I've finally ordered my new truck!!.. It's an F350 Diesel 6 3/4' bed, SRW, snow plot prep, big cab.The specs fro the truck are in no small part due toy the input from you good people on this forumTHANK YOU!!This is an overkill for my current trailer. However I got the F350 because it's possible that we could get a 5th wheel toy hauler at some point.For now my trailer is a 27' from the tip of the tong to the back of the bumperI don't know what the tong weight is fully loaded because I've never put it on a scales.However the brochure says this:Axle Weight (lbs) 4,350Hitch Weight (lbs) 550Dry Weight (lbs) 4,900Cargo Capacity (lbs) 2,650So I guess the max GVWR is 4900+2650= 7550Ib (Is that correct?Is it possible to approximate the tongue weight fully loaded from this data?My question is:When we get the F350 will we still need to use a Weight Distribution hitch?Or another way of saying it is "What is the max tongue weight the F350 ca comfortably tow" Currently with out 1500 suburban we use and equalizer WDH hitch and it's served us well. However it is a bit of a pain when doing tight turns and taking the darn thing on and off.If my new behemoth of a truck can tow this 'easily' without a WDH then obviously my choice is to not use one.Any advice from you experts?Another reason is that IF I have to use the WDH then I would have to order another ball and adjustable hitch which are NOT cheap!.. I may still use the suburban to tow back and forth from home to storage so I don't want to have to keep taking it off and refitting and re-adjusting the hitch system between TV'sThanks!Steve

Need to look in your manual. I believe the standard Ford hitch is a Class 4 which means above 850# tongue weight (diesel SRW) you need a WD hitch. The one source I had listed 1,400# max with WD and you need to read all the fine print. Don't have the "official sheet" on your truck, you did not say but I'm guessing a 2015? In you manual it should list if you need one or not based on tongue weight and the actual hitch class. You probably will still want some sway control.Others are probably more knowledgeable than I on pulling TT's.

I towed a piece of equipment down the highway at 65 mph which placed 2400 lbs on my 2011 F350 receiver hitch. It towed beautifully. My brother in law lives full time in a very heavy tag trailer that he tows around to different oil well leases with his 2015 F350 SRW. My guess is that the tongue weight is about 1600 lbs....it has a 300 lb propane tank that sits right on the trailer hitch. He doesn't use his weight distribution hitch because he says it makes the truck ride rougher. A good guess as to what your tongue weight might be with the trailer loaded would be between 750 and 900 lbs. Your hitch should be rated for 900 lbs so, if you are over the manufacturer's weight rating with your trailer it would be by such a small margin that I certainly wouldn't worry about it.

Look on your receiver tag for your maximums when weight carrying and using weight distribution. I know Ford upgraded the receiver since 2005 - Using mine as an example, it was rated for 500 lbs tongue weight and 5000 lbs trailer weight when weight carrying and 1250 lbs tongue weight and 12,500 lbs trailer weight when using weight distribution.According to the 2015 towing guide, yours is rated 850 lbs tongue with 8500 lbs trailer without WDH and 1400 lbs tongue with 14,000 lbs trailer with WDH.http://www.ford.com/resources/ford/general/pdf/towingguides/15RV&TT_Ford_SuperDtyPU_r1_Jan12.pdf

smcrea wrote:I've finally ordered my new truck!!.. It's an F350 Diesel 6 3/4' bed, SRW, snow plot prep, big cab.The specs fro the truck are in no small part due toy the input from you good people on this forumTHANK YOU!!This is an overkill for my current trailer. However I got the F350 because it's possible that we could get a 5th wheel toy hauler at some point.For now my trailer is a 27' from the tip of the tong to the back of the bumperI don't know what the tong weight is fully loaded because I've never put it on a scales.However the brochure says this:Axle Weight (lbs) 4,350Hitch Weight (lbs) 550Dry Weight (lbs) 4,900Cargo Capacity (lbs) 2,650So I guess the max GVWR is 4900+2650= 7550Ib (Is that correct?Is it possible to approximate the tongue weight fully loaded from this data?My question is:When we get the F350 will we still need to use a Weight Distribution hitch?Or another way of saying it is "What is the max tongue weight the F350 ca comfortably tow" Currently with out 1500 suburban we use and equalizer WDH hitch and it's served us well. However it is a bit of a pain when doing tight turns and taking the darn thing on and off.If my new behemoth of a truck can tow this 'easily' without a WDH then obviously my choice is to not use one.Any advice from you experts?Another reason is that IF I have to use the WDH then I would have to order another ball and adjustable hitch which are NOT cheap!.. I may still use the suburban to tow back and forth from home to storage so I don't want to have to keep taking it off and refitting and re-adjusting the hitch system between TV'sThanks!SteveFor what it's worth, when moving my TT around my property, or very short distances around town, I never install the WD bars. But when I'm loading up the family for a trip, I always do.

Do I Need to use a WDH with an F350 SRW Powerstroke?

