Specifically a short bed Toyota super cab.

If Maynard plans in towing a 1300 pound dump trailer, three times a week with never more than 5500 pounds of cargo in it,

Will a weight distributing hitch set up be advantageous ?

In handling ?
In suspension or tire longevity?

Safety ?
The trailer has brakes.

Bumper pull 6800 pounds? Please don't

You definitely need a weight distributing hitch

What kind of Toyota? Engine?

Not bumper,
It has a frame mounted hitch receiver.

Don't know the motor size, the truck is 90 miles away.

I forgot to ask about towing/ cooling options .

A friend has it.
The only 3/4 ton he could find was $4,300.00 more, so he passed on it

2007+ Tundra? It could pull that load without a WDH, but I’d keep it local and low speed. The WDH will aid in stability, especially under braking and highway speeds. They’re around $300 from etrailer, so it isn’t prohibitive to purchase.

The official answer from the manufacturers is that if you're towing 50% or more of the vehicle weight, you need to have one.
I usually try to be conservative in these areas, especially if this is not just local.

quote:

It has a frame mounted hitch receiver.

So it already has a weight distributing hitch

quote:

Originally posted by BigSwede:

quote:

It has a frame mounted hitch receiver.

So it already has a weight distributing hitch

This is what I think he's asking about. I'd consider them to be a leveling device but that's what they call them.

https://www.amazon.com/Towing-...e=UTF8&node=15737521

quote:

Originally posted by BigSwede:

quote:

It has a frame mounted hitch receiver.

So it already has a weight distributing hitch

I think you may mean that it can accept a WD hitch. The receiver should be a 2 inch square tube, into which the WD hitch is fitted.

At 6800 pounds trailer and load, on the bumper, the hitch weight is likely 15% of 6800 or 1,020 pounds. The frame mounted receiver hitch must be rated for that weight. As an example, a Class III hitch is rated for 600 pounds, while a Class V hitch can be rated for 2400 pounds. A Class III hitch, therefore, if already on the 1/2 ton vehicle, would not be rated for the 6800 pound load.

WD hitches require that some parts be mounted to the trailer frame, to accept the tensioning devices on left and right side. So, a WD hitch purchase requires that the trailer be modified also.

3X each week is nearly a commercial or heavy duty application, not a weekend DIY occasional trip to the dump.

The trailer having brakes -- this is not specific enough. Is the trailer brake a "surge" type, hydraulic, directly applying hydraulic pressure to brakes on the trailer? Or, is the trailer brake an electrical connection that requires a system on the tow vehicle?

If the trailer brakes are electric, a 1/2 ton Tundra may not have a trailer brake controller. Aftermarket controllers exist, and require an expert to install.

Towing a big load, particularly backing up, requires extended mirrors.

www.etrailer.com is the best resource for items and costs, and installation videos. As an example
https://www.etrailer.com/vehicle/2009/Toyota/Tundra

The HD vehicle, although $4300 significantly more expensive, has so many system upgrades it may have been a better choice in the long run. 1/2 ton brakes, transmission, etc will all be compromised if such a trailer is used weekly.

There was a time when I used a 1985 Mopnte Carlo SS to haul around a 5200 lbs boat and trailer combination. Started out with a dead weight frame hitch and that combination was distinctly "twitchy". Fortunately the speed limit was still at 55 mph nationally so by staying alert I could keep it safe but 700 miles with that rig was not at all fun. After 3 years of fighting that I purchased a weight transfer hitch and the difference was night and day. Since that 55 mph limit had been rescinded I could easily run at 68 mph and have a perfect stability. In fact sway didn't set in until ground and headwind speeds exceeded 87 mph. I've also hauled this boat with a 96 Dodge Ram pickup and that truck with a dead weight hitch was not nearly as stable as the Monte Carlo with the weight transfer hitch.

Obviously I recommend you get a weight transfer hitch, once you experience driving with a properly set up weight transfer hitch you will be a fan for life. Note, a proper setup means a LEVEL FRAME, if the frame is high at either end you need to tweak the spring tension.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Scooter123,

quote:

Aftermarket controllers exist, and require an expert to install.

