ocsurf16

im in the middle of registering my truck over to commerical and 2 of my trailers...ive heard that i should reg my truck to 25,999lbs and have both my gooseneck trailers at 0lbs?...im from NJ and this state makes it sooo freaking hard to tow legally!

any thoughts?

CoastalDav

I'm sure you'll get some more posts on this subject. I'm not a commercial person, but in Florida your not considered commercial and need a Class A
until your gross combined weight exceeds 26,001lb.

What you have to do here is register the truck for the GVW which is the trucks weight plus the load on axles, ie trailer pin weight you expect to have.

My truck is rated at 11,500lbs (Factory Rating) GVW with a Combined GCVW of 21,500lbs with the rear gear I have (23,500lbs with 4:10's). Its weighs 7,520lbs with 34 gallons of fuel, me out of it. I have a 70 gallon aux tank when full 525lbs. Trailer pin wieght 2,500-2,600lbs. Generator 150lbs, Turbo Wing 40lbs. Me and a Passenger 400lbs. So, my GVW is a combination of all these weights or 11,235lbs. I registered at 13,500lbs just to cover the chance I might pick up a trailer with 3500 pin weight. I'm over my Combined
by 3,200 lbs. Tag is fine. Still not over 26,001lbs.

The DOT in Florida don't care about the trailer as long as it has brakes. They only care about the trucks tags being correct for the GVW and a Class A for the driver, DOT# etc.

I asked them about a 3500 rated at 11,500lbs GVW towing a 10K trailer and 16K in cars. Total combined 33,500lbs. Thats a F450 Ford rating or a single screw Hauler. The tag would most likely be somewhere around 17,000 GVW.

You might want to ask a NJ DOT guy and see what he says.

I heard in PA that non commercial RV's Truck and Trailer have been given tickets for not being tagged for the Gross Combined. Something wrong there.

sewman

Here's the way I understand it.
Your truck when pulling a trailer is considered a tractor & when & if you ever get weighed or go across any scale it is weighed as a combo & the total combined weight of the truck & trailer better not exceed the weight sticker on the truck.
You'll aso need a logbook,med card,fire ext,triangles & get the truck & trailers inspected.
I got legal 2yrs ago.

ocsurf16

same here is 26,001 you need a cdl which is fine with me...

when you say the weight sticker on your truck? you mean the factory dodge sticker on the door or the registered weight

i weighed my truck with one of my trailers empty today and it was 13,550 empty, that was a dump trailer which i haul anything in dirt sand trash whatever...its very easy to get to 26k

GAmes

You need to talk to your DMV. Those of us from out of state would only be speculating.

rebal

what I did was talk to a DOT officer and ask him ,tell him what your plan is and what your max load would be .He can be your friend in a pinch
I have A local DOT thats now my friend, He even gave me his cell # to call him if I have a concern ,he has evencome out to my shop and scaled my truck /trailers and differant loads to check axle load .it was a huge + for him to do that for me .
that said talk to locals and find A nice DOT officer offer to buy him lunch .lol

RickG

This varies state to state . In many states a truck capable of hauling cargo on the bed , like a flatbed with a gooseneck hitch are considered trucks with trilers , not semi-trailers .
There is no sticker on a Dodge showing the GCWR , only the GVWR for the truck alone . Inspectors mostly check tire and axle ratings .

rich

he hit that right on the money. check with your DOT and find out for sure, cuz you will learn something new everyday when you start geting in that area

Scotty

I got tagged for exceeding the GCWR of the truck. The pin weight of the trailer I was hauling put me over. Had to drop the load. I always thought they looked at the tire and axle ratings. This DOT officer looked at all three and took the smallest number, wrote up my violation and told me to unhook.
This was after I spoke with a DOT officer in my home province and was told as long as I am not exceeding my axle ratings I am ok.
Really pi ss ed me off after all of the effort I made to ensure I was safe and legal according to the first officer.

rich, I am not the weight police. LOL J/K

Scotty

GAmes

I'm guessing you were ticketed in BC, the only place in North America that gives a whit about the manufacturer's GCWR.

Scotty

You got it. Another example of a grey area that can get you. Sad part is it always comes down to the interpretation and the Officer you are dealing with. I looked at challenging that violation but I am almost two days away and the costs to attend and defend...well they know they got ya. Fine was 103.00

Scotty