Small carry box located in front of tub

TerryV6

Currently, when we reach a destination, we reach into our TV and locate the odds and ends needed.  ( the ball leveler, wheel locks, hitch lock, yellow stabilizer pads, jack wheel).  Now...  I was thinking....  How about putting all of these items in one easy to get to space.  Make it well strapped on of course, and easy to put on and take off.    I can’t think that these items would affect my tongue weight...  I took a picture with a storage box in the location.  This isn’t the one I would use, but I’d have to find one to fit a bal leveler. 

jgram2

@TerryV6 our Brahma wheel lock and Bal leveler weight 30 and 18#'s respectively. 48#s could make a difference for our tongue weight. Sometimes we carry 2 6 gal water jugs on the platform so that's ~96#s alone. Propane, battery and other miscellany do add up.

TerryV6

Thanks... that’s why I’m putting it out there...

DurangoTaB

I agree with Terry...I weighed our tongue weight a few weeks ago (we’ve also put the spare up there) and it was a little over 200lbs...not sure I want to put much more for fear of taking weight off the front tires of my Tacoma. 

TerryV6

That’s Twojgrams that you are agreeing with... I don’t have an opinion yet... That’s why I’m asking...  

jgram2

@TerryV6 with our Outback dry wt of 1860, allowable tongue wt of 10-15% is 186-279 #s. We usually have to work at making it to the 186, so it may not be an issue for you. I love your idea, and hope you'll add a photo of your solution if you go that route.

GibW

That's the box that we use - it works great. Just use it to hold misc gear for hookup and camp - nothing too heavy. Trying to keep tongue weight around 180.

TerryV6

GibW said:

That's the box that we use - it works great. Just use it to hold misc gear for hookup and camp - nothing too heavy. Trying to keep tongue weight around 180.

How do you attach or fasten it?  Could you take a picture?

rkj__

DurangoTaB said:

I agree with Terry...I weighed our tongue weight a few weeks ago (we’ve also put the spare up there) and it was a little over 200lbs...not sure I want to put much more for fear of taking weight off the front tires of my Tacoma. 

I don't think you need to be afraid of more than 200lb tongue weight on a Tacoma.  I'm not sure the details of your specific model, but current models can handle 350lb or more tongue weight.

A pickup truck is light in the rear when unloaded.  The first couple hundred pounds you add, just starts to balance out your front / rear weight balance. 

My Canyon rides much nicer with 200lb in the bed than when empty. 

ScottG

Agreed. Your Ram 1500 should have no problem with the added tongue weight. For handling purposes, you don't want the tongue weight too heavy in relation to the weight of the trailer (I think around 15% is the rule of thumb), but I doubt adding the box will do that unless your planning to fill it with gold bricks.

I have my spare tire relocated to the tongue and it weighs out at just over 200lbs. It pulls fine with my Nissan Frontier V6. 

TerryV6

Do you think a ratchet strap would be a good option?

[Deleted User]

If possible, could you show pic on how the tire was mounted? Did you have to drill holes in the diamond plate cover?

GibW

Hi Terry - it's attached using extra long cable ties (UV resistant). I put a small piece of bike inner tube under each corner for a bit of cushioning. On the inside of the box I placed two vinyl stringers running the long way for extra stiffness since the box wasn't especially stiff. It's held up well on over 4,000 miles of travel and is very watertight too. Hope the pics work for you - I can retake during the day if you need. 

TerryV6

tabstel said:

If possible, could you show pic on how the tire was mounted? Did you have to drill holes in the diamond plate cover?

I made some small cuts...

ScottG

TerryV6 said:

Do you think a ratchet strap would be a good option?

Don't see why not, provided it's retained in some way so it can't slip off the box or slide forward on the frame (which would cause it to loosen up). I'd probably use two, but I'm a little AR about that sort of thing...

I've carted two kayaks thousands of miles held to the roof of my truck cap with ratcheting straps. They are strong and can be easily snugged up if they stretch a little under use. 

