T@B 400 2019 Tongue Weight

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Comments

  • BigGroverBigGrover Member Posts: 450
    @RCB that soynds sbout right.  It is the 2019 BD models that seem to be running high
    BigGrover
    2019 T@b 400 Boondock Lite
    2018 Ram 1500 Quad Cab Hemi
    Central Alabama
  • treefrogtreefrog Member Posts: 95
    edited April 2019
    Finally got a chance to weigh the trailer tongue empty of all gear. No waste or fresh water, full bottle of LP... 500 pounds.
    Standard 2019 400 with large fridge and micro.
  • BigGroverBigGrover Member Posts: 450
    My Shurline scale had mine at 490 lbs as did @Awca. This is not in line with what the factory quoted in recent communication. Glad I have a 1500 truck and not a midsize SUV!
    BigGrover
    2019 T@b 400 Boondock Lite
    2018 Ram 1500 Quad Cab Hemi
    Central Alabama
  • I just took delivery of my 400 standard edition yesterday with big fridge, microwave, and inverter. It came off the line at Nucamp on 3/19.  We took several tongue weights at the dealership using my Sherline tongue scale. With spare tire under the bed and dinette table out, 400 pounds exactly.  LP tank was full.  Tanks dry but winterized with about 3 gallons of antifreeze. I think weight was 420 with the dinette table installed.  I didnt get any other scenerio weights as this is how I plan to configure my camper.  
  • N7SHG_HamN7SHG_Ham Member Posts: 1,261
    @BigGrover I don't see why the boondocks would be heavier on the tongue? Aluminum tube vs plastic I suppose could account for some weight difference? Heavier tires, but that is unsprung weight and shouldn't affect the hitch weight at all.

    I wonder if the 400's have grown in tongue weight or if it was simply measured wrong or at least published wrong all along? I really see no design changes from earlier models to current production that would account for 100+ extra pounds up front?
    2019 T@B 400 Boondock Lite
  • BigGroverBigGrover Member Posts: 450
    @N7SHG_Ham I don't know whyw either but that seems to be the trend.  
    BigGrover
    2019 T@b 400 Boondock Lite
    2018 Ram 1500 Quad Cab Hemi
    Central Alabama
  • Sharon_is_SAMSharon_is_SAM Administrator Posts: 9,460
    edited April 2019
    Does anyone think the pitched axle impacts the tongue weight?  Is there a difference in tongue weight between the 320 regular vs the boondock?
    Sharon / 2017 T@B CSS / 2015 Toyota Sienna Minivan / Westlake, Ohio
  • BigGroverBigGrover Member Posts: 450
    @Sharon_is_SAM I made the same postulation previously but got no feedback
    BigGrover
    2019 T@b 400 Boondock Lite
    2018 Ram 1500 Quad Cab Hemi
    Central Alabama
  • Awca12aAwca12a Member Posts: 286
    Having taken the aluminum tub of twice now, I can't imagine it is heavier than a formed plastic tongue.  If anything, it might be lighter.  Weighs close to nothing.
    F150 Pulling 2019 T@B400 BDL
  • Sharon_is_SAMSharon_is_SAM Administrator Posts: 9,460
    Per Scott Hubbles list of weights, the boondock tub is 40# and the abs tub is 45#.  See page 4 of the link.
    https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/6219/tab-400-weight-distribution-hitch-not-recommended-due-to-c-channel-construction/p4

    Sharon / 2017 T@B CSS / 2015 Toyota Sienna Minivan / Westlake, Ohio
  • Awca12aAwca12a Member Posts: 286
    @Sharon_is_SAM   -  Good data and it makes sense.  Grover must be correct.  There is something with the boondock angle pitch accounting for the weight.
    F150 Pulling 2019 T@B400 BDL
  • N7SHG_HamN7SHG_Ham Member Posts: 1,261
    @Awca12a possibly changing the effective length from hitch coupler to center of axle as the axle pitch changes? The pitch is actually pretty mild (I have only ever head NuCamp refer to it as pitch, Dexter certainly doesn't) and the movement would have to be small for the tires to still fit in wheelwell.

