Suggestions to get weight off the rear axle

[saskrick]

There are two holes in the shank and I'm using the one that that gets the ball closer to the truck. I'm not sure about the receiver. I will look. I don't think reese recommends drilling a hole in the shank. He just said that some people do it. Liability issues.

No I'm not near the scales at the moment. I did the one notch adjustment, I'll move some people in the truck and pack what I can more over the trailer axles and I'll weigh on the next trip to see if I made progress. My spare is under the hitch which would help some.

I think the trailer is pretty good as is. The bottom line is the weight of us in the truck.

Food for thought. In a post a long time ago, I mentioned this as a problem with trucks. For instance, Dads 2009 gm crew half ton has a gvw of 7000 and must weigh close to the ford at 6000lbs. Throw in five 200 pounders in there and you can't bring a fishing rod. On the other hand, five people in vw jetta is ok. Go figure.

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by saskrick

There are two holes in the shank and I'm using the one that that gets the ball closer to the truck. I'm not sure about the receiver. I will look. I don't think reese recommends drilling a hole in the shank. He just said that some people do it. Liability issues...

If you have access to a good drill press with slow speed and sharp bits, you should be able to drill a hole fairly easily. You just have to make sure it is clamped in a vise and is square and vertical when you drill. Most shanks are steel and not cast, but if it is cast, it is cast steel, not cast iron. Using your new drilled hole will not weaken the shank.

[MtnGuy]

Originally Posted by avolnek

The stress you put on the torsion bars to level out the truck and trailer is put into the frame of the TV and trailer... Putting that much force can't possibly be good for it!

Adding air bags or timbren springs would increase your rear end spring rate and any time you adjust increase spring rate you will up the control of sway for the vehicle.

Huh ??

Air bags do nothing with weight distributing. Air bags do not increase what the axles can carry.

[avolnek]

Originally Posted by MtnGuy

Huh ??

Air bags do nothing with weight distributing. Air bags do not increase what the axles can carry.

Not once did I say that it would help distribute weight nor did I say it would increase the weight the axle can carry... So I'm not sure what you are after...

Air bags DO increase spring rate... Increasing spring rate allows the same truck to accept the same load while being able to adjust the truck back to level. Increasing spring rate does NOT increase the carrying capacity of the TV... Increasing spring rate will also inherently add stability... The higher the spring rate, the more stability gained...

The OP was stating he was having issues getting the truck leveled out while he was struggling to get the bars tight enough. Thus air bags would help in the leveling process by increasing spring rate WHILE adding stability as I said in the first post...

I love weight distribution hitches, but I feel that they can cause damage at the same time if they are used to try and distribute too much weight...

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by avolnek

Not once did I say that it would help distribute weight nor did I say it would increase the weight the axle can carry... So I'm not sure what you are after...

Air bags DO increase spring rate... Increasing spring rate allows the same truck to accept the same load while being able to adjust the truck back to level. Increasing spring rate does NOT increase the carrying capacity of the TV... Increasing spring rate will also inherently add stability... The higher the spring rate, the more stability gained...

The OP was stating he was having issues getting the truck leveled out while he was struggling to get the bars tight enough. Thus air bags would help in the leveling process by increasing spring rate WHILE adding stability as I said in the first post...

I love weight distribution hitches, but I feel that they can cause damage at the same time if they are used to try and distribute too much weight...

X2

[saskrick]

@avolnek. I agree with the air bags to lift the back up which would relieve huge amounts of stress on the the receiver/wd bars and add stability. I have never used bags but have bought coil over shocks on several vehicles and the difference was amazing. And these were not tow vehicles. The only problem for me at this point is bags means more weight on the rear axle and I'm way over already. I think I'll be able to get this thing dialed in pretty close - - -eventually!

[saskrick]

P.S. Thanks for all the above replies. Definitely helpful.

[saskrick]

here are some pics of how it sits now. No one is in the vehicle.

[avolnek]

saskrik... I am agreeing with you that you need to distribute the weight of the tongue as well as figure out where to load things in the truck and camper to keep it at the rated weights. I still HIGHLY recommend air bags. Air bags are designed to assist the spring rate of the rear end... A trailer of that length with the light spring rate that the 1/2 is going to have is going push the truck around... You may not notice it but if you were to install air bags you WILL notice a difference in stability...

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by avolnek

saskrik... I am agreeing with you that you need to distribute the weight of the tongue as well as figure out where to load things in the truck and camper to keep it at the rated weights. I still HIGHLY recommend air bags. Air bags are designed to assist the spring rate of the rear end... A trailer of that length with the light spring rate that the 1/2 is going to have is going push the truck around... You may not notice it but if you were to install air bags you WILL notice a difference in stability...

X2 on the air bags. They will definitely stiffen the rear suspension. Won't do a thing for the load on the rear end, but as avolnek stated, stability will be increased.

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by saskrick

here are some pics of how it sits now. No one is in the vehicle.

Something is a little funny, the hitch head looks to be running up on the truck as if the receiver is not level. All of mine were always level. Also looks like the trailer is a little high in the front.

