sway, or no??

[mikemc53]

OK, real rookie question and I will try to keep it brief - but I doubt that I'll succeed.

2016 35 foot Rockwood Signature Ultra-Light TT being towed with a 2004 Dodge Ram 3500 Quad Cab with the 5.9L Cummins. I'm not going to get real technical with weights, etc. because my question is more about sway and what it is or is not.

I have an Equalizer hitch which is supposed to distribute the weight and also reduce sway. It is often called an anti-sway hitch but here is one of my questions: Is it really anti-sway or more sway control or reduction?

That question leads me to this: When a TT starts to sway is it something that you feel in the TV, or does that depend? I have only pulled a few times and mostly short distances over two lane roads at about 55-60 mph. Never noticed anything out of the ordinary - TV seems to pull with very little effort. Today I had to run it back from the dealer and decided to take some freeways (boy was it windy, by the way) and kept it at 60 mph. A few times while looking in the mirror (driver side mostly) it seemed as if I saw a very slight sway but I felt nothing at all in the TV. Also, it was always momentary and seemed to get straight right away. Now I can't guarantee that I was seeing sway or just moving my head while looking - I never saw it looking down the passenger side but my head orients differently when I look there.

Would I always feel sway in the TV? If not is it normal to get the very slight movement? Is the Equalizer known to address sway if it happens, or is it supposed to eliminate it?

Wow...not short like I intended...sorry. Just trying to get things settled before I take any long trips. I know that there are hitch adjustments and loading of the TT to take into account but I am just trying to figure out if I really did experience sway - never felt anything - or if it was just the normal TT experience. Again, it was very windy but I'm not sure if that had any bearing.

Whew...thanks gang.

[aftermath]

Just read this post. I always enjoy hearing from all the experts on the sway control topic.

You have a good hitch right now. Get it set up properly and weigh your setup to be sure. If you are really paranoid about things by all means step up and get a HA or a PP, they are they best according to many.

Now, the part that really kills me is the idea that a big heavy truck like a 1 ton "can handle" the trailer without a problem. Granted a 350 might not need any WD but all trucks need Sway Control. Sway has nothing to do with the truck, it has everything to do with the trailer. Once a trailer starts to sway it can get ugly in a hurry. If you are towing with a light truck this sway will be transferred to the truck sooner than if you were in a tank but as far as the trailer is concerned, you are still swaying. So, if you want to PREVENT sway, get a WD hitch with built in sway control regardless of the size of your TV.

And, as has been mentioned earlier, if you are happy towing without sway control because you have a big truck and don't need either WD or SC then good luck. I am very happy with my setup but still like the SC because of all the unforeseen possibilities out there. An sudden emergency move, a blow out, a big gust of wind and on and on. There are many very good hitches out there and you have a good one already.

Happy towing.

[atwowheelguy]

If you have a sway problem, you'll know it.

https://youtu.be/INyiMA3hfto

[mkirsch]

Agreed. Not sway. The occasional bobble is unavoidable. Sounds like you've got a good setup.

As far as getting a Hensley or a Propride, you can but it sounds like you don't need to. Those hitches will give you the ultimate in peace of mind, but you've got more than enough truck for the trailer you're towing, and it sounds like it's towing well. IMHO those hitches are more for marginal tow vehicles and "problem child" trailers that can't be reined in any other way.

[KD4UPL]

If you have to ask if the trailer was swaying then it wasn't.
If it was swaying you would feel it in the pucker factor. Reach for the trailer brakes lever to stop it. Add some tongue weight so it doesn't happen again.
It sounds like your rig tows great with what you have.

[mikemc53]

What I saw while looking in the mirror seemed to be a small shimmy and after 1 or 2 slight oscillations it straightened out. I never did feel anything in the truck as I noted. This may have been because the movement was minimal. It never increased to a point where I needed to apply the trailer brakes and, again, that may have been because either the hitch works properly or the shimmy/sway was not really much more than standard towing issues.

[CarnationSailor]

Turtle n Peeps said,

"Notice it starts small and get bigger and BIGGER. Much like a wave in the ocean. Unlike a gust of wind which will just push you around a bit and then your trailer will snap back towing straight again."


