Weight on the jockey wheel

[adamwalton]

Hi All

I have now added an extra axel to my sbs trailer (it needed it) and want to set it up right.
What weight should I have on the jockey wheel?
Boat weight is 910kg
Engine is 550kg
Trailer is 600kg

I was told it should be 100kg on the jockey wheel, but have also seen 10% of total weight?

Thanks

Adam

[Fenlander]

Do you mean weight on the hitch?

It is said for most trailer types (not just boats) 7-15% are the outer limits of the range you should be looking for so yep 10% is about right.

But that can be limited by the max stated weight given by the vehicle maker, tow hitch maker and trailer/coupling maker.

Also with a twin axle I've found it is often hard to get as high a noseweight as you might like without the front axle/tyres taking too much weight so there's a bit of a balance to be had there of noseweight vs equal axle loads. Coupling height related to hitch height is quite crucial with twin axles.

[Starovich]

are you sure you are not confusing kg and lbs, my 225 yam weighs in at 550lbs ish which is around 250kg? unless you have a 500hp + outboard or twins, 550kg seems a bit heavy

[adamwalton]

Originally Posted by Starovich

are you sure you are not confusing kg and lbs, my 225 yam weighs in at 550lbs ish which is around 250kg? unless you have a 500hp + outboard or twins, 550kg seems a bit heavy

you are correct, its a 150hp suzuki, it's 511lb

[Xk59D]

You should put it to whatever your car plate says for best performance and safety.

Most cars are in the 75-100kg range but the info will be on your plate.

You will probably need to setup the axles from scratch again if the boat is sitting in a good place on the trailer. I.e rear rollers under the transom or very close to it.

[GuyC]

As Xk59D says get the boat on the trailer in its road going location and weight, measure the nose weight which can be done with a piece of 4x2 and some bathroom scales. The 4x2 needs to be cut so the hitch is at the same height as it would be on the car. The axles can then be moved forward or aft to achieve the required nose weight.

If you are adding axles to cope with the weight, are you at risk of over stressing other parts of the trailer?

[adamwalton]

Hi All

Have got the nose weight down to 120kg without fuel and battery, so am happy with this, I put 10litres of fuel in the rear, and it dropped to 110kg, I don't want it to light at the rear!

The rest of the trailer can take it, this has been confirmed by sbs, they are even going to send me a new plate for the trailer to show the it can now handle 2600kg

Thanks again..

Adam

[Xk59D]

Did you check what the car can handle for tongue weight?

I have an sbs 2600 and it is fine at 90kg as my xc90 max weight is 110kg if memory serves.

I can't see how 10 litres of fuel made 10kg of difference though, not unless your jerry can is a concrete block! lol.

[GuyC]

Originally Posted by Xk59D

I can't see how 10 litres of fuel made 10kg of difference though, not unless your jerry can is a concrete block! lol.

A 25 litre tank at the transom would do it. 10 litres unless, as you say, it is a very hefty tank wouldn't be sufficient to change the nose weight by 10kg.

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by GuyC

A 25 litre tank at the transom would do it. 10 litres unless, as you say, it is a very hefty tank wouldn't be sufficient to change the nose weight by 10kg.

Maybe he's confusing litres with gallons[emoji6]