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Old 02-21-2018, 02:42 PM   #21
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2017 19' International
Tallahassee , Florida
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruce B View Post
Why guess? We have one of these Sherline scales and every time I make a modification to our Bambi, I check our tongue weight.
Kinda pricey for me ($150) for something I'd rarely use after the first time.

Be a nice thing to buy with a friend or two and share.
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Old 02-21-2018, 03:12 PM   #22
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Kinda pricey for me ($150) -- snip --
Use the lever, pipe and bathroom scale method. You can do everything for less if you research and educate yourself. We all need to learn lots about towing. It is easy to hook up and roll. It's a bit more involved to understand what is happening from the ball back. Everyone's rig is different too.

Good luck with your development. Hope to see your smile down the road. Pat
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Old 02-21-2018, 06:23 PM   #23
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Guessing I will be using my new Sherline quite often, but the first time will be the most exciting
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Old 02-21-2018, 06:30 PM   #24
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Originally Posted by overlander63 View Post
The fresh water tank is in the very front of the trailer, so most of the weight will go directly to the tongue.
You would think most people would travel with water in the fresh tank and hopefully an empty black or grey. So why not put the grey up front?

Expecting very few owners of a 19ft will travel with fresh water since one reason they probably bought it was restricted hitch weight issues.
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Old 02-22-2018, 03:18 AM   #25
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The gross on the current FC19 is 4500lbs with a tongue of 550lbs. The listed weight without gear and options is 3912lbs which leaves 588lbs for gear. A tongue of 850lbs is an addition of 300lbs directly on the ball or the measurement is incorrect.

.
Traveling without full water is not an option for me. No, the measurement is NOT incorrect. Tongue weight is quite simple to measure.

I don’t put “gear” in my trailer, just a couple pots and pans, six pack of beer or pop, and bedding. I don’t like stuff banging around in the trailer. I bet I add less than 50 lbs of stuff when I go. The rest goes in the truck, which has 3000 lbs of payload. If I had to measure and weigh every time I go somewhere I would get a bigger tow vehicle (which I did).
I don’t like “tricks” to reduce tongue weight. That’s why I got rid of the Grand Cherokee early on. I might go to an auction and buy 3 or 4 flathead Ford engines and I like to be able to just load them up.
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Old 02-22-2018, 09:14 PM   #26
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2007 23' Safari SE
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CB, point being you made it work, but buying a new TV. Makes me wonder what the hitch weight is on a 23 Safari or FC D, with a full fresh water tank and nothing else?
Will let everyone know eventually when I get my Sherline scale soon and trailer out of inside storage in 2 mos...

But the point is, this is a single axle trailer, second smallest Bambi and supposed to be light weight.
Traditionally meant for SUVs or lighter weight trucks.
I just see 850lbs as being wrong for that configuration and even with 200 lbs of water, cant figure where the extra 100 pounds is coming from?
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Old 02-22-2018, 10:04 PM   #27
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Gear, bigger batteries and WDH components attached to tongue would be likely. However, on your coach, new or used, you are in control of the load out and modifications, so not to worry. Learn and do. There will be a smile in that. Pat
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Old 02-23-2018, 10:54 PM   #28
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On the 19’ could it be the 60lbs of propane, 2 batteries and full fresh water contributing to that heavy tongue weight? The spec sheet on base weight is less fluids and options, so perhaps the tongue weight is same?
Just purchased a used 19’ and that 850 lb tongue weight gave me pause...
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Old 02-24-2018, 12:08 AM   #29
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Yes, it should give a body pause. Propane and the stock wet cell battery bank are included in the listed tongue weight. The fresh water and any options like solar, battery upgrade or WDN components are not included.

As an owner, weight management through appropriate gear loadout is your responsibility. A trip to your local CAT scale can give you the data you need. The cost is not expensive ($15-20) and much less than the purchase cost of a dedicated tongue scale.

Good luck with your rig tuning. Don't teeter-totter balance. Load over the axle whenever possible and keep improving your approach. Pat
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Old 02-24-2018, 07:06 AM   #30
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On the 19’ could it be the 60lbs of propane, 2 batteries and full fresh water contributing to that heavy tongue weight? The spec sheet on base weight is less fluids and options, so perhaps the tongue weight is same?
Just purchased a used 19’ and that 850 lb tongue weight gave me pause...
You should of course weigh yours if you’re worried. I never worried much about it and an extra 100 lbs is nothing. The Grand Cherokee was just a little bit light on power for towing. I need to be doing the speed limit or more at the end of the entrance ramp. But once up to speed the GC was fine.

I need full water and propane before I head out. Empty tanks are not an option just to save a few pounds.
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Old 02-24-2018, 08:11 AM   #31
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Quote:
You should of course weigh yours if you're worried.
Worry not... I have all intentions of weighing :-) We received the trailer at storage and were only able to bring it home one weekend to inventory what we need to work on/ fix/ upgrade before the snow started flying.
Great forum, good info... adding this to the list of "to-dos" before we start venturing out on weekends this year.
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Old 02-25-2018, 04:53 PM   #32
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My take on the hitch weight listed by AS (550lbs) is with batteries and full propane.
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Old 02-25-2018, 07:19 PM   #33
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I was curious, and wanted to know how close the tongue weight was to the 500# hitch rating on my TV. So, a few years ago I filled the water tank (we always leave the house with it full, and come back empty), and the two 30# LP tanks were close to full. Now, my model year only has one battery. I got out the bathroom scale and followed the pipe and block diagram, set it up as directed, and got .........exactly 500#, as advertised. 2000 19' Bambi
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Old 02-25-2018, 07:25 PM   #34
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Worry not... I have all intentions of weighing :-) We received the trailer at storage and were only able to bring it home one weekend to inventory what we need to work on/ fix/ upgrade before the snow started flying.
Great forum, good info... adding this to the list of "to-dos" before we start venturing out on weekends this year.
Depending on what you tow with, it might be a moot point. If the tongue weight is 500, and TV rating is 500, might not be the best thing.
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Old 02-26-2018, 08:11 PM   #35
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Depending on what you tow with, it might be a moot point. If the tongue weight is 500, and TV rating is 500, might not be the best thing.

It’s a Tacoma with 640# hitch rating. If Airstream spec is correct with batteries and full propane, we should manage with proper loading. Weigh, weigh, weigh to get it right. Found there is a Cat scale just a couple of miles from the house [emoji4]
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Old 02-26-2018, 09:31 PM   #36
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Coming from someone who watches weight and especially TW like a hawk... a few other points. It's not simply gvar and the weight of the load but where in the TT it is. IMO, it is important to know how moving a 30 lb tool bag, or that bag of doog food, from here to there to affect the TW target. Ditto, propane & water. Seems not everyone has FW in the tail & all the easier to affect TW. Also weigh each tire, not just the axle.

Also remember that the weight dist hitch transfers TW lbs forward.

Bob
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