Do these teardrops ever explode?

no ,but they make me cry every time i get told ive got one to take out. they are without doubt the gayest trailers on the road.

How the hell are you stranger, it must be 3 or 4 years!?!

[nsmith1180]

Don-Bur:
Don-Bur does not build for Asda. We cannot therefore comment on competitor products or the performance of their features. Without exception, all operators using the Don-Bur buckle-less curtain system have continued to specify it for ease of use, low maintenance and durability.

I will grant you, not on a tear-drop trailer, but a convetional straight framed curtain sider but isn’t that claim a bit generous? Norbert Dentressangle don’t use Don-Bur buckle-less systems despite the fact it inherited a massive fleet of them from Salvessens. They are slowly being phased out because a buckled system is seen as being more secure and reliable.

We have gone from having about 10, what we refer to as “air curtain” trailers to having one, and we chopped the roof off that one!

I have used both systems back to back and while a buckle-less trailer is faster, the amount of bellowing in the curtain material at 50 was horrific.

Please don’t think I am knocking Don-Bur, we have 30 odd double deck trailers which have been in service now for ten years and rarely let us down. They have buckles though.

[don-bur]

nsmith1180:
I will grant you, not on a tear-drop trailer, but a convetional straight framed curtain sider but isn’t that claim a bit generous? Norbert Dentressangle don’t use Don-Bur buckle-less systems despite the fact it inherited a massive fleet of them from Salvessens. They are slowly being phased out because a buckled system is seen as being more secure and reliable.

Fair point, but in all fairness, Norbert inherited the Salvessen kit that didn’t comply with their usual “buckled” fleet specification. In the interests of consistency, I can understand that they would want to want to maintain a buckle specification. The same applies to fleets such as Eddie Stobard.

nsmith1180:
I have used both systems back to back and while a buckle-less trailer is faster, the amount of bellowing in the curtain material at 50 was horrific.

That’s a very interesting observation. We offer two types of buckleless system; an air-operated and a mechanic ratchet system. If the cable streches over time, the air-operated version does not take up much slack, which may lead to reduced tension. The manual system however can always be tensioned well and the curtains should always be as tight as a drum. I know nearly all the Salvessen bodies had the air-operated versions (and are now at least 5 years old) so this may explain it.

Thank you for this feedback.

nsmith1180:
Please don’t think I am knocking Don-Bur, we have 30 odd double deck trailers which have been in service now for ten years and rarely let us down. They have buckles though.

Feedback is valued - that is why we get involved on this forum. Without critique, we would never change or improve.

As I have mentioned before, pillarless, unsupported roof spans (Teardrop or otherwise), inherently have some degree of “bounce”. A much thicker cant rail would solve this problem but will reduce side aperture, increase unladen weight and drive up cost… not ideal. The other solution is to introduce a pillar, but this limits side access.

Using longetudenal tension is the only surefire way to eliminate the possibility of loosening buckles and, to date, a buckle-less system is the only option to offer this.

[nsmith1180]

Here we see the clash in opinions between an operator and a driver. As a driver, I would go for the heavier pillarless system. To the bosses, weight saved on the trailer is weight that can be sold to the customer.

I’ve been struggling all day today because the curtains are getting trapped in the pillars of a Montracon trailer. It may only take a couple of minutes to fix, but two minutes x all the times you open and close the curtains has to add up to an impressive amount of unproductive labor cost.

[own_account_driver]

I wouldn’t ever buy either a buckleless or pillarless trailer. I don’t find either a problem that needs solving and have never strapped a stretchwrapped palletised load ever beyond attempting to prevent it falling backwards.