Trailer JD 3039R

[WinterDeere]

My trailer vocabulary, being woefully inadequate as it is, suggests to me that what you are calling a weight distribution hitch is something that I call anti-sway bars. I have them on my horse trailer. Is that what you're referring to?

Nope, something different, although many WDH's also have anti-sway.

Anti-sway reduces side-to-side motion, usually created by having too-little tongue weight. WDH creates upward tension on the hitch, which shifts more of the tongue weight from your rear axle to your front axle.

Most involve a pair of springs that are chained or clamped to the trailer tongue assembly.

 

[RjCorazza]

More about weight distribution hitches...
When I was setting up my 12k trailer and F250 with towing package, I was surprised to learn that my 2011 F250 REQUIRES weight distribution when towing more than 6k gross trailer weight.
I found a nice Reese WDH system on Craigslist for a good price.

 

[Musdalen]

More about weight distribution hitches...
When I was setting up my 12k trailer and F250 with towing package, I was surprised to learn that my 2011 F250 REQUIRES weight distribution when towing more than 6k gross trailer weight.
I found a nice Reese WDH system on Craigslist for a good price.

I googled that and it is what i call anti-sway bars. I have exactly that Reese system on my horse trailer.

 

[WinterDeere]

I googled that and it is what i call anti-sway bars. I have exactly that Reese system on my horse trailer.

Reese makes a few variants, but hopefully you can just buy a second set of brackets for the new trailer, and use the same hitch between the two. If tongue weights are vastly different, I guess you might need a separate set of leaf springs for each, but probably not critical.

 

[Musdalen]

Well, I now have an 18 ft trailer. With 10000# axels, I'm well clear of my total capacity but hardly light with 5000# of payload.

I tried balancing the tractor on it, and it seems that with the counterbalance on the back and grapple on the front, I can set it up facing forwards or back. Forwards might be a bit marginal, so backwards is more likely.

The question is now, how to estimate correct tongue weight? I did a little tape measuring just to see how much squat I was putting on the truck. It looks like the trailer alone puts about 1.5" of squat on the truck. With the tractor I can add another 3" at least - which subjectively looks like too much.

Next week, I'll take a trip to town and see about adding hooks for the Reese WD hitch that I already own.

Any suggestions besides trial and error, for balancing a load correctly, would be helpful.

 

[alexpops]

You could get a tongue weight scale to figure out what your actual weight is, then move the load around to see what the moves do to that.

 

[Musdalen]

Any idea how much a scale like that costs? Are they easily found? I've never heard of them.

 

[BigBlue1]

Well, I now have an 18 ft trailer. With 10000# axels, I'm well clear of my total capacity but hardly light with 5000# of payload.

I tried balancing the tractor on it, and it seems that with the counterbalance on the back and grapple on the front, I can set it up facing forwards or back. Forwards might be a bit marginal, so backwards is more likely.

The question is now, how to estimate correct tongue weight? I did a little tape measuring just to see how much squat I was putting on the truck. It looks like the trailer alone puts about 1.5" of squat on the truck. With the tractor I can add another 3" at least - which subjectively looks like too much.

Next week, I'll take a trip to town and see about adding hooks for the Reese WD hitch that I already own.

Any suggestions besides trial and error, for balancing a load correctly, would be helpful.

Minor quibble. Your trailer has 5000# axles. 5000 x 2 gets you your 10000# gross weight.

I use a WeighSafe hitch with a scale built in. The loads I haul on my 10k trailer vary greatly and this was the best way to ensure I'm loading safely. There are a variety of other ways to determine tongue weight and they've probably been discussed at great length elsewhere on the Internet.

 

[Yander]

All the trailers I have seen have electric brakes. That said, some of them are in various sad condition when it comes to used trailers..

Does anyone have any opinion about the relative quality of 4 inch tubular steel frame versus 5 inch I beam or channel iron frame?

Where do you normally balance the tractor On the trailer.? I am concerned that even twenty feet might not be long enough for a sixteen ft rig.

20' is plenty but go with at least #10k trailer. I pull my tractor forward on either of my trailers until I just see the hitch start to squat on the truck, sometimes I have someone watch. Then pull it forward about 4 more inches to make sure I have weight on the hitch but not too much. I usually shoot for about 4-500 lbs on the hitch. With my truck I can see her squat with that weight. With a more heavy duty truck, probably harder to tell but then again it doesn't matter as much either. Put #800 or #1,000lb on the hitch with a HD truck, wouldn't hurt.

