Hensley or....

[eipo]

With the purchase of our 35' (OAL) trailer, I am curious if a non top of the line hitch will prove satisfactory? It isn't abnormally tongue heavy for the truck, but will certainly benefit from sway elimination.

What are the top contenders below Hensley or ProPride?

[eipo]

chracatoa wrote:

I did hear back from Terry at Hensley and he told me that the hitch wont always self center which seems odd since pulling it down the road in the position its in will have some detrimental effects to tire wear and fuel mileage.

That's odd. I have the ProPride, but it should be the same basic design. Here's step 4 for the ProPride installation instructions (instlaling the hitch head):

Step 4: Align the tow vehicle as straight as possible with the front of the trailer.
Note: This is the alignment when you are towing down the road. Try to be
centered.

I have learned the hard way that hitch installation is something you have to do it yourself when I had my first Reese dual cam.

Have you tried reading Hensley's instructions and re-checking every step?

I have been over them multiple times. Even 2 calls into Hensley. I'm fairly confident that the hitch is installed correctly, now.

[eipo]

93Cobra2771 wrote:
Try this: When you come to a stop, manually use your brake controller to do most of the stopping.

Also, as mentioned earlier, you need to travel at least a couple of trailer lengths to be sure you are straight.

If the brakes aren't adjusted tight enough, it will push off one side or the other every time during a stop. And until you go fast enough to get the trailer to pull back (wind resistance) or you pull a slight hill, it is very possible it will stay off center till then.

If the head pivots freely when you aren't hooked up, and the strut bars are snug when hitched, you should be good to go.

Oh, and don't forget the grease on the strut bar ends. You can't have enough of it. And go ahead and buy some extra of the special zerk fittings. You'll need them. 🙂

Thanks for the tips. I think I may have discovered a major contributor to the issue. Ill address it in a stand alone post in a minute.

[ljr]

Never had a PP but I had a Hensly for several years. Before that I had a Pullrite. I actually preferred the Pullrite but the install was a REAL pain.

[alexleblanc]

RinconVTR wrote:
Both Propride and Hensley have their pros and cons, but the Propride yoke requires a lot more time and customization to install around LP tank bases, and you need a massive torque wrench. I also do not prefer the WDH bar links on the jacks, nor the side nut on the jacks compared to Henleys top mount nut adjustment. The only thing the Propride has going for it is the adjustable stinger.

Both companies offer really good support, I do not feel there is a difference there.

I was almost swayed to Propride after owning a Hensley with manufacturing issues. The change in preference is back to Hensley after finding out what Sean at Propride is all about. His quirky attitude, slippery tactics, and wise cracking doesn't mix with me. I can give and take a lot, but this guy is just no good.

Look, don't take my word for it. Search other forums and read Propride Sean's posts yourself. You'll get a better feel who you're really spending big dollars with, and it wont be a good feeling. Spend your money elsewhere. Hensley.

Nothing bad to say about the Propride hitch I enjoyed for 2 summers and just sold to my father, but I'm still waiting on the Hitch cover that I ordered and paid for from Propride when I ordered my hitch - several calls and emails, not one answer.

People preach Sean's service, I purchased the 3P based on that and was quite disappointed. Lucky for me that I never had any real issues with the product, I'd of been SOL.

[chracatoa]

I did hear back from Terry at Hensley and he told me that the hitch wont always self center which seems odd since pulling it down the road in the position its in will have some detrimental effects to tire wear and fuel mileage.

That's odd. I have the ProPride, but it should be the same basic design. Here's step 4 for the ProPride installation instructions (instlaling the hitch head):

Step 4: Align the tow vehicle as straight as possible with the front of the trailer.
Note: This is the alignment when you are towing down the road. Try to be
centered.

I have learned the hard way that hitch installation is something you have to do it yourself when I had my first Reese dual cam.

Have you tried reading Hensley's instructions and re-checking every step?

[93Cobra2771]

Try this: When you come to a stop, manually use your brake controller to do most of the stopping.

Also, as mentioned earlier, you need to travel at least a couple of trailer lengths to be sure you are straight.

If the brakes aren't adjusted tight enough, it will push off one side or the other every time during a stop. And until you go fast enough to get the trailer to pull back (wind resistance) or you pull a slight hill, it is very possible it will stay off center till then.

If the head pivots freely when you aren't hooked up, and the strut bars are snug when hitched, you should be good to go.

Oh, and don't forget the grease on the strut bar ends. You can't have enough of it. And go ahead and buy some extra of the special zerk fittings. You'll need them. 🙂

[Passin_Thru]

Opened up a can of worms HUH?

[eipo]

camp-n-family wrote:

I would suggest latching the stinger in the hitch head on its own (not hooked to the tow vehicle) and try moving it side to side. It should pivot freely or give you a feel if it's binding somewhere.

Funny you mention that. Ive been working on my battery box on the tongue and in fact have the stinger mounted in the hitch head. I was moving it back and forth but its hard to discern if any bindage is due to something actually binding in the head linkage or from the WD bars rubbing on the struts that are used to hold the head level when not connected. Ill fiddle around with it a bit more.

camp-n-family wrote:

Do you have any pictures of it hooked up from side on? How many links of the chain are hanging on each torsion bar?

I dont have any pictures from the side. Since I am working on my batteries I have no 12v power so its going to be sitting for at least this weekend.

I brought it home with 2 links hanging, so it was on the third. However, now that I have remounted the snap up brackets to bring the chains more plumb, I'm going to go to the 4th link. It was way to bouncy on the way home.

camp-n-family wrote:

Also wondering about your safety chains. How much slack is in them? Can't really see where they go in the pic but it looks odd that they are in line with the stinger while turned as opposed to straight to the trailer.

