Help with hitch / tongue weight
Hello All! I'm in the early stages of camper shopping (wanting to upgrade) and I would love some help understanding the tongue weight limits. I have read on 1000 different sites that the max tongue w...
Forum Discussion
Terryallan wrote:lbrjet wrote:
Weight in the back of your truck counts against payload, but it is not tongue weight. I know some hitch companies suggest weight behind the rear axle should be considered as TW when sizing your WDH. I think that is beans as there is no need to distribute any of that weight. This thinking is a recent phenomena and I have no idea how they came up with it, other than to maybe sell you a larger hitch for more money. A 900 lb dry TW will turn into 1100 lbs so you are on the edge but still within spec. OK? It's up to you.
This is the correct answer. The load in the back of the truck, including the hitch itself is NOT tongue weight. It is part of the payload / GVWR of the truck.
Tongue weight. Is the actual weight of the trailer tongue. Determined mostly by where you load the weight INSIDE the trailer.
Thing is. You have to leave enough payload to carry the tongue weight, because it too counts against the payload / GVWR of the truck. You also have to be sure your receiver is rated to carry the tongue weight of your trailer. Say your receiver can carry 950lb of tongue weight using a WDH. Your tongue weight cannot be more than 950lb.
And do remember. the truck's brakes are only designed to stop the GVWR of the truck. They are NOT designed to stop the GCVWR which is the truck, plus the trailer. In other words, They are not designed stop the GCVWR of the truck.
That view is IMO too simplistic and not really correct. My answer to this is in my post HERE. Ron in his last post agrees at least in concept with parts of my position. I do agree with his view as it applies to what to use as the percentage of TW to total trailer wt. to estimate overall trailer stability.
I do concede that my position regarding cargo aft of the TV rear axle is fairly complex and near impossible to accurately determine since what is important for receiver TW rating and sizing of WDH bars is the "weight" that would be applied at the point of the ball that would equal the same "lever moment" as this "additional" cargo wt. I would think somewhere this would be in the range of 25-75% of the actual cargo wt. added.
Larry
