Here is a funny story about overloading my trailer with red oak....
A couple of years ago a guy wanted to clear two acres of land for a house, and most of the trees where red oak with a few other oddballs thrown in.I bid the job to clear the timber,but after the timber company decided to pass on the trees, I ended up cutting them all down and hauling them away for firewood. Mills were slam full of stuff they couldnt sell as it was I reckon.
Started at the bottom of the hill and worked my way up, and after taking down and limbing three trees I figured to load up the trailer and take the first load to the house.
As a matter of habit, I load my trailer by keeping an eye on the springs and tires, and when they get to the point of looking full no matter how much volume is in there I jump in and head home. As one hour passed into two, I started to wonder why the tires werent showing any sign of the load, and neither was the springs.
Finally I figured that even though the tires werent showing the stress, enough was enough and I loaded the saws in the back of the truck and jumped in the cab.Easing forward in first gear, the truck wouldnt budge.Shifting into 4wd low, it still wouldnt budge, and finally both front and rear axles just spun.WTF?
After getting out and looking around, there wasnt anything in front of either the axles on the truck or the trailer, and I was on fairly even ground and it was very dry out.Why wouldnt it go?
My answer came when I dropped on to my belly and looked under the trailer. There under the trailer were three rounds that had rolled down the hill and held the trailer up off the ground. As the trailer filled with wood, it settled down on the rounds, neatly holding up all the weight.After jacking up the trailer and removing the rounds with a bottle jack, it was clear from the tires that I was way beyond overloaded.
Spent the next half hour heaving rounds out of the trailer and cussing myself under my breath.