Trailer Length - Length of What?

[down_but_not_ou]

Two questions:

1)I've been trailering for 36 years and just realized my understanding regarding the meaning of trailer length may be wrong. If a trailer is reported to be 23' long, is that the length of the trailer body or the trailer body plus the tongue? I just measured my TT's body and found it to be two feet shorter than its published length. This doesn't fit into either the with tongue or without tongue definition, since the tongue is nearly four feet long.

2)I am looking at Lance brand travel trailers to replace my current TT. Lance provides two length figures, floor length and overall length. In determining appropriate trailer length for a tow vehicle, based on the TV's wheelbase, does a person consider the trailer's floor length or overall length (which I assume includes the tongue)? I would guess you should consider the overall length. Note: The models I am considering are all at least 20% lighter, loaded, than the maximum towing capacity of my TV. Weight is not the issue here.

[Tom_Trostel]

The companies that make only short trailers state total length (16' Scamps and 17' Casitas). The customer thinks they are bigger? The companies that make longer trailers state box length. Maybe more honest about living size?

[dadmomh]

We recently sold our '07 ROO 23SS Hybrid. The new owners asked for the exact length.....all these years we thought "about 23'". Not close. The box itself was 20'10". Bumper to ball was 24" + a smidge. Go figure. Nothing was 23' like you would assume would somehow figure with a 23SS.

Our new Rockwood Ultra Lite 2604......really strange.....the box is exactly 26'4" and bumper to ball is right at 29'.

[EldIr]

Back to the length meaning, my 300bh (30' bunk house) is only 26' of house. Before actually buying a tt, I had assumed the stated length was the part you live in. Nope...

[hmknightnc]

WoodGlue wrote:

hmknightnc X2 on this statement!

It does matter what the wheelbase of the TV is and it would be silly to not taking a small wheelbase into account. No way would I tow a 28' or 29' trailer. It's called "tailwagging" on a short wheel base vehicle!

WoodGlue

Hi Wood

I don't think anybody (especially me) is advocating not being smart such as taking a Jeep Wrangler and trying to tow a 40' trailer. That is equally as silly as the example of a single cab dually can't tow 34'. But there is no standard basis or formula for doing a TV WB calculation for maximum trailer length

There is no reason the OPs Tahoe is limited to the length the OP thinks. Have an 05 Tahoe that pulled a 32' TT wieghing 6k# over 50k miles. No sway control just wieght distribution, towed rock solid, no sway on curvy 2nd roads or Tractors zooming past. It was my wife doing the pulling of the TT while I pulled the Horse Trailer. Let me tell you if there had been so much as one close too white knuckle moment with her that little adventure would have stopped right there, period. Its way more about proper hitch and wieght setup than length

Now on the other hand every person should do what they are comfortable doing. If the OP is not comfortable with longer lengths then that is his right. His money, his equipment, his choice.

[skipnchar]

It is EXTREMELY rare for any tow vehicle to even HAVE a length rating (I've been told that Jeep does) but as for the length, you'd need to ask the person who is telling you the length what they mean. There is no standardization other than "overall length" which is rear bumper to tongue. It is fairly common for folks to believe that the model number is the length. It's rarely the case, it's just a model number. My F 150 isn't 150 ANYTHING either.

[Chuck_thehammer]

2012Coleman wrote:
I like to think of it in terms of how wooden boards are measured. A 2 X 4 is really 1.5 X 3.5. Who knows how/why TT manufactures do this.

when I was remodeling my bathroom in my house...
the 2 x 4 measured 2 1/4 X 4 1/2 inches.. but than my house is 130 years old...

I did not mean to start a debate on semi- stuff.
I understand hitch verses 5th wheel. and semi rear trailer axle set that moves for weight balance. tractor verses trailer

the more the trailer axles are near the rear of trailer the less sway/wag the rig will have.

[Dennis_M_M]

I once read that some manufacturers measure inside from front wall at the ceiling to rear wall at the floor. Kind of like a diagonal TV measurement!

For what it's worth our 35' fiver is 37.5' long overall.

[JJBIRISH]

nevadanick wrote:
If he is missing axle placement and hitch placement over the axles then explain towing 70ft mobile homes ? Length means nothing, proper loading does.

He asked the difference between a Semi-truck-trailer... the fact is there is no comparison between the two set-ups…

I am not expert on MH transportation but I have some ideas… but we could come up with hundreds of suppositions and I am not going to do that because it is useless…
But mobile homes transports are permitted use and have a lot of rules from what days to the times of day they can be moved, and other rules for safe movement…
They are much like a TT and balance is the most basic requirement for any center mount axle trailer that has to be taken into account as a first adjustment… the state may have size and weight of the truck for a given size and weight of the MH regulations…, and I am sure most have special speed restrictions by the trailers width and length and weight that may be as low as 45 to 50 MPH or less on most highways…
Larger loads may have even more sever speed restrictions….
All of which (balance, length, weight, and speed) also play a major role in the trailers stability…
To say length means nothing is just not true…

[nevadanick]

If he is missing axle placement and hitch placement over the axles then explain towing 70ft mobile homes ? Length means nothing, proper loading does.

[2012Coleman]

I like to think of it in terms of how wooden boards are measured. A 2 X 4 is really 1.5 X 3.5. Who knows how/why TT manufactures do this.

[timjcarter9]

My 18DB, interestingly enough, is 20 feet inside dimensions front to back and 23 feet overall. Not sure where the 18 in the model comes from.

I remember way back my dad had a 69 Skylark 17 foot. It was 17 hitch to bumper. They changed that somewhere along the way.

[wildwest450]

scbwr wrote:
Seems to me that manufacturers have really shifted to using numbers that reflect the size of the "box" and the actual length is usually 2-3 feet longer. We're searching for a new trailer that would be 28' or less overall, and any model description we find is somewhere between 21 & 24.

This

[JJBIRISH]

Chuck_thehammer wrote:
what am I missing? Semi-truck-trailer... the tractor is shorter than a long bed pickup and they pull 48 footers all the time and 80,000 pounds.

You’re missing the axle placement in the middle of the trailer, and the hitch placed over the axles… completely different animals…

[mooky_stinks]

My Outback is a model 277 in the literature but the living space is 31'. 34' 10" overall. When looking for sites I say 30' and I've never had a problem fitting it in.....yet.