Towing without equalizer bars hooked up

If i cant take mine offroad then i wont own it..i dont know where you live but we have city streets that are dirt and we go miles from paved roads or even maintained roads.

At the end of the day I do not believe that rigs that require WDH for proper towing setup (taking load off the draw bar, leveling the tow vehicle, etc.) should be driven off road where extreme angles and twists to the rig could over stress this articulated link.

Despite the marketing images that are presented in some of the brochures (huge TTs and Fifth Wheels in the middle of some field or on some location with no clear indication of how they go there) our rigs are really meant to be driven on the road and other essentially level and benign conditions, so this should be a consideration any time "off-roading".

Agree that taking the bars off is a good idea to save the WDH equipment but it may result in overstress of the rear axle and or the TV hitch. Just wanted to make that point.

canoe on top wrote:
If you tow off the pavement on roads with deep dips and twists it's a good idea to take the bars off as extreme angles can unduly stress the hitch. Also gives you more traction on the rear wheels. I have the Equal-I-zer hitch and don't worry about stressing the hitch head with the bars off.

That is a fact. A person can ruin a WDH if they take it off road on extreme angles. I made my last trailer without a WDH for that very reason. I want it to tow great without the WDH so I don't have to remove the bars every time I go off road with it.

If you tow off the pavement on roads with deep dips and twists it's a good idea to take the bars off as extreme angles can unduly stress the hitch. Also gives you more traction on the rear wheels. I have the Equal-I-zer hitch and don't worry about stressing the hitch head with the bars off.

I don't use mine much .
I use a 9200# gvw diesel GMC to tow a 7280# gvw TT that is called a 21T but is just short of 24 foot overall .
I use about 987# of tongue weight and I am well below the load capacity on my rear axle GVW of my pickup .
My TT axles weigh in at 5300# loaded and because I am not too long the LEVER effect does not move my 8300# fully loaded pickup at all .
By loading the tongue weight and keeping the trailer light behind its axles I keep the controlled weight to a maximum and the uncontrolled weight behind the TT axles to a minimum.
We mainly have 2 lane US Highways in Central Oregon and we tend to go where the curvy roads are and sometimes steeper descents .
There is no substitute for a heavy tow vehicle towing a lighter towed vehicle .
The fancy hitch will mask the physics involved to a degree .
In Oregon we frequently weigh for free at the ODOT scales .
By having this actual weight information about our setup we are able to have the best handling available .

Confirm you receiver's weight carrying rating vs your TT tongue weight. If you don't exceed the receiver rating, and everything is balanced, IMO you are good to go. If the TT tongue weight is to high, you may need the WD bars to meet the receivers WD weight rating.

The Equalizer has bolts that, by friction, hold the ball up. Without the tension bars in place, you are stressing the friction point with all of the weight. Hit a bump... and the stress is multiplied. I wouldn't use the head without the bars.

When correctly adjusted and sized the ride is MUCH better with the hitch in use. The only compelling reason to use the bars though would be the rating of your receiver hitch without a WD system in use and how it relates to your fully loaded tongue weight. Half ton hitches are usually rated for around 500 lb. of tongue weight without going to a WD system. Yours should be marked somewhere, what it's rating is for both with and without WD in place.

Just curious, do you actually have an Equal i zer system of were you meaning a weight distributing system? Equalizer is a "BRAND" of WD system with integrated anto sway.

I seldom use mine.

As long as you DO NOT exceed the weight carrying capacity of the receiver, and the TT tows well, no problem. But do check the receiver weight carrying capacity. It is usually 500 lbs tongue weight, and 5000 lbs trailer, unless it is a 1 or 3/4 ton, then it can go up t0 600 lb weight carrying, and 6000 lb trailer.