Was this a good idea once?

[tinstartrvlr]

This question may be for the old timers out there who will know what I am talking about....

 

I was watching an old movie last night, "The long, long, trailer" from 1954. Lucy and Ricky star in it. It was very entertaining, and surprisingly realistic with some of the mishaps and chaos they experienced.

 

They were towing a very long TT, and I noticed that the tongue had some sort of apparatus to support the tongue on two tires, set very close together, kind of like a double tire wheelbarrow. It seems that the tires supported the tongue weight, as the trailer was being towed by a Mercury sedan. (Ahh, the power of the old V8's...)

 

I have never seen this kind of setup before and it seemed to make a lot of sense, but since it seems to no longer exist, I am thinking it must have not worked well.

 

Anyone know what kind of setup it was, and why it went the way of the pet rock? Could it be resurrected?

 

Betting someone out there is familiar with it!!

[GeorgiaHybrid]

Speed bumps and bad roads killed that idea. Just imagine the car tires and trailer tires on flat ground and you tongue support wheels going over a 6" speed bump.

[ronmon]

Also kept rear tires of tow vehicle from getting needed traction in some cases. Cant remember the name but there is a company in Iowa currently making & marketing a 2-wheeled dolly for towing a 5er. I think they claim a 1/2 ton p/u can tow a heavy 5er with their "invention".

In the '50's there was a 5er style trailer (callfed The Shadow) that was towed by a sedan with a hitch in the center of the rooftop that was attached to the dril rails.

Ron

[bobsallyh]

RonMon, just saw a new Ram, dolly, and a new Montana fiver yesterday in Las Vegas. Unfortunately I was eyeballing the hitch setup and didn't get a look to see what Ram it was.

And yes, tinstartrvir, there was a dolly like that for travel trailers. Haven't seen one In years though. There was an outfit in York, PA. on US 30 that made a fiver hitch that mounted over the trunk of sedans. They always had a big Caddy hooked up to an Arabian fiver out front for display.

[Ray,IN]

What you are asking about used to be made by StingerHitch.com, now out of business. Here is a picture on agweb.com

That article explains why the company is out of business, GeorgaHybrid explained some problems.

 

automatedsafetyhitch.com

This product is popular on the West coast with racers that pull large stacker trailers with a motorhome as well , it almost eliminates hitch weight on the MH. It is far more practical than wheels under the trailer hitch.

[edatlanta]

This question may be for the old timers out there who will know what I am talking about....

 

I was watching an old movie last night, "The long, long, trailer" from 1954. Lucy and Ricky star in it. It was very entertaining, and surprisingly realistic with some of the mishaps and chaos they experienced.

 

They were towing a very long TT, and I noticed that the tongue had some sort of apparatus to support the tongue on two tires, set very close together, kind of like a double tire wheelbarrow. It seems that the tires supported the tongue weight, as the trailer was being towed by a Mercury sedan. (Ahh, the power of the old V8's...)

 

I have never seen this kind of setup before and it seemed to make a lot of sense, but since it seems to no longer exist, I am thinking it must have not worked well.

 

Anyone know what kind of setup it was, and why it went the way of the pet rock? Could it be resurrected?

 

Betting someone out there is familiar with it!!

 

If you look closely the Mercury was replaced with a more powerful Lincoln for the mountain scenes. It was a very similar convertible, but look at the grill. Definitely a Lincoln and you can read Lincoln vs Mercury if you have this movie on a recorder where you can stop it.

[Max Death]

Remember those old hitches. Never tried one but a friend of the family tried one on his TT. After he went on a cross country vacation he had nothing good to say about it and I believe he let the junk yard have it for a dollar or so.

I see all types of things being touted as new innovations. "Safety Hitches" for fith wheels. Not new been around on cement trucks and such for years. Yes a half ton truck can tow a heavy fifth wheel as long as it is on flat ground.

The Stinger Hitch is just a rehash of that old idea. It maybe good or it may be like our family friend found not worth a tinkers damn.

Seems someone is always trying to reinvent the wheel

 

Just my two cents

[Onthego]

Here is a company still in business. Not sure if this is the same as the movie.

 

http://www.trailertoad.com/

 

Jeff

[tinstartrvlr]

Well none of those gadgets are for me, but interesting reading nevertheless. Thanks all.

[Ray,IN]

Here is a company still in business. Not sure if this is the same as the movie.

 

http://www.trailertoad.com/

 

Jeff

That isn't the same design as the Stinger Hitch. It is actually a workable product. The Trailer toad and the Automated safety hitch use the same basic design. Both are in use today on the West coast by the racing community. The Stinger hitch was a bad idea in need of a sucker to buy.