UVW AKA Dry Weight, Ignore it!!!
03-17-2019, 12:06 PM
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
UVW AKA Dry Weight, Ignore it!!!
Why?
Simple, the trailer does not weigh that when sitting on the dealers lot, and will never weigh that when loaded for a trip. In fact, the majority of trailers never weigh that unless they are scaled at the plant when picked up and very few manufacturers even have a scale.
The UVW posted is an average of all the trailers they have combined and is based on the components installed, so pretty much a guess. A couple manufacturers actually do scale each and every trailer, and the shippers appreciate it, however, once prepped for delivery to a customer, that is no longer it's weight.
Instead focus on what the trailer may weigh with all your junk in it. To do that look at the Cargo Carrying Capacity on the yellow sticker that is somewhere on the rig. Some trailers will have up to 3000 pounds or more, but some may only have 1120! Consider what you may take with, and don't forget that you will be needing blocks of wood for leveling the trailer as well as pads for the jacks, along with sewer hoses, fittings, fresh water hoses, plug adapters, etc., these all add up. After weighing my trailer a few times, I have found we are hauling around 1500+ with a full FWT.
If you want to find out what a trailer may weigh when traveling, add 1000 pounds plus the weight of the FWT to the UVW and multiply by 13%, and use that as your target weight for available payload, and don't forget to add the weight of the hitch, ~100 pounds.
Also the posted tongue weight is at 10%, which is fine if you want a sway monster. because that is what the trailer will be at 10%. Remember, that is the as it left the plant weight, not the actual weight sitting on the lot, nor will it ever be once ready for a trip.
The target I use is 13%, because it is the midpoint for towing range on a tag along, 10-15%. The more weight forward on the ball the better the trailer will handle, so using 13% for your target weight will give you a good handling trailer and help you stay within the limits of the truck.
When doing it this way, I found that the heaviest trailer I can safely tow within limits is 8300 pounds. After doing all the calculations and getting the hitch properly setup, I found that the actual scale weights were right on the mark.
So when sopping, IGNORE posted dry weights, they are worthless to you.
Simple, the trailer does not weigh that when sitting on the dealers lot, and will never weigh that when loaded for a trip. In fact, the majority of trailers never weigh that unless they are scaled at the plant when picked up and very few manufacturers even have a scale.
The UVW posted is an average of all the trailers they have combined and is based on the components installed, so pretty much a guess. A couple manufacturers actually do scale each and every trailer, and the shippers appreciate it, however, once prepped for delivery to a customer, that is no longer it's weight.
Instead focus on what the trailer may weigh with all your junk in it. To do that look at the Cargo Carrying Capacity on the yellow sticker that is somewhere on the rig. Some trailers will have up to 3000 pounds or more, but some may only have 1120! Consider what you may take with, and don't forget that you will be needing blocks of wood for leveling the trailer as well as pads for the jacks, along with sewer hoses, fittings, fresh water hoses, plug adapters, etc., these all add up. After weighing my trailer a few times, I have found we are hauling around 1500+ with a full FWT.
If you want to find out what a trailer may weigh when traveling, add 1000 pounds plus the weight of the FWT to the UVW and multiply by 13%, and use that as your target weight for available payload, and don't forget to add the weight of the hitch, ~100 pounds.
Also the posted tongue weight is at 10%, which is fine if you want a sway monster. because that is what the trailer will be at 10%. Remember, that is the as it left the plant weight, not the actual weight sitting on the lot, nor will it ever be once ready for a trip.
The target I use is 13%, because it is the midpoint for towing range on a tag along, 10-15%. The more weight forward on the ball the better the trailer will handle, so using 13% for your target weight will give you a good handling trailer and help you stay within the limits of the truck.
When doing it this way, I found that the heaviest trailer I can safely tow within limits is 8300 pounds. After doing all the calculations and getting the hitch properly setup, I found that the actual scale weights were right on the mark.
So when sopping, IGNORE posted dry weights, they are worthless to you.
The following users liked this post:
Ricktwuhk (03-17-2019)
