Tab Bobs Up & Down

TomStephens1

Hi All,
We are headed out on our second adventure with the t@b and we know that like the first, the camper will bob up and down on the road. Should we put a little bit of extra weight in the front end or it or not worry about the ups and downs?
Thanks for the advice!

jkjenn

The T@b will bounce some, especially on rougher roads. The street in front of my house used to be brick and I had to crawl down it. However, you should not have excessive bobbing.

Check your tire inflation and make sure that your hitch ball is level with your receiver. On a regular T@b, the top of the hitch ball should be 16" from the ground. If both the tires and receiver are OK, it probably has to do with the way you have packed the T@b.  

TomStephens1

Thanks.  I'll check the hitch ball's height.  As far as packing goes, I just bought it and don't really put much in the camper while traveling.  I am wondering if I actually should load the front end in order to give more weight to it.

Nomad

Is this bobbing on a smooth road? At all speeds? What model of T@B do you have. What are you towing it with.
Do make sure the ball is at the right height so the T@B is level - As Jenn mentions, it's usually 16" to top of ball. You really shouldn't get any consistant bobing if it's level and weighted right. - On a smooth road I have to check my rear view mirror to make sure the T@B is still there - My TV is fairly heavy (Jeep Wrangler)

ChanW

Tom, a light tongue can cause bobbing, and can cause dangerous handling conditions on the highway with sway.

The 'rule of thumb' with loading your Tab is to have the tongue weight about 10-15% of the total trailer weight. 

So, for example, our Tab weighs maybe 1800# empty, and around 2200# when packed. So I keep the tongue at around 220-240# when we're on the road. (I use a bathroom scale)

That said, the road we live on is terrible for bobbing. We have to keep our speed at around 25mph for the first two miles of every trip. But otherwise only on dirt roads in state forests...

TomStephens1 said:

Thanks.  I'll check the hitch ball's height.  As far as packing goes, I just bought it and don't really put much in the camper while traveling.  I am wondering if I actually should load the front end in order to give more weight to it.

Michigan_Mike

I agree with the above and there are some tips here too that provide good insight into trailer sway and tongue weight.   

https://youtu.be/GfeyBxuIZOU?t=20

Mercator

T@B wheels are not balanced when delivered to dealers and most dealers don't bother balancing them. You might want to check yours as an unbalanced wheel can start to hop. 

ChanW

And there are some sobering videos of trailer sway...

https://www.google.com/search?tbm=vid&hl=en&source=hp&biw=&bih=&q=trailer+sway

Good to keep in mind!

TomStephens1

Thanks, all.  I put a bit more weight on the front end of the camper during this trip and I'm getting slightly better results. However, the bobbing continues.  I'll try adding more weight on our return trip.  Tire pressure is good.  Towing with a 2016 Subaru Outback.

Ratkity

Hi Tom. Much luck on isolating the source your hopping T@B! (It's excited to be owned and going camping?)

When my TV was a 2006 Rav4 (6 cyl) and I was towing the Reverse TD (900 lb dry weight), the RT would bounce horribly if I was even a few pounds over 32lb tire pressure (tires were balanced). Recommended was 35 lbs (as per sticker on tongue). I later increased tongue weight by swapping out the empty platform and the small plastic front box with a full-sized truck toolbox (I know not feasible with T@B). [Side note: The diamond-plate matched the RT beautifully! It's amazing how much you can put in one of them boxes (said with thick southern accent).]

Just a few thoughts that you've probably already considered:

The T@Bs my dealer sells have the friction anti-sway bar on the tongue that goes to the hitch (others have said they have it too - some see it as unnecessary YMMV). Do you have that adjusted properly if you have one installed?

Did you have the factory tow pkg on the Subaru? Some car company tow pkgs come with heavier alternators as well as stiffer rear suspension. If you do have the factory pkg, have you considered checking out Subaru forums to see if anyone else has had the same issue and solved it with cheap alternatives? I mention cheap because a person can install some intensely expensive suspension systems on their TVs. 

Do you travel with a top rack on your new TV? Someone mentioned turbulence in another thread. I believe there's wind deflectors (some work, some don't) that can help. The forum search function is pretty good, do a search for turbulence. 

Did you travel with a battery installed (probably a d'oh question cuz the breakaway-brake needs it)? Was your 20# propane tank full? 

There's a good chance you were traveling with a winterized T@B, but to be honest, I towed my T@Bitha with my Rav4 all winterized and it didn't bob for the 1.5 hrs when I traveled DC metro pothole roads home (some have "Studio Apt for Rent" signs in them). 

