Coupling To The Tow Vehicle
Tongue Weight as a Percentage of Loaded Trailer Weight
Type of Hitch Percentage
Ball Hitch (or Bumper Hitch)
78
10–15% for large
trailers
6-10% for smaller
utility trailers
Gooseneck 20–25%
! WARNING
Improper tongue weight (load distribution) can result in loss of
control of the trailer, leading to death or serious injury.
Make certain that tongue weight is within the allowable range.
Be sure to:
Distribute the load front-to-rear to provide proper tongue weight
(see chart);
Distribute the load evenly, right and left, to avoid tire overload;
and
Keep the center of gravity low.
CHECKING TONGUE WEIGHT
To check the tongue weight, the tow vehicle and trailer must be on level ground, as
they will be when the trailer is being towed.
Take the trailer to a truck stop or grain elevator where there is a “certified” scale.
Place the tow vehicle only onto the scale and get the weight. This weight must be
less than your tow vehicle’s GVWR. Pull the trailer onto the scale and uncouple it
from the tow vehicle, leaving just the trailer on the scale. Get a ticket which lists the
total trailer weight. Re-connect the trailer to your tow vehicle and the drive the tow
vehicle wheels off the scale, just leaving the trailer axles on the scale. Get a
“ticket”, which lists the trailer’s axle weight. Simply subtract the axle weight from
the total weight to determine the hitch weight.
While you are at the scale, you should weigh the entire combination vehicle. This
result should be less than the Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR) for your
towing vehicle. Some scales allow you to get individual axle weights also. If this is
possible, get the tow vehicles front and rear axle weights to make sure they are in
the same proportion as the tow vehicle alone, and that the rear axle is not
overloaded. This is the best way to check that a weight distribution (or loadleveling)
hitch is adjusted properly, i.e., you have the proper number of chain links attached
to the snap-up brackets.