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Help me verify the math / appreciation of good fit/bad fit
Hi,
With truck in sig, here is what I know.
Door jab sticker states #7050 and 1776 lbs of payload.
Im looking at an older TT (27 ' Triple E topaz, dual axle) this one actually, the T271 item:
My take on this reference my "acquired" knowledge:
Weight of occupants: 400 pounds
WDH, just for good measure : 125 pounds
guesstimated Weight of gear, equipment, food and canoe in/on the vehicle: 225 pounds
fire wood 25 pounds.
=775 pounds
1776-775: 1001 pounds divided by .13 = 7700 pounds max trailer weight "pullable".
Specs call for a 750 pounds weight on the hitch, so fully loaded I have 1001 pounds of payload available, so I seem ok.
Is my math correct? There is A LOT of flat ground where I live, its the prairies. There is a few good hills in some national/provincial parks.
I didn't want the ECO, but I realize its the best towing powertrain.
I got coyote long WB with 3.55 e-locker, tow package with factory TBC.
Is this stretching it? My boss is selling the trailer, tires where replaced 2 years ago, bearings re-done on trailer. Its got 4 wheel e-brakes.
- Math done per someone's fabulously enlightening posts, so no need?
Remember that the trailer's tongue load will be approximately that 13%. If 4,885 is the unloaded weight, and you add 1,000+ pounds inside (let's call it 6,000 total for ease), then at 13% tongue weight you're at 780.
I would caution:
Make sure you are including things like tonneau cover, bed mat, etc. 25 pounds seems very light for firewood.
Yes I posted late. And towing math-wize, its my first time. I didnt really want to get into the gibberish of thal the acronyms, etc. But the deal seems good, so I had to start doint the math. It would be very sad buying a trailer that is not towable safely! My only towing experience is a small u-haul...
I just went with the worst case scenario on the trailer GVWR, some of the items in the truck could go in the trailer.
For fire wood, you are right. Where I live, we are discouraged to bring our own wood to camp sites, to avoid propagation of some diseases. Buying on site is costly.
I'm the conservative around here. It sounds like you're trying to squeeze out every pound of trailer you can tow. So you do a lot of guessing and estimating.
A trailer with GVWR of 7,500 pounds should be assumed to be close to 7,500 pounds when wet and loaded on the road. Call it 7,000. With 13% tongue weight plus 100 pounds for the WD hitch, that's 1,010 pounds hitch weight.
Trying to begin with the payload capacity of your tow vehicle and subtracting estimated weights is a sure way to wind up overloaded. Instead, load the pickup with every one and everything that will be in it when towing, fill up with gas, then weigh the wet and loaded tow vehicle. Subtract the weight of the wet and loaded vehicle from the GVWR of the tow vehicle, and the answer is the max hitch weight you can have without being overloaded.
If the max hitch weight you can have without being overloaded is less than 1,000 pounds, then you need more truck to tow that trailer with at least some wiggle room. I would want at least 1,200 pounds payload capacity available for hitch weight before I'd buy a trailer with 7,500 pounds GVWR.
I'm the conservative around here. It sounds like you're trying to squeeze out every pound of trailer you can tow. So you do a lot of guessing and estimating.
A trailer with GVWR of 7,500 pounds should be assumed to be close to 7,500 pounds when wet and loaded on the road. Call it 7,000. With 13% tongue weight plus 100 pounds for the WD hitch, that's 1,010 pounds hitch weight.
Trying to begin with the payload capacity of your tow vehicle and subtracting estimated weights is a sure way to wind up overloaded. Instead, load the pickup with every one and everything that will be in it when towing, fill up with gas, then weigh the wet and loaded tow vehicle. Subtract the weight of the wet and loaded vehicle from the GVWR of the tow vehicle, and the answer is the max hitch weight you can have without being overloaded.
