Good weight distribution set up

[Camper76]

I'll be towing a Jayflight slx 294 qbsw. Dry hitch weight is 780, trailer dry is 6480, Gvw is 8250. I want something a little bigger just so I won't need to buy another one if we ever get bigger trailer.

[Hannibal]

aftermath wrote:

Hannibal wrote:

Camper76 wrote:
I'm going to go with the equalizer 1,200 and 12,000lbs bar.

I believe you will be very happy with your choice. I have an Equalizer 10k for our 2017 Jayco 28RLS. Works great and rides nice. While lubing the socket pivot points after tightening the socket bolts to 65ft/lbs as per the owner's manual, I break all the rules of planetary alignment and smear a dab of grease on the L bracket surfaces as well. This works well for me in keeping it smooth and quiet while still offering me enough control to eliminate waggle from passing trucks. The right thing to do would be to install Bracket Jackets but I prefer a dab of grease. Others may need the full friction of dry L brackets as is recommended in the owner's manual.

Hannibal, I do the same with my setup. Read on the manufacturers page that this is OK as long as you do it, "lightly".

I have the 1000/10K set up for my trailer. I run down the road right at 6500 but my TW is pushing 900 pounds. I have dialed it in lightly to get the combination level and lube up the head and the L brackets. Mine makes no noise.

With that much tongue weight, you probably don't have any trailer induced sway. Glad it works for you as well. The only regret I have with the Equalizer is that I didn't buy one sooner.

[rbpru]

The advice on the scale weight is spot on.

For example my 25 ft. Dutchmen Lite is advertised at 5004 lbs. dry weight with a 400 lbs. hitch weight. Loaded for the road, the TT's CAT scale weight is 6200 lbs. with a 750 lbs. tongue weight.

The loaded TT uses up about half of my F-150's cargo capacity.

Good luck

[jbjuices]

I have an Equil-i-zer WDH 12K for sale that I'll give you a good deal on. I'm switching over to a Propride. PM me if interested.

[aftermath]

Hannibal wrote:

Camper76 wrote:
I'm going to go with the equalizer 1,200 and 12,000lbs bar.

I believe you will be very happy with your choice. I have an Equalizer 10k for our 2017 Jayco 28RLS. Works great and rides nice. While lubing the socket pivot points after tightening the socket bolts to 65ft/lbs as per the owner's manual, I break all the rules of planetary alignment and smear a dab of grease on the L bracket surfaces as well. This works well for me in keeping it smooth and quiet while still offering me enough control to eliminate waggle from passing trucks. The right thing to do would be to install Bracket Jackets but I prefer a dab of grease. Others may need the full friction of dry L brackets as is recommended in the owner's manual.

Hannibal, I do the same with my setup. Read on the manufacturers page that this is OK as long as you do it, "lightly".

I have the 1000/10K set up for my trailer. I run down the road right at 6500 but my TW is pushing 900 pounds. I have dialed it in lightly to get the combination level and lube up the head and the L brackets. Mine makes no noise.

[LVJJJ]

LarryJM wrote:

Camper76 wrote:

LarryJM wrote:

Camper76 wrote:
I'll be towing a Jayflight slx 294 qbsw. Dry hitch weight is 780, trailer dry is 6480, Gvw is 8250. I want something a little bigger just so I won't need to buy another one if we ever get bigger trailer.

Since you obviously have something now that you're using

1. What is it

2. Get to a set of scales and get some REAL NUMBERS and not those useless "DRY" ones you are now using.

3. Depending the min would be around 1200 with a probable end one in the 1500 range, but those are TOTAL GUESSES at this point. But what you now have is a fairly heavy trailer already so not sure how much heavier especially hitch wise you could get.

Larry

I have Reese with tounge weight of 1000lbs and 10000 gross. It has sway arm so I can't back up with it. Also I'm towing with ram 1500 hemi not sure if that helps

You also need to make sure you educate yourself since if that "sway arm" is the friction bar type you can in fact back up with it. You just have to be careful about making "EXTREME" turns and accelerating slowly when backing and I always loosened it if I was expecting to make many maneuvers backing into a site.

