hitch set up

[terryt]

new to travel trailers. when setting up wdh do you need to have your pickup loaded as you would when hauling the trailer. I carry a 4 wheeler...tongue wt of the camper is 650 lbs. .. will be towing with a 96 f250 diesel. ..sorry for the dumb questions. i've always towed a popup so this is all new to me.

[Triguy]

Yes - everything should be loaded as it would be when you are ready to go camp.

I should add that this is especially important because of the weight of your 4-wheeler.

[74bronco]

The wd hitches depend on "geometry". If you setup the wdh before and add the 4 wheeler, your truck will sit lower, adding more weight to the trailer than is necessary. A good method would be to load the truck up before adjusting. A proper setup will put you somewhre between only slightly loading the front of the truck to equally loading front and rear of the truck (you can measure this in inches of drop before/after being "hitched").

Take caution that you don't use the wdh to pick up the rear of the pickup (hehe couldn't resist ) while attempting to "level". This may overload the trailer without you knowing.

[terryt]

do i base the tongue wt only on the camper hitch wt or included the wt of the items in the pickup bed i'm using a short bed for tow vehicle.

[Triguy]

You will not include the cargo carried in the pickup when weighing the tongue of the trailer. The actual TW can be measured with a scale right at the hitch or under the jack but not while hooked up to the vehicle.

Put another way, your tongue weight is a percentage of the total weight of the trailer, which will include your luggage and cargo in the trailer, any water, propane, batteries and the weight of the WD hitch.

[74bronco]

Agreed. Put another way, The WDH is only used to distribute the trailer's tongue weight to the tow vehicle's front axle and also the trailer's axles. Anything in the truck should not be taken into consideration.

If the payload in your truck is enough to cause you some heartache because the truck is sagging in the rear, you could consider air bags on the truck to "help level" the truck. Just take care not to use the WDH to "level" the truck.

Happy towing.