KBaggins1

We recently mounted a similar box to the tongue of our trailer. Brand name is action packer. After our electrical cord managed to slither out of the OEM box and got destroyed because we dragged it for about 10 miles before somebody waved us to pull over we decided a box with a bottom would be a good idea. It is mounted with 4 1/4" bolts that go in to threaded holes that we put in to the tongue. We have the now repaired cord and fresh water hoses and water filter in there now. Just got back from an 8000 KM trip to the Denver CO area and back and it worked great.

rcuomo

Hi GibW,
What make is the box that you are using? Where did you source it from? Thanks, Ray

JanetED

Not sure this is the right thread but I have a question about tongue weight.  Does it matter if the above box is mounted on the tongue or carried behind the axle of the TV?  Don't both contribute to tongue weight?

ScottG

JanetED said:

Not sure this is the right thread but I have a question about tongue weight.  Does it matter if the above box is mounted on the tongue or carried behind the axle of the TV?  Don't both contribute to tongue weight?

Yes. Anything carried ahead of the axle will increase tongue weight, anything carried behind the axle will decrease tongue weight.

Everybody's loading situation is different, so the only way to know how something affects your is to weigh your own trailer tongue with the camper packed for your usual travel conditions.

JanetED

Thank you.  I was thinking of adding a box similar to the situation above.  I currently carry this stuff in the back of my TV (behind the axle) therefore there should be little difference in my tongue weight if I move it (?). I am guessing that the distance from the fulcrum makes some difference but I wouldn't think that much.

ScottG

JanetED said:

Thank you.  I was thinking of adding a box similar to the situation above.  I currently carry this stuff in the back of my TV (behind the axle) therefore there should be little difference in my tongue weight if I move it (?). I am guessing that the distance from the fulcrum makes some difference but I wouldn't think that much.

The magnitude of the effect of moving weight from the back to the front depends on how much weight is being redistributed. Just remember the effect is compounded if you are reducing tail weight at the same time you add tongue weight. For example, moving 10lbs from behind the axle to in front of the axle could add 20lbs to your tongue weight.

The actual difference being a function of several factors, including distance from the fulcrum. However, like you, I wouldn't think too much about it when I could just measure the tongue weight with a scale. I think the rule of thumb is to shoot for 10-15% of the loaded trailer weight.

TerryV6

I just went with the smaller action packer... Big enough for my essential setup items...  not my bal leveler however...

 

ScottG

@TerryV6, that looks like a handy set-up. I may do something similar in the future to accommodate chocks, hoses, etc., or perhaps a beefed up battery arrangement.

As per my previous post, just be sure you somehow prevent that strap from creeping forward on the V-shaped trailer tongue and allowing the whole assembly to loosen up. I have visions of expensive camping equipment being "redistributed" along the side of a bumpy road!  :-0 

TerryV6

I took your advice when you posted last.  I have the great mod from Popt@b.  The underside has the grating material.  I mounted two handles on it, one on each side and ran my strap thru them...  Can’t even see them...

GibW

rcuomo - Sorry for the delay in responding. The box is made by Plano. I think I bought it at Menards (a Midwest home improvement store) for less than $10. I've seen them at Walmart and other retailers. I'm super pleased with how well it works to hold misc hookup gear that I want to access quickly. Also it can be removed and makes no permanent marks on the trailer.

TerryV6

Handles under tongue..

libertyo

The 2 storage tubs pictured in this thread seem to be the only readily available choices.  Already have the Plano storage tubs - just a bit large to fit onto my newly installed outback platform, action packer a bit small to fit everything. Does anyone have a sturdy storage tub sized right in between these two? Why o why do I always want something that doesn't quite exist... 

TerryV6

I did consider these:


Wolfpack by frontrunner

BrianZ

@TerryV6, are you still using the Rubbermaid storage bin and tire mounted on the side?  If so, how has the tire mount held up - still working ok?  And the storage bin?  I'm looking for ideas to increase tongue storage.

TerryV6

@BrianZ, I've changed things up.  Now I have the platform with 2 Plano boxes.  They are screwed to the platform.  One side is for sewer stuff.  The other for wheel locks etc.
I put my battery in today.  The cover was the big problem.  
Putting my bikes on.  My wheel mount is temporarily off.  Time to weigh.  Hope wheel can return
.

TerryV6

@BrianZ, the tire mount was put on by the dealer and works great.  Hope to put it back on....