I have the 1200/12K Equal-i-zer for my 1K TW 32' 7500lb GVW trailer and am totally satisified with it, but that's behind a 9500lb 1T full sized Ford Van.

Larry

(Hi Larry, Larry here) Camper76, Amen to the Equal-I-zer. Get rid of the old chain drive weight distributing bars with sway bar, they darn near killed us. Problem with an anti-sway bar is that the trailer has already started to sway and so the little bar has too much work to do to catch up. Equal-I-zers (and other more expensive quality devices) don't let it start to sway, and you can back up without getting out to loosen anything. Although, if I'm on a hill, or the truck won't be level with the trailer, I take the bars off before backing. You sure a 1/2 ton truck can safely tow all that weight?

[Ron3rd]

jerem0621 wrote:

myredracer wrote:
Dry weights oughta be outlawed... :M

Our dry tongue wt. was advertised as 540 lbs. So I purchased a WDH package ahead of time with 800 lb spring bars thinking they'd be more than enough. After going to a scale, our actual TW ended up being close to 1,000 lbs. Bought a new set of heavier spring bars as the smaller ones just weren't working that well for us. The TW is almost 15% of our TT's GVW which is on the higher side of average.

Our WDH is a Reese dual cam with trunnion bars. I chose it because of it's pro-active self-centering design and integral sway control. After getting it all dialed in, it works fantastic and would never substitute it for another. Doesn't make objectionable noise IMO and Reese says you can use a little vaseline on the cams if needed (never anything else).

Besides selecting a WDH and setting it up properly, make sure to run the right psi in TT & TV tires, use LT tires on truck and set the TT level to slightly nose down. It's all part of an overall "system" that works together.

TT owners often tout the WDH they have. It would be interesting if somebody did a real life scientific comparison between the various brands and types of WDH using the same TT and truck. I tried towing a friends TT on the freeway of about the same length as ours with their truck with basic round bar WDH with friction bars and did not like the feel of it.

Interesting. I towed my trailer with the same basic WD hitch (Reese trunnions with the crooks in the bars) with both dual cam and dual friction sway control and couldn't tell the difference. Then again, my set up was 100% dialed in. I ran friction bars as my preference. The dual cam bars are still out there in the garage.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

X2 Jeremiah,
I towed my old 25 ft trailer for 9 years with a OLD EZ-Lift WD system with single friction sway control for 9 years and it worked fine on a properly set up trailer-truck combo. Bought it used off a friend for $100, he just moved up to a 5er.

The EZ-Lift system was the first WD hitch available and their same design is still the most commonly seen setup on the road, ie, WD bars hanging from chains on hook-up brackets with a single friction sway control. Husky, Reese, and others all copied this design over the years.

[Hannibal]

Camper76 wrote:
I'm going to go with the equalizer 1,200 and 12,000lbs bar.

I believe you will be very happy with your choice. I have an Equalizer 10k for our 2017 Jayco 28RLS. Works great and rides nice. While lubing the socket pivot points after tightening the socket bolts to 65ft/lbs as per the owner's manual, I break all the rules of planetary alignment and smear a dab of grease on the L bracket surfaces as well. This works well for me in keeping it smooth and quiet while still offering me enough control to eliminate waggle from passing trucks. The right thing to do would be to install Bracket Jackets but I prefer a dab of grease. Others may need the full friction of dry L brackets as is recommended in the owner's manual.

[jerem0621]

myredracer wrote:
Dry weights oughta be outlawed... :M

Our dry tongue wt. was advertised as 540 lbs. So I purchased a WDH package ahead of time with 800 lb spring bars thinking they'd be more than enough. After going to a scale, our actual TW ended up being close to 1,000 lbs. Bought a new set of heavier spring bars as the smaller ones just weren't working that well for us. The TW is almost 15% of our TT's GVW which is on the higher side of average.

