robgrune wrote:
I owned a Hensley. imho, the claims are false. facts: no hitch "distributes" weight; no hitch eliminates sway; physics rules the day.
fact 1. physics. the hitch point is a fulcrum. the force of any object is the result of mass x acceleration. the change in force is a vector. simple story: the trailer will always exert a 3d force against the truck. trailer mass is always greater than truck mass, so the resultant net force vectored to the truck must be dissipated somehow. no WD hitch will magically dissipate this force. only the truck's suspension and tires can do so, up to the point the tires lose grip.
fact 2. weight distribution.
a/ no hitch distributes weight. to distribute weight, you need to physically alter the placement of weight.
b/ example: boxes stacked 2x2x2=8 boxes on a 2x2 area. now alter this to 4x2=8 boxes on a 4x2 area. THIS is how you "distribute" weight, by altering the "pounds per square foot".
c/ all hitches connect at only one point: the tow ball. no hitch can alter the area of the hitch ball. thus the "distribution" claim is 100% false.
c/ what hitches really do is to add increased torque to the hitch ball, so to vector forces forwards. this is counter productive. all WD hitches are very heavy, so torque must be applied to counter the weight of the WD hitch by itself! then more torque to vector the trailer weight. all that torque is applied to the truck frame- not good. give enough torque in the right driving condition and you can crack your frame. every time you apply brakes, the hitch will INCREASE the forward force of the trailer, via torque vectoring!
d/ WD hitches are false: they are torque hitches, with very limited effect.
fact 3. sway control. hitches try to offset sway force via friction or torque. the friction "control" is 100% useless. the torque control is not control- it simply adds more torque to your truck, attempting to vector forces forward to front wheels, thereby overloading front axle and steering control. sway "control" can be achieved only at one point- the trailer wheels. see the Tuson device- it's the answer.
the rule is: caveat emptor. educate yourself for basic physics and drive sensibly. you are far, far better off to adjust the truck suspension to level the load and have proper trailer brake control to counter sway forces.
1) Not all trailers weigh more than the truck, my trailer weighs about half of what truck does (gvwr vs gvwr, and for our big trip last year we were at about 90% on both)
2) Um, they distribute weight from the rear axles to the front, exactly what they claim to do. This is 100% verifiable via a scale. This is very productive in reducing unloading of the drive axles which can happen when adding lots of weight rear of the rear axle. It also helps in properly focusing your headlights on the road, not into the eyes of oncoming drivers and up into the trees.
3) Experience towing with and without sway control will show anyone paying attention that it's useful in doing what it says on the tin, it's not a substitute for properly loading a trailer but some trailers will be squirrely even at 15% tongue weight.
