Learning about Outriggers

As long as some of the track/wheel will be on the main deck, you can usually still get up the ramps. We usually lay blocks down at the end of the outrigger boards to climb up on and also lay the first board on the blocks to keep them from kicking up.

As long as the weight of the machine is on the boards, they will stay put. be careful to check for loose boards that have no weight on them.

The main thing is to overlap your boards where the end won't kick up when you start over them.

 

Ideally 29'. You aren't going to find any that long though and they'd probably be too heavy to handle.

Most hardwood boards you're going to find at a sawmill are going to be 12'. You'd probably be ok with 2- 12 footers for each side.

 

Would be too short. Can't store them in the centre?

 

Yea, 6' is too short. Most people store them in the center longways.

 

If its your trailer, or a dedicated trailer and you want a solid investment, go get a couple lengths of aluminum C channel that is about 2" narrower than your outriggers. i.e. with 12" wide outriggers, get 10" wide C channel.
The reason you want C channel & narrower than the outrigger is; you can use a 2" ratchet strap to tie the C channel to the outriggers so it doesn't flop around when loading/driving over, and since you've tied them down to the outside edge of the outrigger you can still drop your hooks in the 2" space and hook to the outside flange of your trailer, not removing what is usually the best tie down locations.
Another sweet feature of C channel, you can flop one of them upside down and they interlock, thus taking up only the space of 1 outrigger plank instead of 2 when they are not in use. You also get the security that they aren't going to crack and break like planks may while in use.
The ones I have came in 16' length, and I cut them to 11' & 5' and those lengths work pretty good. On the articulated rock trucks, (Cat 740 etc.) you have the 11's for the drives, and the 5's for the steers. Same for Graders. 11' under the centre of an excavator track covers almost the entire length of actual ground/deck surface contact.
I have never needed to outrigger the entire length of the well, so myself I can't see a reason to require more than what I have, ymmv.

 

i am obviously late. anyway id love to see some photos of using aluminum as outriggers. have they ever bent under 79k pounds on 4 wheels such as a cat loader.

thanks