Any gain from WD on a dodge 3500
I just got a 2003 quad cab, long bed with a Cummins and six speed. Waht a truck. My previous TV was an Expedition. The TT is a 34-foot vintage aluminum BOles Aero. WD was essential with the Expy...
Forum Discussion
OP, your owners manual will tell you that it is REQUIRED by DODGE to have a WDH for a TW above 350-lbs. This is without regard for the truck spec or whether you have the factory or an aftermarket hitch receiver. I've been doing this for forty years and it wouldn't occur to me to go without WD. Yes, I've done it, and no, I don't like it. I know the difference.
You know me from this and other forums. So I speak to others as well (and congrats on getting one of the really all-time cool trailers. Yes, WDH will help preserve that TT).
Move all the way to a HENSLEY or PRO PRIDE hitch and receive the many benefits of both WD and that hitch type. I can do maneuvers (have tested it with violent lane changes all across an empty Interstate at 55+) that would put any conventional WD or 5'er in the ditch or on its side and I can do them all day long. Fewer steering corrections, better braking and reduced driver fatigue PAY both tangibly and intangibly. I drive 12,000-miles monthly and know of what I speak.
My personal vehicle, my combined rig, needs the best stability I can fit to it. Minimizing risk is the game. A great pickup, yes, but there is no reason good enough to counter the performance gain of an excellent lash-up. There is a numerically-based combined-vehicle mechanical baseline to establish. The range of future adjustments is small (WDH and TV tire pressure), but one must start somewhere. "Nothing" isn't any kind of start as hitch receiver and likely tires are at or above limits.
Start with these:
Ron Gratz Scale Weight Chart
Wheel-by-Wheel Weighing Instructions
Your TT also deserves -- if not so equipped -- shock absorbers, more wheel travel, better brakes (or at least better wiring) as well as LT tires plus being sure of ZERO brake drag and perfect axle alignment (DIY threads by JBarca and others). Same for the TV: get rid of steering slop, perfect the alignment and be sure of no brake drag. And add very best brake controller. Big changes or small, they all add up for when it matters. "Driver skill" is what the amateurs talk about, "risk minimization" is where the pro's start conversations.
I replied to your Q about shift strategy on CF at some length.
I really love the interior fit and finish on a Boles. I hope to see pics on this and those other forums,
Best
.
You know me from this and other forums. So I speak to others as well (and congrats on getting one of the really all-time cool trailers. Yes, WDH will help preserve that TT).
Move all the way to a HENSLEY or PRO PRIDE hitch and receive the many benefits of both WD and that hitch type. I can do maneuvers (have tested it with violent lane changes all across an empty Interstate at 55+) that would put any conventional WD or 5'er in the ditch or on its side and I can do them all day long. Fewer steering corrections, better braking and reduced driver fatigue PAY both tangibly and intangibly. I drive 12,000-miles monthly and know of what I speak.
My personal vehicle, my combined rig, needs the best stability I can fit to it. Minimizing risk is the game. A great pickup, yes, but there is no reason good enough to counter the performance gain of an excellent lash-up. There is a numerically-based combined-vehicle mechanical baseline to establish. The range of future adjustments is small (WDH and TV tire pressure), but one must start somewhere. "Nothing" isn't any kind of start as hitch receiver and likely tires are at or above limits.
Start with these:
Ron Gratz Scale Weight Chart
Wheel-by-Wheel Weighing Instructions
Your TT also deserves -- if not so equipped -- shock absorbers, more wheel travel, better brakes (or at least better wiring) as well as LT tires plus being sure of ZERO brake drag and perfect axle alignment (DIY threads by JBarca and others). Same for the TV: get rid of steering slop, perfect the alignment and be sure of no brake drag. And add very best brake controller. Big changes or small, they all add up for when it matters. "Driver skill" is what the amateurs talk about, "risk minimization" is where the pro's start conversations.
I replied to your Q about shift strategy on CF at some length.
I really love the interior fit and finish on a Boles. I hope to see pics on this and those other forums,
Best
.
