Acutal Tongue Wt vs. Manufacturer's Statement
So tomorrow we are going to pay/sign for our first TT (30' KZ Connect) whoich we ordered back in September at the Hershey RV show. The dealer is a 3hr drive away and will be storing the TT until Apri...
Forum Discussion
We have a 28-11" Spree 262RKS (the "fancier" model of the Spree Connect) and have some info. on my experience with Spree weights.
Brochure/factory UVW was 5237 lbs, dry TW was 518 lbs with GVWR of 6800 lbs. I went to 2 scales on the way home after picking it up new from the dealer (both read the same). I weighed each and every individual mod that I did and also did a final weighing when it was full loaded for camping for two.
After picking up from the dealer, TT weighed 190 lbs more than the sticker inside one of the cabinet doors which is *supposed* to be the actual weight going out the door. Could not account for where the extra wt. came from. Could be that the sticker was not the actual weight of our TT and maybe just an average/typical no. We got some heavier options like solid surface counters and curved front cap.
All mods (shocks & Dexter equalizers, 2nd TV, built-in vac., 3-stage water filtration, snap-up brackets, etc., etc.) came to 190 lbs. The weight of all cargo fully loaded for camping for two (sewer stuff, BBQ, heavy foam topper mattress, kitchen stuff, food, misc. tools, some books, etc., etc.) came to only 555 lbs. Total weight of everything added on top of the factory brochure UVW, including the mysterious 190 lbs, came to 864 lbs. Many toss out a figure of 1500 lbs and some even higher as a typical added weight of cargo...
In our case in the end, I found the NCC was way over-inflated. If we had one or more full holding tanks, we'd be over the GVWR. Have not weighed the trailer for a few years and it could be a bit heavier now. Our Spree model should be a bit heavier than a comparable Spree Connect model plus we added some options that added weight.
The actual tongue weight went waay up to around 950 lbs (from 518 dry) - about 14.5% of the GVW. I had pre-purchased an 800 lb rated Reese DC WDH package thinking it would plenty. Could not get enough wt. back onto the steer axle and the rear of the TT bounced like crazy. Ended up having to buy new 1200 lb spring bars - not happy, pffft. MUCH better with the 1200 lb bars. Makes me wonder how many others have bought under-sized spring bars only to find out TW was much higher.
It looks like the factory UVW of the C241BHK is about in line with our 262RKS. I would say the NCC is inflated. If you allowed 800-1,000 lbs for cargo, you should be okay and not exceed the GVWR. The dry TW of 690 is a fair bit higher than ours was and is probably closer to what it will scale at. I would guess TW will be in the 800-900 lb range and that 800 lb spring bars would be under-sized.
Note that the frames on Spree & Spree Connect TTs are not very strong and flex a lot. You certainly don't want to end up over the GVWR at any time. Go to a scale after fully loaded for camping and see where you stand on actual weights. FWIW, we got the optional Marathon LRD and glad we did.
Brochure/factory UVW was 5237 lbs, dry TW was 518 lbs with GVWR of 6800 lbs. I went to 2 scales on the way home after picking it up new from the dealer (both read the same). I weighed each and every individual mod that I did and also did a final weighing when it was full loaded for camping for two.
After picking up from the dealer, TT weighed 190 lbs more than the sticker inside one of the cabinet doors which is *supposed* to be the actual weight going out the door. Could not account for where the extra wt. came from. Could be that the sticker was not the actual weight of our TT and maybe just an average/typical no. We got some heavier options like solid surface counters and curved front cap.
All mods (shocks & Dexter equalizers, 2nd TV, built-in vac., 3-stage water filtration, snap-up brackets, etc., etc.) came to 190 lbs. The weight of all cargo fully loaded for camping for two (sewer stuff, BBQ, heavy foam topper mattress, kitchen stuff, food, misc. tools, some books, etc., etc.) came to only 555 lbs. Total weight of everything added on top of the factory brochure UVW, including the mysterious 190 lbs, came to 864 lbs. Many toss out a figure of 1500 lbs and some even higher as a typical added weight of cargo...
In our case in the end, I found the NCC was way over-inflated. If we had one or more full holding tanks, we'd be over the GVWR. Have not weighed the trailer for a few years and it could be a bit heavier now. Our Spree model should be a bit heavier than a comparable Spree Connect model plus we added some options that added weight.
The actual tongue weight went waay up to around 950 lbs (from 518 dry) - about 14.5% of the GVW. I had pre-purchased an 800 lb rated Reese DC WDH package thinking it would plenty. Could not get enough wt. back onto the steer axle and the rear of the TT bounced like crazy. Ended up having to buy new 1200 lb spring bars - not happy, pffft. MUCH better with the 1200 lb bars. Makes me wonder how many others have bought under-sized spring bars only to find out TW was much higher.
It looks like the factory UVW of the C241BHK is about in line with our 262RKS. I would say the NCC is inflated. If you allowed 800-1,000 lbs for cargo, you should be okay and not exceed the GVWR. The dry TW of 690 is a fair bit higher than ours was and is probably closer to what it will scale at. I would guess TW will be in the 800-900 lb range and that 800 lb spring bars would be under-sized.
Note that the frames on Spree & Spree Connect TTs are not very strong and flex a lot. You certainly don't want to end up over the GVWR at any time. Go to a scale after fully loaded for camping and see where you stand on actual weights. FWIW, we got the optional Marathon LRD and glad we did.
