Another Chucking Thread
Mountain Pass
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 140
Likes: 49
From: Eastern Panhandle of WV
To the OP, you say 95% fine and dandy, I would just ignore it the other 5%. The chucking hurts nothing. Of course my first employer had me drive partial loads in tube trailers. They had a very lively ride. My wife has only known our 5er for the past 11 years, I just tell her that is the way it is, and drive on. Soon, you will not notice it.
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Laughing Gas
Joined: Apr 2021
Posts: 992
Likes: 600
From: Middle TN
Lead Driver
Joined: Feb 2022
Posts: 7,978
Likes: 4,055
You should try to get the front axle even loaded/unloaded. Try moving the hitch up to the 3" forward position. By removing weight off the front, it can increase movement rearward which adds to the porpoising effect. Adding air bags will not transfer the weight forward, they just take up some of the weight and place it directly on the axle and off the springs, adding a cushion while raising the rear. Getting more weight forward on the trailer will stop the seesaw effect which is what causes the porpoising and chucking. Fill your water tank too if you don't, that added weight helps. Just make sure it is fully filled, a half tank can slosh and make it do silly things at a stop.
Mountain Pass
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 140
Likes: 49
From: Eastern Panhandle of WV
Good advice from Acdii, unless your camper is like mine. My fresh water tank is behind my axles, right at the back of the trailer, it is a rear kitchen. So filling the tank teeters my totter. I wind up with less pin weight and more on the trailer axles.
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Laughing Gas
Joined: Apr 2021
Posts: 992
Likes: 600
From: Middle TN
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Joined: Feb 2022
Posts: 7,978
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Extra weight doesn't impact fuel economy as much as you might think. The wind resistance is the biggest killer of fuel economy. I towed my flatbed to Tennessee from Rockford, noted the MPG, loaded a no-till drill that stuck up above the tailgate, and noted the MPG on the way back. it was .7 of a MPG difference mainly due to the wind resistance against the drill. Another time I had picked up a bundle of shingles that weighed 1300 pounds and the MPG was exact both ways.
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Laughing Gas
Joined: Apr 2021
Posts: 992
Likes: 600
From: Middle TN
Just a quick note to follow up on this with some additional info. Our trip this past week was fairly close to home so no interstate driving, just state routes and local roads. Happy to report the ride was fine, which has me leaning towards the "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" camp. The roads were far from perfect so it seems to me the chucking/porpoising only occurs at high (65 mph) speeds and really bad bumps. I did think to measure the squat this time, it's about 2" at the center of the rear wheels. Honestly though, I don't know if that's normal or too much.
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