    If in fact ONLY the Boondock's are truly heavier on the hitch than the standard model it is a bit of mystery, since tubs are essentially same weight, tires are NOT going to hitch weight and the rest is the same. Oh wait, those darned Boondock decals on the side, am I lucky I ordered mine without those :)
    2019 T@B 400 Boondock Lite
  • treefrogtreefrog Member Posts: 95
    Mine is not a Boondock. Tongue weight just under 500lbs.
  • BlueespyBlueespy Member Posts: 151
    edited April 2019
    Picked up our 2019 400 BD today - traded our 320 CS-S and headed off for a two-hr drive home. Our TV is a 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk rated to pull 6200 with a published tongue weight of ca. 600.  Added a eaZ lift Towing swaying control and a Tekonsha 90250 Prodigy RF Electronic Brake Control.  Several months ago - I'm going to guess around December or Jan I visited the dealer to look at the new 400 BD.  When he showed me the storage area under the bed, I commented about how much room there was.  When we picked up our new 400 today, I looked at this under the bed storage area and saw the batteries had been moved from the tub to under the bed.  I know the initial tongue weights were close to 500 but I think the batteries were still in the tub.  Anyone know what my weight tongue weight lost is since the batteries have been shifted to under the bed?
    Had no issues pulling at about 5mph under any posted speed.  I could feel it when we had some wind gusts but I felt it with the 320 as well.  No issues in braking or turning.  I did immediately notice the width is wider than the 320.  I hadn't really paid much attention but when I glanced in my RVM and instead of seeing down the side of the trailer, I'm looking at the front corners I realized it's a good deal wider.  I'll have to look around for some strap on mirror extensions.  Dealer told us they did a full walk through and all systems were operational - but I do question that as the propane wasn't hooked up and the safety cover was still in place.  I'll do my own check tomorrow.  Paying attention to the tongue weight, I plan to only add a sewer hose and water hose to the tub.  Will switching the stock table out for a home version of lighter wood make that much of a difference?  Our first trip is in a week and really looking forward to testing the 400 BD.
    2019 T@B 400 BDL
    2020 Ford F-150 XLT (V-8)
    Niceville, Florida
  • BigGroverBigGrover Member Posts: 450
    @Blueespy look at the Milenco clamp on mirrors.  They worked great on my Frontier when I had my Jayco
    BigGrover
    2019 T@b 400 Boondock Lite
    2018 Ram 1500 Quad Cab Hemi
    Central Alabama
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 834
    edited April 2019
    There is a tube in the rear of the 400 for your sewer hose.  It the round white cover on the driver's side all the way at the end of the camper. Water hose fits nicely in the rear outside storage bin on passenger side. The factory table weighs 27 pounds. 
  • BlueespyBlueespy Member Posts: 151
    JEB said:
    robyn769 said:
    I still suggest dropping the spare, and the mounting bar if you still need to get the tongue weight down. You can carry the spare at mid-point in your TV to take the weight of the rear axle.  Also, you "could" try storing the tire under the bed in the back, BUT, you don't want to have more than 40% of your weight in the rear end, so you would have to limit what else you store back there. 
    I disagree with this advice.  The spare takes up valuable real estate everywhere except where it is right now.  It takes up the entire back bay for all practical purposes (I saw it there prior to the dealer prep) and these trailers are already tight on storage space.  

    At some point, the number of changes and modifications required to make something functional actually becomes a strong signal that you have the wrong equipment.  Cut your losses and do it right.  


