Do I need an anti-sway setup too?

[RVNewbie4now]

Hi,
I'm an extreme newbie here and feel like this has got to be a stupid question but here goes; I just bought a KZ Sportsman 291RKLE which is about 33' and has a loaded weight of about 8000 lbs. I'm pulling with a 1500 Silverado (well within its tow capacity) with a Blue Ox Sway Pro wd setup installed at the dealership. My question is do I still need an anti-sway system too? The dealer told me the swaypro should be all I need but I don't want to head off on a long trip and end up being some kind of statistic or a photo of what NOT to do.
Thanks

Rick
(Still learning)

[rexlion]

downtheroad wrote:

dodge guy wrote:
You don`t need it as its already equipped. however I would've went with a better system like the Reese Straight Line (Dual Cam). Its a much better sway control system. .

Just wondering why you think one is better than the other..Have you used both? I have a lot of experience with both and both are excellent hitches. Neither is better than the other.

Some people with that long of a trailer have had uncomfortable experiences while using the sway pro. It does not have the ability to dampen the trailer's motion as it returns toward a straight 180 degree position, thus it can overshoot to the other side more easily than if the hitch used friction dampening.

[TurnThePage]

As you say you are new to this stuff and you're asking about sway, and you mention driving a half ton truck, pulling a long, heavy trailer, I'll address stuff that hasn't been mentioned yet. Make sure your truck tires are aired to the MAX pressure listed on their side wall (probably 44 or 50 PSI). Do not stick with the recommended tire pressure mentioned in the door jam. I think the same is advisable for the trailer tires too. As has been touched on, make sure you have around 12% or more of total weight on the tongue, and be aware of how that weight takes away from your truck's payload. The hitch you bought has anti-sway built into it and is well respected by some members of this forum. The rest of us probably don't know anything about it personally. Good luck!

[downtheroad]

dodge guy wrote:
You don`t need it as its already equipped. however I would've went with a better system like the Reese Straight Line (Dual Cam). Its a much better sway control system. .

Just wondering why you think one is better than the other..Have you used both? I have a lot of experience with both and both are excellent hitches. Neither is better than the other.

[Lwiddis]

There’s “overweight” towing and their’s “pleasurable” towing. My Tahoe has similar specs to your truck but if my TT was over 6k I’d get a bigger TV. Wheelbase and payload are two other concerns for your consideration.

[Walaby]

I towed a 6500lb loaded TT with my Sierra 1500 and wouldn't want to tow anything heavier. Not saying your overweight, but while I was comfortable with 6500 and it was within all numbers, at 8000 loaded, for my truck it would have exceeded payload.

Concur on Swaypro. I have one in my current config and it works great.

Mike

[KD4UPL]

Bobbo's advice is excellent.
People forget that there are lots of different kinds of trailers out there. Hardside travel trailers are likely the MOST difficult of any trailer to tow. Just because a vehicle has a certain tow rating doesn't mean you can necessarily tow any trailer at that weight. An 8,000 pound boat or flatbed trailer with equipment on it would tow probably tow much easier than a 7,000 pound travel trailer.
Travel trailers have everything working against good towing: huge frontal area to cause aerodynamic drag, huge side area to catch wind and cause sway, high percentage of tongue weight, very limited ability to move weight around on the trailer.

[ppine]

If you want to know if your truck is ready for a long trip, take a short trip.

[Bobbo]

Concur with the answer that you have sway control.

Now about your truck's capability. Go out to the truck, open the driver's door, find the sticker that lists the Payload Rating.

Subtract from that payload rating the weights of the driver, and all passengers that will be riding in the truck. Subtract, also, the weight of the WD hitch you are using. If you have a topper or tonneau cover, subtract the weight of that. Subtract from that all of the weight of all camping gear you may carry in the bed of the truck, like chairs, tables, grills, generators, firewood, and anything else. Now, take whatever is left and divide by about 13%. Whatever number you get is the heaviest trailer you should tow with that truck (not dry weight, either trailer GVWR or actual scaled trailer weight, loaded and ready to camp). You may be amazed at the answer you get.

I am not saying that is too much trailer, but you need to really know. I have an F-150 and the bleeding edge of my truck using those calculations is 8,200#. I don't like to tow at the bleeding edge, so I bought a trailer with a GVWR of 6,000# to give me some cushion. ON EDIT: As a reference, Ford lists my Towing Capacity as 11,800#.

I do complement you though, in the very first post you posted the trailer's loaded weight using its GVWR rather than its dry weight like most new RVers do.

(You will find that no one here references "Tow Capacity," ever. You will hit the payload capacity LONG before you ever get near the tow capacity. The tow capacity only kicks in if you are pulling something like a hay wagon that has 4 wheels, one on each corner, and a tongue that only has 15 pounds of tongue weight. All of the trailer's weight is carried on the trailer's wheels.)

[kerrlakeRoo]

As said before, you have the anti sway in the Blue Ox unit.
If possible you need to load the trailer similar to how you would for a trip, and then pay a visit to a scale.
Measure total rig, and trailer only, both hitched and unhitched to ensure you put enough weight on the tongue. 12% to 15% being the goal. This will give you an idea as to how to load in the future to maintain the tongue weight. Rear kitchens can get you nose light in a hurry, folks dont realize how quickly canned goods, drinks, and cooking equipment adds up.

[dodge_guy]

You don`t need it as its already equipped. however I would've went with a better system like the Reese Straight Line (Dual Cam). Its a much better sway control system. But since you already have the Sway Pro then stick with that. Just make sure you have 12% of the trailers actual loaded weight. take it to a scale and weigh it.

[Passin_Thru]

I'd say you need a 3/4 ton and anti sway. You are IMHO overloaded and dangerous. I have delivered TTs, boats and equipment on trailers for years so I do have experience.

[SoundGuy]

RVNewbie4now wrote:
I just bought a KZ Sportsman 291RKLE which is about 33' and has a loaded weight of about 8000 lbs. I'm pulling with a 1500 Silverado (well within its two capacity) with a Blue Ox Sway Pro wd setup installed at the dealership. My question is do I still need an anti-sway system too?

As it's name is intended to imply the Blue Ox Sway Pro weight distribution system already features integrated sway control, so the answer is no, there's no reason you should need a stand alone friction sway bar.

JMO, but I wouldn't tow any trailer weighing that much with my 1/2 ton Silverado. Power aside, you'd be running a minimum of 1000 lbs of gross tongue weight, possibly more, leaving little payload capacity for everything else. 😞