We had a 1999 Dodge Dakota when we purchased our 2012 KZ Sportsmen Classic 170 (19' long, 3500 lbs). Towed with WDH/anit-sway for a year before I bought the RAM 1500.
The RAM has a 1700# payload, something like 10,000 towable. Since I had the hitch, I figured I might as well use it. Overkill :h
The anti-sway comes in handy no matter what you are towing with. :B
The weight distribution part sure doesn't hurt. Even with a beefier 1/2 ton truck, the tongue weight, plus all the******in the bed, squats the truck a little. When the rear squats, the front lifts...that causes the front to float.
Plus it stops the porpoising. We did a little over 2000 miles on one trip last year, plus several hundred milers. Our current set up does less bouncing then the Dakota did when towing an aluminum fishing boat. I give credit to the WDH.
SO....do you need it? Maybe not for the transfering of weight to keep your axels legal. However, it will make for a more comfortable ride, so you the wife and kids do not feel like you should have a 5-point harness systems to keep you strapped to the seat.
By the way....when I was contemplating this very question, I talked to a transporter with a 5500 truck towing a 20 something footer on the turnpike. He had WDH hooked up...I asked why, since it was obviously overkill. He said the DOT (he worries about those guys) like to see it, plus the truck rides "so much better" that is "worth the time, to install".
If the professional said he noticed a difference with it, even with the light trailer....I believe him.
