Posted 2015-07-31 9:52 PM (#164319) Subject: Classic GN Hitch broke
Sexy Bee Yacht
Posts: 7
Location: Roy, WA
As I was driving into a barrel race today my gooseneck hitch broke. The piece of steel that connects from my Bulldog hitch to the frame of the trailer broke, then snapped the aluminum behind it. I had just made a right turn from one highway to the next at a light so I wasn't even probably going 25 at the time. Thank God as I can only imagine the wreck that would cause. The way it broke the jack was dragging on the ground. I was able to get it off the road safely and have a friend haul my horses home. Luckily I was only a few miles from home. So they took apart the broken steel, rewelded it, put it all back on and the crack in the aluminum broke all the way through. We spent 5 hours trying to get it safe to bring home tonight and husband just called that they are calling it a night. Has anyone ever had this happen on a Classic or any other brand?? I dread what the repair costs are going to be. We are just getting it safe enough to get home, but no horses are going in it until we can get some trailer rebuild experts on it.
Posted 2015-08-01 7:14 PM (#164331 - in reply to #164319) Subject: RE: Classic GN Hitch broke
Sexy Bee Yacht
Posts: 7
Location: Roy, WA
Hoping couple pics attach. One you can see where the aluminum broke when the steel broke. The other is the steel up connecting the hitch to the frame of the trailer. You will see that when it broke it dropped a couple inches. The two pieces of steel should line up (well, be one piece!)
Posted 2015-08-02 7:29 AM (#164335 - in reply to #164319) Subject: RE: Classic GN Hitch broke
Expert
Posts: 3853 Location: Vermont
Were you the Original purchaser of this trailer or did you buy it used?...If you are the original purchaser have you ever heavily loaded this trailer with material other than horses?...Or have you operated on very rough roads that involved major torsional activity at the GN connection?
Posted 2015-08-02 3:46 PM (#164337 - in reply to #164335) Subject: RE: Classic GN Hitch broke
Sexy Bee Yacht
Posts: 7
Location: Roy, WA
Originally written by PaulChristenson on 2015-08-02 5:29 AM
Were you the Original purchaser of this trailer or did you buy it used?...If you are the original purchaser have you ever heavily loaded this trailer with material other than horses?...Or have you operated on very rough roads that involved major torsional activity at the GN connection?
We bought from original owner. We have only hauled horses in it, I can't imagine the owner we got it from hauling anything but horses in it. WE have never taken it down very rough roads, but I can't vouch for other owners. They used it for rodeo so aside from parking conditions in some places, I can't imagine they did, but I do not know that for certain.
Posted 2015-08-02 4:14 PM (#164338 - in reply to #164319) Subject: RE: Classic GN Hitch broke
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 350 Location: Penrose, Colorado
from what I see it is very fixable, I would take it to a reliable welding shop to have it fixed and make sure when it is finished to keep a good receipt from them on the job they did.
Posted 2015-08-02 6:11 PM (#164339 - in reply to #164319) Subject: RE: Classic GN Hitch broke
Expert
Posts: 3853 Location: Vermont
You may be looking at the fact that the aluminum gets brittle with time and when a trailer starts to stress crack its' time is up. You can weld to your hearts content but it won't change the temper of the rest of the aluminum....I've found that the more gravel roads and cattle gaurds it's crossed the more stress cracks....I have noticed that the newer trailers seem to hold up 100 times better than the first ones done in aluminum. So-called stress cracks are really fatigue cracks, due to repeated cycles of high stress followed by low stress. Steel and titanium have what is called an endurance limit; if the stress is below the endurance limit, you can cycle a steel or titanium component an unlimited number of times without fatigue cracks starting or growing. That is why steel crankshafts, connecting rods, valve springs, transmission gears, axles and suspension springs are usually made of steel (or titanium in your Porsche race car).Aluminum does not have an endurance limit - if you put enough stress cycles into it, it will crack, even at a low stress. While you are worrying about your horse trailers, worry more about the airplanes over your head. The airplanes all have aluminum wing spars, and the spars all have cracks. It is just that Boeing and the airlines (except for maybe Alaska and America West and others that Inspector knows about) know where the cracks are, how fast they are growing, and how many more flight cycles before the wings are replaced.Properly designed and tested aluminum framed trailers can last a long time, but when they do eventually crack (might take 40 years) their time is up.
Posted 2015-08-02 8:54 PM (#164340 - in reply to #164319) Subject: RE: Classic GN Hitch broke
Expert
Posts: 5870 Location: western PA
A lot of disinformation in this posting. FAA, airlines and manufacturers would be picking up numerous pieces, and many graves would be dug, if it were true.
Posted 2015-08-12 7:56 AM (#164427 - in reply to #164319) Subject: RE: safty hitch system
Veteran
Posts: 183 Location: riverside ca
In my opinion that is a very poor design for a gooseneck hitch, if it where me i would have them put a piece of steel plate the whole width of the trailer and bolt it to the out side of the frame. There is just too much stress on the hitch to attach it with a couple of tabs.
Posted 2015-08-12 3:10 PM (#164428 - in reply to #164340) Subject: RE: Classic GN Hitch broke
Expert
Posts: 3853 Location: Vermont
Originally written by gard on 2015-08-02 8:54 PM
A lot of disinformation in this posting. FAA, airlines and manufacturers would be picking up numerous pieces, and many graves would be dug, if it were true.
Posted 2015-08-12 3:12 PM (#164429 - in reply to #164340) Subject: RE: Classic GN Hitch broke
Expert
Posts: 3853 Location: Vermont
Originally written by gard on 2015-08-02 11:54 PM
A lot of disinformation in this posting. FAA, airlines and manufacturers would be picking up numerous pieces, and many graves would be dug, if it were true.
Posted 2015-08-13 12:43 PM (#164438 - in reply to #164429) Subject: RE: Classic GN Hitch broke
Elite Veteran
Posts: 690 Location: missouri
Originally written by PaulChristenson on 2015-08-12 3:12 PM
Originally written by gard on 2015-08-02 11:54 PM
A lot of disinformation in this posting. FAA, airlines and manufacturers would be picking up numerous pieces, and many graves would be dug, if it were true.
Classic GN Hitch broke
I have noticed that the newer trailers seem to hold up 100 times better than the first ones done in aluminum. So-called stress cracks are really fatigue cracks, due to repeated cycles of high stress followed by low stress. Steel and titanium have what is called an endurance limit; if the stress is below the endurance limit, you can cycle a steel or titanium component an unlimited number of times without fatigue cracks starting or growing. That is why steel crankshafts, connecting rods, valve springs, transmission gears, axles and suspension springs are usually made of steel (or titanium in your Porsche race car).Aluminum does not have an endurance limit - if you put enough stress cycles into it, it will crack, even at a low stress. While you are worrying about your horse trailers, worry more about the airplanes over your head. The airplanes all have aluminum wing spars, and the spars all have cracks. It is just that Boeing and the airlines (except for maybe Alaska and America West and others that Inspector knows about) know where the cracks are, how fast they are growing, and how many more flight cycles before the wings are replaced.Properly designed and tested aluminum framed trailers can last a long time, but when they do eventually crack (might take 40 years) their time is up.