After everything is said and done, we still need to look at what we are gonna use to get this thing around town. That leads us down the rabbit hole: Towing Your Axe Throw Trailer.
What good is selecting our trailer if we can’t pull it? Manufacturing Axe Throwing Trailers gives a great indication of what pulling one of these really entails; Talking to prospective owners can also show how many people underestimate the process.
Picture this: Owners build themselves a nice trailer, and then they hook it up to their tow vehicle. Suddenly the bed of the truck starts to squat like it’s at the gym.
Tongue Weight
These trailers are big, and made of steel & wood. The may not be the heaviest trailers that people tow in spite of their size, but the weight distribution is overlooked by a lot of new trailer owners. Tongue Weight, to go by its technical term, is very important to keep in check. Having a tow vehicle straining will put extra wear on your vehicle and is not safe.
Tongue weight should fall between 10% – 15% of the Gross Trailer Weight– or the weight of the trailer loaded with everything it carries while on the road. More on that towards the end. This is a concern for many Axe Throwing Trailers as they are front loaded with target wood, reinforcement wood, caging, and often a trailer tongue box.
There are 2 easy solutions which should be addressed before the build.
The First Solution: Addressing The Trailer Balance
Reduce the weight on the tongue by creating pivoting or fold-down targets or moving the targets back by a few feet if you’re in the concept phase. Experiment with your target system to check into unnecessary components, then remove what you’re able.
The Second Solution: Upgrade The Truck
We went through the same thing with our F150- it could pull the weight and size, just not well. You’ll find yourself riding high RPMs with the truck’s rear looking like a low-rider.
There are options here- buying a heavier duty truck, use a weight-distribution hitch, upgrade your suspension, etc. Take your time and look into every available option– it will save you a headache down the road and significant truck strain.
Truck capacity is something many people mistake. The numbers are big, and it is incredibly common to overestimate your truck’s towing capacity is. Coming from personal experience, it isn’t worth the hassle of driving down a highway and having your truck pass out from exhaustion. You lose time and money, and you’re more in need of another down payment on a new truck than ever!
Our Ford F250s handle it much better, and it brings a piece of mind to driving your livelihood all around town. The truck shouldn’t dictate the type of axe throwing trailer; that should be the other way around if you’re serious about jumping in.
Next Time: Axe Throwing Towing- Getting Down & Dirty With Terms