weight distributing hitch questions

[cpaharley]

I just weighed my tongue on my unloaded 1600# trailer and found it to be 325# I think it is because the wheels sit far to the rear. I plan on loading the trailer to 2500# with a bike and accessories which will mean a tongue weight about 500# which is my max for the class III hitch.
Should I look into a wdh for this set up? I have looked at some sites and most are for a lot heavier trailers. They also appear to be complicated in setting up and adjusting. My truck tows the unloaded trailer level now without any issues and I'm wondering if another 175# on the rear is worth the hassle of trying to shift some weight to my front axles?

[TheHomelessGuy]

Interesting little trailer, wish it had a bit more ground clearance.

As to your question, before you get a WD hitch, get three or four of your buddies to stand in a line in the trailer where the bike will sit, and measure the tongue weight. I'll bet it doesn't go much over 400 lbs.

I say this because I have a pseudo-toyhauler, a Baja pop up with a front cargo deck. Normal trailer load puts the tongue weight around 300 lbs, and when I throw the 600 lb quad on the deck, only half that weight goes on the tongue. As far forward as it sits,  I expected more. Your bike will sit much closer to the trailer axle than mine does.

If the truck sags more than 3 inches with the additional load, I'd consider a WD hitch. Check out http://www.etrailer.com  as a starting point. Lots of good info in their tips section.

I guess what I'm saying is load up and measure it before doing anything. I used a simple bathroom scale and a balance beam to get my tongue weights. A scale, a brick the same height, two steel pipes to support a 2x4. Put the brick at '0' on the 2x4, the trailer tongue at 1 foot from that, the scale at 3 feet from the brick. Multiply the scale reading by 2 to get the tongue weight. I'll see if I can find a drawing of the set up.

[cpaharley]

Interesting little trailer, wish it had a bit more ground clearance.

As to your question, before you get a WD hitch, get three or four of your buddies to stand in a line in the trailer where the bike will sit, and measure the tongue weight. I'll bet it doesn't go much over 400 lbs.

I say this because I have a pseudo-toyhauler, a Baja pop up with a front cargo deck. Normal trailer load puts the tongue weight around 300 lbs, and when I throw the 600 lb quad on the deck, only half that weight goes on the tongue. As far forward as it sits,  I expected more. Your bike will sit much closer to the trailer axle than mine does.

If the truck sags more than 3 inches with the additional load, I'd consider a WD hitch. Check out http://www.etrailer.com  as a starting point. Lots of good info in their tips section.

I guess what I'm saying is load up and measure it before doing anything. I used a simple bathroom scale and a balance beam to get my tongue weights. A scale, a brick the same height, two steel pipes to support a 2x4. Put the brick at '0' on the 2x4, the trailer tongue at 1 foot from that, the scale at 3 feet from the brick. Multiply the scale reading by 2 to get the tongue weight. I'll see if I can find a drawing of the set up.

We looked at Baja but we wanted something you could sleep in without opening up and more Bear/weather proof since we plan on going north a lot. The other issue was ease of loading unloading the bike, I think you sit much higher than I do. I put the tongue jack on my 300# scale and it went 20# past. Your idea of using human weights is a good one, I'm also contemplating moving the spare to the back door and carrying my generator in the back behind the wheels vs the tongue tool box. Both these should lessen the tongue load.