Hobie Cat Forums

I seem to remember that tongue weight should be some 80 lbs or so.

Right now, some 2/3s of the boat is ahead of the axle, and the tongue is so heavy we cannot lift it with two people.

Did the previous owner do this to save money in dry dock fees? (It makes the footprint of the boat [tip of the tongue to rudders] smaller.)

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Practice makes perfect, so be careful what you practice...

More tongue weight is a better ride while trailering, but you have to be able lift it! Should have a tongue jack for a bigger boat.

I am guessing that tongue weight should be a percentage of the over all weight rather than a fixed amount. Minimum (80 lb) tongue weight can easily turn negative on a heavy boat (fish tailing the car) as the boat / trailer bounces / flexes over road terrain.

Makes sense that they may shove the boat forward for storage and aft for trailering to save the length of storage space.

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Matt Miller
Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Hobie Cat USA

Thanks, Matt!

Next time I hoist the boat I'm going to drop her some 4 feet back on the trailer and check the tongue weight then.

It it is then some 80/100 lbs I will eventually shorten the tongue and relocate the hitch.

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Practice makes perfect, so be careful what you practice...

According to multiple online sources, tongue weight should be 10-15% of total trailered weight. A couple of sources gave ranges from 5-15%

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Alan
'86 H16, Sail #89057

Depends a lot on the two vehicle. 10% is bare minimum in my book. I regularly load for a 20% tongue weight. But then I run a beast of a tow vehicle that rides better the more weight I put on the rear axle.

Long tongues are a good thing. Better tow. I wouldn't shorten it unless I really had to.

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Matt Miller
Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Hobie Cat USA

I was thinking this was B.S. and didn't apply if you had something heavier. But the more I thought about it, it probably holds true for heavier trailers as well. I routinely pull a 4500# trailer, with anywhere from 10k to 14k lbs on it. 2775#'s on the hitch is getting up there, but better than having not enough.

The first time that gooseneck unloads while you've got it loaded to 10k lbs, it will have your attention.

Right, Karl...

I've been too tail heavy before. Not fun when it start throwing the pickup around.

move the axle to adjust for the load

I like that solution. No drilling or welding, and it can be adjusted easily. Thanks, Gary!

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Practice makes perfect, so be careful what you practice...

Gary's got the ticket McGyver,,,just Move the wheels forward and this can be done with the boat onboard,,which is better,,,you will know when its perfect then. CHEERS ...Pepsi