Question: Aluminum Boat Trailer (4500 lbs loaded) Can’t Take Weight Distribution Hitch (WDH)

[ShadowsPapa]

Dave with airbags and using your head driving you should be good. Most boat trailers I've towed were biased tongue heavy and track well or at least okay.
I have a WDH on my T.T. only most for sway control of center of gravity of it and my original tow vehicle was my TJ Wrangler. I used it with my Gladiator just as sway control really. I definitely wouldn't recommend using the bumper as hitch point, but the 2" receiver hitch.
Overall best advice for free from some guy on the web.
You might want to bump up tire pressure on rear tires a few psi. Depending on what tires you have. Don't try to make it a race home, after short distance stop and check tires, hitch, tie downs, ect ect. Then plan a few stops to walk around some doing the same again. The stops are not just safety checks it gives your body a break and keeps blood flowing.

Tire pressure should be adjusted for weight anyway, so towing or hauling, they should be bumped up from the normal daily pressure.

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[Blade1668]

Tire pressure should be adjusted for weight anyway, so towing or hauling, they should be bumped up from the normal daily pressure.

Yes, some might not catch that, mine are because a lot of my driving is towing.

 

[WILDHOBO]

I’m set to pick-up a 22’ boat on a dual axle aluminum trailer that the manufacturer says cannot accept a WDH due to strain on the “Y” shape. It’s in their FAQ on the website, and I’d read that is the case for many aluminum boat trailers (vs galvanized steel boat trailers or other shape trailers, eg flatbeds, dumps etc). I have a stock 23 Gladiator Diesel Willy’s with 6500 lbs tow rating; loaded boat trailer 4500lbs. I’m assuming for quick math that the rear axle weight will be fine (will check later), but am considering adding both air bags and a mechanical sway control. If the increased weight on the rear axle from using air bags (it makes it more than just straight bumper carry, according to a video I watched that weighed with and without airbags) keeps me below the axle rating, and I use a sway control, do we think that’s sufficient? Overkill? Would one be better than the other if I only did one? Is straight bumper carry ok? The trailer has surge disc brakes but no controller. I considered sumo springs and similar but feel the air bags make more sense for my use case. I’ll be driving 8 highway hours to purchase this boat, and then back again, so it’s something I wanted to get right ahead of time. (Why? It’s a rare boat in this part of the world and the price is right). Thank you for any insight from people who have gone through this.

If the tongue weight isn’t horrible, just tow it. You already have electronic sway control in the Jeep, and that’s not that much weight. The tandem will help a ton, and is appropriate for a 22’ boat. Just don’t load the truck up with extra stuff. If they say not to use a wdh, don’t use one. I don’t use one either my 14’ cargo trailer. It’s 2000 empty and I’ve easily had 3k+ of cargo in it. No probl with sway whatsoever. You’re not going to be going 80, but you don’t need to. Just take it easy. It’s well within the limits.

 

[WILDHOBO]

Thanks, everyone. I’ll look into what’s involved with adding airbags myself or if that’s an appointment somewhere. I use the receiver hitch frequently for light trailers but will need to get an adjustable drop hitch so I can set it so the trailer is level post-sag. Appreciate the tip about not overloading one axle; I’ve only towed single axle prior.

Great group.

Definitely, even with small trailers it’s very important that it be level. If you don’t want to spend adjustable hitch money, just measure when you get there, and hit a hardware store to get an appropriate fixed drop. Get one a little higher than your measurement by several inches to account for losing your rake with the tongue weight.

 

[Dave-in-RI]

Tire pressure should be adjusted for weight anyway, so towing or hauling, they should be bumped up from the normal daily pressure.

Is there a target psi relative to something when towing? Or just sidewall max? No reference here. Thank you. I’ve always just added a few psi over normal full, so like 40.

 

[Freems]

Is there a target psi relative to something when towing? Or just sidewall max? No reference here. Thank you. I’ve always just added a few psi over normal full, so like 40.

Check the tires sidewall info on max pressure, when I tow my boat or 18’ haul trailer I run the max pressure in the rear tires…more cushion for pushin

 

[Dave-in-RI]

Check the tires sidewall info on max pressure, when I tow my boat or 18’ haul trailer I run the max pressure in the rear tires…more cushion for pushin

Says 50 psi. Would you do same for front?

