Trailer Tounge Weight

[kstill361]

I have always worried about the tounge weight when loading firewood and have looked for an inexpensive platform scale for years. I cant believe I am just now coming accross the Sherline Trailer Tongue Weight Scale. I bought one a couple of weeks ago for $130 shipped to my door and love it! It works perfect and small enough to carry in the trucks tool box. It reads up to 2,000lbs and can be placed under the coupler or unscrew the extention and place under the tounge jack. I thought I would share this for the people who dont know about this product.
Does anybody else have one of these?

 

[Gavman]

So do you load your trailer up and then weigh it?

Ahh on edit I see the second pic makes more sense now, easy to do...

 

[beerman6]

Most of my loading/unloading is done on soft ground.I wonder how well it would work then?

 

[Walt41]

When I bought my truck I put a bar thru the hitch and hung 400lbs of Olympic weights on it and measured the tire to wheel well distance, recorded it with a sharpie on the inside of the door and can refer to it if need be, most times I try to balance my loads to be as level as possible. Never tried one of those scales.

 

[kstill361]

Most of my loading/unloading is done on soft ground.I wonder how well it would work then?

Just as well with a cookie cut 2" thick under it

 

[wndwlkr]

Total waste, just get a bigger truck!

 

[kstill361]

Lol, a bigger truck would be a waste as I am just a firewood cutter, 10 loads a year and my paid for half ton does the job just fine.
On a side note , a bigger truck has nothing to do with how a trailer is loaded, but anyway.... my trailer has the wheels too far back which causes excessive weight on the tounge which is already bent. This helps me load with the right amount of tounge weight. Everybody has their own opinion on whats a waste of money, ive wasted money on dumber stuff, and im sure you have too more than once.

 

[Mntn Man]

My trailer has the wheels too far forward. If I don't load it right, it wants to swim. I can tell by looking at my truck if I am going to be ok or not.

Sometimes I run across the scale at the truck stop just to see what actual trailer weight is. It costs $8. Is it a waste of money? I don't think so but my wife does. :hmm3grin2orange:I think it is informative as I will remember and be able to guess relatively close to how much weight I am hauling. My trailer GVR is 12,000 but is only licensed for 9,000, so I like to know. It would cost me $165 more a year to license it for 6 tons and I think that would be a waste of money.

 

[Steve NW WI]

It may be a worthwhile product for someone that doesn't trailer often, or someone setting up a new trailer for the first time.

For every load use, it looks like a needless PITA. *Damn, I sound like Logbutcher on a moisture meter rant*

Walt's tip is one that has been around a long time. Old school truckers guesstimated weight with a stick. It doesn't work too well with new air ride systems, but pressure guages on them get close.

For most people out there with light duty pickups (1/2tonners, or smaller), it doesn't take a lot of weight to level the truck from empty. Get your trailer loaded till the truck sits level and you'll be pretty doggone close with most trailers. Keep in mind, that until you've overloaded the tongue of the trailer, being heavy on the front is better than being tail heavy.

 

[avalancher]

Never used one of them new fangled gadgets, I use my knee. When empty and on level ground, the front lower corner of my trailer falls right below my knee cap. When I get out to load up, I stick my knee up to the trailer sides, and measure up against it. When done loading up, I level the load out if necessary to get the trailer a couple of inches lower than what it was when empty.

 

[kstill361]

I will be getting a new trailer soon but right now the trailer I have has 600lbs empty tounge weight so I need the scale. As soon as I hook up the trailer to the truck its already squating and resting on the Timbren springs. There is no way to eyeball or guess in my situation.

 

[mooseracing]

Keep in mind, that until you've overloaded the tongue of the trailer, being heavy on the front is better than being tail heavy.

Ehh, I've driven both ways and they suck. One you can light the tires up every time you take off, the other squirrelly as hell steering. I'm happy to moved up to a 1 ton truck, and a trailer that has about 500-700lbs tounge before loading, flatbed about 2500lbs empty. I was also happy going to a Class V hitch, some day I'll have a nice big dump gooseneck, after I hit the lottery of course.

 

[Denis Gionet]

It may be a worthwhile product for someone that doesn't trailer often, or someone setting up a new trailer for the first time.

For every load use, it looks like a needless PITA. .... .... being heavy on the front is better than being tail heavy.

If I were in the business of selling boats, I'd have one. There's nothing worse to experiment with than boat trailers. The motor weight, fuel capacity of the boat, boat weight and trailer weight can all be calculated to create a gross weight. Generally you want about 10 - 15% of your total trailer weight on the tongue. Less than 10% and the trailer gets squirrely and fishtails, and causes the load and trailer to rock up and down at the tongue on bumps... More than 20% and you overload the hitch with an excessively heavy load.

We've done some fighting with trailers and boats in the past. The transom of the boat has to end right at the edge of the support planks (for correct transom tie-down position), which means you have to adjust the winch post farther forward or back to achieve this. This means you end up moving the load on the trailer, ergo there's more or less tongue weight. Different outboards on the same boat/trailer package means different weight distribution (2-stroke 50hp vs 4-stroke 75 hp = double the weight, for example). This means you have to now move the axle forwards or back to get the distribution and tongue weight correct.

Which brings us to the handy-dandy tool above. Once the boat is positioned properly on the trailer, you could now easily adjust the axle forward or aft to get the 10-15% tongue weight, from the calculated total trailer weight. Say your boat/motor/trailer weighs 3,000 lbs, you want 300-450 pounds of tongue weight. The tool will let you get it dialed in just right. Sure wish I had one of those years ago when I was still in the business !

 

[kstill361]

Ehh, I've driven both ways and they suck. One you can light the tires up every time you take off, the other squirrelly as hell steering. I'm happy to moved up to a 1 ton truck, and a trailer that has about 500-700lbs tounge before loading, flatbed about 2500lbs empty. I was also happy going to a Class V hitch, some day I'll have a nice big dump gooseneck, after I hit the lottery of course.

Is your trailer home made? I bought mine at an auction and it is home made 12' with the axles too far back with 600lbs at the tounge. I would think your 2500lb trailer should only have 250lbs empty tounge weight with proper axle placement. I have a 20' flatbed that weighs 2100lbs with 200lbs empty tounge weight.