    I see you are pulling a 400 BD with a 2013 Jeep Grand Cherokee but the diesel.  I have the 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk and towed by new 400 BD two-hrs from the dealer to home.  We had a 2017 320 CS-S that we traded for the 400.  While towing I did feel some wind gusts but I felt those with the 320 as well.  Only true negative was I lost about 2 mpg.  My Jeep is tow rated for 6200#.  Is it a fair assumption your jeep is about the same?  Any issues you've had towing?  Have you added anything to the tongue or in the tub?  I want to store my sewer line and black water hose in the tub and perhaps a few odds and ends but nothing heavy. 
    2019 T@B 400 BDL
    2020 Ford F-150 XLT (V-8)
    Niceville, Florida
  • BlueespyBlueespy Member Posts: 151
    I am curious to learn more about this, and what if anything can be done to lighten the tongue weight significantly. I have yet to weigh out as my 400 is still in storage but bought a new tow vehicle last year with 5000# Capacity/500# tongue weight based on the 325# tongue weight as published Fall 2017 brochure. I felt comfortable with the TV and trailer at the time because there was a fair amount of leeway between 325# and maximum capacity of 500# . I don't like maxing out vehicle capacity - I prefer a "safety margin" of tongue weight and total payload.  Now we are seeing weights published as 460# !!! I would be interested if NuCamp has any ideas, other than loading, of what could be done to lighten the tongue. For me, going with a different TV at this point isn't an option The only thing that I can think of would be to move the weight of the batteries to the rear of the underbed area. Thanks to all who have contributed to this thread!


    Picked up our 2019 400 BD today and the batteries are in the rear, under the bed.  I know for a fact, several months ago when I went to the dealer to look at a 400 BD, and inspected the space under the bed, the batteries were NOT THERE.  Today, on inspection I immediately noticed the access door to the area under the bed was missing.  The top hatch is still there and sure enough when I opened it, there were the batteries. 
    2019 T@B 400 BDL
    2020 Ford F-150 XLT (V-8)
    Niceville, Florida
  • N7SHG_HamN7SHG_Ham Member Posts: 1,261
    edited April 2019
    The 400 batteries have always been under the bed closest to the curb side. Only change is they went from a single big 12v to two 6v batteries. There is a built in storage for the stinky slinky. Room in the tub beside the single propane tank for a five gallon bucket for use as storage for hoses, etc. So you don't have an outdoor access door to the area under the bed? If so that is a very late 2019 change, ones on the lot in December had it. I pick my February built 400 up on the 23rd, hoping it came with a door.
    2019 T@B 400 Boondock Lite
  • BlueespyBlueespy Member Posts: 151
    N7SHG_Ham said:
    The 400 batteries have always been under the bed closest to the curb side. Only change is they went from a single big 12v to two 6v batteries. There is a built in storage for the stinky slinky. Room in the tub beside the single propane tank for a five gallon bucket for use as storage for hoses, etc.


    Thank you. I showed your reply to my wife and we're both scratching our heads - perhaps it's our age but we could have swore there were no batteries under the bed in the model we looked at.  I guess reading some of these tongue weight concerns and comments on moving the batteries perhaps further reinforced our thinking (per PamandJohnUpNort2's comment above).    Oh well, thanks for the info on stinky.  Now, when we asked the dealer today he said just shove it in the passenger side access compartment.  I knew that made no sense but I'm thinking he should have known about stinky's storage on the driver's side.  Goes to show, you can learn more on the forums than from the dealership.  I like your idea of the 5gal bucket.  I just need to keep the dark water hose as far as possible from the white fresh water hose. 

    2019 T@B 400 BDL
    2020 Ford F-150 XLT (V-8)
    Niceville, Florida
  • My 400 came off the assembly line on 3/19/19 and it has the outside access door on the passenger side.
  • PamandJohnUpNorth2PamandJohnUpNorth2 Member Posts: 141
    edited April 2019
    To clarify my prior post of March 26, the batteries on our T@B400 have always been in the underbed area, What I was speculating on was the impact on tongue weight of moving the batteries farther back from the axle, a couple of feet, to the rearmost portion of the underbed area instead of the frontmost part of the underbed area. Admittedly I could have worded the comment more clearly.
    Pam and John
    Champlin, Minnesota
    2018 T@B400 and a 2018 Ridgeline 

  • BlueespyBlueespy Member Posts: 151
    To clarify my prior post of March 26, the batteries on our T@B400 have always been in the underbed area, What I was speculating on was the impact on tongue weight of moving the batteries farther back from the axle, a couple of feet, to the rearmost portion of the underbed area instead of the frontmost part of the underbed area. Admittedly I could have worded the comment more clearly.


