How much does a 13' Burro weigh?

[Patricia LW]

Perhaps this is not the correct venue for this question but it seems to relate ..... Can anyone out there tell me how much a 13' Burro (vintage) weigh? I have a Rav4, 4cy, automatic. I always worry I will put too much stress on my car and transmission!

[Robin G]

Patricia, the best way to know what your trailer weights so that you know if it's tooooooooo much for your tow vehicle is to take it down and have it weighted. Easy Breezy! Can been done at the scales on the interstate or you can check for Grain Scales etc in your area. Because in my opinion, side by side, same make, same model can weight two very different weights. Best to know what Yours weights. Good Luck! Robin

[Patricia LW]

Patricia, the best way to know what your trailer weights so that you know if it's tooooooooo much for your tow vehicle is to take it down and have it weighted. Easy Breezy! Can been done at the scales on the interstate or you can check for Grain Scales etc in your area. Because in my opinion, side by side, same make, same model can weight two very different weights. Best to know what Yours weights. Good Luck! Robin

Thanks, Robin, you have been very helpful. Living in the city means grain scales are not a consideration. I was hoping I could get an answer on-line. I will look for the nearest interstate scale.

Again, thanks a bunch.

[Raya]

Robin's right on here. I would say that most Burro 13s are within 500# either way of 1500#, but then that gives you 1,000 lbs. of leeway! To expand on what Robin said, if you're wanting to know how much weight your RAV4 is actually towing when you go camping, you might want to load it up as if you were going camping and then weigh it (gear, tanks - however you usually travel). It can be surprising how much weight "a little bit" of gear ads.

Raya

[Robin G]

Patricia, you may be surprised where you will find a scale. But anyway, I think that is the best way to get an answer. Plus hang on to your weight certificate for future info as well as if and when you ever sold you can pass along the info. You can have it weight both empty and full of your camping gear. Here's a link the the topic post that Frederick post after the Oregon rally about the weight in. Oregon Rally weight topic Good Luck! Robin





Raya, you must have been hitting add reply as I started typing cause that was the exact info I was replying, to pass along. I agree that people don't get how much their "stuff" adds to the over all weight.

[Deb & Chuck]

Patricia,
The 1983 -13 ft. Burro we used to have weighed 900 pounds dry/empty weight.
Deb

[ThomasE]

Try the local dump, aka "landfill". They have scales to measure how much large trucks dump, you can probably drive by with your trailer and just to "ask a question" and it will get weighed (the scale is always on and you can see the weight on a large digital readout when stopped at the booth asking your "question").

[Frederick L. Simson]

Can been done at the scales on the interstate

Not in Southern California. Those scales are for Commercial Semi and Bobtail Trucks ONLY. They weigh the big rigs IN MOTION and you cannot stop on them. There is WAY too much commercial traffic over them, and the CHP will direct you away from them.

In Southern California you must look in the Yellow Pages under: [b]Scales, Public or [b]Scales, Public Weighers. Public Scales are usually found at [b]Recycling Centers: (Waste Management^®, Edco^®, etc.), or [b]Moving & Storage Companies: (Mayflower Movers^®, United Van Lines^®, Bekins^®). They are private businesses and usually charge a small fee ($5 or $10) for a weight printout.

If you send me a Private Message, I can send the addresses of all of the Public Weighers in San Diego County.

[Frederick L. Simson]

You can also come to the Rally at Lake Casitas and I can weigh your trailer on my portable vehicle scales.

[Tom Trostel]

Or, if you need to weigh a trailer, enter your zip code in the CAT scales locator and go to a nearby truck stop.

http://catscale.findlocation.com/

[Robin G]

Great Weight suggestions, Thomas, Frederick and Tom


Sorry for the mis-direction on the scales, cause here we can pull up.. Though I didn't go there for the reason Frederick stated. All those big trucks needing me outta their way. I just went to the grain scales here in town.