Our WDH is a Reese dual cam with trunnion bars. I chose it because of it's pro-active self-centering design and integral sway control. After getting it all dialed in, it works fantastic and would never substitute it for another. Doesn't make objectionable noise IMO and Reese says you can use a little vaseline on the cams if needed (never anything else).

Besides selecting a WDH and setting it up properly, make sure to run the right psi in TT & TV tires, use LT tires on truck and set the TT level to slightly nose down. It's all part of an overall "system" that works together.

TT owners often tout the WDH they have. It would be interesting if somebody did a real life scientific comparison between the various brands and types of WDH using the same TT and truck. I tried towing a friends TT on the freeway of about the same length as ours with their truck with basic round bar WDH with friction bars and did not like the feel of it.

Interesting. I towed my trailer with the same basic WD hitch (Reese trunnions with the crooks in the bars) with both dual cam and dual friction sway control and couldn't tell the difference. Then again, my set up was 100% dialed in. I ran friction bars as my preference. The dual cam bars are still out there in the garage.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

[Acdii]

I just picked up a 1500 Blue Ox from CW for $514 shipped and tax. Set it up yesterday, but haven't tried it yet. Sure is a lot less work than the Husky round bar and sway bar setup, and a lot cleaner too. Only grease is in the trunion socket, not on the bars. Single pin release, no extra parts to lose. The only downside are the cams, releasing them can be tricky, and painful if not careful. They are stiff to a certain point, then snap release, even with the tongue jack pushing everything way up.

I am replacing the Husky since I have exceeded the bar capacity of 800 pounds, and it doesn't work well with the new generation F150. Worked perfect with the 2014 though.

[Camper76]

I'm going to go with the equalizer 1,200 and 12,000lbs bar.

[wowens79]

Looks like as others have said you will be in the 1000lb range on tongue weight. I've got a Blu Ox, and I'm very happy with it. i went with the 1500lb bars since my tongue weight was in the 1000lb range, they recommended bumping up to the larger bars. With those bars, you'll be covered for a bigger trailer?

What's the payload on the Ram? With a bunk house I'm assuming more than 2 people in the truck. I'm betting the truck is over loaded.

[keymastr]

My Equalizer is dead quiet and if it ever does make a noise it is because I had not lubed it in awhile. Great hitch.

[ktmrfs]

like others, my dry tongue weight was laughable. around 800lbs, spec'd and measured with the empty trailer leaving the lot. Actual tongue weight, after I loaded it up, filled the propane tanks, added batteries etc. etc. is 1350lbs with an EMPTY fresh tank, 1500 with a FULL water tank. almost double the dry number.

on a TT figure at least the weight of batteries 70-140lbs + propane 60lbs or so will the the minimum you add to tongue weight. they are close enough to the tongue that virtually all the weight ends up on the tongue.

[myredracer]

Dry weights oughta be outlawed... :M

Our dry tongue wt. was advertised as 540 lbs. So I purchased a WDH package ahead of time with 800 lb spring bars thinking they'd be more than enough. After going to a scale, our actual TW ended up being close to 1,000 lbs. Bought a new set of heavier spring bars as the smaller ones just weren't working that well for us. The TW is almost 15% of our TT's GVW which is on the higher side of average.

Our WDH is a Reese dual cam with trunnion bars. I chose it because of it's pro-active self-centering design and integral sway control. After getting it all dialed in, it works fantastic and would never substitute it for another. Doesn't make objectionable noise IMO and Reese says you can use a little vaseline on the cams if needed (never anything else).

Besides selecting a WDH and setting it up properly, make sure to run the right psi in TT & TV tires, use LT tires on truck and set the TT level to slightly nose down. It's all part of an overall "system" that works together.

TT owners often tout the WDH they have. It would be interesting if somebody did a real life scientific comparison between the various brands and types of WDH using the same TT and truck. I tried towing a friends TT on the freeway of about the same length as ours with their truck with basic round bar WDH with friction bars and did not like the feel of it.