Sprung drawbar on grain trailer?

[Longneck]

I’m just looking at buying a fairly low spec grain trailer to use as a reserve grain trailer and also for a bit of muck cart occasionally in the winter. Probably about 12-14t with floatations and hydraulic back door but is there much benefit in having a sprung drawbar these days?
I know they were a god send 20 years ago before tractors had any suspension but with modern tractors is it actually worth having?
Anybody had one without recently and regretted??
Cheers

 

[tr250]

Better than any tractor suspension in my opinion

 

[Nearly]

@JLTate

 

[Longneck]

But you never really see it move much? Just wonder if it actually does much?

 

[An Gof]

I’m just looking at buying a fairly low spec grain trailer to use as a reserve grain trailer and also for a bit of muck cart occasionally in the winter. Probably about 12-14t with floatations and hydraulic back door but is there much benefit in having a sprung drawbar these days?
I know they were a god send 20 years ago before tractors had any suspension but with modern tractors is it actually worth having?
Anybody had one without recently and regretted??
Cheers

I wouldn’t consider one without a sprung drawbar. Once you have used trailers with you absolutely hate pulling trailers without. No brainer in my opinion.

 

[Longneck]

I haven’t used a grain trailer without a sprung drawbar for years but just can’t help wondering that now tractors suspension has moved on so much does it actually make any difference? We’re not using a John Deere 7700 any more!

 

[An Gof]

I had a neighbours trailer without a sprung drawbar on our 6170R at harvest. I couldn’t wait to unhitch it.

 

[hurst1]

Use trailers with and without. Never notice any difference. Tractors have front suspension not cab.

 

[tr250]

On any tractor with a solid back axle so everything except maybe fastrack it will take out the shocks of the trailer

 

[Bloders]

the sprung drawbar will also be removing some of the shocks from your tractor. Its not purely about the driver comfort.

 

[Boohoo]

Depends on the axles. With sprung axles you can get away without a sprung drawbar. With bogies you wouldn't want to be without a sprung drawbar.

 

[deleted user 837354]

I would say it is possibly to do with size, length and weight of the load.

A long trailer, full of wheat or something you will definitely feel on the road if it doesn't have a sprung drawbar.

 

[Matt77]

I’d been waiting for a number of years for a trailer upgrade, we run a few 10 ton non sprung corn trailers on mini super singles, year or so ago I got a tidy used 16 ton corn trailer with everything, floats, hydraulic tail gate, sprung drawbar etc, so using the same tractors, the difference between them is miles apart, the chap who carts for me try’s to do everything with it, the 10s just sit at the side of the field!
You won’t regret it!

 

[Lofty1984]

100% spung axle

 

[michael N123]

Sprung axles make the biggest difference occasionally use my friends dump trailer that’s on bogey axles but with a sprung drawbar and it bounced the tractor about abit... but our trailers with solid drawbar and sprung axles are very smooth on the road

 

[v8willy]

Sprung drawbar all the way, have a bale trailer here without, mate has the same trailer with & you wouldn't hear his on behind when empty & ours ratteling away, also I find the non sprung drawbars tend to sink into the ground more if loaded while hooked off.

Have a grain trailer here with both sprung drawbar & axles, a really great trailer to work with.

 

[KB6930]

It more depends on the type of sprung drawbar as well . We've a few with the big leaf spring across the front and they don't do as much as the ones with the two coil springs either side of the drawbar that we have .

We've a 10t grain trailer and a 14t both exactly the same setup and manufacturer the 14 is longer and the spring moves a lot more on it than the 10 ever does

 

[Sid]

also I find the non sprung drawbars tend to sink into the ground more if loaded while hooked off.

Is that for real? The springs "absorb " some of the weight?
Seems plausible but also makes my brain hurt thinking about why!

 

[mo!]

Is that for real? The springs "absorb " some of the weight?
Seems plausible but also makes my brain hurt thinking about why!

Physics says no. The same force, or actually more due to the extra mass of the draw bar will be transmitted to the ground.

 

[Sid]

Physics says no. The same force, or actually more due to the extra mass of the draw bar will be transmitted to the ground.

I know what physics say, but the springs have absorbed some of the force?, enough spring and it should float an inch off the ground