Observations on buying a WDH

Other than just the weight/load numbers you should abide by, if you tow in an area with a high % of abnormal wind load (the West), sway should be considered. I don't know how you tighten that up other than less links on the tow bar chains. No one wants to feel they are right on the edge of control, but it's a sensation that comes with towing vs. not towing. I was OK using dual friction bars towing 27',5100# and a 3/4 Surburban. Then dual cam when I moved up to 31',9800# and a 1 ton truck. The second setup sure had less anxiety. I don't know how I would have spec'd out the better sensation beforehand other than reading info on rv.net. As you see, the ads state "their's is the best." I try to eliminate the possibility of under design in case of law suit.

I ran two friction bars on a 31.5 ft TT and never had a second of sway. I now use one sway control on my Pop up camper.

No sway control using friction as the basis of sway resistance is designed to stop a badly set up trailer. Many will argue that dual cam sway control is premium, it works well but is very sensitive to proper set up.

A terribly set up DC on a 20ft trailer is useless...a properly set up DC on a 20 ft trailer is a pleasure to tow.

ProPride, Hensley, and Pullrite hitches eliminate sway period. Some trailer designs just tend to sway more than others... Especially when the heavy stuff is in the back of the trailer (bad design)

Overkill is often a subjective topic. It never seems to be overkill when you have to make an evasive manuver or you get hit with a 40 MPH blast of wind to the side of the rig.

Is it overkill to run DualCam on a 20 ft trailer? Not if its set up correctly...

Height and width of the trailer do play into aerodynamics and how much power you will need to pull the trailer through the air. But weight distribution is set up based on the tongue weight and worms to distribute the weight of the tongue weight across the axles.

The hitch shops are asking the right questions...they need to make sure your components can handle the weight distribution. This has to do with matching the Tongue weight to the receiver and the trailer weight with the trucks tow rating. Etc etc

Many people use the E2 on 30 plus ft TT's with great success. They make a 4 pt 400 lb max tongue weight Equal-I-zer that I can use on my pop up.

Remember, a properly loaded, properly built TT, with a properly set up WD hitch will not sway. You will get some movement from passing cars and trucks but this suck and pull motion is NOT sway. Sway controls are there to help make the connection between the TV And the TT more rigid and makes the trailer and truck feel like one unit on the road.

Hope this helps

Thanks!

Jeremiah

I agree the main purpose of a WDH is to move weight to the front axle to restore steering control and lessen the load on the rear axle. But since every manufacturer makes a point of their sway control is better than the other guys sway control it has been integrated into any WDH choice and discussion. Even if it is a basic WDH with a add on friction bar. I would think the size of the sail (heightxlength) has to have some effect on sway For example maybe a 20 ft TT may maybe only need a 2 pt friction control like a Fastway E2, a 25 ft TT maybe a 4 pt friction control like a Equalizer or a 30 ft TT a dual cam sway control. Every one of those brands probably had bars for the various length and weight trailer but is 2 pt friction adequate for 30 ft or is dual cam overkill at 20 ft.

Primary purpose of WDH is to restore weight lost from front axle of the tow vehicle. Knowing the GVW of the trailer, gives them a good idea of what the max tongue weight could be. Restoring front axle weight is WDH's biggest impact on sway control.

When the tow vehicle has too much weight removed from the front axle, it losses stability and steering control. Something simple, as your breathing causing your hand to subconsciously move, ever so slightly, could cause the front end to wiggle. That would cause the rear end to wiggle and, in turn causes trailer sway. That's where the TW and Bar strength comes in.

Additional sway control is more based on length, than it is on weight.

BarneyS wrote:
The sway control is there to help when Mr. Murphy steps in your path - not to fix a bad towing trailer.
Hope this helps a bit.
Barney

Exactly! Sway control is insurance. You don't need it until you need it. Some will tell you that you don't need it for that 18 ft trailer. I say you do.

I had an incident many years ago with a 17ft travel trailer. I was towing in the rain and my rear TV wheels hit a slick spot. The trailer went crazy, I thought I was going to lose it. I was in panic mode and couldn't find the manual lever on the brake controller so I started to slowly pump the brakes. I bevel had I not had a sway control bar I would have flipped that trailer.

After spending many thousands on a trailer, tow vehicle, and camping equipment, what's another $100 to add a valuable safety feature?

The hitch shops are asking the right questions. The height, width etc. of a trailer does not matter to the hitch selection. What does matter is the tongue weight and how much weight you need transferred back to the front of the tow vehicle. What type of sway control you want can enter into the selection later.

For example, the Reese "Dual Cam" is an excellent system but requires a minimum of 400lbs of tongue weight to function correctly. It would probably not be the first choice for a 13ft lightweight trailer. There are other WD hitches that have sway control built in that would work better in that case.

In many cases, a standard round bar WD hitch and friction add on sway control is all that is needed. In other cases, you would want a hitch that had better ground clearance and much more sway control so you would select a different style or brand.

In all these cases, the shape of the trailer has no or little bearing on which hitch to select. It is all about size (which usually relates to tongue weight), floor plan and storage capability ( which also relates to tongue weight), and planned use.

TW and bar strength are the main part of hitch selection but really are just a part of the sway control formula. There are many other factors that enter into whether a trailer will sway or not. The sway control is there to help when Mr. Murphy steps in your path - not to fix a bad towing trailer.
Hope this helps a bit.
Barney

I agree with your thought process, but out of all the instructions on a WD I have ever read the only reference to length generally comes as a reference to friction sway control bars.

A weight distribution hitch by name and by function distributes weight... Matching the bars to the tongue weight is critical to getting the WD hitch set up correctly.

I have dual cam sway control but I physically can't run it on my Pop up...it may be overkill, but set up correctly it's great.

Thanks!

Jeremiah