Trailer nose load conclusion

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pcatterall

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Thought I would put this on a new thread in order to try to wrap up the issue a bit.
Lots of good info from the 'team' as always.
Many of the points did not come out of my early query about 2 versus 4 wheeled trailers in general.

My Transit Gurus say that I can load my particular Transit with 100kgs on the hitch so I will stay with that as a maximum. ( still can't find it in the book or on any plate)

The load ( boat) needs to be correctly positioned on the trailer so that there is not excessive load on any axle/wheel. I guess that when the boat is dead centre weight wise the chassis will be parallel to the ground and there will be no weight at the hitch. As we need up to 100kgs at the hitch I would expect to see the chassis tilted downward slightly towards the hitch. When I raise the hitch to fit it onto my ball then the effort required to get it to the correct height should be the 100kg required. I can measure this using bathroom scales with the tow hitch at the required height.

When hitched up the trailer chassis should be level and the van will have settled a bit at the back.

I guess that there could be an issue if the trailer and van were of different heights, bigger/smaller wheel sizes for example. In this case I think the vans ball height could be varied up or down with a suitable plate.

We should finish up ( when on the road) with:-
the trailer chassis level indicating that the trailer axles are evenly loaded and each axle/tyre bearing the same load
The vans ball hitch bearing the specified nose weight.

This is the way I am proposing to proceed thoughI will welcome any further advice!
If anyone needs my registration number and travel plans for Easter ( so as to avoid that route) please PM me!
 
Cant imagine that, legal rules aside, the issue is as critical as you are making it. If it were then there would be trailer set ups abandoned over all the roads of the UK, people being as causal as most of us are.
 
Almost there!

Peter.
You're almost there but one thing you need to consider is that the nose weight is a MAXIMUM weight not a requirement.
You'll know if you've got the rig set up correctly when you start to tow, because if it's wrong you'll get "snaking" of the trailer.
To much nose weight and the front wheels of the towing vehicle will lift ~ to little and the rear wheels of the towing vehicle will become "light" ~ end result - snaking.

If you would like to PM me I'll be more than happy to talk over the phone.

Peter
TheBoatman.
 
Bosun Higgs said:
Cant imagine that, legal rules aside, the issue is as critical as you are making it. If it were then there would be trailer set ups abandoned over all the roads of the UK, people being as causal as most of us are.
Click to expand...

From serveral years of towing caravans with several vehicles I can tell if the noseweight is wron withing half a mile. You really do feal the difference, between being in control and the trailer being in charge of you. I find that you only need to be some 20kgs from the optimum to really feal the difference.

To check the noseweight it is worth investing in a proper device, available in all caravan shops for a few pounds. Then the bathroom scales keep their appearnce for a bit longer and SWIMBO is happier.

Finally if you intend towing longish distances on a regular basis it may well be worth fitting a stabilised hitch or another anti snaking device.
 
Bosun Higgs said:
Cant imagine that, legal rules aside, the issue is as critical as you are making it. If it were then there would be trailer set ups abandoned over all the roads of the UK, people being as causal as most of us are.
Click to expand...

You can tow a badly loaded trailer for a short distance quite happily at low speed. The motorists stuck behind you might see it otherwise, but hey! And there is always a good chance the local plod is having a bad day, and would welcome the chance to make life difficult for you. Upset them and they can even put a 'stop' notice on your outfit. It happens! Then you are in it big time as you have to arrange some way of transporting the whole shooting match, trailer and all on a transporter. Seen it happen.

As suggested, if you are towing any real distance, or doing it regularly (even 150 miles x2 a year for example), then it is worth getting it right if only for your own comfort and peace of mind! The suggested setup sounds good to me, but just watch that nose weight, 100kg sounds a bit on the hefty side and could make life a bit more uncomfortable than it needs to be.
 
Regularly tow 2t plus and we have a set of scales and lump of wood to balance tailer nose on. Makes all the difference as we try to keep the nose weight to 70-75 kg. from experience this has proved to be the right weight and balance for us.
 
This is the way I am proposing to proceed thoughI will welcome any further advice!
Click to expand...
From someone with a four wheel boat trailer, I think you have figured that all out pretty well.

