5’er pin weight

[richclover]

Finally got my 5’er weighed. Local Flying J Cat scale. Steer axle, drive axle and trailer axles. No surprise on two, but the drive axle weight was.

The camper was loaded for a road trip. About 15 gallons fresh water for rest stops, empty gray and black tanks. Full fridge and the usual other stuff. Truck had a cooler (beer and ice ), and what’s always in it. Full fuel and DEF.

I weighed the truck a while back, what’s always in it. Full fuel and DEF. So... Subtracting the earlier truck drive axle weight from the “hooked up“ drive axle weight should yield the pin weight, right?

That weight worked out to an even 3000#. Combined with the trailer axle weight it put the trailer GVW at 12,700#. 700# over the max gross trailer weight rating. The trailer axle weight was 9700#, or 300# under the two 5000# axles and well within the wheel and load range E tire Limits.

We all know that the factory brochure specs can be pure BS, but my camper is advertised to weigh 12,000# with a pin weight of 1800#. One reason I bought it.

I will take it back to the local Flying J for a re-weigh.

Has anyone seen a 3000# pin weight? Thoughts?

 

[steveblonde]

You have many issues- sorry not trying to be rude
1 you looked at a published weight of an unloaded trailer with a "average shiping weight"
Its before options before batteries before propane or propane tanks
2 you need to look at the GVWR nobody pulls an empty trailer you have pots pans dishes food bedding booze etc even the hot water tank has 10 gallons at 8.3lbs per gallon
3 you looked at a brochure weight -WRONG
4A 12000 lbs trailer would have 25% pin weight that = 3000lbs not 1800lbs

Here are my actual numbers from 2 weeks ago.

Can you say new truck shopping lol hate to tell you this -sorry if you look my pin is 4409 lbs

 

[Rene T]

WhT you want to do is drive just the truck onto the scale and stop before the front landing gear is over the scale. Record the weight. Then raise the trailer off the hitch using the landing gear. Once it clears the hitch just a touch take another reading. Subtract the two and that’s your pin weight.

 

[steveblonde]

they get really grumpy here when you do that, its easier to take the truck over without the trailer - then hook up and do it again, the guys here have no sense of haha

 

[donn]

Look around for a local DOT scale that is not being used. Here in OreGun if the scale is not manned the wcales are still on. I have spent time back and forth to get accurate weights.

 

[stripit]

Rene T has it correct, at least for getting the entire truck weighed, with and without the trailer. Then subtract those numbers, front and rear axle weights, to get the real pin weight going on the truck. And a 12,000 lb gross weight trailer should have a 3000 pound ish pin weight.

 

[xrated]

I could only HOPE for something as low as 3000 lbs of pin weight!

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

In any case, I would expect a 12,700 lb trailer would have a pin weight in the 2500-3000 lb range. Pin weight is 20% minimum and 25% is quite common.

As Steve says, the brochure or website specs for pin weight and unladen weight are useless because they are for some base configuration of an empty trailer. Not even useful for planning purposes. That 1800 lb advertised pin weight is no doubt an estimated value for an empty trailer at the factory. It's not a promise of what your loaded trailer will weigh on the pin.

There will be an actual weight placard in your trailer that represents what it weighed when it left the factory, and even that is probably a 100 or so less than what yours weighed when you picked it up from the dealer.

Since you have 2 x 5000 lb axles and the axles cannot exceed 80% of a 5W trailer GVWR, your weight placard cannot show a GVWR greater than 12,000 lbs. You are over the GVWR.

 

[SargeW]

I know it's hard to read the above comments, but they are honest and true. You are most likely in the range of a 1 ton truck to handle the weight of a loaded trailer. It is very common for RV dealers to "fudge" a bit when selling a trailer.

The same thing happened to me once when a dealer took my deposit on a Grand Design 36' fiver. He even brought out a binder that listed what the GCWR was on all the latest PU trucks. It didn't sound quite right so I did some digging. Sure enough my intended trailer was way over for my 2500 diesel Ram. I played heck getting my deposit back, but I finally did.

 

[richclover]

Thanks Rene. That’s essentially what I did. Weighed the truck separately, then both, hooked up.

Looks like I have a 3000# pin weight. I can live with that. Without actually weighing the rig I would not have known.

Makes me wonder how many of the rigs I see on the road are badly overloaded just because of advertising.

Get ‘em weighed...

WhT you want to do is drive just the truck onto the scale and stop before the front landing gear is over the scale. Record the weight. Then raise the trailer off the hitch using the landing gear. Once it clears the hitch just a touch take another reading. Subtract the two and that’s your pin weight.

 

[scottydl]

The details have been discussed, but for future readers of this thread -- we have a downloadable/printable weighing guide from our forum Resources area: https://www.rvforum.net/resources/weighing-travel-and-fifth-wheel-trailers.83/

You can also find free trucks scales to use around grain elevators or some rock/concrete suppliers, if you have those in your area. I drive about 5 miles to the neighboring small town, where there is a large elevator with a scale that is turned on 24/7.