Took my new to me truck wnd my TT to the scales yesterday to get some numbers. TT and Truck with WD.Steer Axle 4040#Drive Axle 4280#Trailer 7320#Total 15640#TT and truck with no WD, bars disconnected and still in head.Steer Axle 3620#Drive Axle 4880#Trailer 7160#Total 15660#Truck only without hitch head and bars in bed. I may have goofed by not having them?TruckSteer Axle 4120#Drive Axle 3140#Total 7260# Now I never got a chance to adjust the WD setup. I basically picked up TT from winter storage and drove to the scales that were on the way home. When I saw it on the scale I noticed it had a definite nose down attitude on the trailer when hitched so I am not sure if that could influence tongue weight. I did raise the ball up on the shank by a hole..about an inch.The truck is a Ford F350 xlt with a crew cab with 6.8 V10 Nothing in the truck, no people no real cargo. TT had most of the gear in it for the season but no clothing, water or food. We don't travel with much water, couple gallons. The TT is a Heartland 30USBH.The WD hitch is a Equalizer 1400/14000# setup.The receiver is the stock 1250/12500#. This seems to be the number I am most concerned with as I am worried about tongue weight.

So not sure if the tongue is 1060# or if I would have it be less since I didn't weigh the truck with the WD in the bed?

Let me take a shot at this. I think that in order to know your exact tongue weight you would have had to leave the hitch and bars in the bed.But, you can figure out:Truck alone weights 7260 (directly from #3)Trailer + hitch weights 8390 (15650* - 7260)Weight removed from front axle by adding trailer and hitch: 500 (4120-3620)Weight returned to front axle by WD: 420 (4040-3620)Weight transferred to trailer axle by WD: 160 (7320-7160)Total weight transferred: 580 (420+160)I think you might have transferred back a little too much weight. If the hitch weighs 100, then the trailer effect is 400 (i.e. the sa weight of the truck would have been 4220), and you are returning more than you lost (400-420=-20).Tongue weight + hitch weight: 1240 (3620+4880) - 7260Note: tongue weight is about trailer balance, and is figured without the WD bars engaged (there would be no WD if you were just using a tongue scale).Assuming you WDH+bars weights 100, that gives you a trailer weight of 8290, and a tongue weight of 1140, and a tongue weight % of 13.75.If the WDH+bars is 50, it is 8340, 1190 and 14.26%and 150 8240 1090 13.22% 200 8190 1040 12.6%Given the rv.net forums wisdom of targeting around 10-15% (and assuming it might be better to be on the high side), you seem OK here as long as the WDH is somewhere between 50-200.*Note: the scales are only accurate to 20 lbs, so you got 15640 and 15660 as your total weights. I used 15650 for these (i.e. I assumed you were between them).So, it seems to me that if you back the WD off one tick you are in good shape.Bretp.s. I just did this exercise for myself after a bunch of reading here, and this is my first attempt to return some of the knowledge I gained back to the community. Take it with a grain of salt :-)

Thank you for taking the time to do these calculations! I am confused by how you came to the tongue weight measurements.If the bars weigh 100# you said tongue would be 1140# and if #50 it would be 1190# and 150# it would be 1090# and 200# it would be 1040. I am not sure how that worked out that way?

You're welcome.There are sort of two separate but related things. There is Tongue Weight, which is what you would measure if put a scale under your tongue jack, and there is another thing, which some people seem to call "Hitch weight" or "Receiver load", which is what the receiver of your truck sees.Tongue weight is important because it shows how your cargo is balanced in the trailer, and receiver load is important because it shows how much weight is on your truck.The weight of the WD Hitch assembly is the difference between these two weights -- the receiver sees not only the tongue weight, but also the WD assembly weight.From your scale weights, we can figure out the "Receiver load" -- it is the difference between the empty truck weight and the truck weight with the trailer connected (Tongue weight + hitch weight: 1240 (3620+4880) - 7260). If you had put the WD assembly in the bed of the truck when you weighed it empty, then we would would know for sure. What we do know is that when you added the WD and the trailer, your truck got 1240 lbs heavier -- and we know that some of that is from the WD, and some is from the trailer.Since we don't know how to split it, I guessed. If the WD assembly weighed 0, then the tongue weight would be all of the 1240, but we know that isn't right.If the WD weighs 100, then the 1240 is split 100 to WD, 1140 to trailer -- I did that for 50 (+1190 = 1240), 100 (+1140 = 1240), 150 (+1090 = 1240) and 200 (+1040 = 1240), since I figure your WD probably weighs somewhere in that range.Let me know if this made it more or less clear....Bret

You need to calculate the tongue with the length of ball to the centerline of the rear axle.Your numbers look very strange. mm49

Weight and WD number check in aisle 4. | Good Sam Community

gijoecam
Explorer
Jun 13, 2014
I have a handy-dandy spreadsheet to plug & chug the numbers for me. (I can send it to you if you'd like). I had to tweak one number to make the two gross combined readings equal the same for the spreadsheet to work properly, so I removed 20lbs from the trailer axle weight in your second pass. (20 lbs is basically the tolerance of the scale)

That being said, I got the following values:
Actual Trailer Weights
Gross Axle Weight 7,140 lbs
Tongue Weight 1,240 lbs
Gross Trailer Weight 8,380 lbs
Tongue Weight (% of GTW) 14.80%

Trailer Effect on Tow Vehicle
Weight added to rear axle 1,740 lbs
Weight transferred from front axle 500 lbs
Actual Tongue Weight 1,240 lbs

Weight Levered off Rear Axle 600 lbs
Weight Transfer to Steer Axle 420 lbs
Weight Transfer to Trailer Axle 180 lbs

My conclusion: Your trailer is a little on the heavy side, but given that you have an F350, I'm confident you are still under the rear GAWR for the truck. Some additional weight distribution (think grabbing another link on the chains or tipping the head back one more notch) would help restore a bit more of the weight back to the front axle and reduce the chances of understeer in wet weather.

