Best weight distributing hitch with a sway control

The Blue Ox sway pro looks like an old-style hitch to me with the chains and spring bars. Am I missing something?

Once tightened to 65ft/lbs on the socket bolts, the WD bars on the Equalizer 4 pt are quite hard to move. With the bar in the socket, it takes some effort to turn them in or out even when properly lubed. There is quite a bit of resistance to sway in the head alone. I have no doubt there is still quite a bit of resistance in the L brackets with a touch of grease as well. From the driver's seat, it feels pretty stiff. Again, not recommending, just sharing what works for us. What happens when they get wet from rain in a windy storm or cold front? Water is a lubricant. It still works.

Without getting into the extremely simple mechanical design look at it this way;

The anti-sway features in this case (how ever many you wish to believe in) rely on friction and friction alone.

Add grease = reduce friction.

And grease is required at the head, like every WDH does.


It's honestly that simple. These are extremely crude devices using mild steel.

DutchmenSport wrote:

drsteve wrote:

RinconVTR wrote:

BarneyS wrote:

DutchmenSport wrote:

Hannibal wrote:
... I'll smear a little lube on the L brackets. Lube on the L brackets does reduce sway control a little but not enough to notice in our case. Our Equalizer is silent as a result. I imagine the bracket jackets would do just as well if not better.

...

Snip...
You're defeating the entire functionality of the system by doing that. You are fortunate you've not had sway and hope you never do. But please, remove the grease.

Sorry, but that is not quite the case. The main sway control of the Equal-i-zer hitch comes from the pressure placed on the bar sockets/hitch head interface when the bars are pulled up onto the L brackets. The friction from the bars/L bracket is small compared to the hitch head/bar socket interface.

This info is from Equal-i-zer statements and not my testing. That would also explain why lubing the bar where they rest on the L brackets or using the plastic covers does not reduce the sway control effectiveness very much.
Barney

Said info from Equalizer is marketing fluff so they can claim "4 point" control. 100%

Majority of friction based sway control is on those L brackets, without question.

And you want the WHD bar pivot points at the head well lubed and free turning on every version WDH out there.

Do you have a source for that information?

4-Point Sway Control means there are four unique friction areas built right into your hitch. This friction on your hitch acts to continually resist your trailer's attempt to sway.

https://www.equalizerhitch.com/blog/05-31-2016/how-does-equal-i-zer-hitchs-4-point-sway-control-keep-me-safe

Where should I lube?
https://www.equalizerhitch.com/blog/02-25-2016/how-to-lube-your-equal-i-zer-hitch

The friction surfaces of the head should be kept clean and well lubricated with a good quality multi-purpose or bearing grease. These are the surfaces where the arm sockets rub against the top and bottom plates of the head.

It is not necessary to apply grease to the L-brackets on any hitch model.

https://www.equalizerhitch.com/frequently-asked-questions

I was more interested in this part:

And you want the WHD bar pivot points at the head well lubed and free turning on every version WDH out there.

The maintenance instructions for my Husky Centerline TS, which uses the same design as the Equal-i-zer, says:

The 3/4” trunnion hex bolts come lubricated from the factory re-lubricate if needed with
bearing/axle grease. Do not apply lubrication to the friction surfaces of the top and bottom plates
or on the top or bottom trunnion surfaces as this will reduce the built in friction sway feature.

The pivot points are anything but free turning...

I suppose "it" says, "It is not necessary to apply grease to the L-bracket..." Meaning, It is not necessary to leave it dry either. Flip a coin folks. Do whatever you want. It's your trailer!

Grease or NOT! It's still a * * * good hitch system! I think in that we agree!

drsteve wrote:

RinconVTR wrote:

BarneyS wrote:

DutchmenSport wrote:

Hannibal wrote:
... I'll smear a little lube on the L brackets. Lube on the L brackets does reduce sway control a little but not enough to notice in our case. Our Equalizer is silent as a result. I imagine the bracket jackets would do just as well if not better.

...

Snip...
You're defeating the entire functionality of the system by doing that. You are fortunate you've not had sway and hope you never do. But please, remove the grease.

