Spare tire carrier

Ok, back to the drawing board. We did the 3x weighing thing...to the tune of $22. We had a step by step online direction, but thinking surely we missed something somewhere. Love the no-math idea and really love the free scale usage. Surprisingly few weigh stations on our route, but will watch. The Cat was totally empty....whew! Would be very happy to find out we screwed up, uhhh....made a minor error. Thanks for the additional info. Time for a do-over.

I had a similar problem with too little TW. I ended up chucking the spare into the forward compartment, and moving the drawbar storage to the rear. The previous model year to mine had the tire under the tongue, but I have enough issues with ground clearance so opted not to go that route. Eventually I'd like to get a storage rack that goes over the propane tanks, but that's a ways off yet for me.

dadmomh wrote:
...DH wondered about a spare tire mount that goes either the tongue or the very front of the trailer, but haven't found anything other than the rear bumper mount. ... We don't want to have anything welded that would effect the warranty. Ideas??

BAL Hide-A-Spare may suit your needs.



There is even an informational video and from the sounds of it there is no welding involved. Don't forget also that the weight of the BAL assembly will add to the weight forward (good) and the removal of the weight on the bumper (wheel & carrier assembly) is like an addition forward (again good), so you get a double benefit. Of course the further forward the better for you.

myredracer wrote:
Do you mean the commercial truck ones along the interstate? I've only pulled into one of those with our TT once, and it wasn't all that busy. Do they usually only have one lane/scale?

Yes those, they are also on 2 lane highways around here.

I only stop if it's closed, then I can take my time and the DOT won't be watching me ;)

Do you mean the commercial truck ones along the interstate? I've only pulled into one of those with our TT once, and it wasn't all that busy. Do they usually only have one lane/scale?

ah64id wrote:

myredracer wrote:
That works great but not if you have a mean lookin' guy in a big semi behind you waiting to get on the scale! :B May work at some scales but not allowed at a CAT scale.

ah64id wrote:
When I weigh TW I will pull onto the scale so the tongue jack is as close to center (without the trailer axles touching the scale) and unhook and pull away. No math makes for a better reading.

True, you also have to pay for cat scales so I generally pull into the closed weigh stations. I am not sure about the rest of the country, but in Idaho, Washington, and Oregon it's rare to pull into a closed station and find the scale off. They leave them on for people to use. There is rarely a line so you can tinker as much as your DW will let you.

myredracer wrote:
That works great but not if you have a mean lookin' guy in a big semi behind you waiting to get on the scale! :B May work at some scales but not allowed at a CAT scale.

ah64id wrote:
When I weigh TW I will pull onto the scale so the tongue jack is as close to center (without the trailer axles touching the scale) and unhook and pull away. No math makes for a better reading.

True, you also have to pay for cat scales so I generally pull into the closed weigh stations. I am not sure about the rest of the country, but in Idaho, Washington, and Oregon it's rare to pull into a closed station and find the scale off. They leave them on for people to use. There is rarely a line so you can tinker as much as your DW will let you.

That works great but not if you have a mean lookin' guy in a big semi behind you waiting to get on the scale! :B May work at some scales but not allowed at a CAT scale.

What scale will allow that? My next weighing will be at a grain elevator and I've never been to one. If I'm allowed to unhook on their scale, I'll do that.

ah64id wrote:
When I weigh TW I will pull onto the scale so the tongue jack is as close to center (without the trailer axles touching the scale) and unhook and pull away. No math makes for a better reading.

When I weigh TW I will pull onto the scale so the tongue jack is as close to center (without the trailer axles touching the scale) and unhook and pull away. No math makes for a better reading.

405 lbs sounds awfully light compared to the TT's GVWR and the factory dry tongue wt. The dry tongue weight usually goes up, and in some cases nearly double (like ours did). You would have to add a lot of cargo or mods to the rear of the TT to lighten the tongue that much. I think the weighing procedure and/or math was not correct so don't buy a spare tire carrier just yet.

How did you weigh it all? With a TT, it takes 3 separate passes at a scale. One with TV and TT and WDH hooked up. Another with TT and TV hooked up but WDH bars in TV. Then just the TV. If you're a little unclear on how to do the math from the scale numbers, just ask. When weighing, the TV and TT should be all loaded up with everyone and everything you would have for a camping trip and the TV should have a full tank of fuel.

If you wanted to take it a step further, you could also figure out how much weight is being transferred by the WDH to the steer and drive axles and the TT axles and also the actual payload capacity of the TV.

If you think your tongue weight could vary due to changes in how much you load into the TT and where it goes, you might want to invest in a Sherline tongue scale. tongue scale

dadmomh wrote:
Can't remember all the #s and the paperwork is in the truck with DH and DS...sent them on a Wal-Mart trip so I can enjoy some quiet time...But the tongue weight was 405....way lower than we expected. We guesstimated all DS' s extras at maybe close to 200#. We try to pack carefully and this model has most of the weight in the rear to begin with. We hate to pull in for the night and have to rearrange the whole trailer, but need a Plan B for the trip home. When we make our next regular trip without the extras we're going to reweigh. DS truly hates camping and the ONE trip each year is to FL for spring training. He lives and breathes baseball, so as long as he can handle the trip it's a given...just have some tweaking to do. Will check the BAL and the link above. Many thanks for the suggestions. BTW...sunny and low to mid 80's ....maybe spring will actually happen.

Can't remember all the #s and the paperwork is in the truck with DH and DS...sent them on a Wal-Mart trip so I can enjoy some quiet time...But the tongue weight was 405....way lower than we expected. We guesstimated all DS' s extras at maybe close to 200#. We try to pack carefully and this model has most of the weight in the rear to begin with. We hate to pull in for the night and have to rearrange the whole trailer, but need a Plan B for the trip home. When we make our next regular trip without the extras we're going to reweigh. DS truly hates camping and the ONE trip each year is to FL for spring training. He lives and breathes baseball, so as long as he can handle the trip it's a given...just have some tweaking to do. Will check the BAL and the link above. Many thanks for the suggestions. BTW...sunny and low to mid 80's ....maybe spring will actually happen.