Weight Distribution Bars, how close should the wieght rating be?

[scurry322]

I am going to be pulling a new Rockwood 282 TESP, the camper weighs 3300#, I will be hauling a 700# quad most of the time. I have not been able to verify what my tongue weight will be filly loaded, butIam assuming it should not exceed 500#. I found a real good deal on a Weight Distribution Hitch with 1200# bars. Is this going to be too stiff for my set up?

[youroo]

Yes with the supplied Info,but this is just a WAG also! You need to know weight in order to Size your Bars! Youroo!!

[scurry322]

Wow I can't believe the typos in my post, sorry if it makes it hard to read.


So, thank you youroo. I understand I need to know actual weights to get a perfect answer. When researching the size to get, people were asking what size to get if their camper had a 500# hitch weight and the responses were to get the 1000# rated WDH. Due to the way this camper is set up, with the deck to carry 2 quads on the front. I do not have a way to check the actual tongue weight until I get the camper and actually weigh it. The specs say 219# tongue weight, unloaded.

[youroo]

The reason why weight is Important is lots of Dealers just Guess on the W/D-S/C setup for Out the Door! This puts the Owner in a position where when they Load the RV for Down the Road use they have a VERY Different Tongue weight! In your case it is even More so,with Very Little without the Front Deck added Items,and Fully loaded! Most TT or even T/H dont have this Drastic Tongue weight change! Youroo!!

[Happy Vibe]

I would be surprised if you can keep the tongue weight below 500lb. If only half of the weight of the quad goes to the tongue you are at 560 lbs without adding your other stuff to the trailer. As youroo has said this is a more difficult weight to guess at because you can have a dramatic difference in tongue weight depending on how much you load on the front. You will have to adjust how you setup your WDH depending on how you load it as well, so I you look at a setup that allows you to adjust the amount of tension on your bars easily. I would say a chain style might be easier as with the equalizer style you would need to unbolt brackets or the hitch head to make adjustments.

[scurry322]

I have already purchased the WDH I am asking about, I will not have the camper until later this month (or later depending on Upstate NY weather). It is the chain type. I understand my tongue weight might be dramatically different depending on they way it is loaded. I planned on loading it with 2 quads and actually weighing the tongue to see what I have. I may need different settings dependent on those numbers also. Most of the time it will be just the one quad and some gear. I just am afraid I went a little overboard with the 1200# bars.

[scurry322]

I just sent Forest River an email asking if they could give me a little more insight as to how the weight is transferred to the hitch as it is loaded. The deck has a 1500# max rating so I figure I need to be set up for that 1st, then back down for my normal uses. The 1st real trip this camper is going to make is probably going to be to WV, with 2 quads on the deck. Thanks for the responses so far, I should have gotten this info before asking the question.

[Happy Vibe]

I would say that with 2 700# quads on the deck you will be close to 1000# tongue weight so the 1200# bars are not overboard.

[youroo]

Regardless what trailer anyone hooks up to you need 10-15% TW for a pleasnt Tow! Now Hensley or Pro Pride claim a different set of numbers! Youroo!!

[Loraura]

Get big enough WDH bars to handle 15% of the GVWR of the trailer. (Ignore dry weight and published dry tongue weights).

[scurry322]

Using that logic, I should get 750# WDH bars. Since the GVWR of the camper is 5212#. So my next question is will the 1200# WDH bars be too stiff?

[Happy Vibe]

I don't think the 1200# bars are an issue. You would need 100# bars for the 750# tongue as 800# would be to close considering how much your tongue weight could change with one or two quads on the front. I am running 1000# (what the dealer had when I picked up the trailer) bars on my Vibe 6501 and it only has 400# tongue weight. Could feel the stiffness with the minivan but not the truck.

[MtnGuy]

The OP has stated that he will be carrying 1 quad (1st post), then 2 quads (another post). If only 1 quad located close to the camper (away from the tongue), then 800 lb. bars would probably suffice.

2 quads @ 700 lb. each placed on the platform (which appears to be centered between the axles and tongue) is going to put ~700 lbs on the axles and tongue. 1000 or 1200 lb. spring bars would be needed if that were the case.

The OP does not state what kind of WDH is going to be used. Equal-i-zer "spring" bars don't appear to be actual spring steel....the bend very little or none at all. Some members have even posted that Equal-i-zer tells them that using oversized bars is not a problem. There is little of no shock absorbed when using an Equal-i-zer......the trailer and TV suspension takes it all.

Other WDHs have true spring steel in the bars, where some of the road shock is 1st absorbed by the bars, then distributed to the trailer and TV. In the case of a WDH with true spring steel, sizing would be important to give you best ride.

When initially getting my trailer set up, I tried 1200 lb spring bars, and the ride was much too stiff. I went to 800 lb bars with my 700 lb. tongue weight, and the ride is much better.

You can see the bend in the bars:

[scurry322]

The WDH I purchased is the Pro Series 49904 Weight Distribution Kit, it came with 1200# bars. I am still waiting to hear from Forest River to see what they have for data on how the hitch weight will vary with loading.

[youroo]

Originally Posted by scurry322

The WDH I purchased is the Pro Series 49904 Weight Distribution Kit, it came with 1200# bars. I am still waiting to hear from Forest River to see what they have for data on how the hitch weight will vary with loading.

Please Post that Info on varying hitch weight with loading,when you receive it from F/R. Youroo!!

[scurry322]

I finally received some good responses and the factory spec sheet from Forest River. This was their response;


So the tongue should always be around 7%-10% of the trailer weight, loaded unloaded, doesn’t matter. So say your at the GWVR of 5200, tongue weight shouldn't exceed 520lbs. But if you put a four wheeler on there and put it closer to the tongue rather than stowing it closer to the units wall, I will say I bet more weight will fall onto the tongue.


I am just going to have to wait until the camper arrives and I can do some experimenting. Thank you for all of your responses!

[Happy Vibe]

That 7 to 10% number surprises me as all the advise I have seen says 10 to 15% is normal.

[scurry322]

I know, I have always heard 10 to 15% as well. One friend was adamant about 11% exactly was the ideal weight.

[pgandw]

Just my experiences: I think the ideal tow weight depends a lot on the aerodynamics of the towed vehicle, and the suspension of the tow vehicle.


Towing boats, the recommended range is usually 5-10% of the tow weight. I always stayed to the 5% end, and had a good track record. But most boat trailers I have owned allowed movement of the axle(s) to get the tongue weight right. The one time I did get the tongue weight too light - 6,000 lbs of sailboat and trailer with 200 lbs of tongue weight - that was the scariest sway I had ever seen. Put it back to 350 lbs on the tongue, and all was good.


My Coleman Westlake PUP would go into sway at anything above 62 MPH behind my 1993 Ford Explorer. My current set up - 2800lb A-frame (as towed) towed by Hyundai minivan - porpoised during a test drive at the dealer's lot. Adding an Equalizer E2 took all the drivability issues away. I like the 11% target figure myself unless the camper is particularly aerodynamic, but am currently towing with more.


Fred W
2014 Rockwood A122 A-frame
2008 Hyundai Entourage minivan

[stever40]

I don't want to hijack this thread but I kind of have a question in reverse order.

My question is this. I have an Equalizer WDH at 1200# bars. I am trying to avoid a purchase aof nother one but am wondering if ther will be a problem if used on a trailer with weight of 5200# and smaller tow vehicle. Will this be a problem?