Bent sway control on EAZ Lift hitch

[GravelRider]

Last night I mounted a Camco EAZ Lift WD hitch with sway control to my trailer. Instructions were pretty terrible, but installation seemed to be fairly straightforward, fortunately. I got the WDH installed and setup first, took it for a drive and was happy with the results. I then mounted the sway control. When I pulled out of my driveway, there was some creaking noise, but nothing too loud, then I went around another turn in my street and there was even louder creaking. I stopped and checked out the new sway control and found this:

Moderator edit to re-size picture to forum recommended limit of 640px maximum width.

You can't tell in the pictures, but both the main body and the slide bar are bent.

I didn't back up at all with the hitch. I made two turns, one right, one left, neither of which was overly sharp, and certainly what one would encounter in a normal day's drive. After this bent, I read, re-read, measured, and re-measured, and watched YouTube videos, and I'm confident everything was installed correctly.

One thing I noticed when I put it on was that with the on/off handle turned all the way clockwise until threads bottomed out (as instructions say to do), there was absolutely no movement. I wasn't too concerned, because if I was able to move it by hand, how would it provide good sway control? But, what I believe happened is that when I turned, the slide bar did not slide in the main body, and instead bent, as shown in the pictures.

Obviously I'm going to reach out to the manufacturer today. But in the meantime, has this happened to anyone else? Any tips/advice? I'm assuming this was just a manufacturing defect on this one.

[BarneyS]

trail-explorer wrote:

mleekamp wrote:
My initial reaction, after being confident you've installed it correctly (pics seem to show that), is you might have tightened the handle/screw TOO TIGHT.

DITTO

It sometimes pays to read the whole thread. The OP discovered the reason for the bent sway control. It was the v shaped rod welded to the side of the trailer A frame contacting the sway control during a left turn.

As far as tightening the sway control handle, I also posted the correct procedure for using that which was confirmed by the posting later on by a member of the written instructions. Here is what I said earlier in the thread regarding this.

"As far as tightening down the handle all the way, the factory sets the "clamping power" for the average trailer. The purpose in tightening the large upper handle all the way is so you can be consistent in the amount of tension on the bar once you find the measurement that works right for you. The adjustment for this is the small bolt below the handle, which should be turned in 1/4 turn adjustments, as a little goes a long way."

Notice that the handle is simply supposed to be an "on/off" device and not a way to adjust the tension on the sway bar.
Barney

[trail-explorer]

mleekamp wrote:
My initial reaction, after being confident you've installed it correctly (pics seem to show that), is you might have tightened the handle/screw TOO TIGHT.

DITTO

[GravelRider]

Lynnmor wrote:

GravelRider wrote:
I ground off the bracket and mounted the HF sway control today. Everything works as it should. And jackknifing on each side I still had further room on the sway control, so I shouldn't need to remove it to back up

Since most of the major brands are made in China, I'll bet you couldn't find much difference in quality, any comment.

Be aware that the bar can bend when backing up even if does not hit anything. If the friction material binds on the bar, it will cause increased friction that feeds on itself and possibly increase to the point of bending. Many years ago I had one bend like that, but I still don't remove when backing up. Now once a year, I pull the bar out and clean it with steel wool followed by soap and water.

The quality seems okay. A little rougher around the edges than the Camco, but I don't think I'll be swapping for another brand unless I run into issues with it.

I had read that can be an issue, so I loosened up the tension before backing up. Thanks for the tip.

[mleekamp]

With the new pic you've uploaded, I'll change my answer....which is meaningless at this point because you've solved it....but YUP, that U bracket welded to the frame hit the sway bar.

There, for my peace of mind, I corrected my response.

Have a good trip !!!

[Lynnmor]

GravelRider wrote:
I ground off the bracket and mounted the HF sway control today. Everything works as it should. And jackknifing on each side I still had further room on the sway control, so I shouldn't need to remove it to back up

Since most of the major brands are made in China, I'll bet you couldn't find much difference in quality, any comment.

