Adding a watertight explosives drome to our step deck trailer

[Frank S]

A couple weeks ago my driver friend switched from hauling 90,000 oilfield frack pump trailers to hauling the downhole explosives.
To do this we needed either the dry van or the Conestoga we had removed from one of the trailers we sold. or a covered wagon side kit, which we purchased used, added a few sheets of plywood to replace the missing panels The kit more than paid for itself over the past couple weeks but is kind of a pain to open the tarp remove some side panels and bows so the pallets can be loaded All because the detonators could not be allowed to come in contact with the tarp. The blast tubes could have been simply tarped down without the need for the sides or bows.
Since I had a drome box, I had removed from the back of another guy's truck we decided to mount it on the trailer, but make it easily removeable or relocatable.
I cut fork slots in the I beams under the bottom of the box then we strapped and chained it down



These are the blast tubes

And these the detonators they must be kept 2 feet or more away from any other explosive charges Generally he never hauls more than 2 pallets of these, but the pallets can be stacked as long as they do not touch the pallet below a simple separator is all that is required so he can actually get 3 pallets in the drome if needed, Now he can strap his tarp down directly on the pallets of blast tubes which will make them more secure

[DIYer]

Thanks Frank S! We've added your Drome Box Trailer Attachment to our Trailers and Towing category,
as well as to your builder page: Frank S's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Drome Box Trailer Attachment by Frank S

tags: trailer

[Frank S]

Here is what the load looked like today. The shipper fell all over himself when he saw the drone mounted on the trailer, thought it was the best idea anyone had come up with yet because it completely separates the detonators from the blast tubes. In a covered wagon IE side kit trailer, or a Conestoga trailer or even in a dry van which they prefer not to load into, The 2 components must be separated by a minimum distance. Proper securement is always a huge concern. The way we now have the trailer set up there is no possibility of load shift



Now all we have to wait on is the new custom fitted tarp to be made so won't have to fight the 250 lb 4 ft drop side lumber tarp
the new tarp weighs 96 lbs

[metric_taper]

You really do weird stuff Frank. I've never worked on petroleum drilling or production platforms. This is very specific intellectual property to that. So what issues does the ICC have with hauling explosives? And if any of this goes off, how big a crater is created?

[Frank S]

You really do weird stuff Frank. I've never worked on petroleum drilling or production platforms. This is very specific intellectual property to that. So what issues does the ICC have with hauling explosives? And if any of this goes off, how big a crater is created?

The Interstate Commerce Commission was dissolved in 1995 or 96 taken over by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) the laws on the roads are controled by USDOT administered by each state's DOT such as TXDOT for Texas. All transport of hazardous materials must now, since 2004, meet the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) you have to first off have the Hazmat endorsement on your CDL plus depending on the type/s of materials you will be hauling be required to take special training for each type and attend refresher courses periodically,
when hauling any types of materials which fall under any of the categories listed in the PHMSA handbook you must display plaquards for each type being hauled on all 4 sides of the load, Class A,B& C explosives are babies compared to some chemicals, metals and other substances, many of which cannot be part of a combined load on the same trailer in any quantity, regardless of how far apart they could be placed.
On the drone attachment we mounted I went ahead and added 2 coper grounding straps to ground the drone to the trailer as a preauction against a rumored new requirement being proposed.
Since I dropped my CDL years ago and no longer have the endorsements I cannot even ride along when my bud is hauling plaquarded materials, but I am listedwith the company he is leased on with as an authorized rider, and experienced driver though currently unlicensed. If he were to take a load requiring a trailer with rear steerable capabilities I could in theory according to the transportation company go along and operate the rear steerage, What the USDOT might have to say about it might be another thing.

[metric_taper]

As you can see it's not the industry I worked.

[Frank S]

As you can see it's not the industry I worked.

No shame in that.