Tongue Weight?

[GregSmith]

What is the best method for determining the actual tongue weight exerted by a trailer? I'm towing a tandem-axle car trailer, and am trying to figure out the proper position for the car on the trailer platform. Thanks for your help.

 

[fmj]

Greg, CamperWorld carries a little device that actually measures the tongue weight. I used one from a friend of mine to check mine with my car in it. I can't help you with part number. I'm sure that RV supply places have them, or borrow one from a friend.

 

[paccool]

I would try for 400-500 pounds. A car trailer can give you fits if the weight is too far back. The trailer will be doing fine and all of a sudden start swaying all over the road. I used to haul a race car to and from the track. One night it got wrecked and we loaded it facing to the rear. That put the weight at the rear of the trailer. On the way home it started swaying and if I didn't have the brake controlled to use I'm not sure I would have saved it!



Stan

 

[RCook]

You can measure tongue weight by going to a multi-section truck scale which can be found at Flying J truck stops and many other places. Tell the operator you need two weights - should cost less than ten bucks.



Park truck with trailer on the scale, such that the truck's wheels are all on the forward section of the scale. Position the tongue of the trailer such that if you jack it up off the ball the jack base is on the second section of the scale. The trailer's wheels should also be on this second section.



Weigh twice, once with trailer hitched up, and once with the tongue jacked up so that tongue weight is supported by the jack.



The difference between the two weights reported for the second section of the scale is the tongue weight.

 

[DPelletier]

10 - 15% of the trailer GVW is the commonly advocated range for tongue weight. As Stan has indicated, too little tongue weight will cause severe handling problems.



Dave

 

[fmj]

Richard, that is a new one that I never heard and no one I knew had a clue about your method. I made a copy of your post and will keep it for further need. I was lucky that someone had a scale for tongue weight. When I weighed my trailer tongue with car in it I thought it would be 500 to 600 lbs, and got a surprise that it was under 400. I moved the car so it now comes in at 490. Good info thanks again, hope it helped greg.

 

[SKargo]

I used a redneck method at first. My car hauler and my FJ I tow weighs in close to 6000 pounds. I just got two friends to stand on my bumper with me. We had a 250#, 200#, and 150#'r on the bumper. I measured the height and used that height when I hooked up and loaded the FJ on the trailer. I then pulled forward till I dropped another inch.



I know this is by no means accurate, and will determine the actual weight the next time I go out.



Also, I just installed a Reese WD hitch. Following their directions to a T, I went on a 20 mile test drive loaded up and it towed like a dream.

 

[cbunt1]

As for using a truck-stop scale, if you're careful about it, and put one axle on each section, you can get separate axle weights (Our trucks will fit this way--I do it all the time). Ideally (that means it's how *I* like to tow--everyone has a different preference) I want 10% of my trailer weight on the tounge. This is determined by the total weight I add to the truck (Steer and Drive axles combined). Of the total weight added (to the truck), I want 10% added to the steer axle.



To avoid a long post, if anyone wants details on the distribution, let me know



Hope this helps...

--Chris



PS -- going rate for a CAT scale (best in the business IMO) is $8. 00 for a first weigh, and 1. 00 for a re-weigh.

 

[LEerkes]

I just use the wifes old bathroom scale...



No guys, she's not that big. Just some rather simple physics at work.



I used a 5 foot 4x4, a few 1 foot pieces of 2x8, wifes scale and some scrap pieces of pipe.



Do this:



1. ) attach two 6 to 8 inch pieces of pipe to two chunks of 2x8 such that the pipe can not roll on the 2x8.



2. ) place the bathroom scale about 2 feet to the left of your trailer tounge.



3. ) place a piece of 2x8 about 1 foot to the right of your tounge (no pipe). this is just to get the right side at about the same level as the top of the scale.



4. ) carefully mark the 4x4 in 1 foot increments (make sure you can align to the marks both at the top and bottom).



5. ) take the two pieces of 2x8 with the pipe on top and place one on the scale and one on the other 2x8 (with no pipe).



6. ) lay the 4x4 accross the two platforms created being careful to align the pipes with the measured marks on the 4x4. You should have the pipe on the scale exactly 2 feet from where you will place your tounge and the pipe on the two pieces of 2x8 exactly 1 foot to the right of where your tounge will sit. When I do it (allowing for extra 4x4 to stick out on both ends) I have the following reading from left to right. 1 foot = pipe on scale, 2 feet = nothing, 3 feet = mark for trailer tounge, 4 feet = pipe on 2x8's.



7. ) position the trailer so that the tounge jack is in the proper position (1 foot from the pipe on the 2x8's). In reality you'll probably just position everything under the trailer tounge in the first place.



7. 5) zero the scale.



8. ) jack the trailer up and note the weight read by the scale. multiply that number by the number of feet between the pipes. In this case the multiplier is 3, you could make it 4 if you have a heavier trailer. If you measure at 1 foot on a 4 foot chunk of wood you are reading 1/4 of the total, if you measure at 1 foot of a 5 foot piece you are reading 1/5 of the total weight.





Oh crud,



I just found a link that explains it with a picture..... go figure.



http://www.rverscorner.com/articles/tongueweight.html

 

[klenger]

"A picture is worth 1000 words, but uses 1000 times the bandwidth"