Because I did a bunch of towing of both the Reverse TD and the T@B with the Rav4 without bouncing on normal roads, I'm thinking it could be TV related (I could be totally off-base - well, I'm always off-center, but that's another thread!)

Let us know all your attempted and successful solutions!!! Someone else is bound to have or need the same information.

*hugs*
Ratkity



 

TomStephens1

Thanks for the advice.  We just came back from a 1300 mile, 8 day excursion. We replaced the dealer provided ball mount with one that raises the front end of the tab about 20% above level and the problem has gone away.  The original mount provided with the camper made the t@b level with the ground, but in addition to creating a bobbing issue it also caused the front end scrape on the pavement when inclining to a gas station or declining when leaving one.  Our t@b is slightly tilted now, but again the problem seams to have gone away.  I hope the change in ball mount isn't a hazard!

Ratkity

if you are talking about 20% above the 16" to the top of the ball that is considered to be "level", that's 3.2 inches higher. The rule of thumb is that a trailer/camper is easier to control if it sits lower than level with the TV than higher - but that's a general observation AND with campers that weigh significantly more (and more than likely, significantly longer). Everyone's experience is different, especially with tiny trailers.

My T@B sits 1.5" higher than then recommended 16" with my GMC Canyon 4WD. The company that makes the 16" extra long hitch doesn't make a 5 or 6" drop that would get the T@B closer to level. I've towed the T@B over 500 miles in this configuration and there has been no sway or bobbing issues. I wanted the extra long hitch to avoid using extensions. I needed the tailgate to clear the jack when traveling with the tailgate down - I was planning on loading a motorcycle that needed the entire bed and tailgate length to fit.. It was the easiest and cheapest solution at the time.

If your spare is bolted to the underside of the T@B, I'd recommend scooting underneath to check for scrapes on the tire. It's also a good idea to try to remove the spare while under there while at home - hitched to your TV. You'll find it a tight fit (even when at 16" level and not hitched up). Now imagine doing that on a highway, with all the cookie crumbs and misc debris on the highway/road shoulder AND the T@B sitting at least 4" lower because one of its feet is flat. When someone on this forum mentioned changing the tire, I immediately went under and had high school flashbacks of holding my breath, laying on the bed to put on jeans. UGH. LOL. Space is tight! That spare got moved!! I opted for the Yakima rack - others have moved it to a tongue mount, or have put it in the T@B or TV.

tl;dr version:
My humble opinion is that if your configuration works for you, go for it. Just be careful if your spare is mounted underneath the rear.

ChanW

Yep, that spare under there is a huge pain to remove/replace, even without one "flat foot". Heavy, lying on your back trying to lift it into place while screwing the retaining nuts on...

I still haven't dealt with moving it to a new mounting, and dread the day I have to do an emergency tire change.

Ratkity

Just FYI, leverage is difficult in that tiny space! My redneck solution to remove the spare with what I had on hand was to stack a couple of bricks I had lying around and slide those under the spare (3x 2 brick stacks). When the tire dropped the half inch or so, it was now supported by the bricks and the nuts were way easier/faster to get off.  Once the nuts were off the tire, I removed one brick on each stack and then slid the tire out. I'm sure scrap wood would have worked too. I just happened to have a lot of bricks stacked up from the previous homeowner and my wood scrap pile was in the basement (i.e., I was too lazy to go down and get some). In the sunlight, I could see the minor scrapes on the tire edge and I had only taken the T@B out twice to local parks (pulled by the Rav4). 

Edited to add: For those who don't relocate the spare, those lynx levelers or some wood blocks would be handy in a tire emergency just to get the spare off.

ChanW

Excellent suggestion RatKity. I've adopted the same method, we carry a bunch of 2x4 and 2x6 blocks (for leveling) that work 'perfectly' for it.

I appreciate the reminder that I have another use for all the blocks that we carry!

phulishcat

I was having a small popping issue during towing and changed from a 4inch drop short hitch to a 6 inch long hitch. (long hitch is 4 inches further from the bumper ) and no longer have any bounce or popping. Did this on advice from the dealer we bought the t@g from.

TomStephens1

I'll check on the spare.  It does appear very difficult to contend with. And from what I understand, there's no jack that comes with the t@b!

Ratkity

Important FYI, there are many posts reminding people that you cannot use a jack of any kind on the axel (it'll damage your axel). When you jack up the rear to replace a tire or do any service, the jack needs to be on the metal frame. 

Oh, and the lug nuts that hold the spare and T@B tires might be a different size than your TV. Check before you leave home. I have a crossbar-type lug nut remover (it's really really old and I wouldn't be surprised if it fails) and a multi-sized lug nut removal tool (recommended from here).