Factory Hitch - Weight Distribution??

[teqmod]

Purchasing a camper which will be encroaching on the maximum towing capacity of the 1500. 6500# dry and it is rated for 8000#. I plan to upgrade the truck in the near future but for the time being I was going to run a weight distribution hitch. Does anyone know if the factory hitch supports WD setups? I have been looking at the WD hitches and the disclaimers state must be used with a WD approved receiver. I see the aftermarkets list it but cannot find anything specific on the factory installed hitch.

 

[crash68]

Yes all the OEM factory receivers are rated to be used with a WDH, even the 2" adapter provided with the HD trucks but your better off to buy a 2.5" shank to minimize the slop.

 

[teqmod]

Yes all the OEM factory receivers are rated to be used with a WDH, even the 2" adapter provided with the HD trucks but your better off to buy a 2.5" shank to minimize the slop.

Thanks for the info, I thought it was but figured I would ask.

 

[dhay13]

At that weight it would be foolish to not use a WDH. Anything over about 5000lbs should have one

 

[teqmod]

At that weight it would be foolish to not use a WDH. Anything over about 5000lbs should have one

Exactly why I am asking if the factory receiver supports a WDH or if I needed to upgrade

 

[2003F350]

Exactly why I am asking if the factory receiver supports a WDH or if I needed to upgrade

Every 2" hitch receiver supports a WDH of some kind. Your limitation is the rating of the hitch. I think Class III is limited to 500 lbs tongue weight, I think Class IV is 1000? It's been a while since I've had to worry about it. But yes, it supports it.

 

[Aram guy]

I use the factory hitch with my weight/ sway control hitch system for hauling my camper 1000's of miles and about the same weight as you describe. It does everything it should but, be aware of the load being put back on the camper to much and you could bend the trailer tongue. Be careful traversing the roadways with a weight distribution hitch crossing grades that will add the to downward force on the trailer. (see link attached)

Google Image Result for https://i.ytimg.com/vi/fHk5oThyHL8/hqdefault.jpg

 

[Loudram]

I believe the class IV receivers are rated at 1200 tongue and 12k towing. Mind you that's the receiver rating itself not what the truck can tow.

Also when it comes to weight distribution hitches, you get what you pay for. Buy a $300 hitch and get $300 performance. I personally used an Equalizer hitch in the past and I now use a Weight Safe True Tow hitch. Either of those are a great choice. I look at hitches as a safety device. Don't cheap out when it comes to safety! There are plenty of other places to save a buck or two.

 

[StNick]

One company I have done business with that is very knowledgeable about hitches is called E-Trailer. They are an internet based company but have lots of people you can talk to.

 

[Gr8bawana]

I use the factory hitch with my weight/ sway control hitch system for hauling my camper 1000's of miles and about the same weight as you describe. It does everything it should but, be aware of the load being put back on the camper to much and you could bend the trailer tongue. Be careful traversing the roadways with a weight distribution hitch crossing grades that will add the to downward force on the trailer. (see link attached)

Google Image Result for https://i.ytimg.com/vi/fHk5oThyHL8/hqdefault.jpg

That's funny because NONE of those videos in your link have anything to do with weight distribution hitches.

 

[2003F350]

I use the factory hitch with my weight/ sway control hitch system for hauling my camper 1000's of miles and about the same weight as you describe. It does everything it should but, be aware of the load being put back on the camper to much and you could bend the trailer tongue. Be careful traversing the roadways with a weight distribution hitch crossing grades that will add the to downward force on the trailer. (see link attached)

Google Image Result for https://i.ytimg.com/vi/fHk5oThyHL8/hqdefault.jpg

If you bend the tongue on a camper or trailer that needs a WDH, you're doing something wrong. I don't recall what the heaviest WDH system is rated for, but most are in the 1200-1400 lb range, meaning up to a 14k lbs trailer - which is a big trailer.

It's far more likely that you'll bend/break one of the bars before you bend the tongue.

And going over a crossing grade or any type of change in incline, while it DOES change weights momentarily, it should never be enough to bend the tongue unless the tongue is rotted out to the point it was going to fail anyway.

And while I generally agree that you get what you pay for, I have never paid more than about $400 for a WDH setup and separate sway bar, and haven't had any issues that weren't related to how it was initially set up. Once I had them set up properly, I've never once had an issue with the less expensive setups. I'm not saying go get a Harbor Freight Special, but a nice inexpensive Curt system will treat you well if you're staying in specs.

 

[tron67j]

Since you are in the process of purchasing a trailer, and without any knowledge of your truck, you should consider that it is a good bet you will be over your payload capacity of your truck with a trailer with a 8k weight. Could be a little, could be a wide margin. The bigger the disparity the greater the chance you could have problems.

