sway control needed?

jerem0621 wrote:

Terryallan wrote:
Y'all do know that a sway bar does NOT prevent sway, only helps control it AFTER it starts. Best way to prevent sway is as mentioned above. Get your trailer, and hitch setup correctly. A properly setup TT will NOT sway. The friction sway control bar is only for those times when the driver has had to jerk the wheel, inducing sway by dodging an accident of some kind

Hey Terryallan,

I like friction sway bars best based on my experience. Equal-i-zer, E2, and similar are all friction based sway controls.. the friction points are just integrated into the hitch design.

I really do not like the term sway control for the exact reason you present in your response. I will take it even further and say that friction sway control (the sway bars or the integrated hitches) primarily function as tension points increasing the amount of tension between the hitch head and the coupler. Making the connection more rigid.

Basically they constrain the movement of the coupler on the ball and are effectively dampeners to side to side fishtailing.

They don't really control sway as much as they dampen movement.

For example... without friction sway and a standard WD hitch there is some 'wiggle' between the TV and the trailer.. when being passed you will feel two distinct pushes from the passing vehicles bow waves... one pushing the TT and the other pushing the TV

in my case, I added a single sway bar to my 31ft TT and 80% of this wiggle was taken out. I then added a second and 100% of the wiggle was taken out from passing cars. The trailer and the truck were pushed on as one.

The friction bars didn't "react" to the passing vehicles they held the trailer in line with the TV because the clamping force on the TWO sway bars was greater than the pushing force on the trailer from the vehicles bow wave.

The other friction hitches (Equal-i-zer, E2, etc) do the exact same thing. Their friction/clamping points are just different.

I like the fact that friction sway bars are replaceable and I am not wearing out my hitch by using it as a friction sway point.

Dual Cam is still a friction design, however, it has the added benefit of tension from the cams forcing the WD bars back into alignment... at least in theory...

The Pullrite hitch and the Hensley Hitch both resolve these problems by mechanically removing the ball from the equation as the pivot point.

Just my musing,

Jeremiah

I was going to post a new topic but since this touches on it I will ask opinions here, don't mean to hijack this thread.

I had a 23'HTT and recently stepped up to a 26' TT, I gained about 800lbs in trailer weight doing so. My TV is a newer Dodge Durango and
it does have a shorter wheelbase. I have an EZ lift WDH and friction sway control which worked perfect on the smaller TT. I do get a bit of sway on the new one, Ive put all the weight I can over the tongue to try to take that factor out of it. Should I upgrade to a different system like a Blue Ox or just add a 2nd friction bar? I have heard the cheaper WDH like I have are not meant for the longer TT's. I am most likely going to get a new SUV w/ a little longer wheelbase as well. Thoughts appreciated. Mike