Trailer capacity

[sawtooth]

You can do it for free!
You can use a simple bathroom scale to measure any tongue weight.
Don't believe me?
Check the E-trailer website to learn how,.... with no cost.

Dang that’s a **** of a bathroom scale then. King Kong’s supplier. Lol

 

[aczlan]

My last Bigtex trailer was rated from the manufacturer at over 18,000 payload. It’s impossible to obtain that figure without using hitch weight. The trailer weighed 5500 with double 10k axels.

Very common.

Dang that’s a **** of a bathroom scale then. King Kong’s supplier. Lol

You use a board as a lever so that be bathroom scale only carries a quarter of the tongue weight.

Aaron Z

 

[newbury]

This is not correct. As RickB mentions the tongue weight is not shared between the trailer and tow vehicle. Picture it this way there is a inexpensive scale used to measure tongue weight. Place the tongue onto those scales and what ever is shown on it is carried by the tow vehicle. Plain and simple and straightforward. You can buy these scales off of eBay for under $200 I believe.

Or you can get a good one from etrailer for $119.
Sherline Trailer Tongue Weight Scale - 2,000-lb Capacity Sherline Tools 578

You can do it for free!
You can use a simple bathroom scale to measure any tongue weight.
Don't believe me?
Check the E-trailer website to learn how,.... with no cost.

Very common.
You use a board as a lever so that be bathroom scale only carries a quarter of the tongue weight.

Aaron Z

And that method can be such a pain that even though I'm big cheapskate, after doing it about half a dozen times I went and bought the one I linked from etrailer.
I usually measure my tongue weight several times during a full load moving stuff from Virginia to Mississippi with my cargo trailer (10K GVW) or equipment trailer (12k GVW).

 

[RandyT]

My last trailer was rated over 18,000 payload by the manufacturer. Should it be limited to hauling 14.5k? If I load 17,000 on the trailer and drive across a scale with each axel carrying 9500 and the truck is rated for the 3500 pounds it痴 carrying is anything over loaded? The trailer weighs 5500 with double 10k axels and the 4 tires on the axel are rated for more than 10k in duel configuration.

And you have found the glitch in trailer ratings by different manufacturers. You have a 20K rated trailer that one company would list as a 18K payload trailer whereas another company would list the payload at 14.5K

 

[4570Man]

I’ve never seen a trailer with double 10k axels advertised as a 7.5 ton trailer. They’re all advertised as 10 ton trailers. Mine was a 22k series. And grossing 22k with it would be easily achievable. How to gross 22 and haul 18 on it, I’m not sure about.

 

[sawtooth]

Or you can get a good one from etrailer for $119.
Sherline Trailer Tongue Weight Scale - 2,000-lb Capacity Sherline Tools 578





And that method can be such a pain that even though I'm big cheapskate, after doing it about half a dozen times I went and bought the one I linked from etrailer.
I usually measure my tongue weight several times during a full load moving stuff from Virginia to Mississippi with my cargo trailer (10K GVW) or equipment trailer (12k GVW).

Yep just ordered that one. Cheap enough.

 

[3Ts]

I have no doubts that method can be done accurately. I think it逞ｴ vastly over a high percentage of people math ability to do so. Figuring out a total price after a 10% tax is mind boggling for a lot of people. I遏･ betting there逞ｴ more people that cant calculate the volume of a cube than those that can. Now you豎*e suggesting using ratios or fractions? Go look at the towing something wrong thread.

I was horrified by your post! Because I think you're right. It's not that hard and I'm not sure if it's a result of our school system passing kids that don't deserve to be or whether it's because the kids just don't care or something else?

 

[goeduck]

Tires are rated to carry less per tire in duels vs single.

Even if the wheels shine like that? That should count for something. :thumbsup:

 

[4570Man]

Even if the wheels shine like that? That should count for something. :thumbsup:

Well, all my trucks and trailers have steel wheels. I’m sure the shiny ones boost fuel efficiency and hauling capacity.

 

[fried1765]

I have no doubts that method can be done accurately. I think itç—´ vastly over a high percentage of people math ability to do so. Figuring out a total price after a 10% tax is mind boggling for a lot of people. I知 betting thereç—´ more people that cant calculate the volume of a cube than those that can. Now youæ±*e suggesting using ratios or fractions? Go look at the towing something wrong thread.

You are likely correct,..... but that is a sad situation.

 

[crashz]

Its funny how some trailer manufactures do consider tongue weight and other do not. My new Quality Steel trailer has a 10K lb GVWR (5K axles) and a big sticker calling out the load capacity of 7K lbs. Trailer weight is about 2900lbs. Further complicating the issue, any trailer over 10K lbs used for commerce would also require a Class A CDL. So if I used the tongue weight rule, loaded the trailer with 8,000 lbs, potentially I could be over weight legally and be cited for improper licensing.

 

[RickB]

Its funny how some trailer manufactures do consider tongue weight and other do not. My new Quality Steel trailer has a 10K lb GVWR (5K axles) and a big sticker calling out the load capacity of 7K lbs. Trailer weight is about 2900lbs. Further complicating the issue, any trailer over 10K lbs used for commerce would also require a Class A CDL. So if I used the tongue weight rule, loaded the trailer with 8,000 lbs, potentially I could be over weight legally and be cited for improper licensing.

If your trailer is tagged for 10,000 lbs you can get cited for driving out of class with an empty trailer my friend.

 

[crashz]

I mis-stated - its 9990 on the tag for that reason. But your absolutely right, 10K on the tag and you're in Class A territory.

 

[4570Man]

If your trailer is tagged for 10,000 lbs you can get cited for driving out of class with an empty trailer my friend.

I keep hearing people say that. I’ve yet to see a single person post proof. Show the law that says it’s illegal to tow a trailer that weighs less than 10k that’s tagged at 10k or more.

 

[RickB]

I keep hearing people say that. I’ve yet to see a single person post proof. Show the law that says it’s illegal to tow a trailer that weighs less than 10k that’s tagged at 10k or more.

Paragraph 6. To be fair, the threshold is 10,001 lbs.
The role of GVWR and GCWR in specifying work trucks

 

[4570Man]

AND the combination is over 26,001 thousand. 12,000 pound trailer and 8,000 truck you’re still legal.

 

[QRTRHRS]

A 7000# trailer will typically have 2 3500# axles. That means that together they will carry 7000#. BUT and additional 750 to 1000# is carried by the TV. Legally, you can load a 7000# trailer to approx 8000# and it will pass a weigh check by DMV.

I somewhat disagree. DOT can and do sometimes ask drivers to disconnect their trailer and weigh both axle(s) and tongue. Not sure what each states plated weights are but if in this case the trailer is plated for 7k, 8k would be over.

 

[fried1765]

Dang that痴 a **** of a bathroom scale then. King Kong痴 supplier. Lol

As suggested.......try consulting the E-trailer website.
You MAY learn how the process actually works.

 

[fried1765]

If your trailer is tagged for 10,000 lbs you can get cited for driving out of class with an empty trailer my friend.

With a private owner trailer tags/trailer not being used for commercial purposes?
Maybe in California?