99% of the time you'd be fine......but in the rare instance you caused an accident (even if it wasn't the fault of the trailer) You could be held criminally liable since you were towing outside of the trucks ratings.

There was a case a few years back that someone was towing a trailer that was heavier than rating and killed someone in an accident and ended up going to prison over it........someone linked to the case on here a while back...

 

Go ask a state patrol in your respective state what the fine is for towing outside of ratings....i bet it'd pay for the hitch....

 

PLease guys, lets get it straight.
WDs are not hitches, they are supplemental kits to help with the
'control' of the trailer as you are driving.
You are not 'legally obligated', nor do you have to 'use' these kits
to pull the limit of your trucks ability.
They are intended as only an extra measure of 'control' to lesson
the effects that pulling a trailer has on the truck.

It doesnt matter what any of the propaganda booklets say about
hitches and pulling. Go to your local R.V. outlet and ask them
about what I am saying here. They will tell you the same thing.

I pull between 5k-7k on my trailers daily.
I also pull over 10k with my bobcats or backhoes on occasion.
Yes, I have been pulled over to check my weights.
Though I have never been hassled for not using a WD on my trucks.
YOU DO NOT HAVE TO USE THEM, THEY ARE INTENDED TO HELP
YOU TO CONTROL YOUR LOADED TRAILER WHILE DRIVING.
I not only deal with TX Dept. of Trans., but I also deal with the
military people on Fort Hood all the time.
You would think that I would have recieved alot of overweight
tickets or tickets for not using the WD.
........No that is not the case, because you are not legally told to
use WDs.
It is your discretion.

If you are that worried about pulling anything, then use a 5th wheel
and you need not worry any longer.





I'm just sayin'

 

As stated before WD hitches are to help with heavy tongue weight trailers on vehicles that are marginal for that tongue weight. I go 10% minimum on tongue for hitch pull and 20% for gooseneck. Neither can tax my ability to pull on my F450, but if I was using an F250 there MIGHT be a situation where a WD hitch might be warranted. Within these parameters there is no normal emergency condition where a WD is needed for a hitch pull with an F450, other vechicle combinations may vary.

Sometimes with my F450 I go about 5000-5500 gooseneck tongue weight, well within my trucks payload and the hitches' 30,000 lb. towing and 7,500 lb. tongue weight capacity.

 

thanks.. now can we get back to the right way to approach this.
MOST people (here is like the rest of the world), don't have/won't have all the information available to be able to make the decisions like you do, or deal with the risks.

SO, altho you are technically right, the approach you give is wrong for the REST of us. (and personally I dislike the tone of voice).

I've posted the info that ford provides, and for those willing, and knowledgeable enough to take the risks, fine.. please don't do it around me.

Sam

 

There is no 'tone' in my replies.
The computer gives no emotions.

Now, as far as what youre saying about your 450. Yes, you are correct,
because that truck is made to pull (what?) about 26-30k. Anyway, I
think the OP was talking about the 150-350 Super Duty. There is a big
difference between them and a big jump in ability to pull. You probably
wouldnt feel a 12k trailer going down the road.

I am not saying to not use it if it makes you feel better. All I am saying
is that a WD kit is not necessary and definitely not 'required' in most
situations. And not required by law. My dad pulled a 20-25' camper, behind his late 90s Dodge Dakota with a 318 engine. Yes, even with a better size tire, he had to use a WD kit in order to calm the truck and trailer down going down the road. Without it, it was all over the road
and played hell on the truck.

Do whatever suits you, but remember that a WD kit does NOT add to
the trailer weight that your truck is able to pull. It was designed to
give you more control over your vehicle when pulling those heavy #.

 

A WD kit actually will increase the amount of weight your hitch can hold before the bolts fail...

instead of the weight being supported only by the rear four bolts, a WD kit distributes the weight to all eight...

Since each of the eight bolts are identical, and eight is greater than four, your hitch can physically hold aroud twice as much with WD...

hmm... interesting that the ratings that are printed ON THE HITCH are 600# WC and 1,250# WD... a factor of 2.08 difference

 

From what you are saying then, you should be able to pull 25k # trailer
with a 250-350 SD instead of the rated 12.5k # trailer?
I know what the brochures and stickers and that say.
I am not stupid and neither are you...
But, to use a WD kit just to increase your supposed capacity is beyond
moronic. Its in the range of reckless and intentional manslaughter,
when you have that wreck and kill someone.
All because some people have the wrong impression of how a WD kit
works or what it does (or does not do).

