Trailer Sway

OkieGreg wrote:
Thanks for all the quick replies. I'm running LT 285/55 20's, so I don't think the tires are the problem. I did quite a bit of homework on towing capabilities and agree that airbags do not increase towing capacity (or tongue weight capacity), but they do help a lot with stability. And, yes, pulling a 7,400 lb (dry weight) rig with a 1/2 ton is cutting it close. Regardless, according all of the data I could get my hands on, I'm within the Tundra's capabilities, so long as I don't carry a lot of weight in the truck itself. If I understand things correctly, cargo capacity subtracts from towing capacity by the square of the cargo's mass. I had Camping World install the hitch, so I may ask them to adjust it and see if I can get better performance.

I was told this was an awesome forum, and for my first post, you guys proved them right. Thank you again. Looking forward to learning more.

You might take a good look at this thread and get your hitch adjusted properly by yourself. I'm sure you can do a better job and that way you know it is done right and you learn a lot along the way! :)
Barney

OkieGreg wrote:
I had Camping World install the hitch, so I may ask them to adjust it and see if I can get better performance.

That maybe your problem? I wouldn't let CW install or adjust or modify anything!

I have a 31ft TTO tow with a tundra crewman. I use a 12k reuse wdh with sway cams. Works well. I have E rated tires on truck too. I get some wimp sway at 65 in windy conditions I slow to 60 and Im fine. Mostly unit is good. Trailer is probably 7200 loaded tongue weight Im guessing 1k. I have my hitch adjusted so when hooked my front only raises 1/4 inch.

It is entirely possible that the airbags are hurting you way more than they are helping you. Air bags do absolutely NOTHING to distribute weight. In fact if you set up the hitch, and then level with the bags. You are changing the hitch setup, and in fact moving less weight to the front axle, and lost weight on the front axle means oversteering, and induces sway.

Try towing WITHOUT airing up the bags and see if it is better.

I tow a 30' TT, and have -0- / no hint of sway at any speed, which is as it should be.

Another thought, and don't laugh until you try it. Move your drivers seat closer to the steering wheel. Doing this will bend your arms more. That will give you more control, creating a more stable and lessen the chance of you being the cause of sway. Driving with you arms straighter makes it easier for you to unknowingly move the steering wheel. Doubt me. Take a look at the NASCAR drivers. Notice how close to the wheel they are. They are right up on it and some rest their elbow on the wheel in the turns. This is in sharp contrast to the way they sat years ago with their arms straightened out. They learned that the closer you are the more stable you drive.

If the dealer set up the hitch I would suspect that to be a part of the problem. First, most won't take the time to actually dial it in properly. Second, if they set it up when you bought it, was it empty? Things can change dramatically once the tt is loaded up.

Load the tt ready to camp and then adjust the hitch. Also ensure you have enough tongue weight. Should be around 13 percent of loaded tt weight. Don't load the rear of the tt to lighten tongue weight. I did find that even a couple hundred pounds removed from the rear towards the front made a noticeable difference in stability.

Best to hit the scales and get actual weights and go from there. Google tongue weight bathroom scale for an at home way to get tongue weight.

icanon wrote:

OkieGreg wrote:
I had Camping World install the hitch, so I may ask them to adjust it and see if I can get better performance.

That maybe your problem? I wouldn't let CW install or adjust or modify anything!

X2. They just INSTALL the hitch. You need to ADJUST it yourself for proper weight distribution.

If you take it back they will charge you for an hour of labor to look at it and tell you everything is just fine.

What you need to do is follow the sticky at the top of this forum on how to adjust a WD hitch, in conjunction with your hitch's instructions.

Your main concern is the FRONT ride height. Even with airbags, there is still the see-saw action of the trailer pushing down on behind your rear axle, causing the front of your truck to lift up. The WD hitch is used to push the front end back down to its unloaded ride height.

If you do have actual sway and not just wind wag or bobbling from uneven road surfaces, you need to address that too. Usually it is caused by not enough tongue weight in the trailer. A classic case is having a bunch of bicycles hanging off the rear bumper of the trailer.

