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Bouncy Trailer
Are you using a 1/2 ton to pull it? If yes, what you are likely feeling is a. the truck frame flexing or b. the frame and cab mounting bushings are too soft (for this application) and the cab is moving up and down--not much you should/could do about this.
Jarring won't be cured by balancing the tires, though that should be done anyway to reduce vibration and improve tire wear. The jarring may be reduced by the type of tire you are using. High-pressure tires can be very rough riding (mine are 16" light truck tires rated at 90 PSI); taller tires will offer a better ride too. Type of tire also---bias versus radial. I wouldn't consider using passenger car tire which when loaded are more apt to allow fishtailing since the sidewalls allow more side-to-side squirm.
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Bouncy Trailer
Another thought: use a weight distributing hitch. Back in the days when I had smaller trucks and trailers it was a perfect solution to not buying bigger and better. These will only work on bumper-tow units.
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Bouncy Trailer
I didn't see anything mentioned about what type of axles spring set up you have. You might have one of four types that I know of and have used. The roughest riding set up is two separate axles each hung from the frame with no mechanical connection to each other to offer oscillation as one wheel at a time raise and lowers. The next one is (I prefer) "tandem equalizers" which effectively joins the rear of the front spring and front of the rear spring to a pivot (which looks like an inverted "t" that will allow the trailer axles to go up and down together simultaneously thus the equalization with a minimal amount of bounce trailer jouncing. The other type is a "slipper spring" which tends to be stronger than the "t" equalizers, rides rougher when unloaded but works great when loaded. It also noisey as the spring is allowed to jump around in the slipper as the spring can slip in and out of the equalizer. The last type is rubber torsion which has no spring per se but has rubber rods encased in an axle tube in which the axle tries to rotate or totorque against but can't. They are marketed as riding better than a spring axles but I have them on my 24' enclosed car hauler and don't like them at all.
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Bouncy Trailer
MURF: Are you really sure about: "which is why the tongue is so relatively long on a boat trailer, in an effort to balance it up."?
The tongue length in and of itself has little to do with balance--unless it is intentionally weighted. Rather, the placement of the center of axle(s) determines balance, or more accurately, proper weight distribution if 60/40 is the target. The length is more likely a function towability (longer tongue easier to back), loadability and one-size-fits-all so that the boat safely clears the tow vehicle, especially when turning.
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Bouncy Trailer
Whoa!--not so fast there buddy...
"A EMPTY trailer can't change the tongue weight at all, either high or low, it's built in with the axle placement."
>>>That's true if a.) the trailer is a fully a flat bed and b.) it has no ramps, tailgate, racks, spare tire holder, etc. or anything else of appreciable weight/ and or height sticking up above the trailer frame that could change the center of gravity---and the taller the item is the worse the effect on center of gravity i.e., tongue weight. I know from experience that ramps on an equipment trailer have a different effect on tongue weight just based on where they are "locked" for travel (all the way forward or leaning backward). (For example if you were to mount a heavy wooden pole standing vertically anywhere on the trailer and you raise and lower the tongue, the weight on the tongue would change. Now, pretend you are pulling this trailer with the pole down a washboard roadway---the trailer would be rocking fore and aft as would the truck. This effect is still happening to a fully flat bed trailer to some degree, but you don't notice it.This fore and aft effect is especially felt on tall, enclosed, bumper-pull trailers. I now this since I have a 24' enclosed car hauler that I use a "workshop on wheels" loaded with 4,000 lb. of tools, benches, and a top mounted ladder rackthat raises the CNG a lot to the point it bucks and kicks with the slightest bump and dip in the road.
"I have a 18' Mac Lander 12,000 trailer I pull with my 2002 Ford F-150 FX4. It does ride rougher when empty, little bumps aren't soaked up."
>>>>They are not soaked up by the springs (and even the tires) because of what is called "unsprung weight" of the axles, tires, wheels, springs, etc. which has to be less than the "sprung weight" of the trailer frame UNLOADED or LOADED to not bounce. All that weight under the trailer frame literaly forces the lighter frame up as basically it is working as one solid unit rather than two smaller independent units working against each other. There's a whole lot more to this than I care to write, but that's it in a nut shell.
"Since I have a air bag system installed, I will pump it up so the rear of the truck rides high when EMPTY to see if it is better. When LOADED I run level."
>>>>No,no, no. Now you have introduced a whole other problem: now the rear of the truck is going to be stiffer. What you want to change is the shock rate, not the weight carrying ability. Therefore you need adjustable shocks---not "air ahocks" or "air bags" or "spring assisted shocks" which literally lift the suspension. For years I used Rancho 9000 Air-Adjustable-on-the-fly shocks with stock springs on my Dodge pickups. My buddy who had a bone-stock Ram like mine could only go 6-9 mph over washboard sand dunes. I could with my 9000's go as fast as 40mph over the same sand. It was absolutely amazing and astounding that changing only the shocks would allow that. And since they are adjustable from the cab you can control the fronts or rears separately. 8 years ago they were about $600 for a full set including the read-out gages, air compressor and lines. Well worth the money though.
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I agree with Rankin about lowering the presssure to promote even tire wear. On my Ram diesel 4x4 which is extremely front-heavy compared to the rear, I have to run 20psi lower pressures in the rears (90psi fronts). Otherwise the centers wear out.
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