Pro-Pride Hitch

[mhsmith]

Recently returned from a 3000mi round trip to Texas. First long trip with our TT. DW and I have discussed some issues that arose during this trip-the two most important turned out to be sway and the constant jerking from the trailer over some of the roads we travelled. I have researched the 3P hitch as far as sway goes but seem unable to find any comments on the jerking. She asked me what I thought was more important and I said sway and she has given me the ok for the 3P come next year. Just looking to see if it may help this situation any. Thanks in advance.

[noteven]

The success of hitching up “first time” decreases in proportion to the size of the peanut gallery.

One time camped waaaay out north of the Middle of Noplace I backs in going to stop and get out and look and gentle “thump”. Chit! I’ve hit the hitch and knocked it sideways! Noooo!

I jumps out and look. I had hit it so perfect I closed the latches by hand.

[stripit]

We are now into a motorhome, but we did own a travel trailer that swayed all over the road with the large SUV I had as atow vehicle. It was our decision to try the Hensley hitch and that made all the difference to allow us to continue a sway free drive. I do know if I was ever to go back to a travel trailer it would have either a pro pride or a Hensley hitch hooked to it. They used to have a money back warranty if you didn't like how it performed. What have you got to loose? It will make your towing experiance comfortable.

[dodge_guy]

FWIW, I towed my 35ft TT with my Excursion using a Reese Dual Cam hitch. Never any issues, and I do 4000 miles in 2-3 weeks, so lots of driving. Properly setup any hitch will provide a safe towing experience.

[mhsmith]

Yes it is correct. I do have the max tow with the 6.5 bed. I know I'm close to max limit with this trailer as I was with previous TT and my Suburban at the time. May have to keep it close to home for awhile until DW can be convinced we need to upgrade truck which I was thinking about most of the trip.

[deltabravo]

I'm curious what make / model truck you have and how long your trailer is. We really need those details to determine if other issues are causing the problems you mention.

Is your profile still correct? It shows this:
2012 F-150 XLT SuperCrew Ecoboost
2019 Flagstaff Superlite 29RKWS

I wouldn't want to tow a 29' body length trailer, which is probably 34' overall length, with a half ton truck with the super short bed, with a 6 cylinder gas engine, which likely has P rated tires.

[Lantley]

A Propride or Hensley will eliminate the push caused by passing 18 wheelers.
The premium hitches are expensive but they are game changers. Friction based hinges do not compare.

[mhsmith]

I'm using a Reese Dual Cam with 1200lb.bars does a pretty good job over all. Most of the sway experienced was trucks and other large vehicles passing which made DW quite uncomfortable. Yeah...I know most of the jerking is from the road. Don't get me wrong...there were some rather nice, smooth roads out there also and made it nice. I've been towing a TT for just over 20yrs. now and feel I have a good handle on my setup and mainly looking to see if there is anything else out there that may be an improvement.

With this trailer having a rear kitchen...I bought one of those spare tire hangers that mount under the trailer and is just in front of the door in an attempt to remove some weight off the rear. It seems to have helped. As a side note...it definitely made it easier for dealing with the one tire blowout we had.

I'm still trying to decide if I like this Torflex suspension. It feels like it is a stiffer suspension than our previous trailer with leaf springs.

I guess with this having been the longest trip we've had with this trailer...I still have more questions than answers.

[TurnThePage]

Jerking is likely just the road. What are you using for sway control now? Have you confirmed that you have adequate tongue weight and tires aired up beyond what the door jam sticker says?

As long as my P metric tires are aired to their max and the trailer tires are aired to their max, and of course tongue weight is around 12% or higher, I only experience "sway" when a semi goes by. If I use my Equal-I-zer in addition to the above, I experience zero sway. I don't even experience the jerking that's often reported.

On edit, I'm not promoting what I use, just pointing out that there's plenty of options and considerations.

[hvac]

I use the gen y torsion hitch. No wd and no sway as the ATC will not sway. It's very heavy on the hitch with a 5.5 onan mounted up-front. Spread axle torsion is very stable. The gen y absorbes the shock perfectly and maintenance free
But I have 2500 and hitch weight exceeds 1300lbs. So no half ton could do this set up.Just drop it on the ball and go. Super quiet and silent.

[Grit_dog]

mhsmith wrote:
Recently returned from a 3000mi round trip to Texas. FIRST long trip with our TT.....two most important turned out to be SWAY and the constant jerking from the trailer over SOME of the roads we travelled. .Just looking to see if it may help this situation any. Thanks in advance.

Few thoughts, based on the snip of your post above.
Before dumping 3 grand (Do those contraptions really cost that much???) on a fix, maybe decide if towing is your thing, or if what you're experiencing is normal.
Because 3000mi of trailer swaying doesn't sound realistic. Is it sway or just a little wiggle here n there? How much towing experience do you have? Could you maybe get a second opinion form someone you know who tows trailers regularly?
How well is your truck set up, suspension and tires, etc?

My posts like this usually fall on deaf ears to the RV "experts", but being a RVer myself and someone who tows a multitude of trailers regularly, both personal trips and at work, I have yet to find a cause for a sway control system and the few instances of towing trailers s that actually swayed were poor loading or extremely overloaded for the tow rig.

Just a suggestion, although I suspect your perception and others that will convince you to spend big $ on a fancy hitch, will differ from mine.

[TenOC]

Seon wrote:
Not the 3 Ps but the Hensley which is basically the same.
No jerking or swaying towing my 28' AOL travel trailer.

2X with 33 foot TT and Dodge diesel 1/2 ton. 6 years full time I-10 does have problems with the concrete pavement gaps, but that is a road problem not a hitch problem

[noteven]

I used a PP3 mounted on an Air Safe suspension hitch towing a 12,500lbs 32 ft tandem axle travel trailer. The PP3 controlled sway and the Air Safe controlled fore and aft chucking/jerking.

[Seon]

Not the 3 Ps but the Hensley which is basically the same.
No jerking or swaying towing my 28' AOL travel trailer.