28BHS actual tongue weight very high - how to reduce?

[Wsw]

The exact same thing happened to us. We bought our 2021 334rlok. Total weight of 12700 loaded, etc. Tongue weight of 1450. I like equalizer hitches so arranged for them to have a 16000 pound equalizer for us when we picked it up. Big surprise, when I went back to check on camper and truck they were putting a 14000 pound equalizer with a 10000 pound ball. Kind of irritated but cannot come back so just let spent the 900 on it and took camper home.

In addition it was set up wrong. We ended up light on front end. Got home and ordered 16000 pound from equalizer with 16000 pound ball. Set it up myself. I also went ahead and added firestone air bags as well. Dealer also put brackets to close to tongue. That lessens weight distributing ability. I moved the new ones back 2 more inches as far as they will go right against front storage pan. No idea why the dealer did not put the even small hitch ones there.

Towing with a 2019 ram 2500 megacab. 17,200 towing capacity. We are heavy for sure but did not want a 1 ton. We plan on slow and steady when towing. We now sit level and even. Truck does not even know trailer is back there. We get very little bounce now as well.

Your hitch makes a difference but you might look at the airbags. Makes a world of difference when you at upper end of capacity.

[Rustic Eagle]

Originally Posted by blakei

Good question... the slide was closed, but the TT was not quite level L-R as I was on the side of the street in front of our house and it is crowned. Perhaps that was it...snip

A number of years ago I checked my prior Eagle TT's tongue weight on a level site at a campground. Set-up my Sherline and the weight results seemed low....., realized I had my slide open and closed it. Checked the Sherline again and added over 100lbs compared to the first reading.

Bob

[Goblue80]

I’m bumping this thread because we now own a 2021 28BHS and I want to know how OPs doing with his and also get some advice. I have been towing it with our expedition which has gone great up until my last tow when there was around 15-20 mph cross winds. I can’t say it swayed but it was sure moving back there and I could feel it a lot. I know we are pushing/over the payload limits of the expedition so I am going to see how my work truck 2019 f-150 does. I did not adjust the wd set up at all since the hitch receiver heights are identical between the truck and expo. Im posting my 3 weight tickets and the door tag. I have not driven on the highway yet but have a 2 hour trip north on Saturday where I will surely find out if there is any towing/handling difference between the exp and the truck.
By my calculations, I am much better off with the truck because I am under the limits. Would love to know your thoughts

[blakei]

OP here. We continue to tow and do fine. I am careful on tongue weight and measure before trips, trying for 1000 lbs. I have only bikes (~100 lbs) in the truck bed. I also removed 1 propane tank and 1 battery which saved me about 110 lbs. We've done ~4000 miles so far and I feel safe. We stay between 60-65 MPH and go slowly up hills -- the 5.7L hemi revs to 4000 rpm, but we get up them. I start down long grades at 45MPH and use downshifting / gear limit to manage speed and avoid excessive braking.

I am probably 100-200 lbs over payload with 1780 on the sticker, after accounting for people, cab junk, running boards, bikes, etc. I did some upgrades that I think improved stability, ranked:
1) 1400 lb Equalizer WDH hitch with 4 point sway. Huge improvement in sway management.
2) Timber Grove airbags -- less for sag, more for adding stiffness -- really helps avoid the "compression" feeling when going over ruts / bumps.
3) LT tires... I think they help with the "squish" feeling in wind and bumps but honestly the P-rated tires were OK.
4) Hellwig sway bar, middle hole. Honestly can't tell if it's done anything but it was an easy upgrade.

I don't feel like I experience any sway, rather "push." The 28BHS is a LOOONNG trailer and acts like a sail. I do feel the wind push the trailer, and hence the truck, but not in an out of control way. I also feel "suck/push" from semi's that pass. When it is really windy or there are many trucks I just slow down.

I expect you will have a similar experience between the Expedition and the F150, although you'll have "on paper" higher payload on the F150. But I think the towing experience is mostly due to the size of the trailer.

To me, your WDH looks well set up, returning to original steer weight plus some.

Can the half-ton class tow this trailer? For sure... but I think I'd still either prefer a 3/4 ton or a smaller trailer. Sorta stuck in the middle as we mostly do a couple of big summer trips rather than towing multiple times a month. I also don't think I want a 3/4 for a daily driver, and my wife doesn't want a smaller trailer. :-) I may rent a 3/4 for a weekend and see what the around town and towing experience is like... but I'm sorta afraid to 'cause I might like it! :-)

[Goblue80]

Thanks for the detailed reply OP. If I’m calculating/understanding correctly, my tongue weight comes to about 1,020 so I’m not thinking to remove any tongue weight.
After this weekend, I will surely know if there is a difference between the truck and the expedition but I’m with you in thinking there will not be much of a difference. The truck is a 5 liter with 10 speed transmission while the expedition is the 3.5 ecoboost. Both have plenty of power but I’m under payload with the truck and over a bit on the Expedition. I agree with you though….a 3/4 ton would be great but it’s not feasible right now and my wife is in love with our 28BHS so that’s gonna stay. Our longest trips are about 3 hours so I can make do and will be that slow poke on the highway whenever it’s necessary.

[bono]

Expedition should have overall better handling due to independent rear suspension.

I clocked ca. 30k towing miles with 28DSBH and BMW X5. Rock solid combo. I towed this in almost all conditions (no snow yet). The whole package matters - TW suspension, center of gravity, tongue weight, QUALITY of the hitch and how the hitch is set up. My tongue weight is between 800 and 900 lbs. My tow verhicle is 10 years old and I am thinking about switching to something newer. However, towing performance is one of the major reasons why I am keeping it.

[2021JayFlight28BHS]

I too have the 28bhs and started with a 2018 f150 with a 3.5EB and it towed great at about 55mph, sway wasn’t a prob either, had plenty of power (better than my f250 with 6.2 actually), but with people, hitch, stuff, tongue weight I was at or exceeding my payload. I also got a lot of porpoising in the rear of the truck over the slightest road variance.

I was able to upgrade to a f250 and it tows so much better…. Aside from I wish I had the power of the twin turbo/ to weight of f150 ratio in my f250.

But I imagine the f150 will prob feel much the same as the Expedition.

Towing with 1/2 ton is doable for sure, just gotta be smart, don’t drive fast, plan for roadwork, curves , braking , passing semis and such, but then we all should be doing that anyways right?

[blakei]

Thought I'd offer a short 2022 season update on this...

We're now 12,000 miles of towing on this setup, with trips through most western states. This year we just did 3300 miles round trip to Glacier National Park.

I still carefully manage weight on the tongue and in the trailer overall, but boy, does it creep up on you. Over the last couple of years our loading has mysteriously crept up and up... all the small things you add do add weight. We just purged the trailer to eliminate unnecessary items.

I still maintain ~1100 or so tongue weight. Still have the bikes. I end up within spec, except for 1/2 ton payload where I'm over ~200 pounds.

I drive carefully and not too fast, but am definitely in the camp of "bigger truck" (because my DW doesn't want a smaller trailer). We are doing 1 big trip a year and a few short ones; if we were doing many long trips I'd definitely upgrade the truck, because I'm growing tired of:
a) always being concerned with weight
b) knowing I am at the limit with little margin for safety
c) the road pounding we take due to the heavy weight

I'd say c) has become a bigger issue over time. We get pushed by wind, we feel every seam in the pavement, cringe at big potholes. Combining b) and c) I'm actually a bit surprised that we haven't broken something yet!

Let's see what Santa brings. :-)