    Darn, now I have to tell my wife she really was wrong (notice I'm telling her she was wrong, not we or I).  You have to pick your battles and since I read the forums and she doesn't, I win. :)
    2019 T@B 400 BDL
    2020 Ford F-150 XLT (V-8)
    Niceville, Florida
  • BlueespyBlueespy Member Posts: 151
    N7SHG_Ham said:
    The 400 batteries have always been under the bed closest to the curb side. Only change is they went from a single big 12v to two 6v batteries. There is a built in storage for the stinky slinky. Room in the tub beside the single propane tank for a five gallon bucket for use as storage for hoses, etc. So you don't have an outdoor access door to the area under the bed? If so that is a very late 2019 change, ones on the lot in December had it. I pick my February built 400 up on the 23rd, hoping it came with a door.


    We do have access to the storage area via a access panel/door on the passenger side of the trailer.  I apologize if my earlier comment was confusing.  We plan to load the trailer or rather start putting stuff in it today.  I think we are leaning towards perhaps half a tank of water so as to put a bit more weight in the rear and lighten the tongue weight a bit. 
    2019 T@B 400 BDL
    2020 Ford F-150 XLT (V-8)
    Niceville, Florida
  • Awca12aAwca12a Member Posts: 286
    Given the location of the water tank with 1/2 in front of the axle and 2/3 immediately behind it, other than providing some general weight, it doesn't help much with the tongue weight..  Also doesn't hurt.



    F150 Pulling 2019 T@B400 BDL
  • falcon1970falcon1970 Member Posts: 754
    The center of gravity of the fresh water tank (on a TAB 400) is about 13" behind the axle.  30 gal of water weighs about 252 lbs.  Therefore, a full fresh water tank will relieve about 25 lbs of tongue weight.
    (252 lbs of water in the tank)(13 inches) = (x lbs over the ball)(132 inches*)
        3276 in-lbs = 132x in-lbs
              x= 3276/132
                   x = 24.82 lbs
    *the moment arm from the center of the ball to the center of the axle  
  • ChrisFixChrisFix Member Posts: 724
    The current nucamp specs published on their website show the following weights.
    I assume Wet includes 20 lbs. of propane in the tank, and dry does not...but the key take away is that running with a full tank of fresh water (or not) has virtually no impact on Tongue Weight overall, due to the water tanks location.
    • Tongue Weight (Dry): 457 Lbs.
    • Tongue Weight (Wet): 467 Lbs.
    • Tongue Weight (Fully Loaded): 460 Lbs.
    After two years of looking and considering...finally the proud owner of a 2021 T@B 400 Boondock!
    2023 Honda Ridgeline RTL-E with Redarc Trailer Brake Controller
  • Awca12aAwca12a Member Posts: 286
    As my daughters tell me when I come-up with Dad statistics, we have to increase the sample size.
    Can we get 12 forum members to run their trailers across the scales both with and without water, etc and perhaps if we get enough postings, we can solve this thing.   

    The graphic below is what I created when I did mine and it has a place to comment on Gasoline, Propane, passengers, pets & holding tank contents so the data can be normalized and some real-world data accumulated.  Either way, we all need to know this information for our personal rigs so it's for each persons benefit as well.

     


    F150 Pulling 2019 T@B400 BDL
  • dragonsdoflydragonsdofly Member Posts: 1,916
    @Blueespy, batteries and tires get stolen while trailers are in transport if not secured, and that applies to all makes and models. Dealers with large inventories don't install batteries because the units may be on the lot for many months, even years, without battery maintenance being done. It's also safer to have them safe and secured inside until a customer is ready to pick a trailer up. Can you imagine a crew of people stealing dozens or hundreds of batteries as they go through the entire lot. The financial loss would be steep, and leaving the batteries installed is just a big temptation and incentive to haphazardly damage all the trailers in the process too.
    2017 t@b sofitel(Dr@gonsFly)TV 2015 Silverado 2500hd(Behemoth). Wyandotte, Michigan.
    Draco dormiens numquam titilandus.
  • Awca12aAwca12a Member Posts: 286
    @dragonsdofly  Having tried to access the battery compartment in the 400, it appeared to me that it would be a multi-hour process to take apart the storage area bracing and venting connections.  I'm hard pressed to believe that the new 400's arrive with empty battery compartments but who knows.
    F150 Pulling 2019 T@B400 BDL
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