Is there a big difference pulling loaded vs. empty?

[thestrangebrew]

My dealer is only about 12 miles from me, so when I took it home, I took it slow on the highway since I didn't have a WDH or anything at the time but it was empty. In January, we'll be going camping along the coast at an RV park so we'll have all the hookups and will only be staying a 2-3 days so we won't be needing water or a whole bunch of food/drinks etc. I've taken the trailer dry camping, loaded with about a weeks worth of food drinks etc., but I've never towed it practically empty, nor on the interstate (I-5 specifically). Is there anything specific I need to watch for when towing practically empty? I figure we'd be taking about 500lbs of "stuff", but not much more than that.

[thebrakeman]

Most campers (not all) are tongue-light when empty. You need to put some weight in them in order to get into the 10% or more range that is typically recommended for stability.

Do you have a WDH & sway control now? If so, you should be fine. But it would be good to know your TW if possible.

[thestrangebrew]

Originally Posted by thebrakeman

Most campers (not all) are tongue-light when empty. You need to put some weight in them in order to get into the 10% or more range that is typically recommended for stability.

Do you have a WDH & sway control now? If so, you should be fine. But it would be good to know your TW if possible.

Yea I have an Anderson WDH but I don't know my TW. Dry, my trailer is about 4700lbs if I remember right. The drive will be about 180 miles, mostly highway. I don't plan on going faster than about 55-60mph.

[goduc]

You TT comes with a dry TW at 13-14%. Just load up with what you need. Most dry TW from the brochure are without a battery and filled propane tanks which will add even more TW. You should be fine. You truck should tow that TT really easy.

[Twisty]

You're good.
When I had an F150 I towed a dry weight TT of 5300 lbs.
I liked to load stuff in the cab and the bed - cooler, tools and wood. The truck handled the TT better with more weight in it.