Weight Distributing Hitch question for an open trailer ?

Everything involved with getting to the track and working in the pits

Moderator: John_Heard

Post Reply
Message
Author
User avatar
prostude
Posts: 46
Joined: Mon Apr 26, 2010 11:16 am
Location: Syracuse NY

Weight Distributing Hitch question for an open trailer ?

#1 Post by prostude » Tue Apr 27, 2010 12:38 pm

Hello
I am new to this site looks like a great site
I have a 97 chevy tahoe 4 door and an econo 16' trailer that weighs about #1400 and I tow a 3200 pound car

the truck is sagging more than I would like and I am planning on ordering up a Robin brand trunnion style weight equalizing hitch
should I go with the 600 pound tongue weight 800 pound or 1000 pound they are all the same price for me
any other advice would be great
Street car Old motor 10.80 @122 1.49 60' 355 6-71 stock gm heads stock rocker arms block hugger headers 1-5/8"x2.5" collector
the car ran in the 9's in the 60's with an olds motor.

DOTracer
Posts: 466
Joined: Tue May 24, 2005 11:12 pm
Location: Westminster, MD

Re: Weight Distributing Hitch question for an open trailer ?

#2 Post by DOTracer » Tue Apr 27, 2010 10:40 pm

prostude wrote:Hello
I am new to this site looks like a great site
I have a 97 chevy tahoe 4 door and an econo 16' trailer that weighs about #1400 and I tow a 3200 pound car

the truck is sagging more than I would like and I am planning on ordering up a Robin brand trunnion style weight equalizing hitch
should I go with the 600 pound tongue weight 800 pound or 1000 pound they are all the same price for me
any other advice would be great
600 lb bars should be more than enough for your trailer setup.

The general rule of thumb with trailer design & proper loading is to have 10% of the gross weight on the tongue (tag trailer). More is acceptable sometimes if the tow vehicles suspension is capable of handling the load. Less than 10% can lead to sway issues which can be quite dangerous.

User avatar
prostude
Posts: 46
Joined: Mon Apr 26, 2010 11:16 am
Location: Syracuse NY

Re: Weight Distributing Hitch question for an open trailer ?

#3 Post by prostude » Wed Apr 28, 2010 5:22 am

DOTracer wrote:
prostude wrote:Hello
I am new to this site looks like a great site
I have a 97 chevy tahoe 4 door and an econo 16' trailer that weighs about #1400 and I tow a 3200 pound car

the truck is sagging more than I would like and I am planning on ordering up a Robin brand trunnion style weight equalizing hitch
should I go with the 600 pound tongue weight 800 pound or 1000 pound they are all the same price for me
any other advice would be great
600 lb bars should be more than enough for your trailer setup.

The general rule of thumb with trailer design & proper loading is to have 10% of the gross weight on the tongue (tag trailer). More is acceptable sometimes if the tow vehicles suspension is capable of handling the load. Less than 10% can lead to sway issues which can be quite dangerous.

since the gross trailer weight is 7,000 pounds and 10 percent is 700 pounds should I move up to the 800 pound equalizing hitch?
Would there be any negative effects of getting a 800 or 1000 pound hitch just in case I get an enclosed trailer or trailer something heavier
another words can I just get a bigger handling hitch and keep it adjusted down
the price is the same for all of them 600 800 or 1000
one last thought on the reciever it says max tongue weight 500 pounds and max tongue weight 10,000 weight distributing
Street car Old motor 10.80 @122 1.49 60' 355 6-71 stock gm heads stock rocker arms block hugger headers 1-5/8"x2.5" collector
the car ran in the 9's in the 60's with an olds motor.

DOTracer
Posts: 466
Joined: Tue May 24, 2005 11:12 pm
Location: Westminster, MD

Re: Weight Distributing Hitch question for an open trailer ?

#4 Post by DOTracer » Wed Apr 28, 2010 6:15 am

prostude wrote:
DOTracer wrote:
prostude wrote:Hello
I am new to this site looks like a great site
I have a 97 chevy tahoe 4 door and an econo 16' trailer that weighs about #1400 and I tow a 3200 pound car

the truck is sagging more than I would like and I am planning on ordering up a Robin brand trunnion style weight equalizing hitch
should I go with the 600 pound tongue weight 800 pound or 1000 pound they are all the same price for me
any other advice would be great
600 lb bars should be more than enough for your trailer setup.

The general rule of thumb with trailer design & proper loading is to have 10% of the gross weight on the tongue (tag trailer). More is acceptable sometimes if the tow vehicles suspension is capable of handling the load. Less than 10% can lead to sway issues which can be quite dangerous.

since the gross trailer weight is 7,000 pounds and 10 percent is 700 pounds should I move up to the 800 pound equalizing hitch?
Would there be any negative effects of getting a 800 or 1000 pound hitch just in case I get an enclosed trailer or trailer something heavier
another words can I just get a bigger handling hitch and keep it adjusted down
the price is the same for all of them 600 800 or 1000
one last thought on the reciever it says max tongue weight 500 pounds and max tongue weight 10,000 weight distributing

You need bars rated for the actual towing weight typically used during each tow, not the trailer GVW. If you use bars too high of # rating, they might be too stiff and not tow well.

User avatar
prostude
Posts: 46
Joined: Mon Apr 26, 2010 11:16 am
Location: Syracuse NY

Re: Weight Distributing Hitch question for an open trailer ?

#5 Post by prostude » Wed Apr 28, 2010 8:15 am

You wrote "You need bars rated for the actual towing weight typically used during each tow, not the trailer GVW. If you use bars too high of # rating, they might be too stiff and not tow well."
should I move up to the 800 pounds since I will have the back of the truck weighted down pretty good and just adjust the bars to a lower setting?
Street car Old motor 10.80 @122 1.49 60' 355 6-71 stock gm heads stock rocker arms block hugger headers 1-5/8"x2.5" collector
the car ran in the 9's in the 60's with an olds motor.

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 14 guests