Hensley or....

alexleblanc wrote:

RinconVTR wrote:
Both Propride and Hensley have their pros and cons, but the Propride yoke requires a lot more time and customization to install around LP tank bases, and you need a massive torque wrench. I also do not prefer the WDH bar links on the jacks, nor the side nut on the jacks compared to Henleys top mount nut adjustment. The only thing the Propride has going for it is the adjustable stinger.

Both companies offer really good support, I do not feel there is a difference there.

I was almost swayed to Propride after owning a Hensley with manufacturing issues. The change in preference is back to Hensley after finding out what Sean at Propride is all about. His quirky attitude, slippery tactics, and wise cracking doesn't mix with me. I can give and take a lot, but this guy is just no good.

Look, don't take my word for it. Search other forums and read Propride Sean's posts yourself. You'll get a better feel who you're really spending big dollars with, and it wont be a good feeling. Spend your money elsewhere. Hensley.

Nothing bad to say about the Propride hitch I enjoyed for 2 summers and just sold to my father, but I'm still waiting on the Hitch cover that I ordered and paid for from Propride when I ordered my hitch - several calls and emails, not one answer.

People preach Sean's service, I purchased the 3P based on that and was quite disappointed. Lucky for me that I never had any real issues with the product, I'd of been SOL.

There are many like you. A few hit me up via PM here but dont post publicly. More in other forums. Sorry to hear about the issue, but at least it was over a cover and not the hitch.

Honestly, I think problems with either hitch are rare, but I do find more with the Propride. I had issues with the Hensley, but in fairness is was a re manufactured unit, and replacements were simply shotty, and unchecked. NOT a design problem.

Anyway...I hope more Propride users come forward with their issues as time goes along. (brackets falling off, strut issues, hitch bar breakage, severely elongated holes in the WDH bar link and more DESIGN issues.)

Mr.Propride Sean was banned on here and another site that I posted very detailed information about my buying experience in a thread I started. The post was removed and here (no where else) but eventually, Sean was banned.

Ironically at the time, I was clearly stated I was slightly more for Propride than I was Hensley. That has since drastically changed. I'll be honest, I am anti-Propride now for personal and mechanical design reasons.

To keep my post slightly on topic...I really dont think the OP has an issue. More pics or video is needed to completely verify.

BarneyS wrote:
Someone several pages back said that your picture showed the hitch head to be centered on the trailer. I disagree! Your picture shows the hitch head turned to the right (bottom in the picture). This means that the right hand strut bar is too short and the left one is too long. You need to adjust them very accurately so the distance from the edge of the orange hitch head to an identical point on the frame on each side is the same. Then you tighten the adjustment nut and lower the adjustment arm over the top of the strut. This will lock everything in place and the hitch head cannot move left or right.

The symptoms you described are consistent with the struts being either not adjusted correctly and/or loose and your picture confirms this. It has nothing to do with the spring bar adjustment whether by jacks or chains.

You MUST get the hitch head centered on the A-frame via those struts or the hitch will not operate the way it should.
Hope this helps. :)
Barney

Barney,

The strut bars are adjusted so that a measurement taken from the corner of the head back to opposing corners of the frame are equal. The head is indeed square with the trailer. The struts are also tight, no wiggle\play in them at all.

The head isn't turned on the trailer, its pivoted over via the links between the upper and lower section.

As for the spring bars... I am not referring to how many links are hanging, I'm talking about the angle between the bracket and the end of the bar. Unless I am mistaken, any forces placed on the chains if they are at an angle other than perpendicular to the bar will transfer those forces to whatever it is attached to. With the brackets sitting 1.5" back further than they should have been, they were not only exerting a force vertically, but also on the horizontal. i.e. the chains were trying to not only carry weight, but they were pulling the head back towards the trailer.

My chains were like this \ rather than |

Someone several pages back said that your picture showed the hitch head to be centered on the trailer. I disagree! Your picture shows the hitch head (orange part) turned to the right (bottom in the picture). This means that the right hand strut bar is too short and the left one is too long. You need to adjust them very accurately so the distance from the edge of the orange hitch head to an identical point on the frame on each side is the same. In your case, I would measure each side from the top rear corner of the orange hitch head to the front mounting bolt of the tongue jack. Then you tighten the adjustment nut and lower the adjustment arm over the top of the strut. This will lock everything in place and the hitch head cannot move left or right.

The symptoms you described are consistent with the struts being either not adjusted correctly and/or loose and your picture confirms this. It has nothing to do with the spring bar adjustment whether by jacks or chains.

You MUST get the hitch head centered on the A-frame via those struts or the hitch will not operate the way it should. You do this without any truck hooked up and can even be done without the WD bars in place.
Hope this helps. :)
Barney

Ok, here is my hypothesis....

