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What's the load leveling distribution hitch threshold on these 145" wheelbase 7,350 GVW trucks? I've recently bought a 7x16 enclosed cargo trailer which is tandem axle and weighs around 2,400 lbs. I think. Looking to purchase a UTV that weighs around 1,100 lbs. to haul inside it. Probably a hundred lbs. or so of camping gear also. So I estimate that the combo will weigh a little north of 3,500 lbs.
I've got load leveling shocks which help with sag. But I've only towed this kind of weight once before with the truck. Do you guys normally run something like the Equal-I-zer setup with a 3,500 lb. trailer?
Do you guys normally run something like the Equal-I-zer setup with a 3,500 lb. trailer?
The towing industry says that a max of 500 pounds tongue weight, not gross trailer weight, is the limiter for determining if you need a WD hitch. Personally, I would lower that to any trailer that might weigh over about 2,000 pounds with 250 pounds tongue weight. If your trailer is never loaded to gross more than 3,500 pounds, that's probably about 455 pounds of tongue weight. That's too close to the 500-pound max to be comfortable, so I would go with a good sway-control WD hitch. Besides, the beauty of your cargo trailer is you can use it for other purposes, maybe loaded it up to the GVWR to help an attractive lady move. Then you would need the WD hitch to prevent overloading the receiver hitch on your tow vehicle.
I have a similar 7x14' cargo trailer with GVWR of 7,000 pounds and over 6' inside height. Even with an empty trailer, I use a good weight-distributing hitch. Not because of weight-distribution but because of the built-in sway control of the good WD hitches that don't rely on sway bars.
That big cargo trailer drags lots of wind, and cross-winds can cause uncontrollable trailer sway, especially when combined with wet pavement with curves and bumps and chug-holes and junk in the road and meeting 18-wheeler freight vans at highway speeds. Dodging a chug hole or a road alligator under those conditions without a good sway-control hitch can put you in the ditch with the greasey side up. Cheaper WD hitches that use so-called sway bars, or that don't have any sway control built in, are not good enough. The Equal-I-Zer you mentioned is much better. Other good WD hitches with good sway control include Blue Ox SwayPro, Reese Strait-Line, and Husky CenterLine HD. Those all list for around $1,000 and are available on-line for about $500 to $700. I use the Reese Strait-Line torsion bar hitch on my cargo trailer.
Reese and Husky both also make cheap WD hitches, so if you buy a WD hitch of one of those brands, make sure it's a Reese Strait-Line or Husky CenterLine HD, and not one of their cheaper hitches. Equal-I-Zer and Blue Ox don't make cheap WD hitches, so no need to worry about exactly which one you buy made by those two.
Trailer has a tag on it with specifics. Know, don't think.
There is absolutely nowhere on the tag that tells you what the curb weight of the trailer is.
There is, however, an approximation that you can do by taking the GVWR, axle capacity, etc. and doing the simple math which is where I came up with the assumed 2,400 lbs. Eventually I will take it across the CAT scales to see what she weighs specifically.
Originally Posted by smokeywren
The towing industry says that a max of 500 pounds tongue weight, not gross trailer weight, is the limiter for determining if you need a WD hitch. Personally, I would lower that to any trailer that might weigh over about 2,000 pounds with 250 pounds tongue weight. If your trailer is never loaded to gross more than 3,500 pounds, that's probably about 455 pounds of tongue weight. That's too close to the 500-pound max to be comfortable, so I would go with a good sway-control WD hitch. Besides, the beauty of your cargo trailer is you can use it for other purposes, maybe loaded it up to the GVWR to help an attractive lady move. Then you would need the WD hitch to prevent overloading the receiver hitch on your tow vehicle.
I have a similar 7x14' cargo trailer with GVWR of 7,000 pounds and over 6' inside height. Even with an empty trailer, I use a good weight-distributing hitch. Not because of weight-distribution but because of the built-in sway control of the good WD hitches that don't rely on sway bars.
That big cargo trailer drags lots of wind, and cross-winds can cause uncontrollable trailer sway, especially when combined with wet pavement with curves and bumps and chug-holes and junk in the road and meeting 18-wheeler freight vans at highway speeds. Dodging a chug hole or a road alligator under those conditions without a good sway-control hitch can put you in the ditch with the greasey side up. Cheaper WD hitches that use so-called sway bars, or that don't have any sway control built in, are not good enough. The Equal-I-Zer you mentioned is much better. Other good WD hitches with good sway control include Blue Ox SwayPro, Reese Strait-Line, and Husky CenterLine HD. Those all list for around $1,000 and are available on-line for about $500 to $700. I use the Reese Strait-Line torsion bar hitch on my cargo trailer.
Reese and Husky both also make cheap WD hitches, so if you buy a WD hitch of one of those brands, make sure it's a Reese Strait-Line or Husky CenterLine HD, and not one of their cheaper hitches. Equal-I-Zer and Blue Ox don't make cheap WD hitches, so no need to worry about exactly which one you buy made by those two.
Yeah when I hook the trailer up while it's unloaded, I get very little drop at the hitch. It sits pretty much level. The truck has a little rake to it when unloaded (design feature of course) and then my enclosed trailer makes it sit almost perfectly level. I'm just concerned about that additional 1,100 lbs. from the UTV. I think the Equal-I-zer is going to be a good future investment just to be on the safe side.
I grew up towing anything and everything with half-ton pickups and the occasional 3/4 ton. Learned it from Dad and the other older guys. I'm talking fork lifts, large farm tractors, loads of dirt and rock, the whole nine yards. It's just the way guys got things done with what they had around here. And I'd never even seen a load distributing hitch in my life until I started reading magazines in college. Guys just know what they can and can't do, and how to drive.
But, I'm coming up on 40 soon and I'm starting to think more about safety and liability these days. Better safe than sorry is probably a good slogan.
There is absolutely nowhere on the tag that tells you what the curb weight of the trailer is.
Actually, there is....if your trailer is new enough.
Just like newer trucks come with a yellow sticker that gives max payload as shipped from the factory...TT have something similar known as the cargo carrying capacity (CCC) sticker.
TT CCC sticker
Often the CCC sticker is on/near the TT door.
It gives you the weight of the TT as it left the factory with a full load of propane. Add 50# or so for a battery.
My trailer is 10 years old and doesn't have that sticka'. It was made by Mirage Enterprises, which apparently is located in Idaho. I'm not sure how it ended up being used by a landscaping contractor in Kentucky. But I bought it used and I'm fixing some things that need fixing.
Actually, there is....if your trailer is new enough.
Just like newer trucks come with a yellow sticker that gives max payload as shipped from the factory...TT have something similar known as the cargo carrying capacity (CCC) sticker.
TT CCC sticker
Often the CCC sticker is on/near the TT door.
It gives you the weight of the TT as it left the factory with a full load of propane. Add 50# or so for a battery.
Yup. Mandated 10 1/2 years ago. And most buying trailers are not buying ones manufactured prior to December 2007.
06-01-2017, 02:45 PM
Load distributing threshold
Then you would need the WD hitch to prevent overloading the receiver hitch on your tow vehicle.