Sorry, but that is not quite the case. The main sway control of the Equal-i-zer hitch comes from the pressure placed on the bar sockets/hitch head interface when the bars are pulled up onto the L brackets. The friction from the bars/L bracket is small compared to the hitch head/bar socket interface.

This info is from Equal-i-zer statements and not my testing. That would also explain why lubing the bar where they rest on the L brackets or using the plastic covers does not reduce the sway control effectiveness very much.
Barney

Said info from Equalizer is marketing fluff so they can claim "4 point" control. 100%

Majority of friction based sway control is on those L brackets, without question.

And you want the WHD bar pivot points at the head well lubed and free turning on every version WDH out there.

Do you have a source for that information?

4-Point Sway Control means there are four unique friction areas built right into your hitch. This friction on your hitch acts to continually resist your trailer's attempt to sway.

https://www.equalizerhitch.com/blog/05-31-2016/how-does-equal-i-zer-hitchs-4-point-sway-control-keep-me-safe

Where should I lube?
https://www.equalizerhitch.com/blog/02-25-2016/how-to-lube-your-equal-i-zer-hitch

The friction surfaces of the head should be kept clean and well lubricated with a good quality multi-purpose or bearing grease. These are the surfaces where the arm sockets rub against the top and bottom plates of the head.

It is not necessary to apply grease to the L-brackets on any hitch model.

https://www.equalizerhitch.com/frequently-asked-questions

RinconVTR wrote:

BarneyS wrote:

DutchmenSport wrote:

Hannibal wrote:
... I'll smear a little lube on the L brackets. Lube on the L brackets does reduce sway control a little but not enough to notice in our case. Our Equalizer is silent as a result. I imagine the bracket jackets would do just as well if not better.

...

Snip...
You're defeating the entire functionality of the system by doing that. You are fortunate you've not had sway and hope you never do. But please, remove the grease.

Sorry, but that is not quite the case. The main sway control of the Equal-i-zer hitch comes from the pressure placed on the bar sockets/hitch head interface when the bars are pulled up onto the L brackets. The friction from the bars/L bracket is small compared to the hitch head/bar socket interface.

This info is from Equal-i-zer statements and not my testing. That would also explain why lubing the bar where they rest on the L brackets or using the plastic covers does not reduce the sway control effectiveness very much.
Barney

Said info from Equalizer is marketing fluff so they can claim "4 point" control. 100%

Majority of friction based sway control is on those L brackets, without question.

And you want the WHD bar pivot points at the head well lubed and free turning on every version WDH out there.

Do you have a source for that information?

Well, I don't know about this BlueOx and nothing over 28 foot myth...
Ours is 30 foot and heavy...(Arctic Fox) and it's rock solid...

But, so was our 30 Komfort with a Reece Dual Cam.

BarneyS wrote:

DutchmenSport wrote:

Hannibal wrote:
... I'll smear a little lube on the L brackets. Lube on the L brackets does reduce sway control a little but not enough to notice in our case. Our Equalizer is silent as a result. I imagine the bracket jackets would do just as well if not better.

...

Snip...
You're defeating the entire functionality of the system by doing that. You are fortunate you've not had sway and hope you never do. But please, remove the grease.

Sorry, but that is not quite the case. The main sway control of the Equal-i-zer hitch comes from the pressure placed on the bar sockets/hitch head interface when the bars are pulled up onto the L brackets. The friction from the bars/L bracket is small compared to the hitch head/bar socket interface.

This info is from Equal-i-zer statements and not my testing. That would also explain why lubing the bar where they rest on the L brackets or using the plastic covers does not reduce the sway control effectiveness very much.
Barney

Said info from Equalizer is marketing fluff so they can claim "4 point" control. 100%

Majority of friction based sway control is on those L brackets, without question.

And you want the WHD bar pivot points at the head well lubed and free turning on every version WDH out there.

lanerd wrote:
Ok, you used the word "BEST". That narrows it down to two units. Hensley Arrow or Pro Pride.

Dropping down to "BETTER" narrows it down to three units: Equil-i-zer, Reese Dual Cam, or Blue Ox Sway Pro

Dropping even further down to "GOOD" is any of the el-cheapo units that require a separate sway control bar.

This thread should have ended with this early post.