For the very first bit lining up, if it’s a box, a flat or a curtain then just line up the edge of the rear wing in the mirror with the side rave. That doesn’t work exactly for a skelly, a tank or some tipper/bulkers though.
cav551:
For the very first bit lining up, if it’s a box, a flat or a curtain then just line up the edge of the rear wing in the mirror with the side rave. That doesn’t work exactly for a skelly, a tank or some tipper/bulkers though.
Good point, tanks (and probably skelly’s) get overshot and missed more often than they should, as always its the lazy or the flyers, the danger with tanks is that if you overshoot and then lift the suspension or any varyance of the multiple ■■■■ ups available, often the tank itself is just behind the rubbing plate, so easy to strike and actually dent the tank, which with a pressurised vessel could be a cool £10+ k’s worth of damage and 6 weeks off the road.
gezt:
Line the rear mudguards up with edge of trailor, lower suspension and back under part way, get out and check alignment, if ok raise suspension till trailor lifts slighty, reverse slowly till you hear the click.
And get out and have a look if the click doesn’t sound right…
Make sure that you hook up to the correct trailer 
Lining up comes with practice, just as lining up a trailer to park it between two other trailers comes with practice.
You need to learn where the turning point is, and consequently where the rear corner swings.
With the unit this is relatively simple, the turning point, and rear corner are the same, so whilst reversing, concentrate on the rear wheel on the inside of your turn. Try to aim the corner (the mudguard) to go to the corresponding corner of the trailer.
Take your approach turn as wide as possible, so that you can ideally line up well in front of the trailer. Then, as said, either keep equal amounts of the trailer headboard in view in your mirrors, or if you have a good mirror, line up straight looking along the length of the trailer.
In case you are not aware, many mirrors are not flat, and give a slightly distorted view of “straight” lines behind you. So whilst you may think it looks like your lines up straight, you may be slightly out. Some trucks are worse for this than others…
And whilst we’re at it, remember to keep checking around you, ALL the time, for obstacles and stupid people. The amount of times I’ve seen other people bring the cab around, concentrating on looking in a mirror, and then hitting something on the side… and yes, I have done it too. Concentrated on trying to fit the back of a trailer into a small gap next to another trailer, caught a fence with the near side mirror when I brought the unit around whilst straightening up.
As always, practice when you can. If you have 10 minutes in a yard, practice reversing upto and just under trailers. You’ll get the hang of it.
Suedehead:
Make sure that you hook up to the correct trailer
Class
[emoji3]
R420:
tommymanc:
Didn’t your instuctor teach you this? or are you such a bad troll you forgot about IT all in 2 monthsNo need for this. The guy is a newbie and is asking for help. If you don’t want to help, fine, keep quiet.
+1 at least hes got the sense to ask rather than cause damage.
the nodding donkey:
R420:
tommymanc:
Didn’t your instuctor teach you this? or are you such a bad troll you forgot about IT all in 2 monthsNo need for this. The guy is a newbie and is asking for help. If you don’t want to help, fine, keep quiet.
Two things.
If the O.P. is genuine, that is a terrible indictment of the training school he used, because this is basic stuff that should have been covered in his training.
Those of us who have been here a while have grown weary of the endless parade of trolls (wether new or simply multiple identity of existing trolls), and the way the site owner has allowed them to carry on.
Mr.happy as usual.
I’ve been doing this for 3 years now and I still have to shunt forwards a couple of times on occasions. It all comes with practice esp when you’re approaching from an angle then trying to straighten up.
Not sure of its been mentioned but as long as theres room at the sides, you don’t have to be millimetre perfect. As long as you are pretty close, the 5th wheel will collect the pin and trailer once you’ve lifted the suspension. It might jolt slightly sideways. Do try to be within about an inch or so.
Like everything, you learn with practice. Don’t expect to be able to just do it all perfectly immediately.
Oh and try not to hookup at an angle. It us doable, but potentially risky.
I’ve had the…
Pleasure of coupling up at 45 degrees and other ridiculous angles on rare occaisions. You’d be amazed at how badly Pompey dock stevedores can drop trailers.
No secret, just get out and look.
Waldini1985:
I’m not a troll or a penguin or Flamingo lol.The training I received mainly worked around driving rather than the reversing aspect. I must have done the hooking up about 3 times which I don’t think was enough really.
