How do you setup weight distribution and air bags together?

So, the directions were in the 2016 F150 manual the whole time, just missed it I guess. It reads:

When hooking-up a trailer using a
weight-distributing hitch, always use the
following procedure:
1. Park the loaded vehicle, without the
trailer, on a level surface.
2. Measure the height to the top of your
vehicle's front wheel opening on the
fender. This is H1.
3. Attach the loaded trailer to your vehicle
without the weight-distributing bars
connected.
4. Measure the height to the top of your
vehicle's 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 your vehicle's front wheel
opening on the fender is approximately
a quarter the way down from H2,
toward H1.
6. Check that the trailer is level or slightly
nose down toward your vehicle. If not,
adjust the ball height accordingly and
repeat Steps 2-6.


So, on the newer style of F150 trucks, I'm reading this to be 25% reduction in front fender RISE?

Thanks everyone for the reading links and advice.

I'm still waiting to hear back from Ford regarding 100% or 50% elimination of front RISE.

I know for sure I'm over compensating as my front is 3/4" lower than before, so I'll bring it back to the existing height or slightly higher and look into getting air bags installed or removing the 2" leveling kit and then adjust the WDH again.

In the Husky Centerline manual, it says it's ok to have the trailer tongue 1" higher than it was when level and unhitched. I didn't quite understand why you would want this, and after reading some of those links posted here I now understand why some people set the ball height 1" low, that way your trailer will still be level or slightly downward instead of towing upward. Makes backing into uphill sites easier as well.

Once you get the WD set up for the FRONT of the truck as it should be, if you are not happy with the amount of sag in the rear end, then go for airbags.

Airbags jack up the rear of the truck. WD hitches push down on the front of the truck. Two separate functions.

Add that there are a few more goals to all of these adjustments (dials, knobs, etc)

One is to have the trailer tongue level at it's highest pointing and I prefer pointed slightly down

Have seen folks run in circles dialing in with what worked for others...but there really is no one size fits all in adjustments...just whatever it takes to get to the above goal

Another is that the tongue weight needs to be as high in the standard 10%-15% recommendation. Most OEMs use a 10% of a 'dryt' trailer weight...recommend a min of 12%, but that is usually limited by the TV's GVWR and mainly it's rear GAWR

And back to Barney's comments...spot on IMHO...and of course decide if you believe in the OEM's spec/ratings or not. If not, then this is an academic discussion...if yes...gather the info needed to dail the setup in to your TV's specifications. That will require a trip(s) to the scales...

BarneyS wrote:
No, the goal of the WD is NOT to make the truck settle evenly. That used to be the thinking but times have changed.

The goal is to get the weight back on the front axle of the truck that was taken off. If you remove 200lbs off the front when hooking up the trailer then you should adjust the WD bars to put that 200lbs back on the front axle. The back of the truck is still going to sag some. That is not the concern, and is just the way trucks work. The goal is to return the lost weight back to the front axle. Some manufacturers say to only return half the lost weight but I don't believe in that. That would still give you poorly aimed headlights and allow you to see the squirrels in the trees.

We have two very helpful threads stuck to the top of this forum. One is called Weight Distribution (WD)Hitch - how it works, and the other that I think you should read is Travel Trailer Hitch Set-Up Procedure.

I think reading both of those threads will help you a whole lot in understanding your hitch and how to set it up properly.

By the way, crank up that tongue jack as far as you need to go to get the bars on safely. That is one reason so many of us have power tongue jacks! :B I also agree with those saying you probably need stronger bars.
Good reading and good luck.:)
Barney

Thanks for the links. I'm going to confirm with the Ford dealer today about if the newer style trucks are also 50% reduction in front axle rise.

Since I'm 3/4" lower in the front, I definitely have an over adjusted WDH.

With that 2" leveling kit in the front, It doesn't help that I'm already fairly level to the ground unhooked from the trailer. I'd rather not remove it, so that's why I was looking into the airbag route to compensate. But I understand that the air bags won't do anything for weight distribution.

If I get the RISE at the front of the truck down to unhitched height (or 50% of the difference), and the rear fender is say 1-1/2" to 2" lower than the front fender, is this where air bags could help? Or is this where I should say to myself "the 2" leveling kit isn't worth it!" :)

Thanks!

No, the goal of the WD is NOT to make the truck settle evenly. That used to be the thinking but times have changed.

The goal is to get the weight back on the front axle of the truck that was taken off. If you remove 200lbs off the front when hooking up the trailer then you should adjust the WD bars to put that 200lbs back on the front axle. The back of the truck is still going to sag some. That is not the concern, and is just the way trucks work. The goal is to return the lost weight back to the front axle. Some manufacturers say to only return half the lost weight but I don't believe in that. That would still give you poorly aimed headlights and allow you to see the squirrels in the trees.

We have two very helpful threads stuck to the top of this forum. One is called Weight Distribution (WD)Hitch - how it works, and the other that I think you should read is Travel Trailer Hitch Set-Up Procedure.

I think reading both of those threads will help you a whole lot in understanding your hitch and how to set it up properly.

By the way, crank up that tongue jack as far as you need to go to get the bars on safely. That is one reason so many of us have power tongue jacks! :B I also agree with those saying you probably need stronger bars.
Good reading and good luck.:)
Barney

Thanks for the info. You're right, I am new to this and don't have the best understanding of the WDH yet. We towed a tent trailer the last few years, so this is a big upgrade.

I thought a properly adjusted weight distribution dropped the front and rear truck fenders equally, no?

When putting the weight distribution bars into place, I know you have to lift the front of the trailer and back of the truck up together using the trailer jack, but it feels like I'm jacking up the truck pretty high just to get the spring bars close enough to the brackets to pop into place. Also, when removing the bars, there is still quite a bit of tension on them when using the tool to pop them out. I'm sure this is a sign of needing a 1000-1200lbs WDH, but how high should the jack be lifting the truck? (I have 3 washers in place on the WDH and the brackets are set to the 2nd highest holes on the trailer frame.

I'll have to look into some places nearby to get my weights figured out.

I believe the tow rating of the truck is around 10,800lbs.

Spend $15 at a scale to understand all your weights. 3 Passes can find out how much TW you have and how much weight is restored to your front axle.

Air bags only increase the spring rate of the rear axle. They do not transfer weight to the front axle. They complicate WDH adjustment which it seems you do not quite have a fully understanding of yet anyway. My opinion is that a properly adjusted WDH should make towing 7000-ish pounds very stable for most half tons. If you think you need airbags, you are probabyl over at least one rating.

When you put the tongue on the ball, the front should go up. When you apply the WD bars, the front should come back down. Your goal is to get the front back to unhitched heights. If you the front is lower than unhitched height, you are putting too much weight on the front axle. Fender height is an estimate of weight, so I would still recommend using a scale to understand your situation and how to adjust.

I would remove the front leveling. 800 pound bars are probably not enough for 8000 pound GVWR trailer. 1000 or 1200 pound bars are about right for 8000 pounds loaded. Note, very few of the F-150s have 11k tow ratings. There are two special packages that are very low production volume to get 11k-ish ratings. Still, yours is likely to have over 8000 pound tow rating and should be good for your RV.