Campin LI wrote:
I'm finding that this towing forum can get very technical with mathematics, which is fine but not reality for a travel trailer. On this you are technically correct but you did remove a real variable to make your point. Trucks do have springs that compress under load and a WDH does rely on the squat to work.---
No, Barney did not "remove a real variable". The "variable" in question is the suspension stiffness. Barney's analogy simply increased the magnitude of the stiffness. You are correct that trucks do have springs that compress under load. However, your statement, "---a WDH does rely on the squat to work" has no basis in fact -- unless you can provide some facts to support it.
---Without squat, you only have rotation.---
This could be true given the following scenario:
1) A trailer is hitched with no WD applied. Load is added to the rear of the TV and subtracted from the front. The rear of the drops and the front rises.
2) Air-bag pressure is increased until all of the added load is removed from the rear springs. The rear springs decompress and there is no rear-end squat. Front-end rise remains the same.
3) Load is applied to the WD bars causing a decrease of load on the hitch head and applying a pitch-axis torque to the hitch head. Load on the TV's rear axle decreases and the load on the front increases. The WDH is working even though there was zero squat prior to application of WD. Therefore, a WDH does not rely on squat to work.
---Depending on how long your truck is and how much tongue weight there is, the back may not rotate down all that much and if that is the case, most WDH will not be able to adjust much at all.---
You're confusing load changes with height changes. The direct effect of WD is a change in axle load. Change in axle load produces a change in spring deflection (hence, height) which is dependent on load and spring stiffness.
Stiffer springs will result in less deflection. However, stiffer springs do not change the axle loads. If you're looking at deflection (height) changes, you might conclude the WDH isn't doing much. If you're looking at scale weights, you'll see the WDH is working.
1 chain link or 1 washer is an inch. What if you only need 1/2 inch adjustment?
The first part might or might not be true. Some people obtain finer adjustment by using washers which are thinner or thicker than those supplied with the WDH.
Ron
