Quote:
Originally Posted by cochise
The 1000# is the max load that you can put on the spring bars, not what you should put on them. Besides the spring bars will shift the weight to the TOW vehicle from the tongue!
|
Not exactly........The 1000# is the max
static tongue weight that should be put on the WDH.......
BIG difference.
It's best to keep the the rating of the WDH close to the actual tongue weight (about ~25-50% extra margin....500# TW ~600-800#
IMO). When you use a WDH that is rated too high, there is less flex in the spring bars and the possibility of extreme shock loading to the trailer and TV front axles because the spring bar is too rigid for the load carried. A 1000# rated WDH on a TM is over 100% higher than what the WDH is designed to handle. It is sorta like putting 1-ton springs in a 1/2 ton pick-up. Instead of the springs doing the job that they are meant to do, most of the shock-loading is transferred to the vehicle and the vehicle gets an unnecessary beating.
The WDH distributes the tongue weight (
approximately) 1/3 to the TV rear axle, 1/3 to the TV front axle an 1/3 to the trailer axle. When the trailer is static, a 500# tongue weight should place ~160# on the TV rear axle, 160# on the TV front axle and 160# on the trailer axle (if the WDH is adjusted properly).
The problem comes in when you use an over-sized WDH. With a 600# rated hitch, the max that will be placed on the trailer axle (when going over bumps and dips in the road) would be ~200#....800# WDH ~266#.If you use a 1000# rated WDH, you can have up to ~333# additional weight placed on the trailer axle.
One must also keep in mind all of the extra cargo that is carried in the back of the TV. The shock loading of that cargo (when going over bumps and dips) plays a roll in the shock loading to the Trailer axle (and TV front axle) as the rear of the vehicle places heavier loads on the spring bars when the rear goes down (from inertia) and the TV springs can absorb less of the shock.
IMHO.......that may be one of the reasons that we see so many blow-outs on these TMs.