Before plunking down good money for a potential white knuckle ride, I very strongly recommend you load your truck with hitch, people, pets, and gear you might ever carry in truck and get weight at scale. Take that number and subtract from GVWR. This is all the payload capacity you will ever have. It does not matter how much trailer you can tow, in real life 1500s rarely are able to actually tow the maximum trailer listed in the brochure.

More often than not 1500s have a good chunk of their payload capacity eaten up before ever hooking the trailer, which in your case could be 1200 pounds tongue weight on your truck's frame. I saw a statement about upgrades; you CAN'T increase carrying or towing capacities with bags, springs, etc.

Good luck.

 

[Random_Walk]

Funny thing... I have a nice Curt WDH... and it's still in the box.

I've towed quite a few hundred miles this year so far w/o it, and I do perfectly fine. I keep it around in case I find I'll be driving through a state where one is required.

I should however say why...

1) I only tow 4,000 lbs of RV trailer. The trailer is 22' long and 7.5' wide. It has nice and big A/T tires on a single axle. I don't tow anything bigger.
2) I've done up to 70mph on the freeways (I-5) and 65mph on mountain roads (throughout the Pacific NW) with no incident, or even any odd feelings on the wheel.
3) I am religious about proper weight and balance when it comes to loading the trailer.
4) Payload capacity is 1700 lbs, but I don't come anywhere near eating that up (tongue weight of 400lbs, the weight of the missus, maybe 100 lbs of firewood in the bed and 250 lbs of assorted chocks, spare propane cans and sundry...)

I may put it on, but I just haven't been arsed enough to bother just yet.

Not seeing where I'd be wrong in not bothering, but I'm more than willing to entertain any theories as to why I would be.

 

[2003F350]

Funny thing... I have a nice Curt WDH... and it's still in the box.

I've towed quite a few hundred miles this year so far w/o it, and I do perfectly fine. I keep it around in case I find I'll be driving through a state where one is required.

I should however say why...

1) I only tow 4,000 lbs of RV trailer. The trailer is 22' long and 7.5' wide. It has nice and big A/T tires on a single axle. I don't tow anything bigger.
2) I've done up to 70mph on the freeways (I-5) and 65mph on mountain roads (throughout the Pacific NW) with no incident, or even any odd feelings on the wheel.
3) I am religious about proper weight and balance when it comes to loading the trailer.
4) Payload capacity is 1700 lbs, but I don't come anywhere near eating that up (tongue weight of 400lbs, the weight of the missus, maybe 100 lbs of firewood in the bed and 250 lbs of assorted chocks, spare propane cans and sundry...)

I may put it on, but I just haven't been arsed enough to bother just yet.

Not seeing where I'd be wrong in not bothering, but I'm more than willing to entertain any theories as to why I would be.

Under 4k you should be fine without a WDH. As you point out, you've only got 400 lbs of hitch weight, which is within the specs of even a Class III hitch if I recall. I don't think you need electric brakes on that either.

 

[lpennock]

There are a few that require brakes on a 1500lb trailer.

There are a bunch of states that require trailer brakes starting at 3000lb.

Trailer Brake Laws by state

 

[Random_Walk]

Under 4k you should be fine without a WDH. As you point out, you've only got 400 lbs of hitch weight, which is within the specs of even a Class III hitch if I recall. I don't think you need electric brakes on that either.

It came with brakes, and I believe I need those.

 

[2003F350]

There are a few that require brakes on a 1500lb trailer.

There are a bunch of states that require trailer brakes starting at 3000lb.

Trailer Brake Laws by state

That's news to me, I stand corrected. I thought the number was 5k.

 

[62Blazer]

There are a few that require brakes on a 1500lb trailer.

There are a bunch of states that require trailer brakes starting at 3000lb.

Trailer Brake Laws by stat

This article is slightly confusing because some states use the "empty" trailer weight versus the GVW rating (max loaded weight) of the trailer to determine if it needs brakes. Did look up the laws for Massachusetts as it states 10,000 lbs. and confirmed it states and "unladen" weight below 10,000 does not require brakes. Wow, that's kinda' scary! Can't imagine pulling a 10k lb. trailer down the interstate at 60+ mph with no brakes on it.

 

[2003F350]

This article is slightly confusing because some states use the "empty" trailer weight versus the GVW rating (max loaded weight) of the trailer to determine if it needs brakes. Did look up the laws for Massachusetts as it states 10,000 lbs. and confirmed it states and "unladen" weight below 10,000 does not require brakes. Wow, that's kinda' scary! Can't imagine pulling a 10k lb. trailer down the interstate at 60+ mph with no brakes on it.

Agreed. 10k is a LOT of weight to try to stop with just truck brakes for most trucks.