Matt,

I have a fifth wheel trailer that I pull heavy equipment on 16,000# backhoe, 14,000# boom lifts, etc.... The whole rig weighs around 36,000# truck, trailer, and backhoe. By far the most stable arrangement if you are towing. But of course this rig has dual wheels on the rear, and is rated for the weight we are pulling with it as well and it has air brakes.

Rich,

I was not advocating overloading the tongue on the trailer. It has been my expereince (and almost daily for the last 20 years) that if you want a trailer to pull better make sure that the weight is distributed more on the tongue than on the tail of the trailer. Ideally the CG should be slightly forward of the trailer axles.