Trailer Sway

The dry weight of the 2016 28BHBE is actually 6,450lbs. I had the 7,400lb figure in my head from another trailer I almost purchased, but decided against due to the weight. So...not as bad as it sounded at first. I keep the truck mostly empty, except for my wife and I (figured out the cargo vs. towing capacity thing early on). I used Toyota's specs that claim to utilize the SAE J2807 methodology for towing capabilities and used that as an upper-limit when compared to the GVWR of the trailer. Toyota claims a 10,000lb towing capacity and the GVWR of the trailer is 9,250 lbs. While I can see adding 1,000 lbs of gear, my wife and I travel fairly light and I couldn't see coming close to the 9,250, so I figured we'd be okay...at least with a decent hitch. I have used the Reese Strait Line before with excellent results on a smaller trailer and read a lot of positive reviews for this size. Having CW do the install and assuming they tuned it correctly is indeed probably my first mistake...agreed.

This weekend will be spent tuning the hitch myself, after heading to the local Flying J scales to get the true weight of the loaded rig (sans wife who has to work...she says I'm only allowed to add 100 lbs for her BTW... :) ).

Thanks again for all of the perspectives. It's good to get the hands-on, real-life experience from guys like you. I'm a mechanical engineer and I can tend to focus more on the published specs. Having come of age working in a power plant, I learned that book learning would only get you so far. The experience and time-tested knowledge of those who had come before me was always the true test. Much appreciated.

camp-n-family wrote:
I'm not sure where you're getting your numbers from and how you figure you are within the truck's capabilities but I think you need to get some real numbers.

The Tundra is a great truck, I really miss my '07 Crewmax, and it can pull 8k worth of trailer with ease, but in most cases not within its ratings once you load the family up. Like most 1/2 tons, it doesn't have the payload.

Jayco shows the tt in your sig with a UVW of 6500lbs. Where do you get 7400lbs dry weight from? Your tt should have a yellow sticker (usually on the screen door or in a cupboard) with its weight as it left the factory. What is that weight?

In either case, lets say it weighs 8k loaded. For best stability it should have at least 12 percent of that weight on the tongue (~1k). A Crewmax Tundra only has about 1200lbs of available payload (see door sticker) so after the tongue weight is subtracted, you don't have much left for passengers, including yourself. Seeing as you have a Crewmax and a bunkhouse tt I'm going to assume you have a family with you. See where I'm going with this? You may be well under the tow rating but you're definitely not within all ratings.

We were in a very similar scenario. The trailer in my sig is 34' and 7600lbs loaded. Towed it with our '07 crewmax and family of 4 plus large dog on board. We had upgraded tires and airbags as well. Truck towed the setup great (pulled better than my current Ram) but we were always 400lbs over payload. That won't kill it but more importantly be under the tire and axle ratings. We do also use a $3k Hensley hitch which won't allow sway.

In short, get your rig weighed and get your tongue weight. I think you'll be surprised. Then readjust your hitch.

This is all assuming it is actually sway you are experiencing and not just getting pushed around by the bow wave of passing trucks and crosswinds. Not much you can do about that but get a heavier truck. Even big rigs will feel that.