Blue Ox Sway Pro
I'm looking at upgrading my standard WD with friction bar. My trailer is 30 foot with a loaded weight of about 9,200 lbs and a hitch weight of about 1,100 lbs. After trying to find as much informati...
Forum Discussion
I towed a KZ Spree 240BH-LX for several years using a 1,000 / 10,000 lb Equal-i-zer and was completely satisfied with it's performance - i.e. it did exactly what it was designed to do. However, it is likely the noisiest WD system on the market and IMO is a real nuisance to properly set up as the head must be disassembled in order to change the head height or adjust head angle by adding/subtracting head washers. That requires the use of a heavy duty torque wrench capable of torquing the head shank bolts to 320 ft-lbs, a tool many are unlikely to own ... certainly I don't and only got lucky as I have a friend who owned one rated to 600 ft-lbs, handy since the instructions also call for torquing the hitch ball to 430 ft-lbs using a thin wall socket, another "tool" I don't own. Aside from the need to also periodically check these various torque settings the Equal-i-zer isn't a one time "set and forget" system ... as the load changes so too must one consider whether it's necessary to readjust the EQ, as pointed out in the Equal-i-zer's own installation instructions -
The operator is responsible for making necessary adjustments to the
hitch to optimize weight distribution and sway control. Each trip is
different, and the weight distribution setup and towing performance
should be evaluated by the operator and adjusted when necessary.
Never tow with your hitch adjusted incorrectly.
The instructions also go on to say -
The setup may need to be changed slightly at times to accommodate
changes in your towing configuration, perhaps even during the same trip.
For example, a trailer that starts with full clean water and propane tanks,
may tow differently when that water becomes black and grey water, and
the propane tanks are empty. Or, a trailer loaded with gear for a long cross
country trip may tow differently than the same trailer loaded for a weekend
getaway. The driver must be conscious of these changes, and adjust the hitch
accordingly.
Indeed, I found this to be the case in my own situation, adjusting / re-adjusting my EQ at least a half dozen times to fine tune it - to adjust for load variances when I changed my Spree's cargo loading procedure in order to increase gross tongue weight, and when I changed tow vehicles - so having free access to a heavy duty torque wrench was essential.
Another drawback to the Equal-izer is the lack of interchangeability - move to a heavier (or in my case a significantly lighter) trailer and it may well be necessary to change the Equal-i-zer system you're using to a heavier (or lighter) version. That to me is a significant advantage the Blue Ox Sway Pro holds over the Equa-l-izer - change trailers and all you may have to swap out are the spring bars as everything else remains the same. Certainly installation and any post installation adjustments one might want to do with the Sway Pro are far easier as no head angle adjustment is required and setting the shank bolts only requires a torque wrench capable of 257 ft-lbs, a tool many of us do own.
If there's any weak link to the Sway Pro I've heard about it's that the clips securing the spring bars in position can break or pop free but Blue Ox does sell an inexpensive replacement kit which can be carried as a spare should this ever happen. When we purchased our current Freedom Express 192RBS I could have gone with another time tested Equal-i-zer (this time a 600 / 6,000 lb version) but having dealt with the drawbacks of this older design I decided I'd this time around instead try a similarly priced Blue Ox Sway Pro. As it turned out I was gifted a used Reese trunnion bar system which over the course of many towing miles has proven to work just fine for this relatively light weight trailer, otherwise I'd unquestionably have invested in the Blue Ox Sway Pro for what I view as the many advantages it offers over the Equal-i-zer.
The operator is responsible for making necessary adjustments to the
hitch to optimize weight distribution and sway control. Each trip is
different, and the weight distribution setup and towing performance
should be evaluated by the operator and adjusted when necessary.
Never tow with your hitch adjusted incorrectly.
The instructions also go on to say -
The setup may need to be changed slightly at times to accommodate
changes in your towing configuration, perhaps even during the same trip.
For example, a trailer that starts with full clean water and propane tanks,
may tow differently when that water becomes black and grey water, and
the propane tanks are empty. Or, a trailer loaded with gear for a long cross
country trip may tow differently than the same trailer loaded for a weekend
getaway. The driver must be conscious of these changes, and adjust the hitch
accordingly.
Indeed, I found this to be the case in my own situation, adjusting / re-adjusting my EQ at least a half dozen times to fine tune it - to adjust for load variances when I changed my Spree's cargo loading procedure in order to increase gross tongue weight, and when I changed tow vehicles - so having free access to a heavy duty torque wrench was essential.
Another drawback to the Equal-izer is the lack of interchangeability - move to a heavier (or in my case a significantly lighter) trailer and it may well be necessary to change the Equal-i-zer system you're using to a heavier (or lighter) version. That to me is a significant advantage the Blue Ox Sway Pro holds over the Equa-l-izer - change trailers and all you may have to swap out are the spring bars as everything else remains the same. Certainly installation and any post installation adjustments one might want to do with the Sway Pro are far easier as no head angle adjustment is required and setting the shank bolts only requires a torque wrench capable of 257 ft-lbs, a tool many of us do own.
If there's any weak link to the Sway Pro I've heard about it's that the clips securing the spring bars in position can break or pop free but Blue Ox does sell an inexpensive replacement kit which can be carried as a spare should this ever happen. When we purchased our current Freedom Express 192RBS I could have gone with another time tested Equal-i-zer (this time a 600 / 6,000 lb version) but having dealt with the drawbacks of this older design I decided I'd this time around instead try a similarly priced Blue Ox Sway Pro. As it turned out I was gifted a used Reese trunnion bar system which over the course of many towing miles has proven to work just fine for this relatively light weight trailer, otherwise I'd unquestionably have invested in the Blue Ox Sway Pro for what I view as the many advantages it offers over the Equal-i-zer.