Sorry for sounding thick [emoji16]
Sent from my VOG-L29 using Tapatalk
No need to apologise mate.
Most on here are thicker than you, and they never do…
yourhavingalarf:
I’ve had the…Pleasure of coupling up at 45 degrees and other ridiculous angles on rare occaisions. You’d be amazed at how badly Pompey dock stevedores can drop trailers.
No secret, just get out and look.
Yes I’ve been amazed many times by the skate steevadores in pompey, it would usually involve a VERY heavy trailer full to the brim with wood or vino sometimes both [emoji23][emoji23] and these trailers really don’t like your tractor unit being anything but straight.
To the OP,
1 get close and get out and check ( check the trailer, brake, load, ground etc etc)
2 as the wife says FFS do it slowly
Nobody gives a ■■■■ how many times you check or shunt or ask questions but they will really give a ■■■■ when you don’t ask or check and the rear lights end up in a pile on the floor or you’ve redesigned the back of the cab
[emoji106][emoji106]
Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk
the nodding donkey:
If the O.P. is genuine, that is a terrible indictment of the training school he used, because this is basic stuff that should have been covered in his training.
I guess it might be he got his licence on W&D and now has a job on artic.
the nodding donkey:
R420:
tommymanc:
Didn’t your instuctor teach you this? or are you such a bad troll you forgot about IT all in 2 monthsNo need for this. The guy is a newbie and is asking for help. If you don’t want to help, fine, keep quiet.
Two things.
If the O.P. is genuine, that is a terrible indictment of the training school he used, because this is basic stuff that should have been covered in his training.
Those of us who have been here a while have grown weary of the endless parade of trolls (wether new or simply multiple identity of existing trolls), and the way the site owner has allowed them to carry on.
En Point
Occasionally, you may find some bonehead of a driver/shunter may drop a trailer way too high. Just before my unit goes under the trailer that I’m picking up, I jump out and check the height of the fifth wheel in relation to the pin and adjust the unit’s ride height if necessary with the suspension hand control unit between the driver’s seat and driver’s side door.
Don’t do what I done once and that is miss the pin whilst trying to hook up to a trailer dropped too high without checking, shearing one of the unit’s rear air tanks off and resulting in it losing all its air, as well as taking out the crossmember between the landing legs and both the unit’s light clusters! 
Just ignore all the Mr Perfects and doomongers that seem to massage their oversized egos on this forum.
^^^^ why would a shunters drop a trailer too high? They don’t touch the legs, no need to.
More likely a woodenheaded driver who engages low ratio and winds and winds until he’s sweating, I’ve even see them do it with empty trailers ffs!
Garbo2018:
Don’t do what I done once and that is miss the pin whilst trying to hook up to a trailer dropped too high without checking, shearing one of the unit’s rear air tanks off and resulting in it losing all its air, as well as taking out the crossmember between the landing legs and both the unit’s light clusters!
That’ll teach you to use the air suspension control box in future instead of being one of those that relies on the ramps doing the work, deposting all the fifth wheel grease on the catwalk and lines.
tommymanc:
Didn’t your instuctor teach you this? or are you such a bad troll you forgot about IT all in 2 months
Get a grip man ffs
It is probably a good idea to make sure the trailer brake is on before you reverse into it…
If you’re lucky there will be some kind of chock, concrete block or something else to stop a trailer wandering off down a slope. Some companies teach that as policy. Others hope that you know it already.
I worked for one company whose Compliance Officer told me never to duck underneath a trailer for whatever reason. Made me promise!! never to put him in the position of having to phone the missus to tell her that I had been killed because a trailer had rolled off the back of the unit. I don’t think he believed me when I told him the driving school told me to check the fifth wheel had locked properly by shining a torch on it and checking the trailer brake first wasn’t enough…
Couple of things you may find useful…
After lowering your suspension, backing under the trailer and lifting it again, you may find the trailer has been left too high for the plate on the unit to lift the trailer prior to locking.
If this is the case, go to the rear of the trailer where you will find a lever. Turn it, and air will enter the trailer suspension lifting the rear.
As it lifts, the front of the trailer will pivot round the legs and the front will drop
Not much granted, but might be enough to get the d plate flat against the trailer floor
Hope this helps…