Draw bar length, anything magical?
I was wondering about the length of the draw bar (piece that goes into the receiver) on a WD hitch. Is there anything "magical" about it? ie. relationship between it and the weight ratings of the spr...
Forum Discussion
Beachums wrote:
I see now..... good question....
If I had to make an educated guess, I would say that the spring bars would have less effect on the front of the TV as the fulcrum of the spring bars to the WD knuckle haven't changed. However the fulcrum of the travel trailer tongue to the axle has grown. This would leave me to hypothesize that the wear and tear on both the WD and the hitch receiver would increase given the same net effect desired from the hitch system.
But again, that would be based purely on my limited knowledge of physics.....and not real world experience.
There is only one fulcrum. It is not the ball. At least not in a vertical sense. The hitch bars just happen to attach to the hitch head. The fulcrum point is the rear axle of the TV.
To better explain it, lets forget about using a hitch for the momoment.
Imagine inserting a long say 4' 2"x2" bar into the TV receiver. Now lift up on the end of it.
What happens? The rear of the TV will rise and the front of the TV will drop as the pressure pivots around the rear axle, or fulcrum.
Now imagine using a 10' bar, and lifting on the end of it with the same force as before... The front of the TV will drop even more.
The same thing happens with the WD hitch. Nothing pivots on the ball in a vertical sense, as it is locked solid with the frame of both the TV and TT.
There will only be a small amount of necessary give as the bars bend when the rig encounters bumps and dips in the road.
