Front measurement ?

[ymehp]

Hey, just setup my new Husky Centerline hitch. Trailer pulls so much nicer compared to my old bar and chain setup. Quick question though, after hooking everything up my front measurement is the same or possibly 1/8" lower than it was unhooked. I set the hitch up per the manual. There is a ton of pressure on this system and I've got to lift the trailer coupler much higher than I did with my old setup. I've kind of rambled on here but I am I hurting anything if in fact my front measurement is 1/8" lower than it was unloaded?

[Acdii]

I have a 16 F150 and Mine too came out 1/8" lower than unladen, and I found I have sway above 65 MPH. It think it may be a bit too much weight transfer on mine since not only does it transfer weight forward, but back to the trailer, and in my case made the ball too light. Going to pull a shim and tilt the head up a bit to relieve some pressure on the springs. Dropping a link will make it too light in the front.

In the OP's case, need to verify how much weight is still on the ball. It may be perfectly fine.

[Lynnmor]

Some hitch manufacturers say to return the front to the unloaded height while some truck manufacturers state half the difference. Probably somewhere between half and full return is correct. A truck with a heavy diesel engine would not need as much to keep sufficient weight on the front tires. A light weight 6 cylinder gas engine may need the most.

The Ford owners manual says:

Weight-Distributing Hitches
When hooking-up a trailer using a weight-distributing hitch, always use the following procedure:
1. Park the vehicle (without the trailer) on a level surface.
2. Measure the height of the top of the front wheel opening on the
fender, this is H1.
3. Attach the trailer to the vehicle without the weight distributing bars connected.
4. Measure the height of the top of the front wheel opening on the
fender a second time, this is H2.
5. Install and adjust the tension in the weight distributing bars so that the height of the front fender is approximately halfway between H1 and H2.
6. Check that the trailer is level. If not level, adjust the ball height accordingly and repeat Steps 3–6

[Hannibal]

Just FWIW, I set up my very similar Equalizer 4 point from the perspective of hitching and unhitching. I set ball height first to .5" above coupler height with the trailer level. Then adjusted the head tilt to run the bars out level with upward hand pressure. I then set the coupler on the ball and raised the tongue until I just had upward pressure on the hitch receiver. Then I set the L brackets so the spring bars could be slid onto the L brackets without the use of the cheater bar. With the tongue jack up, this brought the front of the truck back down a little over half of the .5" rise it had without the bars. The rear settles 1.5" with the bars on. This works well for us as hitching and unhitching isn't always on level ground and it gives some room to raise the tongue a little more if needed to get the bars on or off. I'm all about making things easier and less complicated. Just a thought...

[ymehp]

Thanks, I figured I was ok but wanted to make sure I wasn't hurting anything on the front end. I may play with it a bit more tmw.

[ktmrfs]

same or 1/8" probably not an issue. although I don't know much about fords. However, on many GM vehicles there is very little clearance between the rubber bump stop on the front when at normal ride height. so you really want to watch the front squat and get it close to or slightly above unloaded ride height. more than about 1/4" of sag and your close to the bump stop which affects ride.

I know that some mfg recomend not going back to unloaded ride height but split the difference. that what GM not recomends. However, I have found the ride ad handling is better if I bring it back to unloaded ride height rather than splitting the difference.