Be aware that the bar can bend when backing up even if does not hit anything. If the friction material binds on the bar, it will cause increased friction that feeds on itself and possibly increase to the point of bending. Many years ago I had one bend like that, but I still don't remove when backing up. Now once a year, I pull the bar out and clean it with steel wool followed by soap and water.

[GravelRider]

I ground off the bracket and mounted the HF sway control today. Everything works as it should. And jackknifing on each side I still had further room on the sway control, so I shouldn't need to remove it to back up

[Humbert810]

GravelRider wrote:

Humbert810 wrote:
Looks as if the sway bar is below that bracket on the trailer tongue. Although if on the right incline or decline it could possibly hit. My guess is the setup was way too tight although I have mine very tight and never had this issue.

That picture is deceiving. The bracket is definitely in line with the bar. Here's another angle:

Moderator edit to re-size picture to forum recommended limit of 640px maximum width.

Definitely deceiving. From that picture it definitely is your issue! Glad you got it figured out!! Sometimes we are our own worst enemy.

Humbert

[GravelRider]

I had my wife send me a picture of the back of the sway control... and it was definitely hitting the bracket. Thanks for all the help everyone. Definitely user error, not Camco's fault. The local Harbor Freight has a sway control in stock if worse comes to worse. I'm having trouble getting hold of my local RV dealer. I'm hoping they have something better in stock as well. But at least I'll have something for the trip.

[GravelRider]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I'll report back what I find after I get home from work tonight... But I think I already know the answer.

[GravelRider]

Humbert810 wrote:
Looks as if the sway bar is below that bracket on the trailer tongue. Although if on the right incline or decline it could possibly hit. My guess is the setup was way too tight although I have mine very tight and never had this issue.

That picture is deceiving. The bracket is definitely in line with the bar. Here's another angle:

Moderator edit to re-size picture to forum recommended limit of 640px maximum width.

[GravelRider]

Lynnmor wrote:
Harbor Freight has them cheap, they look the same as all the other Chinese units. Yes, cut the V shaped thing off.

I'm actually leaving on a 2000 mile trip tomorrow after work. I'm not a fan of Harbor Freight stuff, but if they have it in stock at my local store, I'll go that route, even if only temporary.

[GravelRider]

rdhetrick wrote:
It looks like it hit the small round bar that's welded on to the frame when you turned left.

Need to cut that piece off.

I think you nailed it. When I get home I'll check and see if there is an indent where it hit it, and whether it hits when turning left... But I'm pretty sure this is it. Dolt! Operator error!

BarneyS wrote:
I agree with the post above. You need to cut off the V shaped rod welded to the side of the A frame. When you turn left, the sway control body will swing right next to the trailers A frame. I bet if you look at the side of the sway control you will find a witness mark where it made contact and bent the bar.

As far as tightening down the handle all the way, the factory sets the "clamping power" for the average trailer. The purpose in tightening the large upper handle all the way is so you can be consistent in the amount of tension on the bar once you find the measurement that works right for you. The adjustment for this is the small bolt below the handle, which should be turned in 1/4 turn adjustments, as a little goes a long way.

I would bite the bullet, cut off the offending item on the A frame (probably a chain attachment point), and purchase a new sway control. No need to spend a lot of money on one as they are all about the same in both construction and how they work.
By the way, I ran that exact same system and brand for many years but with 1000lb bars. It always performed great.
Barney

If this is the issue, I'll definitely grind it off and buy another one.

[GravelRider]

mleekamp wrote:
My initial reaction, after being confident you've installed it correctly (pics seem to show that), is you might have tightened the handle/screw TOO TIGHT. Yes, they will creak and groan, but it appears to me it was so tight that it "froze up" and therefore broke itself.

Good news, IMHO, is the sway control is "cheap" to buy again. No need to re-install the frame mounted or hitch mounted ball joints.

That was my first initial thought, but I followed the instructions to a tee. Here they are:

[Humbert810]

Looks as if the sway bar is below that bracket on the trailer tongue. Although if on the right incline or decline it could possibly hit. My guess is the setup was way too tight although I have mine very tight and never had this issue.