In reality, the truck isn't anywhere near its limits.
shadows4
Explorer III
Jun 01, 2014
phenrichs wrote:
Ok so I will probably take a beating for this but I like your numbers.
If your TT setup is level or slightly nose down as it should be and the truck is close to being back to original stance with these numbers you are doing well.
It was stated that you are close to the limit of your receiver. Close. Not at the limit or over, just close. That is the point. As long as it tows well I would leave it.

X2!!!!
phenrichs
Explorer
May 28, 2014
Ok so I will probably take a beating for this but I like your numbers.
If your TT setup is level or slightly nose down as it should be and the truck is close to being back to original stance with these numbers you are doing well.
It was stated that you are close to the limit of your receiver. Close. Not at the limit or over, just close. That is the point. As long as it tows well I would leave it.
lawrosa
Explorer
May 26, 2014
Seems some comments here are not that accurate...

From what I know....

You need to set that WD hitch up right.. You want to get the front weight of the TV axle back to stock of 4120. Or as close as you can. Do not go over.

your tounge is 1340 @ 15.8 percent. way way too much IMO.

This calculator makes it simple

http://www.towingplanner.com/ActualWeights/TravelTrailerCatScales/?w1sa=4040&w1da=4280&w1ta=7320&w2sa=3620&w2da=4880&w2ta=7160&w3sa=4120&w3da=3140&a=2

The receiver is the stock 1250/12500#

Is it not a WD hitch????

read here around the 10th post. Thats how the weights are calculated...

http://forums.woodalls.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/27282746.cfm
mojoroo
Explorer
May 26, 2014
Bret thanks for following this thread and offering your knowledge. Looks like I should get a new receiver. I am debating on paying some or doing it myslef. I did install one on my old 97 Ford but that didn't have an oem harness attached to the receiver. Did you have to replace wiring or were you able to get a mount for your oem wiring?
bretm151
Explorer
May 26, 2014
Correct (well, 1140 but what's 10 lbs among friends). You are close to your receiver limit, but not over it. I put a heavier Curt receiver on my truck (http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitch/Ford/F-250+and+F-350+Super+Duty/2012/C15810.html?vehicleid=201214548)

With a limit of 2700/20000 I just had one less thing to worry about...

Bret
mojoroo
Explorer
May 26, 2014
I weighed the hitch and bars and they are 100#s. So I am at about 1130# for tongue weight?
Need-A-Vacation
Explorer
May 25, 2014
GC-Truck= TT Will split the GC as well.
15650-7260=8390

TT-TA (TA weight without wd applied)=TW
8390-7160=1230lbs, minus the hitch head/bars. Next time just leave the hitch head in on the scale run, bars in bed.

NOW, it has been a while since I figured tw so I am sure one of our veteran experts will be along soon to correct or verify my numbers! Lol

You may want to look into a more stout hitch since you are right at the limit from what you posted your hitch specs are.
MM49
Explorer
May 23, 2014
You need to calculate the tongue with the length of ball to the centerline of the rear axle.

Your numbers look very strange.
mm49
bretm151
Explorer
May 19, 2014
You're welcome.

There are sort of two separate but related things. There is Tongue Weight, which is what you would measure if put a scale under your tongue jack, and there is another thing, which some people seem to call "Hitch weight" or "Receiver load", which is what the receiver of your truck sees.

Tongue weight is important because it shows how your cargo is balanced in the trailer, and receiver load is important because it shows how much weight is on your truck.

The weight of the WD Hitch assembly is the difference between these two weights -- the receiver sees not only the tongue weight, but also the WD assembly weight.

From your scale weights, we can figure out the "Receiver load" -- it is the difference between the empty truck weight and the truck weight with the trailer connected (Tongue weight + hitch weight: 1240 (3620+4880) - 7260). If you had put the WD assembly in the bed of the truck when you weighed it empty, then we would would know for sure. What we do know is that when you added the WD and the trailer, your truck got 1240 lbs heavier -- and we know that some of that is from the WD, and some is from the trailer.

Since we don't know how to split it, I guessed. If the WD assembly weighed 0, then the tongue weight would be all of the 1240, but we know that isn't right.

If the WD weighs 100, then the 1240 is split 100 to WD, 1140 to trailer -- I did that for 50 (+1190 = 1240), 100 (+1140 = 1240), 150 (+1090 = 1240) and 200 (+1040 = 1240), since I figure your WD probably weighs somewhere in that range.

Let me know if this made it more or less clear....

Bret