It looks like we may actually bite the bullet and buy a Scamp. My wife called yesterday and made an appointment with a couple about 3 hours away who own a Scamp very similar to what we want to buy, so we can drive up and actually see one. She got the phone number from Scamp about 2 months ago, and was dragging her feet. I had decided she had changed her mind.
Now for the question. I am thinking of reducing my tongue weight by relocating the battery/batteries to the back of the trailer. I will probably have a platform made to go into the 2" receiver at the rear to hold them.
How much tongue weight is the rear hitch rated for on a Scamp 13' trailer?
Bobbo,
What is driving your desire to reduce the tongue weight? If your towing vehicle can handle the tongue weight, I would not make an effort to change it, I can tell you at this point in my life I have no burning desire to pick up the tongue and move my Scamp around. It is much safer to us a tongue dolly. I see that there is a gizmo called a Trailer Valet. It appears to be a safe product.
The ratio of the distance of the propane tank to axle distance vs. the rear bumper to axle distance is roughly 2 to 1. It would take some creativity to offset 40 pounds of tongue weight. At some point reducing the tongue weight is unsafe.
BobH.
My tow vehicle has a 200 pound tongue weight limit. Everything I have read on here indicates a Scamp will push that limit. I will have 2 propane tanks and 2 batteries. I am relatively sure that will put me over 200 pounds of tongue weight. My preferred solution is to have the 2 propane tanks on the tongue, and the 2 batteries on the rear receiver. That not only removes the battery weight from the tongue, but also uses the battery weight to counter some of the tongue weight that is otherwise there. I do realize that I need about 10% of the trailer weight on the tongue. I can deal with that.
Thank you for the ratios of the distances to the axle. That tells me that about 1/2 of the weight of the batteries will be counterbalanced off of the tongue.
Oh, and regarding trailer valets. I am familiar with them. I had one when I owned a tow dolly.
Now, how much tongue weight is the rear hitch rated for on a Scamp 13' trailer?
Currently a 32 foot Winnebago Class C
2010 Subaru Forester
2 fur kids
Bobbo,
A group 24 battery wights about 40#. If your hitch would support both batteries, and you moved them to the external rear of the 13' camper you could reduce tongue weight by many pounds. If I may make a suggestion, call Scamp.
The factory can tell you what the minimum safe tongue weight is and what the capacity rating is of the rear hitch is. Anything that I would plug into the rear hitch would have to be short to reduce leverage on the hitch and frame. If the factory sezs it is safe. Take the batteries out and weight the tongue and tanks on a scales. Then hang the batteries on the back of the bumper and weigh again, that will give you a number you can use. BE SAFE!
BobH.
Our 13, with one gas bottle and one battery, and more or less empty of gear, has a tongue weight of just about 200 lbs. We too have a Subaru with a 200-lb hitch weight rating. A couple of years ago, we removed the settee back / top bunk, along with the pipe supports, and used throw-pillows instead, and that reduced the tongue weight by 25 lbs. But we´ve since reinstalled the settee back, and now keep a few gallons in the fresh water tank, which, together with luggage stowed under the dinette, keeps the tongue weight down around 190. For whatever it might be worth, the Subaru dealer told us that the 200-lb spec was conservative.
Hi Bobbo,
I've read that even hanging a bike or two off the back can cause sway. My 2016 Scamp 13' w/bath, one propane tank and one Group 27 battery came in at 1500# and 220# tongue weight straight out of the factory. I, too, am trying to figure out what to do! I understand adding fresh water at 8.3# per gallon may help, but the 1500# means I'm already carrying ALL camping supplies in the tow rig (I did take all but the driver's seat out, and only packing for one). I do love my Scamp! Just a bit frustrated with salesmen undercutting weights by 25-50%.
I have bookmarked links to some sway control hardware, in case it turns out to be necessary. Thanks for the heads up.
Currently a 32 foot Winnebago Class C
2010 Subaru Forester
2 fur kids
My 2016 Scamp 13' w/bath, one propane tank and one Group 27 battery, AC, heater and almost every option. Using a bathroom scale under the front jacking place gave me 230 #
salesmen: I was told my Scamp weighed 1400# YA RIGHT That NOTHING.. My factory Title said it weight 1200#. When I asked my sale Person, I was told that was the LEASE it can weigh. Is that falsifying a legal Document?
I don't know about the legal stuff but I think the Scamps weigh more than is advertised. Our 2015 13 standard with two propane tanks, standard battery, and no bath weighed 255# at the tongue brand new right from the factory.
Scamp weights listed are dry and they usually list a range in the specs, because the final weight will depend on options added. If I recall the 13 tongue weight is listed at 180, but that is with standard battery and empty single propane tank. Tank with fill is around 40lbs then you add a second and getting pretty close to 250.
I use to love when people advertised 13 Scamps at 950lbs, saw that all the time. Maybe a 72 stripped shell was that, but not anything close to that in the real world.
Our Trailers:
2015 19 Escape
Buying or Selling Molded FG Trailers:
Fiberglass-RV-4Sale
OP here. We drove last weekend to see the 13' Scamp. It was adorable. I loved it, and my wife said she did. Now I am just waiting for her to decide whether we should order one.
The more I read, the more I like my idea of moving the batteries to the rear of the trailer to reduce tongue weight. From a post above about a 2 to 1 distance ratio of wheel to tongue vs wheel to rear, moving a 40 pound battery to the rear would reduce tongue weight by about 60 pounds. Adding a second battery to the rear would bring that to 80 pounds off of the tongue weight. Even if the tongue weight from the factory is 250 pounds, that would get it down to below the 200 pound weight limit of my tow vehicle.
Currently a 32 foot Winnebago Class C
2010 Subaru Forester
2 fur kids