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Tongue weight scale

rattlewagon

rattlewagon

shitboxin
Joined
May 20, 2020
Member Number
552
Messages
486
Loc
Northfield Vermont
Bought this for my father so he could dial in towing his boat, so naturally, I borrowed it. Ive always just guessed, nice to know now.

Trailer weighs 2500, I dont know what the crawler weighs, maybe around 4k?

400 lbs empty
1693011715516.png


700 loaded loaded all the way back (picture is blury)

1693011635110.png


1693011688553.png


1000 loaded more forward than I ever do

1693011593801.png


1693011510961.png


So my normal tongue weight is around 800 depending on where the truck lands. If truck and trailer are 6500, that puts me around 12/13%

I usually try to park with the shifters just in front of the front trailer axle, seems to be happy there.

So that was my afternoon learnings, thanks for reading along. Haha

Link to Jack: SIMPLE WEIGH™ Tongue Scale | Fastway Trailer | Fastway Trailer

I had looked into the hitch scale types, but people said they dont stay accurate long if you tow with them, but would love some real world feedback if anyone has any?
 
I have no input other than the fact that I’d like to get my hands on it too.

I will say, with OME springs and no bags, I’ll put the crawler more biased on the trailer if I have the 1000# camper in the back - so I don’t frown my springs. But it sometimes will wag the tail. :eek:
 
I'm surprised that traymore is that light.
The 18ft 12k I used to have was around 3500lbs empty.
 
i just got one of then hitch type scales. i was not going to tow with it just use it for a guide to set good tongue weight. new trailer the axles are more centered than i like so i need to adjust my ways...
 
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That's a neat product, much cooler then that hitch with that build in the scale thingy.
Still not sure if I car enough to buy one, I am a caveman too and load it until it's on the trucks overloads.
 
lasts night load
trailer is 2500#
landcruiser is solid 4500-5000#
fist scale pic is in my driveway

the second one i took after i drove for 5 miles, i stopped to tie up a strap end and decide to take a pic of scale and saw it increased by 200 pounds almost. got me thinking. my drive way does go slightly uphill in that first pic. is that possible the weight transfer is not as accurate? no the rig never moved either.
1693492424253.png

1693492445895.png


1693492607990.png
 
chaplinfj60 said:
lasts night load
trailer is 2500#
landcruiser is solid 4500-5000#
fist scale pic is in my driveway

the second one i took after i drove for 5 miles, i stopped to tie up a strap end and decide to take a pic of scale and saw it increased by 200 pounds almost. got me thinking. my drive way does go slightly uphill in that first pic. is that possible the weight transfer is not as accurate? no the rig never moved either.
1693492424253.png

1693492445895.png


1693492607990.png
Click to expand...

I really like that hitch. Going to pick one up as I had no idea they made anything like that.
 
FleshEater said:
I really like that hitch. Going to pick one up as I had no idea they made anything like that.
Click to expand...
amazon dude. my thoughts on the hitch are this. it is a tool to help me get my tongue figured out. i dont think i will use it as my hitch all the time. maybe i can i dont know.
 
Frankly I think the fancy scale hitch is a gimmick being peddled to the book smart engineer crowd who want to over-analyze everything for no good reason.

Basically same category of useful on paper and useless in reality as those OBD1 code readers that just count the blinks for you and save no time vs just penciling it out.

What you want is good handling. You don't really GAF about the number except as a means to that end. If you don't know with pretty good accuracy the weight of your cargo then the number is fairly meaningless. Tongue jack, lever and bathroom scale are close enough and good enough.

Unless you're hauling shit that easily rolls or slides on a trailer with room to adjust then it's not like you really have much freedom to dial in the weight.

If you haul the same load most of the time, say toys or a camper or whatever then number doesn't matter because you'll have your setup dialed in from experience alone.

If you're hauling a boat then the bunk configuration on the trailer is gonna determine placement. If you're hauling your boat on your trailer and can adjust bunks then once again it doesn't matter because you'll figure it out from experience.

If you're hauling bulk or scrap or whatever you'll get it close enough with your eyeball and gut and it's not like you're gonna be adjusting that stuff much after the fact nor do you know it's weight with particular accuracy.

