Maintenance & Restoration

Howard MP · 03-08-2016, 11:49 PM

I'm hoping to find a 13' Scamp to pull with my 2002 Suby Forester. It's limited to towing 2,000# and tongue weight of 200#.

I believe the basic 13' Scamp meets this, but not the longer Scamps, nor the 13' DeLuxe. Are any of the other brands (Burro, Casita?) suitable?

Steve L. · 03-09-2016, 05:33 AM

Have you looked at Fred's Trailer Weights in the Real World (near top of General Chat)? Has tongue weights of actual trailers for pretty much all fiberglass brands.

I haven't massaged his latest spreadsheet but the last time I did I found this:

Scamp 13 ave tongue weight: 223 lb
Boler 13: 213 lb
Casita 13: 260 lb

etc.

WDavidG · 03-09-2016, 07:14 AM

We have a 2014 13' Scamp w/o bath. Tongue weight when the propane tank is full is about 201 lbs. This includes very basic travel items that "live" in the scamp, but not items like food, clothing, and other travel items that get loaded for each trip. Our normal travel tongue weight is closer to 220 lbs. You could theoretically keep the tongue weight below 200 lbs but in practical terms it would be difficult and even then you are skating on the edge - not a good place to be.

Byron Kinnaman · 03-09-2016, 09:04 AM

The last time I weighed my Scamp 13 tongue it was around 170 to 175lbs. The configuration is No A/C, no Water heater, no Awning, no Bath/toilet, Manual water pump. That was loaded for camping.

Howard MP · 03-09-2016, 01:16 PM

Thanks, everyone. I figured I'd have to go with a minimum cargo in the trailer and load with ice, water, etc. upon arrival at or near my camp site. BTW, how does one weigh the "weigh weight?"

floyd · 03-09-2016, 02:08 PM

If you find a Scamp13D, don't despair, it is well under 2000 pounds.
which means it can easily tow safely with less than 200pounds tongue weight.

Howard MP · 03-09-2016, 03:41 PM

That was a dumb error! How does one weigh the "TONGUE weight!"

bpfick · 03-09-2016, 04:19 PM

I set the tongue of this 2016 layout 1, on a simple bathroom scale.

Single propane bottle. No air, no bath, no awning. Packed as light as possible, but packing is always variable X isn't it.

182 pounds without the battery. 198 with the battery.

Hope that helps the decision making.

Borrego Dave · 03-09-2016, 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Howard MP

That was a dumb error! How does one weigh the "TONGUE weight!"

A bathroom scale, but as all of us guys have been told "it's not the same as the Drs"

bpfick · 03-09-2016, 04:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Borrego Dave

A bathroom scale, but as all of us guys have been told "it's not the same as the Drs"

Sometimes the one at home is indeed off a bit, but sometimes its not the direction you might think.

In any case, it is a whole lot better than guessing.

Of course, a scale certified for doing business (fruit/produce, scrap metal, etc) would be best.

Byron Kinnaman · 03-09-2016, 04:25 PM

Since the tongue weight and trailer both change a bit, a bathroom scale and a large dowel work just fine. The weight you get is approximate at best.

Howard MP · 03-09-2016, 04:26 PM

Thanks. Did not realize it was that simple!

Glenn Baglo · 03-09-2016, 04:53 PM

Or, if you have some spare change, you can buy a Sherline scale, designed for the purpose. As my tongue weight is 320-340 lbs I got one. Be sure to order with a 1,000 lb. gauge as that is more accurate and easier to read than a 2,000 lb gauge.

CampyTime · 03-09-2016, 06:32 PM

I used the sherline tongue weight scale on my 13er and got 185 pounds. Basic simple necessities inside. Although I do have cedar ply shelving installed with 3/4" PVC pipe inside the closet.

Sent from my iPhone using Fiberglass RV

honda03842 · 03-09-2016, 06:40 PM

We regularly weigh ours with our bathroom scale. Our Scamp 16 fully loaded has a tongue weight of 200 lbs. We only have one battery and one propane tank. We keep our water tank 1/2 full when traveling. Our Scamp has more drawers and cabinets than most.

Byron Kinnaman · 03-09-2016, 07:51 PM

There's another method.
Go to a truck scales, move across the scales until the tongue jack is new the edge of scale platform. Weight the trailer while attached, disconnect with the tongue jack holding the trailer approximately level. The difference between the two reading is tongue weight.

As with many things people fuss about, I don't fuss about trailer weights any more. My tow can more than the trailer will ever weigh and tongue weight is within the 10% to 15% ideal range.

Jack L · 03-09-2016, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bpfick

I set the tongue of this 2016 layout 1, on a simple bathroom scale.

Single propane bottle. No air, no bath, no awning. Packed as light as possible, but packing is always variable X isn't it.

182 pounds without the battery. 198 with the battery.

Hope that helps the decision making.

When you put the battery in, the weight increased 16 pounds ?

That seems a little on the low side.

Jack L · 03-09-2016, 08:54 PM

I have always weighed my trailer on a free truck scale along the highway and determined the tongue weight using the method Byron described but if you do it this way , keep in mind that truck scales (at least the ones that I have found) weigh in 50 pound increments. If you are pushing the limit on your vehicle this could be a problem. For example , say your tongue weight is exactly 200 pounds and you add 10 pounds, the truck scale will show 250 pounds. That additional 10 reads out at 50. In my case, it doesn't make any difference. I am well below my limits with what I tow. Be careful.

Jack L · 03-09-2016, 09:06 PM

I also get the axle weight on both wheels, then back up and put just one wheel on the platform to determine if one side of the trailer is heavier than the other.