The trailer tongue weight is the downward force that the trailer exerts on the hitch of the tow vehicle. Some call it hitch weight and it measures the downward force on the hitch of the tow vehicle. This is important not only for comfort but also for safety, vehicle longevity and performance.
When you talk about fifth wheel trailers, the word “pin weight” means this same thing, which can confuse newcomers
What Is Trailer Tongue Weight and How to Measure It
The tongue weight of a trailer should be 10-15% of the total trailer weight. So, if a trailer weighs 8,000 lbs, the tongue weight should be between 800 and 1,200 lbs. At least 10% is needed, but 12-13% is better for stable towign.
For instance, TaB400 loaded with fresh water and 400 lbs of gear weighs around 3,350 lbs, which gives tongue weight at 12% of 402 lbs. A fully loaded trailer of 3,650 lbs would have 15% tongue weight, about 547 lbs.
Trailers with low tongue weight sway. Load weight toward the front of the trailer to help. If you do not follow the 10-15% rule, it hurts gas mileage, wears parts and ruins handling.
It is better to have weight pushing down on the hitch than lifting it. Too much lifting force can actually peel the trailer off the ball.
There are a few ways to measure the tongue weight. One way is to take the vehicle and trailer to a local commercial scale. You find such scales at truck stops, landfills, quarries and supply centers.
CAT Scales work well because they have three separate scales. Weigh first only the tow vehicle, later connect the trailer and weigh again with only the vehicle on the scale. Subtract the first weight from the second, the difference is the tongue weight.
Another way is to use a bathroom scale. Put a pipe vertically under the tongue of the trailer and lower the jack until the coupler rests on the pipe. If the pipe on the scale is 2 feet from the center of the tongue and the support pipe is 1 foot away, multiply the reading by 3 to get the tongue weight.
There are also special tongue weight scales and digital hanging scales for this use.
Listed tongue weights can be wrong because they do not include battery and propane weights. Real weights usually beat factory numbers. It is strongly recommended to weigh the fully loaded truck at a scale.
When loading freight, watch the weight distribution to avoid overloading the tongue weight capacity. The floor plan and places of stored stuff decide if the tongue weight goes higher or lower. A weight distribution hitch does not reduce the tongue weight, but redistributes it.
Leave a safety margin in the payload calculations, that is a smartmove.