Don't get me wrong, it'd be cool to have the info and I'd certainly rock one if I got it for free but I just don't see the utility outside the very narrow range of uses where you're hauling shit you know the weight of with pretty good accuracy and you're pushing your tow rig hard enough that the space between too little and too much tongue weight is very narrow
 
so my reasons for the scale were i changed trailers this year and it freaking sucks. no the trailer is awesome. but its a tilt deck and the tires are more centered on the trailer. things i had no idea would make a difference like it does. i carry tool boxes on the front of the trailer and with the buggy, the normal load, i can pull up far enough to get the placement good with out scales. but when i tried to put a car or my land cruiser on there with the tool boxes i think i had 200 pounds of tongue weight with the lancruiser because my bumper hit the tool boxes and would not let me go further forward. so off cam the boxes and now i will relocate them further forward of the deck right above the jack but inside the the tongue triangle so i wont fuck up my turning or jack knifing ability.
i estimate the boxes weight approx 200 total and if i can apply that weight further forward and free up deck space that would be ideal.
 
Had the chance to buy in on a tongue weight hitch at work and passed on it, I don't really see the advantage of one vs taking a tape measure and seeing how much drop you have pre loading vs post loading.
If you measure the tow vehicle bumper height and the trailer bumper height before and after loading you can see how much they dropped, the tow vehicle bumper should drop a little more than the trailer bumper.
If you want to get fancy, mark the trailer as far forward of the axles as the back bumper is behind them and work off of that to see how much it has dropped.

Aaron Z
 
Measuring bumper height drop has nothing to do with knowing how much tongue weight you have. Your light duty 1/2 ton will drop a shit ton more than my 3500 dually with the exact same tongue weight.

I agree not knowing is not a big deal. I probably towed for 40 years without knowing my tongue weight and just guessing. But, actually KNOWING is good info and comforting when hauling heavy loads.
 
white-rhino said:
But, actually KNOWING is good info and comforting when hauling heavy loads.
Click to expand...
Unless you know the net weight of what you're towing with decent accuracy the number don't mean much though.

And how often do you actually know that? And of those occurrences how often is that information both actionable and not made redundant by other info? And of those situations how often does it actually matter much (i.e you're trying to thread the needle between tongue light and too much on the tow rig).

If it were a +$20 option it'd be worth considering but for something that starts at $100 it'd better be making shit easier every time I use it. That's a lot of money to pay for "novelty info" that can be gained in other ways (bathroom scale and lever arm) the times you really want it.
 
rattlewagon said:
Bought this for my father so he could dial in towing his boat, so naturally, I borrowed it. Ive always just guessed, nice to know now.

Trailer weighs 2500, I dont know what the crawler weighs, maybe around 4k?

400 lbs empty
1693011715516.png


700 loaded loaded all the way back (picture is blury)

1693011635110.png


1693011688553.png


1000 loaded more forward than I ever do

1693011593801.png


1693011510961.png


So my normal tongue weight is around 800 depending on where the truck lands. If truck and trailer are 6500, that puts me around 12/13%

I usually try to park with the shifters just in front of the front trailer axle, seems to be happy there.

So that was my afternoon learnings, thanks for reading along. Haha

Link to Jack: SIMPLE WEIGH™ Tongue Scale | Fastway Trailer | Fastway Trailer

I had looked into the hitch scale types, but people said they dont stay accurate long if you tow with them, but would love some real world feedback if anyone has any?
Click to expand...
Awesome tool.:smokin:


Thanks for the link.:beer:
 
arse_sidewards said:
Unless you know the net weight of what you're towing with decent accuracy the number don't mean much though.

And how often do you actually know that? And of those occurrences how often is that information both actionable and not made redundant by other info? And of those situations how often does it actually matter much (i.e you're trying to thread the needle between tongue light and too much on the tow rig).

