I set up the WD for the new TV had to get a new shank to drop the head down. I followed the instructions and the measurement for the front fender measurement went from 35' to 35 1/4" the rear went from 37 1/4" to 37". Instructions said the measurement should be about 1/2 to 1" difference from the starting point. Looking visual at the trailer it looks (appears) to still be jacked up in the front. When TT is connected to the WD I put a 6' level on the TT floor and it shows level. It also shows level when the level is placed on the roof.The spring bars on WD are parallel to the ground.Is it level? I think so based on the level on the camper floor and the 1/4" difference in the wheel measurments.Have not weighed it yet want to get close to level before getting axle weights.Look Level? or looks can be deceiving based on the level and wheel measurements.Thanks in advance!I can not drop the head down any more. etrail suggested the shank based on the measurements of the coupler being level and the difference of the receiver on the TT height before

It does look a little elevated in the front. Did you measure the distance from the trailer frame to the ground at the four corners? I'll be watching this thread, as I'm getting ready to set up my new wd hitch.

Maybe it is the camera angle but it looks like the road is lower in the left of the pic than the right side. Level is only good if the road is level otherwise measure the frame front to ground and back to ground. I suspect the trailer is not level.

Agree with the above comment. The measurements will do more for ya than the level. I also believe that you are better to have the nose of the trailer a little lower that the rear that vise versa.

See how it tows. If its pulling good dont worry about it. If you feel its not as stable as you like try adjusting the chain to add a little more weight to the back of your truck. Where you have it now or 1 link less hanging will prob be fine. My truck drives much better with more weight on the bumper.

The trailer looks high in front in the picture. You may have too much tilt on the hitch head. Try removing one washer and rehook. As you stated, the torsion bars should be even with the trailer frame.

Set Up WD Level? | Good Sam Community

tbolt2000
Explorer
Apr 09, 2014
e-light wrote:
See how it tows. If its pulling good dont worry about it. If you feel its not as stable as you like try adjusting the chain to add a little more weight to the back of your truck. Where you have it now or 1 link less hanging will prob be fine. My truck drives much better with more weight on the bumper.

I will say before adjusting the head you could for sure see that it was way high in front and towed like crap. It dolphin and seemed to sway left and right. After I did all this it towed good did not dolphin or sway. The looking at the frame to see if it appears level is difficult because of the frame see picture. I did measure the front and rear corner of the TT structure (not frame) and the rear was about 3/4 lower that the front.
jmtandem
Explorer II
Apr 09, 2014
The parking lot was about as level as I could find. It was level length wise and only maybe had a slight tilt side to side.

Look carefully at the picture. Look at the roof line of the homes. Then look at the street. It is an optical illusion or the street is lower on the left than the right. My bet is the street is not that level. You want a level TT when camping for the refrigerator and just generally good camping experience. You want the trailer parallel to the road when towing, not the same thing. It does not have to be level for towing and cannot be as the roads climb and descend. Even though you have axle equalizers, the axles do not carry the same weights nor do the axles carry the same weights side to side. The side with a slide is generally heavier. Having the trailer as level as possible tends to help equalize the axle loads. Front low adds weight to the front axle, front high adds weight to the rear axle. Do your due diligence and go to the scales and play around with the tongue raising it and lowering it some and watch what it does to the axles as to weight transfer.
tbolt2000
Explorer
Apr 09, 2014
BarneyS wrote:
The above comments about leveling the trailer are right on regarding using a level street. Your trailer does look like it is nose high which is not good. If you are on the lowest hole of the shank, then you will need to exchange or purchase a longer shank so you can lower the hitch head - probably one more hole lower will do it.

It looks like, upon enlarging your picture, that you have an Equal-i-zer brand 4 point sway control hitch. I would not move the L brackets if you have the bars level with the frame now. I would take it to a scale and make sure that the hitch is transferring back to the front axle ALL of the weight that was removed by putting the tongue on the ball. If it is not, then you would need to tilt the hitch head back towards the trailer by using another washer or two.

Level the trailer by moving the hitch head up or down on the shank.
Level the WD bars by changing which hole is used on the L brackets.
Change the amount of weight distribution by changing the tilt on the hitch head.
Barney

Thanks good info on what lowering the head does, what the tilt does, and leveling the spring bars.

Before I ordered a new shank I measured the TV and TT separately and got measurements see My post below. I emailed my measurements and etraier recommended the shank. They also said If I went to the next that does more drop it would be to long and may bottom out in certain situations.

My other post
tbolt2000
Explorer
Apr 09, 2014
Campin LI wrote:
Better way to look at it is you need to make the trailer parallel to the street.

Understand trailer being parallel Did not think of this. I looked all over the place to find a parking lot as level as I could get.
tbolt2000
Explorer
Apr 09, 2014
jmtandem wrote:
Maybe it is the camera angle but it looks like the road is lower in the left of the pic than the right side. Level is only good if the road is level otherwise measure the frame front to ground and back to ground. I suspect the trailer is not level.

The parking lot was about as level as I could find. It was level length wise and only maybe had a slight tilt side to side.
tbolt2000
Explorer
Apr 09, 2014
jfkmk wrote:
Did you measure the distance from the trailer frame to the ground at the four corners? I'll be watching this thread, as I'm getting ready to set up my new wd hitch.

Did not measure the 4 corners of the frame.
jmtandem
Explorer II
Apr 09, 2014
Looks can be deceiving; on my new trailer in my sig it "appears" to be very slightly nose-high when viewing from the side. Measurements from the frame down reveal it is actually very slightly lower in the front than in the rear. Optical illusion?

It may be an optical illusion. However, the OP needs to understand that it is OK to level the trailer in camp with a level. The only time a level can be used for the trailer to determine 'level' hitched to the truck is when the road is also level. Otherwise the best thing to do is level by measuring the frame front and rear to the ground and being parallel.
Ron3rd
Explorer III
Apr 09, 2014
Looks can be deceiving; on my new trailer in my sig it "appears" to be very slightly nose-high when viewing from the side. Measurements from the frame down reveal it is actually very slightly lower in the front than in the rear. Optical illusion?
goducks10
Explorer
Apr 09, 2014
Too much confusion using the word 'level'. The TT/5'er needs to be parallel to the surface it's sitting on. The TV doesn't need to be level either. The front of the TV is what matters. The rear likely will not be at the same height as the front.
BarneyS
Explorer III
Apr 09, 2014
The above comments about leveling the trailer are right on regarding using a level street. Your trailer does look like it is nose high which is not good. If you are on the lowest hole of the shank, then you will need to exchange or purchase a longer shank so you can lower the hitch head - probably one more hole lower will do it.

It looks like, upon enlarging your picture, that you have an Equal-i-zer brand 4 point sway control hitch. I would not move the L brackets if you have the bars level with the frame now. I would take it to a scale and make sure that the hitch is transferring back to the front axle ALL of the weight that was removed by putting the tongue on the ball. If it is not, then you would need to tilt the hitch head back towards the trailer by using another washer or two.

Level the trailer by moving the hitch head up or down on the shank.
Level the WD bars by changing which hole is used on the L brackets.
Change the amount of weight distribution by changing the tilt on the hitch head.
Barney

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