Hitch Weight for a 2955 RL

[bullroc3]

At the fall rally, I had the truck and camper weighed. I recently received the report. One number that struck me as odd was the hitch weight of the camper - 2750 lbs. The trailer weighed in at 11475 lbs. Doing the math gives me 24% of the weight on the hitch. Does this seem right for a 2955RL? It seems rather high. I know a lot depends on what you carry in the front compartments. I don't carry a generator nor do I have a washer/dryer or second air conditioner. I have read posts where heavier trailers have less pin weight.

[mhs4771]

Agreed, does sound quite right. We have a 2010 2955RL and I knew we were heavy, second air, Combo washer/dryer, satellite dish, Level-Up System, dual group 29 Batteries and a full basement. Monty was 14000 lbs with 2600 lbs on the pin. So we are a lot heavier than you but with less pin weight, unless it has to do with the difference in years and maybe placement of the axles. Our weight is part of the reason we had the appointment with MOR/ryde for their IS System with the Disk Brakes.

[Rondo]

According to the spec sheets on the 2955 from Montana, the 2005 Hitch weight is supposedly 1980# while the 2010 hitch weight is supposedly 1715#. These are basics and not having anything loaded in the unit. I don't know why the large difference is but---. I had my 2980 weighed at the Fall Rally but do not have the letter here in Omaha. It's in the Monte out at the farm. Next time I head out there, I'll check on it and find out what my sheets say also!

[H. John Kohl]

John,
The recommended pin/hitch weight is between 20% and 25%. So you are within that window. You can take your truck and trailer to a truck weigh station and get the numbers again. The only difference is you will not get weights on each wheel, just each axle.
You pull onto the scales and weigh hooked to trailer. Then go park the trailer, unhook and weigh just the truck.
You total up the weight when hooked up of your steering and drive axles and subtract the total weight of just the truck (steering and drive axles again). The delta will be your trailer pin weight.
Good luck.

[Lee F.]

John,
I had mine weighed at the rally also. My loaded weight was 11,675# and my pin weight was 2,075#. I don't have the second air conditioner, washer dryer or carry generators in the unit either. I was fully loaded for our three week trip and my tanks were all basicly empty. Unless there is some major difference between the 2005 and 2011 model years I can't understand the weight difference. Do you think they might have written the number down wrong? Mine being 2075 and yours being 2750? I'd give them a call.

[Art-n-Marge]

This is certainly possible. The estimates are 15% to 25% for a utility, car carrier or horse trailer because there isn't as much storage over the pin and most of the load is over the axles. However, a residential fifth wheel will be 18% to 25%. Mine is between 19 & 20%. With the axle weights you posted and the pin weight, this would suggest that much of the contents of the trailer are stored in the front of the unit. You are within your weights so I wouldn't worry too much as long as the pin weight is not giving the rear axle any trouble but if you have weighed each trailer axle and they are the almost the same, then again you are fine. My trailer front axle carries about 300 more lbs than the rear axle. This isn't enough to worry about since each axle is well under rating.

I also carry about 10 gallons of fresh water when I tow and with the fresh water tank being in the rear this helps even the load, until the water is used at a rest stop to flush a toilet or wash hands, then the weight starts to shift forward into the gray and black tank.

It's definitely a balancing act.

Never go by the documented pin weight. This is typically for an empty trailer which as soon as your start loading it up, will never be accurate. Even it was an estimate while loaded, documented pin weights have never been and never will be reliable because there are so many factors that affect it as many posters have proven. Like adding a generator, more batteries, a washer/dryer, full or empty tanks (fresh water tank is usually at the rear), a second A/C, clothing storage and food cabinets usually at the front of the rig and over the pin.

In retrospect, this is why a rear kitchen might be better and a front living area even better than that to get the weight distributed to the rear and away from the pin. With all the kitchen stuff at the rear of the rig, this could lighten the pin weight or at least make it easier to manage weight distribution as long as the axle weights or gross weights aren't exceeded. I have also taken apart the front of the front of the rig and found all kinds of crappy debris not cleaned up by the manufacturer. While it's not much weight, every ounce counts. So who knows what's between your walls?

[berridge]

I have an '09 Monty 3075 and when loaded but with only a few gallons of fresh water it weighs 12800 lbs with a pin weight of 2900 lbs. I was surprised that the pin weight was so high but the specs give a dry pin weight which is up close to and in some cases higher than the larger units. For some reason the smaller trailers seem to be designed with a high pin weight relative to their overall weight. For this reason when I replaced my truck last year I went with a one ton rather than a 3/4 so I would not exceed the GVWR.

[klash]

We have a 2007 2955RL. This summer we did a weigh in, and here is our totals.

Over all weight road ready; 12, 246 lbs
Hitch weight: 2,486 lbs.

We have a small ice maker and a mini bar fridge in the basement on the right hand side.
Do not have a second roof air conditioner.
We do have a 2.6 cu ft upright Salton upright deep freeze in the cupboard where the washer/dryer combo would go.
We continue to be very cognizant of the overall weight of our rig, we hear too man stories of blown tires, broken spring hangers, etc.