26 Replies

4x4ord
Explorer III
Feb 09, 2015
brulaz wrote:
Bedlam wrote:
It's not whether the truck can handle the hitch weight, it's whether the receiver was designed for that much hitch weight without using weight distribution. The rear axle is rated for over 9000 lbs and the rear wheel capacity is over 7000 lbs on the SRW F350's.

I wonder. My suspicion is that Ford rates the hitch receiver based on how much weight you may lift off the front axle by *not* using a WDH.

F150's are limited to 500# in 2" hitch receiver.
F250's and 350's Gas SRW 600# in 2" hitch receiver.
All others, diesel 250 and 350's and DRW 350's get 850# and the 2.5" hitch receiver.

850#s on the receiver hitch without WD will remove about 320 lbs off the front axle. I don't see that as a limiting value when the front axle weight of the F350 CC 4x4 standard bed is about 4900 lbs. You could triple that 850 lb tongue weight and still have almost 4000 lbs on the front axle without overloading the rear axle. I really doubt that the 850# limit has anything at all to do with the strength of the hitch either. It is likely that the 850 # limit has more to do with the idea that larger trailers should have weight distribution hitches for better towing characteristics and a trailer with a tongue weight over 850 lbs is becoming a larger trailer. You don't want the tail wagging the dog.
shum02
Explorer
Feb 09, 2015
The Ford receiver on my F350 is a Class V

With only around 900lbs of tongue weight on mine I do use the WDH but have it set for the minimum compression - just 4 links on my Easi-Lift.

The truck ABSOLUTELY hates the front end being pushed down! Truck rear end barely moves when I drop the trailer on it.
smcrea
Explorer II
Feb 09, 2015
brulaz wrote:
katoom400 wrote:

...
I have been wondering the same since upgrading from my Tundra to a 2015 F250, I have a Reese Dual Cam setup with 1200lb bars. It would be nice to not have to use the WD bars, however they also supply sway control.

the trailer is 6k dry with 600lb tongue weight. the truck has the integrated brake controller which is supposed to have sway control built in?
...

Don't think I would want to rely solely on the truck's electronic anti-sway control. By then things are pretty dicey from what I've heard.

I've run without WDH and sway control in the past with a light trailer that didn't affect the truck much. But the trailer had a high tongue weight (>15%) and little propensity to sway. Still it would have been better to have sway control for emergency situations.

The fact the the Equalizer is also sway control may also be a deciding factor!
Bedlam
Moderator
Feb 09, 2015
When my truck was loaded up at 12,000 lbs and I was towing 8,000 lbs, I did not need sway control for my enclosed trailer. When my truck was loaded up at 9,000 lbs and towing an 11,500 toy hauler, I did use a friction bar. I think it depends how heavy the trailer is verses the tow vehicle and how much surface area is on the trailer - This is why you will get so many varied results. Sway control will not hurt, but you may not need it for a particular combination.
Sandia_Man
Explorer II
Feb 09, 2015
Probably not for weight distribution but for sway control that is another question. On our 2500HD we could get away with not using WD but since our WD hitch incorporates sway control (SC) we will always use it. We have a power tongue jack and it takes just a couple of minutes if even that to pop bars on or off. Too windy in our neck of the woods to go without SC. Enjoy your awesome truck!!!
katoom400
Explorer
Feb 09, 2015
I'm talking both, since I don't get sway control without the WD bars on the Reese dual cam system.
TomG2
Explorer
Feb 09, 2015
Are we talking sway control now instead of weight distribution?
brulaz
Explorer
Feb 09, 2015
katoom400 wrote:

...
I have been wondering the same since upgrading from my Tundra to a 2015 F250, I have a Reese Dual Cam setup with 1200lb bars. It would be nice to not have to use the WD bars, however they also supply sway control.

the trailer is 6k dry with 600lb tongue weight. the truck has the integrated brake controller which is supposed to have sway control built in?
...

Don't think I would want to rely solely on the truck's electronic anti-sway control. By then things are pretty dicey from what I've heard.

I've run without WDH and sway control in the past with a light trailer that didn't affect the truck much. But the trailer had a high tongue weight (>15%) and little propensity to sway. Still it would have been better to have sway control for emergency situations.
brulaz
Explorer
Feb 09, 2015
And if you don't like the Hitch Receiver rating on your Superduty, there are several after-markets out there that will get you much higher weight-carrying.

But like I said, just not sure that Ford's rating is based on the hitch receiver's structural weaknesses alone.
brulaz
Explorer
Feb 09, 2015
Bedlam wrote:
It's not whether the truck can handle the hitch weight, it's whether the receiver was designed for that much hitch weight without using weight distribution. The rear axle is rated for over 9000 lbs and the rear wheel capacity is over 7000 lbs on the SRW F350's.

I wonder. My suspicion is that Ford rates the hitch receiver based on how much weight you may lift off the front axle by *not* using a WDH.

F150's are limited to 500# in 2" hitch receiver.
F250's and 350's Gas SRW 600# in 2" hitch receiver.
All others, diesel 250 and 350's and DRW 350's get 850# and the 2.5" hitch receiver.