Just bought a 2018 179 - towing issue

From a lay person's perspective, if the loaded TV and trailer don't sit evenly in a straight line back to front, such as is depicted in H-B's foto where the front is noticeably lifted, you probably need a WDH.  It may be possible to get along without it, but what you gain in ease of driving will make it worth it.  You gain better control, better wind stability, and better sway resistance all wrapped in one device.

olddawgsrule, it’s not too early to load the gear your want to bring, make a short trip to the local scales, and weigh. It’s pointless to weigh the trailer and tow vehicle empty, that tells you nothing.

As for needing a wdh, no one “needs” one in the sense that you should be legal without it. But that doesn’t mean it’s not a very good thing to have one. The OP raised his question because he is already concerned about how his tow vehicle is handling the trailer. And he should be, look at the photo, his front axle is waay too light. A wdh is the only device that can correct that.

What folks don’t realize is that hanging a trailer on the hitch changes the TV front/rear load distribution by much more than the tongue weight of the trailer. A 500 lb tongue weight might for example reduce the front axle load by 250 lbs and increase the rear axle load by 750 lbs, resulting in a 1000 lb difference between the two axles. The actual numbers will vary based on wheelbase and distance from the ball to the rear TV axle, but you will always end up lighter on the front axle and adding more than the tongue weight to the rear axle, without a wdh.

A wdh will change the geometry and weights of the rig. So by installing it before weighing, the OP only needs to do it and run the calculator once.

You can and should adjust where you carry your loads, TV load as far forward as possible, always. Trailer load is not so simple because you have to strike a balance between excessive tongue weight from too much load forward and sway risk from too much load aft. Safest in a smaller TV going to be adjust the load so you’re close to the TV max tongue weight, and use a wdh to move some of that tongue load to the front axle. For a heavier TV I’d put 14-15% of trailer weight on the tongue, then decide based on ride and handling whether to add a wdh.

If the OP wants to load and weigh without a wdh first that’s fine, but based on his concerns and what I see in the photo I think a wdh and a second weighing is in his future.

I’d recommend a complete weighing at a public scale. Load up the way you want to camp first, both the truck and the trailer, including passengers and water if you plan to dry camp. Get the wdh you want first and install it but don’t tension it. Go through the scales adding one axle at a time. You can get the weight on each axle by subtraction. Then drop the trailer and go back through the scales with just the Taco. Leave the wdh in the receiver. Again weigh each axle. Subtract the full tow vehicle weight from the second weighing from the entire rig weight from the first weighing to get trailer weight. Subtract the total weight of the tow vehicle from the second weighing from the weight of the two TV axles from the first weighing to get the tongue weight.

Put all your specs and actual weights in this calculator and it will tell you where you are compared to your max limits, as well as how much you need to tension your wdh to get the front axle back up to the load it had without the trailer, which is the proper setting.

Also be sure you are at least at 10% tongue weight as a percent of trailer weight. 11% plus is better. That reduces sway risk. From the looks of it low tongue weight isn’t likely to be your problem though.



Calculator

Ya, get that tongue weight before doing anything else. I saw that before I re-balanced the loads. You look like you just put a load of topsoil in the bed.