Not anymore.


Curt Portable Wireless Brake Controller

quote:

Originally posted by dbgeek:
2007+ Tundra? It could pull that load without a WDH, but I’d keep it local and low speed. The WDH will aid in stability, especially under braking and highway speeds. They’re around $300 from etrailer, so it isn’t prohibitive to purchase.

Rarely over 70 miles round trip.
He delivers fire wood.

Will let him know.

Thanks to those choosing to help out.

I’d need to know what the tongue weight is but absent that info, you could lower the tongue on the hitch and see how much the truck squats. Maybe watch some YouTube videos on weight distribution. I use a Weigh Safe distribution hitch. They aren’t cheap but they’re effective and stable. They also have a tongue weight gauge to help with distribution adjustment.

A weight distributing hitch will have spring bars that will take weight off the rear axle of the truck and distribute that weight to the front axle of the truck and trailer axles. Properly setup, the truck and trailer will both be level when the trailer is loaded. With his planned use, I would use one when the trailer is loaded. When the trailer is empty, I just disengage the spring bars and remove them.

There’s some trial and error getting it set up properly involving measuring the front and rear wheel wells to the ground with the trailer unhitched. The with it hitched, but the spring bars disengaged. Then it’s a matter of adjusting the tension on the spring bars to level the truck. Now, you measure the front and rea of the trailer frame to the ground and adjust the height of the hitch to level the trailer.

It’s not just the tongue weight of the trailer, but the load in the bed as well. I didn’t think much about it until I bent a set of 1,500lb spring bars trying to level my truck with a trailer that had a 1,200 tongue weight and my 800lb ATv in the bed of the truck plus other assorted stuff. The 2,000lb bars worked like a charm.

I had initially set it up without the ATV and weighed it all unhitched, hitched, hitched and bars engaged at a CAT scale.

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
The only 3/4 ton he could find was $4,300.00 more, so he passed on it

Big mistake.

You are saying 35 miles one way. I think I would consider Timbrens https://timbren.com/ And pass on a weight distribution setup. WD setups are common on travel trailers, not so much on utility trailers in my opinion. The Timbrens would control any squat and allow for towing those short distances without the WD headache. In addition, almost all WD hitches have problems when backing up your vehicle with the bars under tension.
Lineman

Timbrens have a wide variety of products,
Which
Product are you recommending for his application ?

These types for your year and make: https://timbren.com/i-30497950...model%3DALL%20MODELS

These are replacements for the rear axle bumper stops. I personally use them on my F250 and like them. They set about 1” above my rear axle when I’m not towing. And when towing, they compress some. I personally tow a travel trailer that weighs about 8700 when loaded. When I installed the Timbrens, I was sold. Because they are a molded rubber, you don’t have the airbag issues. And for occasional heavy towing, I would look into this type of solution.

I guess I am not understanding.

I.i.u. correctly,

The weight distribution device that I am inquiring about.
Distributes
The tonguing weight at the receiver throughout the truck frame,
Preventing front bumpers from rising front tires from getting lighter.

Allowing better, more stable control.

I don't see how these bottoming out "bumpers" achieve a similar effect

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
I guess I am not understanding.

I.i.u. correctly,

The weight distribution device that I am inquiring about.
Distributes
The tonguing weight at the receiver throughout the truck frame,
Preventing front bumpers from rising front tires from getting lighter.

One thing you are missing here is that the weight taken from the rear axle not only goes to the front axle, but the trailer’s axles as well. There was a demonstration of this a long time ago using an Oldsmobile Toronado (70s front wheel drive) with the rear wheels removed.

quote:

Allowing better, more stable control.

I don't see how these bottoming out "bumpers" achieve a similar effect

You don’t see it because they don’t. They’ll help keep the truck level, but that weight is still on the rear axle. I believe Toyota recommends using a WDH when towing over 5,000lbs. Math says your friend plans to tow 6,800lbs. I suspect it will be more than that because 1,300lbs seems light for a dump trailer.

What he wrote and what the web site says is different,
2,600 for the trailer weight.