Pulling onto the sand

[Rico400]

We got a new F-150 with a 8 1/2 X 20 enclosed and im wondering if yall think we can get threw the sand at sand lake, or any sand if u havent been to sand lake.

At sand lake there is like 30 ft or so of soft sand then once u get passed that its hard pack.

Yall think we can get threw the 30ft of soft sand? We got stock tires and we will air down and get some good momentum.

I always see them Tahoes out there with low profile tires pulling a toy hauller so im hoping we can get out there aswell.

[Rip_Tear]

you can always try without the trailer first, then try with an empty trailer if all went easy first time, then loaded.

Also is your toy hauler 5th wheel or no? 5th gives you weight over the rear wheels whereas tow behind is draging weight.

[whiteflash]

I've been to sandlake a few times and i think you would be able to make it easily.

[GPracer2500]

Tire pressure makes all the difference in the sand. Drop it down--a lot--and you'll be amazed at what you can roll through. If you normally run 35psi, drop it down to 20. You can go even lower if need be. Half of normal pressure is almost always safe for just rolling throught the sand. And don't forget about the trailer tires either. Drop them down too! It keeps the trailer on top of the sand instead of knifing through.

Remeber to take a good compressor for airing back up--you don't want to be rolling on deflated tires on pavement. Those little cigarette lighter compressers will take hours to re-inflate 8 or 10 tires....

[Quad18star]

Hammer down peddle to the metal . If you can't make it through , it's time to sell the truck !!!;)

[xtremefullbore]

Hammer down peddle to the metal . If you can't make it through , it's time to sell the truck !!!


your better off goin slow, if u hammer it u will definitly get stuck, i dont think u will make it anyway though there are some places at sandlake where its just like powder... so it depends where u are.

[ELewandowski]

Airing down to 20 wont make any difference, go down to 8psi, and your f-150 will float across with your trailer in tow. I have had my 99' 2wd s-10 on the dunes before and had no trouble. Airing down is the key, but most people make the mistake by not airing down enough. Just make sure to fill up before going any distance on the road.

[400exrules]

do like they said, air down, get some momentum and keep the throttle steady once your on the sand and you should chug right through....dont let off, and dont give it any extra throttle...just keep it steady. thats the only way i can make it through some mud holes on my 400ex

[Rico400]

well we arent like gunna we going across thwe dunes, its just about like 15 yards of soft sand then hard pack i know we will be fine chugging around in the hardpack, just that first litle soft spot.


also i heard beads break really easy on trailer tires when u air down.

and its just a normal enclosed not a 5th wheel

[FHKracingZ]

15 yards = 40 feet... say ure truck is 12 feet long? not sure.. ure trailor is 20 , there is 32 foot at minimum.. if u can make it 15 feet ure deff good.. just hammer it and go

[baja_racer]

If your not sure don't try it.......it's costly and a ***** to tow a truck and trailer out of deep sand.

[PismoLocal]

Originally posted by GPracer2500
Tire pressure makes all the difference in the sand. Drop it down--a lot--and you'll be amazed at what you can roll through. If you normally run 35psi, drop it down to 20. You can go even lower if need be. Half of normal pressure is almost always safe for just rolling throught the sand. And don't forget about the trailer tires either. Drop them down too! It keeps the trailer on top of the sand instead of knifing through.

Remeber to take a good compressor for airing back up--you don't want to be rolling on deflated tires on pavement. Those little cigarette lighter compressers will take hours to re-inflate 8 or 10 tires....

I live right by pismo dues and go there atleast once a week, when I used to tow a trailer with my tahoe I would drop my tire pressure down to 14 up front and 10 in the back. and I wouldnt even have to put it in to 4x4 to get through the soft stuff.

[Rico400]

Originally posted by PismoLocal
I live right by pismo dues and go there atleast once a week, when I used to tow a trailer with my tahoe I would drop my tire pressure down to 14 up front and 10 in the back. and I wouldnt even have to put it in to 4x4 to get through the soft stuff.

what kind of trailer?


and who ever said dont do it if u dont know... weve never done it before, how are we supposed to know. We will have buddys with 1 ton diesels if we do get stuck, but we wanna see how it goes by itself just incase those guys dont go riding with us all the time.



i think we will be fine though and were going to do it friday and ill tell u guys how it does.

[coolex]

Originally posted by Rico400
We got a new F-150 with a 8 1/2 X 20 enclosed and im wondering if yall think we can get threw the sand at sand lake, or any sand if u havent been to sand lake.

At sand lake there is like 30 ft or so of soft sand then once u get passed that its hard pack.

Yall think we can get threw the 30ft of soft sand? We got stock tires and we will air down and get some good momentum.

