tongue weight

[evilratgirl]

Re: tongue weight

In many ways this is like apples and oranges.

Bottom line is too little tongue weight will lead to sway. Too much will overload the capacity of the hitch and take too much weight off the front wheels.

In a travel trailer/ utility trailer with the wheels closer to the middle, you have a teter totter effect. This is why proper loading is more critical and a higher suggested tongue weight.

The boats load is more consistant and less of a teter totter. Leverage still applies and knowing your load and capacites of the tow vehicle allows the flexability in the 7-15% rule.

I like the 7-10% on my boat. It's what the owners manual suggests and it tows like a dream.

 

[jeeperman]

Re: tongue weight

We must agree that there is no gold standard, but there is a generally accepted range and there is the range it takes to make the combo safe at all speeds.

Sometimes aerodynamics has a lot to do with how any trailer pulls.
A v-hull boat pulled by a Corvette might wanna lift at highway speeds and try to go it's own way down the highway (sway).
The same boat behind a van or box truck might instead experience down force instead from the air spilling off the back of the van down onto the bow. And thus pull great.

 

[yorab]

Re: tongue weight

I can give my story. I have an older 16' tri-hull that I bought a few years back. The trailer was obviously not made for the boat. It was too short. I have a 240# Evinrude on the back of the boat. The total combo is around 1700# (took it to scrapyard scale). The tongue weight is too little: around 70#. I have issues with the tongue raising up during storage. Also, sway is an issue for me at highway speeds. Up to this point, I have been adding extra weight to the bow just to help with the load balancing, but it can't be good from a fuel consumption or braking standpoint. I have the boat and trailer at the welder's shop right now to correct this problem. In conclusion, I can't speak for other rigs, but for a fiberglass tri-hull with too little tongue weight, there will be problems.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: tongue weight

It doesn't matter if the boat is made of fiberglass, aluminum, or concrete. Weight is weight and improperly distributed on a trailer can and does cause handling problems. Tongue weight depends on load distribution in relation to the axle position. As you found out, too little tongue weight is not a good thing.