I think you might be over thinking it. The tongue weight of the trailer is important for 2 main reasons, it should be at least 10% of the weight of the trailer to avoid/reduce sway and it adds to the weight of the tow vehicle which affects your payload capacity.

So, if you place the heavy stuff in the storage of the trailer, it will add to the tongue weight of the trailer....but you might need that tongue weight to reach the magic 10% number. But it affects the CCC of the trailer and the additional tongue weight will affect the payload capacity of your truck.

If you place the heavy stuff in your truck bed, it will affect the payload capacity of your truck, but will not affect the tongue weight or CCC of your tailer.

I guess it depends on the weight of your trailer and what tongue weight you want.

You will be better off distributing the weight throughout the unit as you determine the needed tongue weight. You may find the the jack and cables (guessing various extension chords) may be better suited in the back of the unit (less frequently needed items) which will help offset the tongue weight, thus keeping the bed of the truck empty and your stuff DRY. Even the best planned trips can encounter inclement weather.

Also, since I have duplicates of pretty much everything that would end up in the camper all the tools and such stay in the camper. No need to keep dragging that heavy stuff in and out of the camper when we travel.

You definitely want to have a stable well balanced load in the RV as well as the truck. Being as this is your first trip you may want to visit a CAT scale to get weighed so you know where you are at with all of your weights. A Sherline scale will help you with the tongue weight Amazon.com: Sherline LM-5000 - Trailer Tongue Weight Scale - 5000LB : Automotive, this 5000# unit will cover you for that ( I need to get one of these). Lots here have used this to set up their TT's. Having a TT previously I learned very quickly the art of packing and moving weight to get the desired towing experience, I have even sometimes had to stop along the road to move some stuff or change the weight bar chains to get a better ride.

Brian

x2 on Country Campers Brian's recommendation on the Sherline tongue weight scale. This will help you know for sure how your tongue weight changes as you decide where stuff will be stored. Err on the high side of the 10% rule . . . some will say 15% is better if your truck has this capability.

Edit: Sherline advises that their scales are most accurate at mid-range. If you are expecting a tongue weight in the 1200 lb range, their 2000 lb scale might be a better choice.

Rob

SEMOGreen Balance the load in the front storage area and over the axles of the trailer while monitoring tongue weight and payload on the truck and trailer. Sometimes we will carry a generator, firewood or a saw in the truck but that's it. Using a CAT scale is the best method in validating how your truck and rig is loaded then the portable scale (x3) to monitor tongue weight would be fine. If your fairly consistent on loading you will most likely not need to check the weights again.

For instance, I used the CAT scale while loaded under the worse possible condition with full water and loaded with food and drink (lots to drink) for a one week dry camping trip. Our rig stays fully loaded except for clothes, food and water so our weights are always within spec. after the initial check since we would be lighter on short trips.

Jim

Lots of good info. thank you everyone. I have some scales to find.

I have a 2017 297RSTS. The tongue weight on this unit can get pretty high. I typically run 1,300 to 1,400 pounds on my rig. To compound the issue, GDRV mounted the fresh water tank well forward of the axles, so if you're hauling a full tank of water, you'll have even more tongue weight. Here's a photo of my scale readings when the trailer was nearly empty.

I run the same as Jim on my 297RSTS. Right around 1300-1400 which includes 5 gallons of fresh water just for pitstops.

Terry