FWIW I found a figure of 112kg for the nose weight for a Transit but I cannot believe that it is the same for all models.

Maybe a search of the FORD TRANSIT FORUMwill find some figures. May even be worth registering and asking.
 
VicS said:
From someone with a four wheel boat trailer, I think you have figured that all out pretty well.

FWIW I found a figure of 112kg for the nose weight for a Transit but I cannot believe that it is the same for all models.

Maybe a search of the FORD TRANSIT FORUMwill find some figures. May even be worth registering and asking.
Click to expand...

Thanks to you all for the latest input. I do worry a bit about the suggestion that I am being too careful though, perhaps more experienced 'towers' can take a more relaxed attitude.

Mine is the top load carrier of the transit range having rear wheel drive and the beefier rear springs. I feel confident that I can load the towing ball with 100kgs with no effect on the vehicles handling.

I am a member of the transit forum mentioned but have not got a real figure for max nose weight yet.

I will try to report back on how it all goes!
Thanks again
 
pcatterall said:
Thanks to you all for the latest input. I do worry a bit about the suggestion that I am being too careful though, perhaps more experienced 'towers' can take a more relaxed attitude.

Mine is the top load carrier of the transit range having rear wheel drive and the beefier rear springs. I feel confident that I can load the towing ball with 100kgs with no effect on the vehicles handling.

I am a member of the transit forum mentioned but have not got a real figure for max nose weight yet.

I will try to report back on how it all goes!
Thanks again
Click to expand...

If you are towing any distance on the main roiads you are not being too fussy, having the tail wag the dog is not funny, neither is being pulled over because you are having to drive so slowly it is patently obvious your rig is incorrect. 100kg does not sound silly, several of the heavy duty real 4X4s are up in this range

Good luck
 
If you haven't towed before I can understand the caution, I towed a 19ft boat on a 4 wheel trailer to Windermere and back from Derbyshire 3 times last year and the first time I was very wary. After a short while you really do get used to it, so don't worry too much about it, just make sure you are legal and if the back starts snaking slow down very gently.

By the way I use a Mitsubishi Shogun and it has a tow ball capacity of 115kg, I try to keep to under 100kg.
 
If it helps, Drascombe builders Chucchouse boats recommend about 30kg hitch load for small Drascombes, up to Lugger size, and 50kg for the larger cabin boats. That would be for two wheeled trailers, unbraked for the smaller ones and probably braked for the larger. I like to have the load low enough so that I can personally lift the tow hitch end of the trailer if I need to. I don't think I could budge 100kg. I shold think I load between 30-40kg. I have not had any snaking problems (touch wood) towing my 20ft Swallowboats BayCruiser...yet.
 
How old is your Transit? If it was first registered after (I think) 1996 it's towbar needs to be type approved. There ought to be a sticker on it somewhere (on the towbar itself, not the ball) with the type approval number on it. There should also be a "D" number (or maybe an "S" number, can't remember which, on there too. This is the maximum downward force on the towball that the trailer is allowed to exert. I'm told the French police are very keen on stopping caravaners and getting their scales out to check D weights at the side of the road (with the corresponding on-the-spot fines if found to be excessive)!

Also, it's nigh-impossible to share the weight evenly between the wheels on most 4-wheel trailers. You will only ever be "right" for one particular towball height. If you throw a load of sailing gear in the back of your Tranny and fill it with fuel, the towball will drop a little and the front wheels of the trailer will do more work than the rears - and vice versa as you drive along and your fuel load reduces. Some trailer manufacturers have a cleverer arrangement of pivots so that each trailer wheel is suspended individually and the pair on each side can pivot to even out the weight, but that looses ground clearance and I've never seen a boat trailer like that. I did once see some fancy "sprung" towbar that allowed the towball to move up and down automatically a bit, not sure if they still make them. When towing my 4-wheel trailer (not a boat trailer), I find the best thing is to drive 20 miles or so and then stop and feel all the tyres on the trailer. The warmer ones will be the ones with the most load on them (asuming the brakes aren't binding and the pressures are the same)!
 
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