With the trailer unhooked, can you get any vertical movement of the hitch head? If you can, something needs to be done to eliminate it.

[buckeyefan]

Are you sure you have the Max Tow package verse the regular tow package? I don't see the large "elephant ear" mirrors on the truck in the picture. Unless you modified the mirrors, then you might just have the regular tow package.

To be certain, you should check your sticker or look at your sticker online to verify.

[buckeyefan]

You also have the spare tire under the propane tanks. That adds a few extra pounds as well.

[saskrick]

@buckeyefan, yes it is the max tow for sure with 11300 max tow wt and 17100 gcvwr. In Canada at the time I ordered the big mirrors were an option. I actually don't like the big mirrors. The split is right at my eye level and I found them harder to see with, especially when not towing and I don't tow much with this vehicle just the camper. We have a 3/4 and one ton for flat decks and the tandems of course for grain hauling. I just bought these slip on mirrors and I prefer it this way.
@oldcoot,As far as the hitch head, it does look goofy in the picture. It doesn't look so bad out of a picture. But, it is forcing the top of the receiver because of the wd bars. There is a little more play with this shank versus a square tube receiver but not abnormal. I figure its just the way this one is cast. Its not the wrong size. Maybe I should put a little flat iron in there to reduce the slack. good idea thanks.
@buceyefan Yes, I'm considering moving the spare. That would help quite a bit. I'll give this a try first because I prefer it under the hitch. I was thinking about the rock flaps also. I made them and are a little heavy, But maybe only 10-15 lbs so I want to try to keep them.
I hope I addressed your questions and thanks again for your input.
For all the wt on my back axle I'd need a hitch hog and my wt issue would be solved. Maybe its not the handiest thing but it adds another axle to take some wt off the truck. I can't find if this guy is in business though. the site seems dead.

[saskrick]

I've got some cool math results to share. I was about to drill a hole in the shank to move it forward. I can only gain about an inch. So as i was measuring this, I decided to take the calculator out before the drill. So with my wts of the truck and my measurements, moving the shank forward one inch takes only 8 lbs off the back axle. This is with no wd bars, so the effect might be a little better with them on. But its not enough gain to justify the mod. The next thing i did was to see the effect of placing heaviest people in the front seat. The comparison is 400 lbs in front seat/480 lbs rear seat vs 500lbs front seat/380lbs rear seat. This move yields me 27 lb reduction off th rear axle.
These aren't big gains by any means, I just wanted to post it.

[Doering]

Originally Posted by saskrick

I've got some cool math results to share. I was about to drill a hole in the shank to move it forward. I can only gain about an inch. So as i was measuring this, I decided to take the calculator out before the drill. So with my wts of the truck and my measurements, moving the shank forward one inch takes only 8 lbs off the back axle. This is with no wd bars, so the effect might be a little better with them on. But its not enough gain to justify the mod. The next thing i did was to see the effect of placing heaviest people in the front seat. The comparison is 400 lbs in front seat/480 lbs rear seat vs 500lbs front seat/380lbs rear seat. This move yields me 27 lb reduction off th rear axle.
These aren't big gains by any means, I just wanted to post it.

To be honest saskrick, I cringed at the thought of you drilling your hitch. As you know, that's why there are different types of shanks (lengths, drop etc). Looking at the picture, the hitch looks under very heavy stress. I wish I knew more about the Reese hitches and offer you a proper solution, but to my eye the hitch setup just doesn't look right.

[Sgt. Schultz]

saskrick - do you have a tongue weight & how much capacity you have left in the trailer -
- it may be easiest to balance the some of the truck cargo weight across the trailer reducing the tongue to 10 or 11% rather than target 13% -
- what is the ratings for the hitch, hitch ball & receiver, - the 1200lbs bars may be the max you can use

[Dabmeb]

Couple of points that might help, flip the shank and lower the ball, angle the ball back to get the bars pointing down. The square bars should not be parallel to the frame ,they should point down at the back. Also if you check fords towing set up guide lines they want the front fender height at and not below unloaded ride height. This does make a big difference in towing but does nothing to help with your weight distribution problems. Sorry to say with all that trailer and passenger and cargo weight your only band aiding the real problem.

[Herk7769]

I am sure I missed it and it was mentioned already.

Tow ratings are with the driver only and a full tank of gas.
Passengers reduce tow rating and available payload for the camper.
With 7 passengers, not only are you ripe for a ticket in most states (seat belt laws), you may very well be unsafely loaded.

[dretired]

If..you have the Heavy duty payload package in the F150 supercrew here in the United States ..you should have 7 lug rims and e-rated tires..A supercrew with a 6 1/2 box ...4x2 ..3.73 rear axel..XLT ..3.5 eco boost..would have the 11,300 lb towing capability and 2,300- 2,600 lbs of payload capacity...if you dont have the 7 lug rims...you may want to add a extra leaf sping as i did when i had a 2010 F150 and a 7,700 lb 5th wheel