If it were a +$20 option it'd be worth considering but for something that starts at $100 it'd better be making shit easier every time I use it. That's a lot of money to pay for "novelty info" that can be gained in other ways (bathroom scale and lever arm) the times you really want it.
Click to expand...
Ahhhh but I do know those numbers. I have scaled all of my trailers multiple times with different rigs on them, giving me a pretty good handle on what percentage my tongue weight is compared to my total weights. It's kinda comforting when towing heavy loads that the numbers add up.

As an example; two rigs that individually scaled just under 5000 pounds. A 26' tag trailer that title weight was at 4000 pounds. So, should be able to get numbers adding up to 14,000 pounds, right?
Going from memory because this was back around 2016;
Measured tongue weight was 1800 pounds.
Scaled axle weight was 12,000 & change.
Kaboom, yep, 12-13% tongue weight and it trailered excellent. Could a person get the same results by guessing and feel? Sure. But knowing was nice.

My 14 aluminum trailer titles at 1000 pounds. Buggy scaled 4900. 600 pounds on the tongue = 11% tongue weight. Again, trailers perfect.

There is a reason people say 10-15% tongue weight. It works. And knowing you are in the range is all the better.
 
Now put your tongue on it, ya wont cause ya know it will freeze to it.

I triple dog dare ya!
 
white-rhino said:
Ahhhh but I do know those numbers. I have scaled all of my trailers multiple times with different rigs on them, giving me a pretty good handle on what percentage my tongue weight is compared to my total weights. It's kinda comforting when towing heavy loads that the numbers add up.

As an example; two rigs that individually scaled just under 5000 pounds. A 26' tag trailer that title weight was at 4000 pounds. So, should be able to get numbers adding up to 14,000 pounds, right?
Going from memory because this was back around 2016;
Measured tongue weight was 1800 pounds.
Scaled axle weight was 12,000 & change.
Kaboom, yep, 12-13% tongue weight and it trailered excellent. Could a person get the same results by guessing and feel? Sure. But knowing was nice.

My 14 aluminum trailer titles at 1000 pounds. Buggy scaled 4900. 600 pounds on the tongue = 11% tongue weight. Again, trailers perfect.

There is a reason people say 10-15% tongue weight. It works. And knowing you are in the range is all the better.
Click to expand...
You're intentionally being obtuse.

Those are your personal trailers and your personal toys. You don't need to know the numbers because after two or three trips you'll have it dialed regardless.

The people who need the scale are 2BB types who are gonna drive a tractor of known weight on and stop driving forward when the scale says to. But 2BB types don't actually need that because they have more than enough truck and trailer for their typical use and when you're doing the atypical BDL stuff your weight distribution hand is usually forced by tire and axle ratings.
 
arse_sidewards said:
You're intentionally being obtuse.

Those are your personal trailers and your personal toys. You don't need to know the numbers because after two or three trips you'll have it dialed regardless.

The people who need the scale are 2BB types who are gonna drive a tractor of known weight on and stop driving forward when the scale says to. But 2BB types don't actually need that because they have more than enough truck and trailer for their typical use and when you're doing the atypical BDL stuff your weight distribution hand is usually forced by tire and axle ratings.
Click to expand...
And you are intentionally unwilling to acknowledge that some of us actually WANT to know our numbers, learn from it and have a comfort level of what we are towing. I've already said that a tongue scale isn't necessary and I trailered for years without one - but it's nice to have.
 
white-rhino said:
And you are intentionally unwilling to acknowledge that some of us actually WANT to know our numbers, learn from it and have a comfort level of what we are towing. I've already said that a tongue scale isn't necessary and I trailered for years without one - but it's nice to have.
Click to expand...
it must be hard being knowing everything like he does... show him some empathy.
 
Another alternative to the tongue scale would be a hydraulic bottle jack with a pressure tap and gauge. That and a little math.
Multi use tool.
 
With the CAT app on your phone, CAT truck scales are way way easier to use than they used to be, by the way. I bought one of the Sherline scales years ago. I used it for a bit, got used to my load, and haven’t used it much since then.

But occasionally I’ll go weigh the whole setup (motorhome pulling a trailer). Weigh it once with the trailer loaded and connected, go drop the trailer, weigh it again. Quicker than it sounds, and on a motorhome, it’s kinda useful to see how much weight you lose on the steers with some tongue weight.
 
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