When the dealer installed the hitch, he placed the snap up brackets at 26.5" back from the coupler. They were forward as far as he could get them without moving the propane tanks forward. This left the chains at a measured 20 degrees from being plumb. So I pulled the LPG bracket and placed the brackets at the required 25.5", but still didnt like the angle on the chains so I called Hensley and I was told I could cheat them forward .5" so thats what I did. Sitting at 25" the chains are ALMOST plumb....

Now, my hypothesis is the previous angle on the chains was pulling the head back not allowing it to self center with the minor amount of pull I was putting on it in my driveway. 1000 pound bars with the chains sitting at 20 degrees will place a fair bit of pull on the head.

I am still working on my battery upgrades so I haven't been able to test my hypothesis now that I have the snap up brackets moved. I hope to have the majority of my battery upgrades done this weekend.

chracatoa wrote:

I did hear back from Terry at Hensley and he told me that the hitch wont always self center which seems odd since pulling it down the road in the position its in will have some detrimental effects to tire wear and fuel mileage.

That's odd. I have the ProPride, but it should be the same basic design. Here's step 4 for the ProPride installation instructions (instlaling the hitch head):

Step 4: Align the tow vehicle as straight as possible with the front of the trailer.
Note: This is the alignment when you are towing down the road. Try to be
centered.

I have learned the hard way that hitch installation is something you have to do it yourself when I had my first Reese dual cam.

Have you tried reading Hensley's instructions and re-checking every step?

I have been over them multiple times. Even 2 calls into Hensley. I'm fairly confident that the hitch is installed correctly, now.

93Cobra2771 wrote:
Try this: When you come to a stop, manually use your brake controller to do most of the stopping.

Also, as mentioned earlier, you need to travel at least a couple of trailer lengths to be sure you are straight.

If the brakes aren't adjusted tight enough, it will push off one side or the other every time during a stop. And until you go fast enough to get the trailer to pull back (wind resistance) or you pull a slight hill, it is very possible it will stay off center till then.

If the head pivots freely when you aren't hooked up, and the strut bars are snug when hitched, you should be good to go.

Oh, and don't forget the grease on the strut bar ends. You can't have enough of it. And go ahead and buy some extra of the special zerk fittings. You'll need them. :-)

Thanks for the tips. I think I may have discovered a major contributor to the issue. Ill address it in a stand alone post in a minute.

Never had a PP but I had a Hensly for several years. Before that I had a Pullrite. I actually preferred the Pullrite but the install was a REAL pain.

RinconVTR wrote:
Both Propride and Hensley have their pros and cons, but the Propride yoke requires a lot more time and customization to install around LP tank bases, and you need a massive torque wrench. I also do not prefer the WDH bar links on the jacks, nor the side nut on the jacks compared to Henleys top mount nut adjustment. The only thing the Propride has going for it is the adjustable stinger.

Both companies offer really good support, I do not feel there is a difference there.

I was almost swayed to Propride after owning a Hensley with manufacturing issues. The change in preference is back to Hensley after finding out what Sean at Propride is all about. His quirky attitude, slippery tactics, and wise cracking doesn't mix with me. I can give and take a lot, but this guy is just no good.

Look, don't take my word for it. Search other forums and read Propride Sean's posts yourself. You'll get a better feel who you're really spending big dollars with, and it wont be a good feeling. Spend your money elsewhere. Hensley.

Nothing bad to say about the Propride hitch I enjoyed for 2 summers and just sold to my father, but I'm still waiting on the Hitch cover that I ordered and paid for from Propride when I ordered my hitch - several calls and emails, not one answer.

People preach Sean's service, I purchased the 3P based on that and was quite disappointed. Lucky for me that I never had any real issues with the product, I'd of been SOL.

I did hear back from Terry at Hensley and he told me that the hitch wont always self center which seems odd since pulling it down the road in the position its in will have some detrimental effects to tire wear and fuel mileage.

That's odd. I have the ProPride, but it should be the same basic design. Here's step 4 for the ProPride installation instructions (instlaling the hitch head):

Step 4: Align the tow vehicle as straight as possible with the front of the trailer.
Note: This is the alignment when you are towing down the road. Try to be
centered.

I have learned the hard way that hitch installation is something you have to do it yourself when I had my first Reese dual cam.

Have you tried reading Hensley's instructions and re-checking every step?

Try this: When you come to a stop, manually use your brake controller to do most of the stopping.

Also, as mentioned earlier, you need to travel at least a couple of trailer lengths to be sure you are straight.

If the brakes aren't adjusted tight enough, it will push off one side or the other every time during a stop. And until you go fast enough to get the trailer to pull back (wind resistance) or you pull a slight hill, it is very possible it will stay off center till then.

If the head pivots freely when you aren't hooked up, and the strut bars are snug when hitched, you should be good to go.

Oh, and don't forget the grease on the strut bar ends. You can't have enough of it. And go ahead and buy some extra of the special zerk fittings. You'll need them. :-)