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Tongue weight


scotchipman

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You are going to need to use a bathroom scale. Probably some kind of lever function. Place the trailer wheel at exactly the middle point of the 2x6 that has one end resting on the scale and the other end resting on a fulcrum point , (2x4 laying flat)

Or weigh your vehicle at the DOT truck scales. Weigh each axle front and back. Then go back with your boat in tow and weigh each axle separately.

Heavy tongue weight equals SAFER handling.

I moved my trailer axle back.

I can drive like a maniac with my Duramax and my boat just follows me.

Whatever you do , do not lighten the tongue without increasing your auto and boat and life insurance coverage.

A light tongue will get you into trouble.

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Easiest and most accurate way is to go over the weighbridge. Weigh just how much weight is on the wheels of the trailer while hooked up to the tow vehicle, then back it up, drop the jockey wheel and weigh the entire trailer mass.

Your ball weight will be the difference, and it will be the exact weight that your specific vehicle is subjected too, as this will vary depending on how high the tow ball on the vehicle is and how much sag the suspension has.

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For example my old boat weighed in at 1540kg on the trailer wheels, and the total trailer mass was 1600kg making the ball weight 60kg for that car/trailer combo. I dropped the tow point lower on that vehicle to increase the ball weight.

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Heavy tongue weight equals SAFER handling.

That is not true.

The target tongue weight is about 10% of the total trailer weight. Much lighter than that or much heavier than that causes handling problems with the tow vehicle and / or the trailer.

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That is not true.

The target tongue weight is about 10% of the total trailer weight. Much lighter than that or much heavier than that causes handling problems with the tow vehicle and / or the trailer.

Oh, Yes It Is :biggrin:

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OK, now I want to see some facts. This is interesting.

What kind of facts? The supposed 10% of weight=tongue weight?

"Most experts agree that an acceptable tongue weight for any trailer is somewhere between 9 and 15 percent of the gross trailer weight (GTW)."

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You are going to need to use a bathroom scale. Probably some kind of lever function. Place the trailer wheel at exactly the middle point of the 2x6 that has one end resting on the scale and the other end resting on a fulcrum point , (2x4 laying flat)

Or weigh your vehicle at the DOT truck scales. Weigh each axle front and back. Then go back with your boat in tow and weigh each axle separately.

Heavy tongue weight equals SAFER handling.

That is not true.

The target tongue weight is about 10% of the total trailer weight. Much lighter than that or much heavier than that causes handling problems with the tow vehicle and / or the trailer.

Oh, Yes It Is :biggrin:

Heavier tongue weight does NOT equal safer handling! Neither is light tongue weight. On the contrary, heavier tongued weight can and will cause steering problems with the vehicle.

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