But my towing is always less than 30 miles and I go slowish; yours is another story. I would listen to the advice on here and do it all since you are towing so far. You won't want to regret being a cheapskate half way to your destination.

 

[Musdalen]

While I am at this, what do you guys use to tie down your tractors? I have chains and binders. But the trailer dealer suggested straps.

 

[aesanders]

While I am at this, what do you guys use to tie down your tractors? I have chains and binders. But the trailer dealer suggested straps.

Chains and binders all the way.

 

[alexpops]

Any idea how much a scale like that costs? Are they easily found? I've never heard of them.

100 - 300 depending on style & max capacity

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=tongue+weight+scale&crid=188SRLW3YSS36&sprefix=tongue+weight%2Caps%2C121&ref=nb_sb_ss_pltr-sample-20_1_13

 

[RjCorazza]

Any idea how much a scale like that costs? Are they easily found? I've never heard of them.

I use a Sherline scale for my RV and equipment trailer. They're around $150 or so. The integrated into the hitch scale looks very convenient, I may look into those!
There are methods I've never tried using a normal bathroom scale and some lumber you may want to look into.

 

[Musdalen]

I use a Sherline scale for my RV and equipment trailer. They're around $150 or so. The integrated into the hitch scale looks very convenient, I may look into those!
There are methods I've never tried using a normal bathroom scale and some lumber you may want to look into.

I don't think a bathroom scale will reach the 500+ lbs I think I need to measure. But as I was looking at what @alexpops suggested, I realized that getting a reading will take a bit of finness. Probably some lumber or maybe a bottle jack.

 

[BigBlue1]

While I am at this, what do you guys use to tie down your tractors? I have chains and binders. But the trailer dealer suggested straps.

I use chains and binders for the tractor itself (one on each side of front axle, using soft axle straps, and one through a shackle at the rear hitch. Then straps for the bucket and tiller (or whatever is on the rear end).

 

[WinterDeere]

I use 10,000# straps, one on each corner, meaning two up front and two in back. They probably outclass the strength of the eyes I’m hooking them to on the trailer, anyway.

As to tongue weight, two things:

1. Quick method is to find point where trailer is balanced, and then move load a fraction of the length forward of that, distance determined by weight of load vs. curb weight of tractor and distance from trailer axles to hitch. This is a rough measure, but useful with changing loads.

2. For anything you’re doing frequently, where you really want an accurate measure, there is a common trick using a bathroom scale. Essentially, a pair of jack stands either side of the tongue, with one just a foot from the tongue and the other 4 ft from the tongue. Jam the bathroom scale under the one 4 ft from the tongue, and a pipe or timber between the jack stands, which the tongue will be lowered onto (after re-zero’ing the scale). Height should be with trailer leveled. Then Archimedes can tell you the tongue weight, based on distances and what is measured on the scale.

You can buy tongue jacks, decent ones are $150-$200, but I’ve measured countless machines with bathroom scales, it’s really not that difficult with some simple middle-school math.

 

[RjCorazza]

I don't think a bathroom scale will reach the 500+ lbs I think I need to measure. But as I was looking at what @alexpops suggested, I realized that getting a reading will take a bit of finness. Probably some lumber or maybe a bottle jack.

Here's a link to what I was referring to with a 250lb scale measuring up to 1000lbs :
https://hildstrom.com/projects/2011/07/tonguescale/index.html

 

[dieselscout80]

If you moving your tractor it needs implements to work with, so you need an even longer trailer.

I have a 18’ trailer and it is too short. I would like to get a 22’ trailer with at least 5200 pound (= 10k trailer) axles at a minimum, 6k or 7k pound axles would be better.

I have a 74” flail mower that is much shorter than 6’ bush hog and tractor is a New Holland TC45DA.

As you can see there’s little to no room to adjust the load and no room for a longer implement.

 

[dodge man]

I have straps mainly because I don’t tow a lot and they are cheaper. If you already have the chains and binders I’d keep using them.

 

[Musdalen]

RjCorazza and WinterDeere, thanks for the tips on the bathroom scale method. I'm ashamed that I did not think of it myself. A little 7th grade geometry and Intro Physics is pretty straight forward. These forums are really a heck of a resource.

I can run a chain through a shackle on the rear hitch, but I don't know how I'm going to grab on to the front. I'm sure I can figure that out eventually.