I use a friends 30ft enclosed trailer a few times a year and last month we weighted everything on some CAT scales. The weight on the rear axle of the truck got me thinking, now much tongue weight does the trailer have? So we set up our digital scales we use on the racecar and low and behold, it said 2350lbs on the tongue. Adding the tongue and trailer weights I get 13670, the trailer is only rated at 12000 gross.

The CAT scale weights. Front: 4080 lb Drive: 5460 lb Trailer: 11320 lb
Total: 20860 lb

We had to use two of our scales together because each one is rated for 1500lbs. I set the two scales side by side and put a sinder block on top on them and zeroed the scales. Then I jacked the trailer off the hitch and the weight settled on 2350lbs. This is way too much for even the weight distributing hitch, 1200lb unit.

What can we do to fix this over weighted tongue? I've towed this trailer several times, without any problems. Have I damaged truck? The trailer is has two 6000lb axles, can you add another axle up front to take the weight off the tongue?

Look in my pics for the trailer. My truck still sits level with the trailer hooked up.

Thanks for any help.
JJ

 

Get a bigger trailer, or take less stuff. Overweight is overweight. The truck should be ok.

 

There is no way to take less stuff. The trailer is just very tongue heavy. It has custom living quarters, with cabinites, 40gal water tank, refig. & freezer, gas heaters, sinks, hot water heater, bathroom and shower, plus black and gray holding tanks and the A/C unit is up front.

Does anyone else have any suggestions?

JJ

 

campmaster=heavy. back the car in so engine is as far as possible to rear of trailer. run with little or no water. keep tool box ect. behind or over axels. then check it(don't get the front to light).
Clark

 

Looking at the photo it does not appear to be sitting on the overload spring. You can affect the tongue weight by transferring weight front to rear BUT you are limited in your overall weight capacity. You can add bags and such to add safety but you need to consider that we are all limited by the laws of physics.

Craig

Then I jacked the trailer off the hitch and the weight settled on 2350lbs. This is way too much for even the weight distributing hitch, 1200lb unit.

What can we do to fix this over weighted tongue? I've towed this trailer several times, without any problems. Have I damaged truck? The trailer is has two 6000lb axles, can you add another axle up front to take the weight off the tongue?

Look in my pics for the trailer. My truck still sits level with the trailer hooked up.

Thanks for any help.
JJ[/QUOTE]

 

JJ:

I'm a bit confused, so I am sorry if I am missing something:

1) A set up like yours normally transfers about 10% weight of trailer/load to the rear of the truck. You said that the tongue weight was 2350 ? On my goosenecks, about 6% transfers to the FRONT AXLE, with the remainder transferring to the rear (pin).

2) If I understand, the hooked up weight on the front axle was 4,080. What is the front axle rating ? Are you under ?

3) The rear axle weight, connected, was 5,460 ? Same question about axle rating and are you under ?

4) If I add your front and rear = 9,540#. Is that with you behind the weheel and full fuel - how does that relate to your truck GVW ?

5) Your two axles give you a rating of 12,000# for the trailer. From your weight, you have 11,320 sitting on the trailer axles ? You are fine on them.

A weight distributing hitch helps, but I am confused about your weights.

Do you have an empty weight on the truck alone ? (By axle & gross)
You then hook up the trailer and note the changes in those weights, which tell you total transfer to the truck, and how much to each axle.

Other than moving the load further back, as suggested by other members,
you can't do much with what you have. If you add a third axle forward of the current front trailer axle, you will reduce the bridge (space between truck rear axle and first trailer axle), which will reduce your pin weight. It also will help "carry" some more of the load of the trailer. The longer the bridge, the greater the transfer.

If you could clarify the weights for me (feel free to PM me), maybe I could help work through the numbers with you. When I look at your photo, it appears that the front of the trailer is "slightly" lowered, although you say it is basically level.

 

are the axles adjustable for position on the trailer? you may be able to shift them a few inches foward to relieve some tongue weight

 

Bumper pull trailers usually have tongue weights in the 10-15% of GVWR range. For your weight distributing system, is you setup rated for 1200 lbs or are you referring to the hitch on the truck? If it isn't the truck hitch, you need to get a different setup because the 'spring bars' need to be matched to the trailers weight. You over your trucks GVWR with the trailer hooked up by about 500 lbs. Your CAT scale weights, are they with the weight distributing unhitched? To get the proper weights for the trailer, you need to scale the hitch weight and the trailer weight at the same time or scale the trailer by itself with the jack down.

 

jkitterman: The CAT numbers are with the W/D hitch hooked up. And the W/D spring bars and hitch are a 1200lb unit. They are for a 12k lb trailer. Next time I weight, I'll unhook and check the trailer alone.

dodgezilla04: No, the trailer axles are not adjustable.

Bonshawman: As for the CAT numbers, all are within their respective weight limits for each axle. Although, the GVW for the truck was about 500lb over. The CAT numbers are with me and a buddy, full of fuel and trailer full of all the stuff for a race weekend.

When we weighted the tongue we were in a gravel driveway. So maybe this weekend I'll re-weight everything in a parking lot, that's as flat as I can find. Just to make sure.

Thanks guys for all your input.

JJ