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I think it would help you to take it to the scales. The normal process for weighing is to make three passes across the scales. First weigh with the trailer attached and weight distribution bars attached as they are for towing, second weigh with trailer attached and WDH bars removed, third weigh is truck alone. The time spent detaching and reattaching the trailer is spent over in the parking lot and not on the scale. The "first weigh" costs about $11. The two "reweighs" only cost $2 each. Then you can determine not only the tongue weight of the trailer, but also how well the WDH is adjusted and how much weight is transferred from the drive axle to the steer axle and how much is transferred to the trailer axle. In my case, with a 900 lb. tongue weight toy hauler, 120 lbs. (13% of the tongue wt.) was transferred to the trailer axles and off the truck axles. Then the truck was only carrying 780 of the 900 lb. tongue weight. When the 900 lb. tongue was set down on the hitch ball, 360 lbs. was lifted from the steer axle. When the WDH bars were attached, 260 lbs. (72%) was returned to the steer axle. All this extra information is available for just $4 more than the first weigh. I plan to add one more washer to the hitch head before the next weigh to get a little more weight transferred off that drive axle, some to the steer axle and some to the trailer axle.
If you make the three passes across the scales, you will see how much of that tongue weight is transferred back to the trailer axles by the WDH and how much payload headroom that gives you. You won't be carrying all that tongue weight on the truck axles after you cinch up the WDH bars.
I understand your problem. With only me as the driver on board, with a full load of water, with a 900 lb. tongue weight (780 lbs. carried on the truck) and a 1607 lb. payload, my truck only has 460 lbs. of payload headroom left. So I have 367 lbs. in the truck with capacity for 460 lbs. more, for a total of 827 lbs. Two hefty passengers or three skinny ones will use that up. On one prior weigh, the rear axle was overweight. I moved everything I could out of the truck and back to the camper and added some washers to the hitch head to get more weight transfer. I'm OK now, but I have to watch how I load it. I'm operating with 70% of the payload used up and at 94% of GVWR and at 94% of rear axle GAWR. It tows well. I did add some Torklift StableLoads to regain a little rear suspension travel.
Just make sure you have the WDH adjusted properly to get as much as you can transferred to the trailer axles, WITHOUT putting more weight on the steer axle than was the unloaded weight.
Last edited by atwowheelguy; 06-08-2017 at 07:50 PM.
If you want that bigger camper some day, especially it it's a fifth wheel, do lots more homework on that F250 diesel. I have heard that some have been surprised at how low the payload can be because that diesel engine is so heavy. I looked up the current specs. GVWR can be either 9900 or 10000. That GVWR was set because the government treats higher GVWR commercial vehicles differently with more regulations and more cost. The base diesel XL 4x4 F250 weighs 7494, leaving 2406-2506 lbs. for payload. The base XL gas F250 4x4 weighs 6695, indicating that the diesel engine weighs 799 lbs. more than the gas engine. Higher trim levels weigh even more. A 14,000 lb. fifth wheel can have a 2800 lb. or more pin weight.
For an F150, I limit mine to an XLT trim level to get the most payload. And no sunroofs!
Thanks for the info on the F250 payloads. If I went that route I would very likely not get a diesel. But I also would not be getting an XL trim either.
I have time, no rush to make any changes. I do want to get the truck and camper properly weighed so I have better information to work with.
Thanks for the info on the F250 payloads. If I went that route I would very likely not get a diesel. But I also would not be getting an XL trim either.
I have time, no rush to make any changes. I do want to get the truck and camper properly weighed so I have better information to work with.
6800+4900= 11700 WHICH PUTs YOU 900 LBS UNDER GCWR THE ONLY WAY TO STAY UNDER IS LOAD YOUR TRAILER VERY CAREFULLY SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 400-600 TOO STAY A LITTLE BIT UNDER. IF YOU PUT 600 IN TRAILER THAT WILL GIVE YOU 5500 GVWR WHICH WILL GIVE YOU A TONGUE WEIGHT OF 715 PLUS WDH. AND NOW YOU WILL BE UNDER PAYLOAD WHICH IS GREAT.
THIS SAYS WHAT OTHERS HAVE SAID JUST SAYS IT DIFFERENT. IF YOU DONT HAVE 12600 GCVR THEN THROW THIS OUT AND GET A NEW TRUCK.
If you want that bigger camper some day, especially it it's a fifth wheel, do lots more homework on that F250 diesel. I have heard that some have been surprised at how low the payload can be because that diesel engine is so heavy. I looked up the current specs. GVWR can be either 9900 or 10000. That GVWR was set because the government treats higher GVWR commercial vehicles differently with more regulations and more cost. The base diesel XL 4x4 F250 weighs 7494, leaving 2406-2506 lbs. for payload. The base XL gas F250 4x4 weighs 6695, indicating that the diesel engine weighs 799 lbs. more than the gas engine. Higher trim levels weigh even more. A 14,000 lb. fifth wheel can have a 2800 lb. or more pin weight.
For an F150, I limit mine to an XLT trim level to get the most payload. And no sunroofs!
If we ever step up to a larger camper I'm going straight to an F-350. The price difference when used is negligible between a 250 and a 350 and you get a fair amount more capacity.
1. Are the available suspension "fixes" worthwhile in my case? By fixes I mean airbags, timbrens, extra springs, different tires?
Timbrens will help...I find they stabilize the rear end (engage when the TT is hooked up) and make the towing experience easier. They are in effect an extra leaf spring but don't impact the normal ride and don't lift the rear end.
Those tires are not going to be the problem.
That tongue weight seems high for a TT that size...how are you measuring it?
My 2 cents: if the GCWR is only 12,600, then you need a new TV or smaller TT (e.g. mine is 14,600, my TT is similar to yours, and I wouldn't tow anything heavier.)
i havent seen it in this thread, but the 1k-1.5K $ to get into an F350 vs and F250 and added payload you get if you go diesel i think wood be worth your while!
FWIW, I paid for the diesel option by getting an XLT instead of a Lariet in my 2015 F350. I also remember about $700 over the F250. As long as you are going Super Duty, you may as well go SUPER Duty for another 1000 lbs or so of payload.
06-08-2017, 07:23 PM