If you want to pull more #, go to the next size up hitch platform...
or use a 5th wheel.
A 5th gives you total control over your load without any worries or
any extra equipment, because you center the load over the truck.
Instead of the a$$ end of the truck.

 

ever see that asterisk next to the maximum recommended GCVW?

the one that goes down to the "when properly equipped" footnote...

"properly equipped" includes a weight distribution kit.

The CLASS IV HITCH ITSELF is only designed to take 6,000# draw/ 600# tounge when used in a weight carrying (WC) application.

That means, that when equipped with a WC hitch, your F-250/350 is going to be limited by design to a 6,000# trailer. Any lawyer that can breathe will be able to foot you with a pretty high bill, and possibly jail time if you end up killing somebody while knowingly pulling a 7,000# trailer on a 6,000# hitch...

I also belive you misunderstood what I typed...

using a WD setup does not INCREASE what you can tow, it simply allows you to be able to tow the maximum weight that the hitch was designed for.

After all, the limiting factor in a conventional towing rig is not normally the tow vehicle's capabilities, but the hitch's.

 

The first part of your reply is incorrect.
I have a class IV on my truck...
The label says 10k # capacity (pulling a trailer) and
6k # load carrying (platform carrier, bike rack, etc).
They make no mention of using any additional WD equipment.
I am at the max. of my hitch capacity 10% of the time.
If I ever pull more than that, I will switch to a class V with
a 2.5" receiver box for the extra 3-4k # capacity.

The second part of your reply is correct.
I'm glad that we have established that and are now on the same
football field.

LOL.
I am not an engineer...I could be wrong.
My wife tells me that all the time.

 

Are you positive about that? My goosneck ball is located about 1"- 2" forward of the centerline of the rear axle, NEARLY ALL of the tongue weight is applied to the rear axle alone. That's OK though, my front axle is heavily loaded empty, my rear axle carries MOST of my excess payload capacity anyway.

I try to use a rule of thumb, if the truck sits level with the proper tongue weight and the trailer frame is level (proper ball drop), no WD is needed. If your truck sits rear low, a WD hitch is advisable. If your truck still sits tail high, you need more tongue weight. Boats can be moved forward or aft on a trailer by adjusting the location of the bow stop. I still never go less than 10% of the total trailer weight on the tongue.

I followed this when pulling a 13,500 lb boat and triple axle trailer with both my 1990 Banks turbocharged F250 and my 1993 Hummer. They both pulled the trailer beautifully, although the Hummer was slow with only 150hp on tap. The trailer never tried to push either truck around even though the loaded trailer out weighed the truck by almost a 2:1 margin.

My F450 gets pushed around a bit (gooseneck) with a 27,000 lb trailer but what would you expect, it is almost a 3:1 weight difference.

 

I hope you can read this...

It says:

Maximum Gross Trailer Wt. (lb):

Weight Distributing: 12,500
Weight Carrying: 6,000

Maximum Tounge Wt. (lb):

Weight Distributing: 1,250
Weight Carrying: 600


Maximum Tounge Weight is the vertical load the hitch is rated to carry in the two applications.

If you have a platform carrier (really? ... it's a pickup truck) you should abide by the 600# tounge weight. 3 tons of vertical load will rip the hitch clean off...

now...go tell your wife that she is correct.

 

Yes, I am sure.
Whether GN or 5th wheel (same idea, different approach),
you will have greater control over your load than with a frame hitch
up to class V.
Because, you will be safer pulling that 12.5k # load.

Okay...
Do you think that 18 wheelers would be using a 5th wheel setup,
if it was not more capable than a platform hitch with a WD kit.
100 years of use answers that one.
Nothing better has yet to come out.


I think that we have hijacked this thread long enough, huh?

Lets give it back.

 

Rent, I was being facetious, they center the load not over the truck but more specifically over the rear axle. A sliding 5 wheel will allow moving the center of pressure but not a standard gooseneck. I drove over trucks for many years.

Yes, I'm done here.

 

I see the picture fine...mine does not say the same information.

Anyway, I had a brain fart about what I was trying to say earlier.
What I said about using a carrier is wrong.

Yes, your sticker states your capability is a max. of 12.5k # trailer.
BUT...and I will always stand by this.
Like I said earlier, you do not need a WD kit, in order to pull that
trailer rating. A WD kit will only give you a safer trip with that
weight behind you.

LOL.
Maybe I should listen to my wife more often.
Nah.
I wouldn't have anybody tell me that I'm full of it.