2012 Tundra 5.7 double cab pulling a 7500 lb.30 ft. TT. Formerly I pulled it with a 2004 Tundra 4.7 double cab. The biggest difference for me is a Husky 10000 lb. trunnion hitch and StrapTek supporting the spring bars. No sway at all. My biggest fear is that I will forget the trailer is back there and curb it.

Could be a myriad of things, including no sway, just regular trailer wiggle.
My 32' cargo trailer, akin to about a 30' lightweight TT, no wdh, no sway control, does wiggle around at highway speeds, say, over 65mph. It's not sway, trailer appears to track straight in the mirrors and if I just let it "wiggle" rather than try to correct each sensation, I run straight down the road.
That's the first scenario.
Next is proper setup of your wdh and suspension. You shouldn't "need" sway control if you're set up right. IMO sway control is there to help setups that aren't right. Ie, truck overloaded to point that the trailer is driving it due to way too much tongue weight or the opposite, too little tongue weight, allowing the trailer to drift around rather than be planted on the hitch ball.

I'd first make sure you have acceptable tongue weight.
Then make a run "naked", no wdh and just enough air to keep the truck about level (if needed). You should pull straight if there's 700-1000lbs on the tongue.
Now adjust the wdh to transfer a little weight forward if the steering feels floaty and unloaded. May need to dump some air as you unload the rear.

Some of these have already been covered, but the first one, not yet.

Assuming you are on P-Rated tires, inflate them to the max pressure loaded (see sidewall). This will help remove some squishiness.

Your dealer set up the hitch. First thing you need to do is go to the post provided, dismantle your dealer set up and set up from scratch. In general, dealers are pretty much worthless in this aspect.

You have 7400# dry trailer, it is at least 8,400# and probably heavier loaded. At that, you are too heavy for a half ton (I'm talking comfort, not weight abilities). We experienced this with our first trailer. Took a $10k bath after one year to move to a more comfortable trailer (6,000# dry - 7,200# wet).

We have a standard round-bar WDH with friction sway bars. Our set up came with one sway bar and we towed like that for about 3 years. Puckered every time a big rig would pass us and had to slow considerably when driving with a crosswind. Added a second sway bar a couple of years ago. Night and Day.

But bottom line is, 8,000# plus is too heavy for half ton comfort, regardless if you are within limits of the TV or not (probably not).

Need to weigh your rig to determine actual weight. The only thing a dry weight is good for is to get you in the neighborhood. We add about 1200# of gear to our empty trailer.

I'm not sure where you're getting your numbers from and how you figure you are within the truck's capabilities but I think you need to get some real numbers.

The Tundra is a great truck, I really miss my '07 Crewmax, and it can pull 8k worth of trailer with ease, but in most cases not within its ratings once you load the family up. Like most 1/2 tons, it doesn't have the payload.

Jayco shows the tt in your sig with a UVW of 6500lbs. Where do you get 7400lbs dry weight from? Your tt should have a yellow sticker (usually on the screen door or in a cupboard) with its weight as it left the factory. What is that weight?

In either case, lets say it weighs 8k loaded. For best stability it should have at least 12 percent of that weight on the tongue (~1k). A Crewmax Tundra only has about 1200lbs of available payload (see door sticker) so after the tongue weight is subtracted, you don't have much left for passengers, including yourself. Seeing as you have a Crewmax and a bunkhouse tt I'm going to assume you have a family with you. See where I'm going with this? You may be well under the tow rating but you're definitely not within all ratings.

We were in a very similar scenario. The trailer in my sig is 34' and 7600lbs loaded. Towed it with our '07 crewmax and family of 4 plus large dog on board. We had upgraded tires and airbags as well. Truck towed the setup great (pulled better than my current Ram) but we were always 400lbs over payload. That won't kill it but more importantly be under the tire and axle ratings. We do also use a $3k Hensley hitch which won't allow sway.

In short, get your rig weighed and get your tongue weight. I think you'll be surprised. Then readjust your hitch.

This is all assuming it is actually sway you are experiencing and not just getting pushed around by the bow wave of passing trucks and crosswinds. Not much you can do about that but get a heavier truck. Even big rigs will feel that.