Weight limits on 2500 Duramax 6.6

[Scuberboy]

I haul a 1992 27 foot Prowler 5th wheel with my 2004 2500HD Duramax 6.6 and 1000 series Allison. The trailer no where near loads the truck. The combination is UNBELIEVABLE. I love it. Fast, slow, up hill, down hill it doesn't matter this truck hauls it. Now I want to get a new trailer. Like everyone else I want all the trailer I can get. But still be safe. And I don't want to be a frieght train going down the highway. I want to pull with relative ease and not be nervous when I get to where Im going. As I shop for the new trailer I get different ideas on what I can and cannot pull. Wether it be the trailer dealer, GM dealer I get conflicting numbers. If I am figuring this correctly I have (Total)to use, 1700 lbs which is king pin weight and me (all load) in the truck. So the way I have been calculating it is to allow 700 pounds inside the truck/bed and 1000 pounds on the king pin. As I do this many of the trailers become "out of limits" as most are 1100, 1200, and 1400 pounds. I then begin to look for spring stops, air bags, overloads assist items etc. MY question is "Is there a site where I can read how varous trailers weigh on the king pin etc." Or perhaps there is a simple rule of thumb as I look at these trailers I can pull my pocket calculator out and see what I can and cannot pull?
I have been taking the total weight of the trailer and looking to see if there is some way to get 10% to 15% ONLY on the king pin. The manufactors do not want to discuss much of this. When I ask "How much weight is on the king pin" The dealer say's "You need to ask the manufacter about that but it is suposed to be around xxxxx" I don't want to know "about", I want to know exactly what IM doing. Any ideas are greatly appreciated. Reply here or on my personal email.
J.R.
LKFLNOW@hotmail.com

[DonG]

There are certain weights for the type of trailer that are "best" for towing.

On a travel trailer, the "pin weight" should be at 10-12% of the total weight of the trailer.
On a fifth wheel trailer, the "pin weight" should be at 20% of the total weight of the trailer.

If you try to alter this weight percent by more than 1 or 2% you are asking for trouble with stability issues.

Most of the 5th wheel trailers list an UVW which is unloaded vehicle weight. Use 20% of this number for low weight number. As you add your personal items to the trailer, you should maintain the 20% rule; with 20% of your personal items being loaded onto the pin weight.

I know that is not what you hoped for but this is what you should do if safety is important to you and your family.

Good Luck with your search. Don

[Viking]

Take another look at your weights. My truck full of fuel,tool box,hitch,bed liner and two people comes in just under 7400# Take this figure away from my gross of 9200# and I can carry a pin weight of 1800#.

[DMAXTER]

Over a year ago we bought the used 5th wheel trailer shown in my signature from an RV dealer. We also had a concern about pin weight and made it a condition of the sale that we tow it to a certified scale and determine if pin weight was within the limits we set.

[Dickie]

Its pretty hard to get the dealers to take responsibility for the weight distribution. First of all, the manufacturer rarely give specific axle loadings, center of gravity, and pin/tongue weight for a loaded vs. unloaded trailer. Usually they tell you the base weight and the weight of all the individual optional equipment components. It is up to the purchaser to piece the puzzle together. It even gets more complicated when doing a weight and balance with and without fluids in the trailer. Finally, setting up the balance is a time consuming job with multiple trips to a scale; something a dealer does not care to invest in. The advise in the previous post is your best if the dealer will agree. Time spent understanding all the dynamics of weight distribution and limits is well worth the effort. I wish I could point to a simple do-it-yourself tutorial, but I can't.