He says the straps should be crossed (front & rear). I say they should be straight away from the corners.... What do all of you fellas think?

Back when I had my open trailer and 69 Mustang I tied it down with 2 of those very large cargo rachet tie downs. 27'X 3". Rated at 10Klbs. Meant for securing loads on 18 wheelers. Bought em at Sams for about $20 each.

I used one strap at the rear. The trailer had very heavy tie down rings in each corner. It went from one corner up and over the rear end just to the side of the center section and back to the other corner in a V pattern. With it tight the rear end didn't move, but the body could still move around onthe springs. The front end had a simlar arrangement. One strap going through a steel loop welded to the rad core support. The front strap also was in a V and went from one corner of the trailer to the other. It held well like that. A couple of panic stops over the years and no problems. One of those stops was on a wet road and ended up with the trailer jacknifed and in a ditch. The car stayed put though. I tied it like this as my straps were larger than normal. If I had been using the normal 3K or 5K lb straps like most racers use I would have used two at each end in a crisscross pattern. Crossing them keeps the car from sliding to one side on the trailer in an emergency. My V pattern did the same due the front loop and the center section .

I do my dragster differently. I have to. More dragster frames are torn up in trailers than racing. I tie it down in the rear only. With a strap over each tire. Same tiedowns as the open trailer. The front end is not tied down at all. I also have a heavy rubber chassis stablizer. I place it under the seat area and inflate it. It raises the center of the car just a little and takes pressure of the rear chassis section. The front 2/3 of the car can float and flex with the trailer.

David Cole

I cross the rear 5K tie downs and the fronts run at a pretty high angle without crossing.

This setup works well. I've had to panic stop several times with no problems.

One thing I would add is the normal big strap tiedowns at most retail places do not have safety hooks that will stay on if the strap gets loose. Open hooks are an invitation to disaster as most tie downs do loosen up after a while no matter how tight they are to begin with.

I got home one time a few years ago from the usual 110 mile trip and found both front tie downs laying on the floor. The winch cable was all that was holding the car in the front and it was loose enough that the car could roll about a foot.

No more open hooks for me!

Popeye is the guy to ask about tying down a car. He used to use about 8 of the wide strap jobs, don't know if he still does that. He had a straight and crossed set on both ends of the car!

I know several guys that use inflatable cushions under their diggers. I can see that would be beneficial with a hardtail.

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63 Falcon 377 Cleveland stroker Flying Toilet alchohol injection. 6.19 @ 110 MPH 1/8 mile
2002 Ranger FX4 daily driver
2000 F350 PSD Crew cab dually - Like commuting in a B52!!
98 US Cargo Phantom II 28'