Date:         Wed, 22 Aug 2001 12:37:32 -0700
Reply-To:     Shawn Wright <swright@SLS.BC.CA>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Shawn Wright <swright@SLS.BC.CA>
Organization: Shawnigan Lake School
Subject:      Re: Trailer Fishtailing...
In-Reply-To:  <003e01c12b34$c3cd7400$22cbfea9@wnsopc3>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII

On 22 Aug 2001 at 14:03, Walt Spak wrote:

> John & list,
>
> What you are calling fish tailing sounds like what I call sway.  It is a
> result of improper load distribution on the trailer.  There was too much
> weight towards the rear, which resulted in too little weight on the tongue
> of the trailer.  I learned this lesson years ago when hauling cars on
> various flat bed trailers.  I even had a van & loaded trailer turn 180
> degrees around on the Ohio Turnpike.  It is interesting to sit in the middle
> of the road & watch traffic coming at you.  The highway wear & rain grooves
> affected your tow because of the improper distribution, but were not the
> cause.
>
> I do not remember exactly how much weight you want on the tongue & I believe
> it changes with the trailer size & weight and the hitch class.  Proper
> tongue weight is very, very, very important.
>

I learned this after towing a small 16' boat behind a fully loaded
Suburban with 6 people + gear. Even though the boat towed
just fine on my Jetta (with a smaller outboard), adding a larger
outboard to the boat without adjusting the trailer for tongue
weight made the big suburban sway like crazy on the highway.
If I recall, a good rule of thumb is tongue weight should be
about 10% of total weight, at least for smaller trailers.
========================
Shawn Wright
Computer Systems Manager
Shawnigan Lake School
http://www.sls.bc.ca
swright@sls.bc.ca