I think that this is true in most situations; however, I will point out that the event that lead me to buy a Hensley was getting hit by a "rogue", very strong gust of side wind. It induced a real sway event that I was able to control with application of the trailer's brakes. My point is that the trailer did not "snap back" on it's own probably due the unusual severity of the gust.

[lbrjet]

You don't need a new hitch. What you described, a little movement now and then, is perfectly normal and is not sway.

[jmtandem]

If you ever experience sway grab a handful of trailer only brakes. It will straighten things out. Otherwise the ocillations will get more violent until the entire rig is uncontrollable. For your set-up with a 35 foot trailer I would opt for a better hitch, a Hensley, ProPride or PullRite. These three control sway, not just mitigate it. You have a friction based hitch, the three mentioned do not use friction to control sway. Weigh your tongue and make sure you are at or around 13 percent of the total trailer's weight on the tongue. That will also help eliminate the possibility of a sway episode. You have a lot invested in your truck and trailer, why not connect them with a better hitch? If a non friction based better hitch saves your bacon only once, it will pay for itself many times over.

[Turtle_n_Peeps]

kknowlton wrote:
A very untechnical answer: there is sway and there is "wind wag," which is a different phenomenon. Sway, I think you would feel in the vehicle, as we have had wind wag and do feel that (in a lighter truck than yours). You did say it was a very windy day, and it would be pretty much impossible to avoid wind wag on that kind of day.

OP, read this ^^^^and then read it again. GREAT answer to your question and on the money.

Once "true" sway starts it's hard to get under control. This is true sway. Another true sway video.

Notice it starts small and get bigger and BIGGER. Much like a wave in the ocean. Unlike a gust of wind which will just push you around a bit and then your trailer will snap back towing straight again.

Fortunately most people will never experience this. Unfortunately a lot of new trailers coming out of the factory are getting lighter on the tongue so SUV's can tow them. This is a really bad thing!

[mowermech]

Trailer sway is when the trailer starts to oscillate back and forth in ever increasing arcs. If it isn't brought under control, it eventually results in the destruction of the trailer and/or tow vehicle.
I have had one trailer (a home-built flatbed) that had a sway problem, and believe me, once you experience it you will never forget it! That trailer was so poorly built that there was no way to load it to stop the sway. I sold the horrible thing, and told the buyer about the problem, and what I thought had to be done to make it a decent trailer.
Wind wag or wind wander is something that one must learn to cope with, especially when towing longer trailers. It happens, no matter what kind of hitch is used. You will get used to it.

[jerseyjim]

You do not want the tail to wag the dog. In my experience, most "sway" problems can be at at least minimized by adding weight to the front end of the trailer. With me, I added about 50-80 pounds of cement bricks under the front sofa.
(That was a Ford Bronco (really short wheelbase) pulling a 22 foot TT.)

[CampingN_C_]

I think kknowlton was pretty good in his description of the two. With a 35ft trailer you're going to feel something either way.
Sway will be consistent, another words every time you get to say 60mph it starts.
Effects from wind differences will be here and there like a windy day, truck or bus passing etc etc.
Then there is all of the other thousands of different 'handling' issues that come from the TV like tire psi, oversized tires, worn steering components, short wheel base etc, etc.
A trip to the scales is the only real way to find out if everything is dialed in like it should be.

[CarnationSailor]

If you were driving in serious wind and felt no sway, then I think you have an excellent hitch setup. As far as anti-sway vs sway reduction vs sway elimination, it is my understanding that there are only two hitches that "eliminate" sway - the Hensley and the Pro Pride. All the other hitches that claim to be "anti-sway" tend to reduce sway rather than eliminate it.

That doesn't mean you need a Hensley or Pro Pride to be safe as your experience indicates that your hitch does very well at sway reduction.

I can say from personal experience (with a previous bumper pull trailer) that the Hensley definitely eliminates sway, but it is not cheap. Even with the Hensley, I could see very slight movement when looking in the driver's side mirror - probably less than an inch.

Also, from personal experience, if you are having significant sway, you will feel it in the tow vehicle.

[kknowlton]

A very untechnical answer: there is sway and there is "wind wag," which is a different phenomenon. Sway, I think you would feel in the vehicle, as we have had wind wag and do feel that (in a lighter truck than yours). You did say it was a very windy day, and it would be pretty much impossible to avoid wind wag on that kind of day.