If the max hitch weight you can have without being overloaded is less than 1,000 pounds, then you need more truck to tow that trailer with at least some wiggle room. I would want at least 1,200 pounds payload capacity available for hitch weight before I'd buy a trailer with 7,500 pounds GVWR.
Smokey,
Yes, I know its close, I'm just trying to figure if this trailer, which my boss is selling at a good price, is a safe tow.
I would usually look at a smaller 21-24 ' more recent model (so most likely lighter). Kids are grown-up and don't go camping unless there is wireless this, wireless that, etc....We need a queen bed, and the rest can just be temporary/convertible bedding. That 27 ' trailer is just very nice, clean and well maintained and more than I need, but knowing the owner goes a long way sometimes.
I don't want to risk anything, and I'm also a rookie at this. I thought that in my calculations I factored-in the fully loaded and wet trailer.
My truck's towing capacity is 9100 pounds for the Ford's towing manual. Don't know what to do with the #7050 rating from the door jab. I should go to the weight station to get my truck checked, as is right now, canoe on top.
My truck's towing capacity is 9100 pounds for the Ford's towing manual.
The vehicle manufacturer's tow rating is a myth. It tells you the max weight your drivetrain can pull, but ignores all the weight ratings of your hitch, axles, tires, wheels, frame, and brakes. Most tow vehicles can pull a lot more weight than it can carry the hitch weight of that trailer. My F-150 has a tow rating of 8,400 pounds, but it's overloaded with just me and DW and a TT that weighs less than 5,000 pounds when wet and loaded on the road.
Don't know what to do with the #7050 rating from the door jab.
That is the GVWR of the tow vehicle, and is probably the limiter as to how much trailer you can tow without being overloaded. I explained in the post above how to begin with that GVWR and subtract the weight of the wet and loaded truck to compute the max hitch weight you can have without being overloaded. And assuming a trailer with average hitch weight, how to convert that max hitch weight to max trailer weight.
I should go to the weight station to get my truck checked, as is right now, canoe on top.
Yes, plus a full tank of gas and everybody and everything that will be in the truck when towing. Family, tools, toys, pets, campfire wood, generator and gas for the generator, everything you might haul in the pickup when towing. If you haul a canoe, then you probably also haul life vests, so be sure the life vests (and paddles) are also in the truck. Yeah, those don't weigh much, but if they weigh more than a handkerchef then you want them in the truck when you weigh it.
This is getting me quite puzzled tho.
I'll get the truck weighted this week-end.
But the specs of that trailer are weird (looking at the T271 here). At least to me, the neophyte.
Dry weight 4885 lbs, and fully loaded weight 7500. It's no.3 out of 7 in the lineup. Up to 6/7, all trailers have the very same GVWR, including the two models with the slides.
7500-4885 = 2615 lbs of cargo and fluids? Is it me or there is a LOT of room.
I know this is not an RV forum, but can someone look at these specs?
Those trailers are strongly built, with steel HSS structure. so they can take a lot of load. I calculate a weight of fresh water at 385 pounds. Add 100 pounds for the 2 propane tanks. 485 pounds + luggage, etc.
4885+485=5370+ luggage and food. What is this GVWR? I can see myslef loading the trailer up to 6000 pounds maybe, but not 7500.
I have a similar TT weight to what you are looking at, and these are my numbers.
I have a 2015 SCREW 4x4 with 2.7 EB & 145 WB. 6500 Payload, 12800 GCVW, 7600 TowCap.
Hitching up a Coachmen Freedom Express 257BHS (5400 dry, 7500 gross capacity) with a E2 Fastway WDH with Sway Control.
Weighed it at CAT scales twice with truck and camper loaded close to what it would be for a trip (passengers, gas, gear, empty TT water tanks)
2nd weighing much better after adjusting WDH, even after adding 200 more lbs of gear to the camper.
Last edited by Scoops286; 05-08-2017 at 09:24 AM.
Reason: add image
05-05-2017, 11:23 PM
Help me verify the math / appreciation of good fit/bad fit