[Lizbeth]

Or, if you need to weigh a trailer, enter your zip code in the CAT scales locator and go to a nearby truck stop.

http://catscale.findlocation.com/

We used a Cat scale found on their web site to weigh our truck. It was easy and the guy was nice even tho we were not a big rig. Right after we weighed another pickup with a 5th wheel pulled in to be weighed, the guy says they do it all the time.

[Greg N]

Patricia, the burro will definitley tow different than your teardrop, not so much for the extra weight which is not a big issue but more for the higher profile which creats more wind drag.

Once you get use to towing it you will find that at times you wont notice its back there.



See you at Spamboree

[Lee Senn]

Patricia My wife, Norma, and I tow a 1985 13 foot Uhaul ( Uhauls were built by Burro for Uhaul to use as rentals ). We attended the recent gathering at Bullard's Beach and had our trailer weighed there. Our trailer was fully loaded the propane tank was full we had no water in the tank and the spare was in the pickup bed and the trailer weight was 1420 pounds with a tongue weight of 160 lbs for a total of 1580 lbs. I would imagine that a Burro weighs the same or perhaps a little less. I can't address the ability of your RAV 4 to tow a trailer of this weight but perhaps this weight info will be helpful. Lee

[Dana T]

Patricia, I notice your Rav4 is a 4-cylinder version. If it's a 2005 or older, that means its horsepower is very similar to my 4-cylinder Camry. I find the Camry marginal for towing my Compact Jr, which is probably lighter than a 13' Burro, and certainly has less frontage area. This is at sea level, but we do have some noticeable grades here.

One thing I find amusing is how well the trailer acts as a drogue chute -- if I'm going down a 6% grade the car and trailer combination hits about 52mph while coasting. That same car going down that same grade but without the trailer will coast far faster than I want to go -- I don't like to let it go over 70mph and so I have to use the brakes to keep the speed less than that.

Going up the same grade with the trailer I have the choice of going 48-50mph but at about 4000rpm, or 42mph at a much more reasonable 3000rpm. If it's a multilane highway I choose the slower speed, but if it's a 2-lane road with traffic stacking up behind me it 4000rpm all the way to the next turnout or passing lane. Sometimes I'm lucky and get stuck behind a slow-moving truck -- then it's his fault and not mine! I just make sure to allow room for people to pass me without having to pass the truck as well, and I pull over into the pullout with the truck to let everyone by both of us.

[Raya]

Hi Lee,

Just as a note, the U-hauls were built by a different company (Rec-Vee or something like that, but I'm not sure of the name) using modified molds. Their published weight is a bit higher then most of the smaller eggs, presumably due to the extra framing members (not sure what else was made heavy duty for rental but there may have been other parts too).

The published weight on the U-haul 13 is 1250# vs. the 1000# or so for most of the others (presumably the Burro too).

Of course none of the real world weights have to match the published ones, but I do think the U-haul starts out somewhat heavier.

Raya

[Lee Senn]

Raya I did not realize that the Uhauls were actually made for Uhaul by a company other than Burro ! Does it follow that there may be yet another set of " phantom molds " out there ? Lee

[Patricia LW]

Patricia, the burro will definitley tow different than your teardrop, not so much for the extra weight which is not a big issue but more for the higher profile which creats more wind drag.

Once you get use to towing it you will find that at times you wont notice its back there.



See you at Spamboree

Hey, Greg! I wondered if I would hear from you. So much information here! You know how I worry about pulling too much and hurting my car. I appreciate your input. Be ready for lots of questions at the Spam

[Patricia LW]

Raya I did not realize that the Uhauls were actually made for Uhaul by a company other than Burro ! Does it follow that there may be yet another set of " phantom molds " out there ? Lee

Oh, Lee, this is a good question! Wouldn't you love to get your hands on those!!!!

[Patricia LW]

Patricia,
The 1983 -13 ft. Burro we used to have weighed 900 pounds dry/empty weight.
Deb

Thanks, Deb. That is reassuring. That is just a little more than my tear.