I always see them Tahoes out there with low profile tires pulling a toy hauller so im hoping we can get out there aswell.



well there out there because they have chevy's:devil:

naw u should be ok if u air down like mentioned above

[Quad18star]

It's 30 feet for god sakes .... just hammer down . If you can't make it 30 feet with a truck , you have a problem .

Hell I've made it 1/2 a mile with my Sunfire in about a foot of snow and 4 guys in the car ..... 30 feet in a truck in sand should be a walk in the park even with a trailer on the back .

[Rico400]

lol im hoping we make it, its a pretty big trailer... but these new 1/2 ton trucks sure can pull a whole lot. we are just gunna stick it in 4wd low, air down, get some momentum and hope we dont get stuck.

[Quad18star]

Originally posted by Rico400
lol im hoping we make it, its a pretty big trailer... but these new 1/2 ton trucks sure can pull a whole lot. we are just gunna stick it in 4wd low, air down, get some momentum and hope we dont get stuck.

You mean to tell me the truck is a 4x4 ???

I was going on the assumption that it was only a 2wd . Now for sure if the truck gets stuck , there better be a For Sale sign on it when it gets back home . I'd try it in 2wd just for chits and giggles .... IF you get stuck slap it into 4x4 .

Out of curiousity , how deep is this soft sand ???

[GPracer2500]

Originally posted by Quad18star
You mean to tell me the truck is a 4x4 ???

I was going on the assumption that it was only a 2wd . Now for sure if the truck gets stuck , there better be a For Sale sign on it when it gets back home . I'd try it in 2wd just for chits and giggles .... IF you get stuck slap it into 4x4 .

Out of curiousity , how deep is this soft sand ???

Have you driven in "sand dune" type sand much?

I've never been to Sand Lake so I don't know what it's like, but there are plenty of areas in the Imperial Sand Dune Rec. Area that are very tough to get normal trucks through--4x4 or not. And I'm not even talking about pulling a trailer.

[derekhonda]

go 10 mph! even if you start to get stuck your momentum will push you through, this shouldn't even be a problem at all

[Rico400]

lol ya u must not have drove through sand before, u can forsure get stuck easily. it happens all the time. my buddy tried in 2wd without airing down in a 01 dodge diesel pulling a trailer and he got stuck as soon as his tires hit the sand.

it was like 3 am and he had been driving for like the past 5 hours and was tired and wasnt thinking)


its def not going to be a walk in the park, but im hoping we dont get stuck,

[timmypeaper]

Just air down your tires and be steady with the throttle and you will make it no problem. More than half the people this 4th weekend were camping with their trailers out in the tree line and out off of Derrick Rd. Not too often do I see trucks stuck.

[ilpadrino113]

the only way yer gonna know is to try it. It's no big deal to pull you out if you got the right equipment/support. just gotta go for it

[GPracer2500]

What I like to do is only air down part of the way at first instead of going straight down to the minimum. That way if I start having trouble I can air down the rest of the way, re-evalutate the situation, and maybe go somewhere else or something.

If you go staight down to the minimum pressures and then get stuck--you may not be able to get out on your own without a lot of digging and other extra work.

I've seen dudes get stuck in the sand and spend the whole day trying to get it out. That blows-hard when you're there to ride.

[cosborne]

Don't think about it to much or you are going to sike yourself out and you won't make it. It is only 40 feet. That is not that far. By the time your trailer tires hit soft sand you will already be most of the way through it. Plus you have big trucks there to pull you out so I wouldn't worry at all.

[Rico400]

WE MADE IT.

ya we made it, we pulled the 8 1/2 X 20 ft trailer EASILY down the highway and up he hills, we actually lost some sports cars in the turns after they were trailing us in the straights.( we had like 5 trucks and we were trying to keep everyone together)

we got down to the parking lot aired down to about 20 lbs and pulled right out there. parked all weekend, in some soft crap. today we put it in reverse and got right out, Our buddy pulling a (EMPTY)small trailer with big ol TOYO tires in a newer suburban was diggins himself a path out,lol...


only thing we are going to do is get some airbags. then maybe put a leveling kit later for looks.lol


so guys u can pull a big enlosed trailer filled with 6 quads in a 1/2 ton truck easily. we were doing 70 up the hills.

[250r4life]

i have an 03 gmc sierra z71... and i pull a 21 foot travel trailer, and have a rack for two atvs to sit on top of my bed... and i have never had a problem with getting stuck down at the dunes... if youre smart you should be ok... a lot of it is driver skill... although there isnt too much involved- except for knowing when to get on the gas and how much, and when you should have momentum built up...