 

[Freems]

Says 50 psi. Would you do same for front?

on the fronts I add a little more, but not the max

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Is there a target psi relative to something when towing? Or just sidewall max? No reference here. Thank you. I’ve always just added a few psi over normal full, so like 40.

I don't run the max unless near the rated load. I do a rough figure of the difference. The idea is to keep the same footprint, regardless of weight

 

[WILDHOBO]

Is there a target psi relative to something when towing? Or just sidewall max? No reference here. Thank you. I’ve always just added a few psi over normal full, so like 40.

Depending on the trailer I’m towing, I either increase the rear axle psi, or all four if it’s a larger trailer transferring more weight to the front axle as well. I lower it back down to normal when I detach at my destination.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

You can literally weigh a car by the footprint of the tire on the pavement and the psi in each tire.
Air supports the vehicle.
You start with a given, calculated footprint for that tire holding that weight.
Figure the square inches of tire on the ground, and the pressure per square inch in the tire, and you can figure how much weight that tire is supporting.
The idea is to keep the psi at a number that keeps that number of square inches of tire on the ground.
Running tires at max inflation without maximum load will cause loss of traction, too much bounce, and isn't a safe situation.

I typically increase inflation more on the rear than on the front due to the greater increase of weight at the rear.

Some cars and light trucks used to come with tire inflation decals that actually had DIFFERENT numbers for the front vs. rear tires - that's due to the weight differences. It still kept the same footprint on the ground for each tire.

 

[Blade1668]

You can literally weigh a car by the footprint of the tire on the pavement and the psi in each tire.
Air supports the vehicle.
You start with a given, calculated footprint for that tire holding that weight.
Figure the square inches of tire on the ground, and the pressure per square inch in the tire, and you can figure how much weight that tire is supporting.
The idea is to keep the psi at a number that keeps that number of square inches of tire on the ground.
Running tires at max inflation without maximum load will cause loss of traction, too much bounce, and isn't a safe situation.

I typically increase inflation more on the rear than on the front due to the greater increase of weight at the rear.

Some cars and light trucks used to come with tire inflation decals that actually had DIFFERENT numbers for the front vs. rear tires - that's due to the weight differences. It still kept the same footprint on the ground for each tire.

Oh, dang it you be math'ing us.

 

[Dave-in-RI]

Bought it! I bought Airlifts before my trip, jacked up the pumpkin, added jack stands with wood to support the frame, and lowered the axle. I deflated and inserted one bag, after the puck, but was unable to attach the air tube— the stands weren’t tall enough to allow the coil spring to stretch sufficiently to finish the install. Four local shops couldn’t help me out with a lift, so I just went without bags. This boat had an empty water tank and mostly empty fuel tanks (~50 gal capacity) so was probably under 4k lbs. I’ll weigh it eventually, but there was no sag (1-2”?) and it handled great. Trailer had disc surge brakes and never pushed me along. If a semi went by I’d get sucked in, but that’s expected. I averaged 32.1 mpg over 14 hours to get the boat (lots of traffic) and 22.0 on the return trip while towing— love the diesel. The only thing left is to have a shop finish the airbags for future needs (if the loose one is still in tact!).

 

[WILDHOBO]

Bought it! I bought Airlifts before my trip, jacked up the pumpkin, added jack stands with wood to support the frame, and lowered the axle. I deflated and inserted one bag, after the puck, but was unable to attach the air tube— the stands weren’t tall enough to allow the coil spring to stretch sufficiently to finish the install. Four local shops couldn’t help me out with a lift, so I just went without bags. This boat had an empty water tank and mostly empty fuel tanks (~50 gal capacity) so was probably under 4k lbs. I’ll weigh it eventually, but there was no sag (1-2”?) and it handled great. Trailer had disc surge brakes and never pushed me along. If a semi went by I’d get sucked in, but that’s expected. I averaged 32.1 mpg over 14 hours to get the boat (lots of traffic) and 22.0 on the return trip while towing— love the diesel. The only thing left is to have a shop finish the airbags for future needs (if the loose one is still in tact!).

Super nice boat.

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