BAM298

Hey Guys,

We've bought a new boat and it's probably going to weigh between 6000-6500lbs wet and loaded on a tandem axle trailer.

My hitch says it's only rated for 500/5000lbs without a WDH. I don't think I've EVER seen a boat trailer with a WDH and some searching shows that they may NOT be compatible with surge brakes.

Do I need to add a WDH or anything? I don't want to be risking damage to the truck/hitch or worse, losing the trailer while towing because of the weight.

Any input appreciated. Post pictures if you got them as well!

-Matt

xcntrk

I don't know why a boat trailer would be different then any other trailer needing weight distribution. Probably the reason you don't see WD hitches in the boating community is because everybody towing larger units are probably doing so with bigger trucks. If it were me, I wouldn't hesitate to install a WD hitch to help manage the tongue weight from a 6500# trailer.

It's important to note however, that you probably only need a weight-disribution (only) hitch and not one that includes sway control. A good example of this is the Reese Trunnion Bar style WD hitch:



If the trailer were enclosed or the boat was very tall (high bow) then it may be affected by wind-shear going down the road and might require sway control (in addition to weight distribution). What I like about the above hitch is that you can add on the sway cams later if you need additional sway control in the future.

Flash!

A Class IV hitch with higher gross trailer weight without weight distribution might be an easier solution. Tongue weight and payload shouldn't be an issue with a 6500lb tandem axle boat.

acadianbob

Yeah, I don't think WD hitches and surge brakes are compatible.

mvander

Best thing to do would be weigh the tounge of the trailer with boat on it. There is a method using a bathroom scale that is pretty acurate. You can google this process. As a rule i believe boats to be around 8% tounge wt. So @ 6500# you would be at 520# tounge wt. I would do it if this is the case.

BAM298

Thanks for the info guys.

I've prefer NOT using a WDH if possible. Seems like a hassle and this is a ski/wakeboard boat we are talking about so pretty aerodynamic.

Flash....So I can just simply unbolt my factory hitch and replace it with a Class IV and I'll have that extra capacity for tongue/towing weight? There isn't anything to do with the truck/mounting of hitch that affects the rating? If this is the case I'll just do this, as it appears I can get a Class IV hitch online for about $150. Seems stupid Ford would UNDERbuild a truck rather than OVER build it for probably no additional cost.

mvander....Why do I need to measure the tongue weight? I know the trailer is over 5000lbs and that's a rating on the hitch so it looks like I already need to replace the hitch or buy a WDH setup.

mvander

Your right. Im a travel trailer guy so Im used to considering only the tounge wt.

I do believe the 5000# rating is to keep the tounge wt down too. Ford seems to assume 10% tounge wt in all their ratings so they don't want you putting more than 500# on the ball and taking the wt off the front tires.

This is why they want you to use a wdh for over 500# tw. A wdh does nothing to help the "pulling" strength of the receiver but it does distribute excessive tounge wt to the front axles.

BAM298

Fair enough, thanks for your input. I wasn't sure if more than one rating needed to be exceeded or something. I'll probably measure my tongue weight at some point just to be aware of it but it looks like any way I look at it I need to upgrade at least the hitch. I have found Class IV hitches for around $120 and says its still a simple bolt on process. Probably the cheapest/easiest upgrade for a solution, just frustrated I spent this much money on a truck AND the tow package only to have to replace one of the main components.

tcp2

WDH systems place far greater forces (twisting, bouncing, etc) on the hitch than a 500lb tongue weight will. The 500lb has more to do with the effect on the truck than the hitch itself. Your current hitch itself will be fine if you push the tongue weight by 20-25% although you can probably move the boat's location on the trailer to get the tongue weight down to 6-8% and be fine anyway. A boat's aerodynamic shape lends itself to minimize sway, etc. If your tongue weight is ok, just hook it up and go.

smokeywren

Lots of misinformation in this thread:

♦ Per the Ford RV and Trailer Towing Guide, you need a weight-distributing (WD) hitch (or a gooseneck or fifth-wheel hitch) for any trailer that might have tongue weight more than 500 pounds. Trailer tongue weight, not what causes the trailer tongue weight, is the decider. Whether the cargo is an RV, a boat, or a car, balance the load so you have at least 10% tongue weight, and if the tongue weight is more than 500 pound, then install a aweight-distributing hitch. From an old guy with decades of towing experience, I'd change that to less than 3,000 pounds.

♦ You must have at least 10% tongue weight, else the trailer and boat could be lost, because of bad handling or uncontrollable sway. Most combinations of boat and trailer can be adjusted to achieve at least 10% tongue weight. On some boat trailers the axles can be moved forward or backward. On almost all boat trailers the boat can be positioned far enough forward to achieve 10% tongue weight. You may need to play games by moving fuel or bilge water or well water weight, but that's why you have more than two brain cells to Rub together.

♦ Equal-I-Zer WD hitches can be used with surge brakes. Here's a blurb from the FAQ on the Equal-I-Zer website:
http://www.equalizerhitch.com/About%...i-zer/faqs.php


Reese/Drawtite also makes a clone of the Equal-I-Zer hitch, so that one is probably okay with surge brakes too.
http://www.etrailer.com/Weight-Distr...e/RP66153.html


♦ With an Equal-I-Zer hitch, your OEM receiver hitch is just fine for a 7,000-pound trailer. So you don't need to replace the receiver. Receivers to replace the OEM receiver on a late-model F-150 are few and far between. But there are some with higher weight capacity available. Ignore the trailer weight rating and concentrate on the tongue weight rating.


There are lots of uninformed and misinformed folks in the world that tow trailers with more than 500 pounds tongue weight with a weight-carrying hitch. What the trailer is hauling doesn't matter - cars, tractors, boats, campers, cow feed, horses, whatever, if it has more than 500 pounds of tongue weight then you need a WD hitch.