Truck / Trailer weigh in

The Pilot station by me charges $10.00 for the first weigh and $2.00 for the second weigh with in 24 hours.

I weigh the TV, then I weigh the TV and TT. I center the TV between the steering axle scale and the drive axles scale and of course the two TT axles are on the trailer axle scale.

Since both my TV and TT vary by several hundred pounds between trips, depending on how much stuff I cannot live without; I really do not care about the exact weight of each. I want to know what the axle loads are as I go down the road.

From the scale information, I look at the front and rear axel weighs of the TV only. Then I connect the WD hitch so the TT is sitting level and weigh the front and rear TV axle and the combined TT axels.

From these measurements I know,
* The weight loading of the front and rear TV axles with no TT.
* The weight load of each the TV axles and the TT axles with the hitch adjusted for a level TV and TT combination.
* If I am within my TV's max cargo weight capacity and each axles allowable load.
* If I am within the combined TT axle ratings.

One thing I do not know is the repeatability of the scales or their accracy. I do try to center the TV so it is on the front and rear axle scale the same each time.

You need to weigh your truck, separately (not connected to trailer). You can weigh it empty, or loaded up, to include you sitting in it. Either way, plan on the same configuration with trailer hooked up.

In otherwords, weigh the truck, with front axle on the first scale, rear axle on the second, full tank of gas, you sitting in cab. Get that weight.

Hook up trailer, with weight distribution fully connected, with you in the truck, full tank of gas (again), same config as stand alone. Front axles on one scale, rear axle of truck on second scale, trailer axles on third scale.

Subtract weight of truck weighed alone (both axles), from weight of both axles when connected up. Difference should be your tongue weight.

Now there are folks who will disconnect the WD hitch so you get deadweight hitch weight, and distributed weight values. I can see the value in doing that, but I haven't done that. I get three weights.. Truck alone, truck with trailer dry (empty), and then truck with trailer fully loaeded ready to go. I just like the dry weight vs loaded weight so I know how much cargo I have in the trailer.

If you plan on loading a fair amount of stuff in the bed of your truck, I would weigh the truck fully loaded as if you were heading out camping.

The problem with how you did it, if I understand what you did correctly, is you have no idea what your truck alone weight is (without trailer). You need that value as a baseline to start with, in order to understand what weight is added as a result of the trailer, and how it is actually disributed. Knowing individual truck axle weights (stand alone), you will be able to see exactly how much weight is distributed to each axle by the WD hitch.

Mike

Larry wrote:
P.S. you shouldn't have to pay for 2 complete weigh ins only pay for a reweigh which is about $1 to $2 at most and IIRC usually no cost. Now if these weights were not done back to back, but some time elapsed then something might have changed weight wise, but that is unclear at least to me.

That is what I thought, I never left the scale between weighs.
My first time trying to actually do it on a scale, and I'm on here to learn the correct way. Thanks

I also may have been dealing with the new guy at Loves, he had no idea what I was trying to do, so the newb tried to explain it to the newb.

The first time I was on the scale, was with weight distribution, pre-loaded, 400 lbs of fresh water (tank in front), no gear, and me in the truck (+210 lbs) Gross weight 15420
(7860 scale #2, and 7560 Scale #3)

The second weigh was empty truck on scale #2, and trailer axles and tongue on scale #3. Gross weight without me in truck was 15540.
(6740 scale #2, 8800 scale #3)

Yes, I subtracted truck weight from each weigh to get 1120 tongue weight. Is that correct?

twxsby89 wrote:
Scale Results, two weighs, two charges. ($21.00 total)
1. Trailer hooked to truck: Truck 7860; Trailer 7560; both 15420

2. Trailer unhooked from truck: Truck 6740; Trailer 8800; both 15540

I was not in the truck for the second weigh in, and I weigh a lot more than 120.

Tongue weight = 1120 lbs

I'm not sure what you weighed??

1. For weight #1 was the WDH installed and hooked up or was it just the trailer tongue on the ball in a straight weight carrying configuration.

2. For weight #2 was the 8800 for both the TT axles and the tongue jack and weight #2 15540 should have been less than weight #1 15420 by your actual weight and not #120 lbs heavier.

I appears you tried to subtract the truck weight in #1 7860 from the truck weight in #2 6740 to come up with a tongue wt. of 1120 however that should be 1120lbs less your actual weight and if 200 then the tongue wt. would be 920lbs. This assumes your WDH if installed was not engaged for weight #1.

Maybe I'm missing something or reading/understanding what you did, but something doesn't make sense at least to me.

However, if weight #1 was w/o any WDH engaged and the TT axles weighed 7560 and if the second weight for the trailer was for the TT axles plus the tongue 8800lbs then the tongue wt. should be 1240lbs.

P.S. you shouldn't have to pay for 2 complete weigh ins only pay for a reweigh which is about $1 to $2 at most and IIRC usually no cost. Now if these weights were not done back to back, but some time elapsed then something might have changed weight wise, but that is unclear at least to me.

Larry