Newbie Towing Questions
I finally just picked up our Apex 288BHS last Friday. We also had an Equalizer hitch installed. On the drive home, I had a couple of concerns and was hoping to get some advice here. First, when...
Forum Discussion
Firstly, a bit of forward/backward jerking is quite normal. There is a small amount of play in a couple places that is necessary for you to be able to put things together/take them apart. That play becomes the fore/aft jerking. So quite normal.
Secondly brake controller gain is a matter not amenable to one setting fits all. You will find you have to reset it every time you use the trailer, in part because it is a function of the trailer's exact weight at the time. More weight takes more brakes, so how much food you have aboard, how full your fresh water, gray and black tanks are all makes a difference.
It also makes a difference whether you are on a gravel or asphalt road. The trailer brakes will lock up on gravel at the setting needed for asphalt, and you don't want that. At the start of the trip, on some back road or street, and at low speeds, say, 10 mph or less, you want the trailer brakes to be felt. You do not want to have to be reaching for the controller should an emergency occur calling for a hard stop. You may be busy avoiding a wreck at that moment. You also don't want light pressure on your brake pedal resulting in a panic stop on the part of the trailer brakes. It will take some practice and experience to learn what works best for you.
Thirdly, backup angle is limited by impact of TV and TT corners. Any lesser angle should be ok. Again, experience and careful observation are your friends on that.
Fourthly, tire pressures are a critical detail most people have no idea how much so. You will need to do some math here. On the tire sidewall you will find both a load rating and a maximum tire pressure. You will also find on the TV door pillar a sticker with recommended pressures for the stock tire size. As long as your axle weight is below the tire's load rating and the pressure is below the max, you are golden. The door sticker is recommended based upon the truck makers best guess of the average weight most buyers are expected to be carrying around most of the time. If you make a simple calculation tire's max load divided by tire's max pressure, you will get the number of pounds the tire can carry per psi pressure. While I don't think the relationship is strictly linear, dividing the actual weight by the number of pounds per psi will give you a good first guess as to how much pressure you need in the tire for that load.
(max tire load)/(max tire pressure) = (weight carried per psi)
(weight to be carried)/(weight carried per psi) = (psi needed)
If you have too little air in the tires, the truck will not be directionally stable and will wallow around. If too much, you will get a hard ride. Both also give poor tire wear .
EDIT: Too little weight on the tongue of the trailer will be experienced by directional instability. That is, the trailer will try to wag the TV. Needless to say, a very unpleasant and dangerous situation. It will not affect fore/aft jerking at all.
Secondly brake controller gain is a matter not amenable to one setting fits all. You will find you have to reset it every time you use the trailer, in part because it is a function of the trailer's exact weight at the time. More weight takes more brakes, so how much food you have aboard, how full your fresh water, gray and black tanks are all makes a difference.
It also makes a difference whether you are on a gravel or asphalt road. The trailer brakes will lock up on gravel at the setting needed for asphalt, and you don't want that. At the start of the trip, on some back road or street, and at low speeds, say, 10 mph or less, you want the trailer brakes to be felt. You do not want to have to be reaching for the controller should an emergency occur calling for a hard stop. You may be busy avoiding a wreck at that moment. You also don't want light pressure on your brake pedal resulting in a panic stop on the part of the trailer brakes. It will take some practice and experience to learn what works best for you.
Thirdly, backup angle is limited by impact of TV and TT corners. Any lesser angle should be ok. Again, experience and careful observation are your friends on that.
Fourthly, tire pressures are a critical detail most people have no idea how much so. You will need to do some math here. On the tire sidewall you will find both a load rating and a maximum tire pressure. You will also find on the TV door pillar a sticker with recommended pressures for the stock tire size. As long as your axle weight is below the tire's load rating and the pressure is below the max, you are golden. The door sticker is recommended based upon the truck makers best guess of the average weight most buyers are expected to be carrying around most of the time. If you make a simple calculation tire's max load divided by tire's max pressure, you will get the number of pounds the tire can carry per psi pressure. While I don't think the relationship is strictly linear, dividing the actual weight by the number of pounds per psi will give you a good first guess as to how much pressure you need in the tire for that load.
(max tire load)/(max tire pressure) = (weight carried per psi)
(weight to be carried)/(weight carried per psi) = (psi needed)
If you have too little air in the tires, the truck will not be directionally stable and will wallow around. If too much, you will get a hard ride. Both also give poor tire wear .
EDIT: Too little weight on the tongue of the trailer will be experienced by directional instability. That is, the trailer will try to wag the TV. Needless to say, a very unpleasant and dangerous situation. It will not affect fore/aft jerking at all.