Plenty of slack, in fact I could twist them a couple times. They hang pretty low.

Thing is about that picture, my TV and TT are in line with one another. I am not turned.

[eipo]

copsey wrote:


How you tension the w/d bars makes no difference. Are the strut bars adjusted so the hitch head sits square when you are not hooked up?

Two posts up.

Yes.

[camp-n-family]

Not sure why everyone is stuck on the strut bars? They look fine in the picture and the head is square to the tongue. No problem there.

I would suggest latching the stinger in the hitch head on its own (not hooked to the tow vehicle) and try moving it side to side. It should pivot freely or give you a feel if it's binding somewhere.

Do you have any pictures of it hooked up from side on? How many links of the chain are hanging on each torsion bar?

Also wondering about your safety chains. How much slack is in them? Can't really see where they go in the pic but it looks odd that they are in line with the stinger while turned as opposed to straight to the trailer.

[copsey]

eipo wrote:

RinconVTR wrote:

copsey wrote:

eipo wrote:

copsey wrote:

I would get a tape measure out and make sure the distance from the center of the ball to the front of the frame brackets are even. They should be 25-1/2" if I remember correctly. That would be the only thing that could cause the issue you are having unless the strut bars are not close to being adjusted the same.

Yes, 25.5 inches. When the dealership installed the snap up brackets they didn't move the propane tank and just put the brackets as far forward as they could. This left the chains at around 20 degrees from being plumb. I called Hensley and asked about the angle on the chains and they said thats to much angle. They also said I could cheat the brackets forward to around 25" if I needed to so that's what I did. I removed the propane tray and moved the brackets forward and then remounted the propane tray.

But even before that the head was square to the tongue.

Are the strut bars adjusted to center the head before hook up?

Absolutely. Centered. Snug. Zero play.

The only thing you adjust when hooking up are the jacks to align the head to the hitch bar.

I don't have the jacks, I have the snap up brackets.

How you tension the w/d bars makes no difference. Are the strut bars adjusted so the hitch head sits square when you are not hooked up?

[eipo]

RinconVTR wrote:

copsey wrote:

eipo wrote:

copsey wrote:

I would get a tape measure out and make sure the distance from the center of the ball to the front of the frame brackets are even. They should be 25-1/2" if I remember correctly. That would be the only thing that could cause the issue you are having unless the strut bars are not close to being adjusted the same.

Yes, 25.5 inches. When the dealership installed the snap up brackets they didn't move the propane tank and just put the brackets as far forward as they could. This left the chains at around 20 degrees from being plumb. I called Hensley and asked about the angle on the chains and they said thats to much angle. They also said I could cheat the brackets forward to around 25" if I needed to so that's what I did. I removed the propane tray and moved the brackets forward and then remounted the propane tray.

But even before that the head was square to the tongue.

Are the strut bars adjusted to center the head before hook up?

Absolutely. Centered. Snug. Zero play.

The only thing you adjust when hooking up are the jacks to align the head to the hitch bar.

I don't have the jacks, I have the snap up brackets.

[eipo]

copsey wrote:

eipo wrote:

copsey wrote:

I would get a tape measure out and make sure the distance from the center of the ball to the front of the frame brackets are even. They should be 25-1/2" if I remember correctly. That would be the only thing that could cause the issue you are having unless the strut bars are not close to being adjusted the same.

Yes, 25.5 inches. When the dealership installed the snap up brackets they didn't move the propane tank and just put the brackets as far forward as they could. This left the chains at around 20 degrees from being plumb. I called Hensley and asked about the angle on the chains and they said thats to much angle. They also said I could cheat the brackets forward to around 25" if I needed to so that's what I did. I removed the propane tray and moved the brackets forward and then remounted the propane tray.

But even before that the head was square to the tongue.

Are the strut bars adjusted to center the head before hook up?

Yes. Measured back to the corner of the frame on each side. Struts are snug, no free movement.

[copsey]

RinconVTR wrote:

copsey wrote:

eipo wrote:

copsey wrote:

I would get a tape measure out and make sure the distance from the center of the ball to the front of the frame brackets are even. They should be 25-1/2" if I remember correctly. That would be the only thing that could cause the issue you are having unless the strut bars are not close to being adjusted the same.

Yes, 25.5 inches. When the dealership installed the snap up brackets they didn't move the propane tank and just put the brackets as far forward as they could. This left the chains at around 20 degrees from being plumb. I called Hensley and asked about the angle on the chains and they said thats to much angle. They also said I could cheat the brackets forward to around 25" if I needed to so that's what I did. I removed the propane tray and moved the brackets forward and then remounted the propane tray.

But even before that the head was square to the tongue.

Are the strut bars adjusted to center the head before hook up?

Absolutely. Centered. Snug. Zero play.

The only thing you adjust when hooking up are the jacks to align the head to the hitch bar.

Hard to tell by looking at the pictures but it would be my guess that this is where the problem lies.

[RinconVTR]

copsey wrote:

eipo wrote:

copsey wrote:

I would get a tape measure out and make sure the distance from the center of the ball to the front of the frame brackets are even. They should be 25-1/2" if I remember correctly. That would be the only thing that could cause the issue you are having unless the strut bars are not close to being adjusted the same.

Yes, 25.5 inches. When the dealership installed the snap up brackets they didn't move the propane tank and just put the brackets as far forward as they could. This left the chains at around 20 degrees from being plumb. I called Hensley and asked about the angle on the chains and they said thats to much angle. They also said I could cheat the brackets forward to around 25" if I needed to so that's what I did. I removed the propane tray and moved the brackets forward and then remounted the propane tray.

But even before that the head was square to the tongue.

Are the strut bars adjusted to center the head before hook up?

Absolutely. Centered. Snug. Zero play.

The only thing you adjust when hooking up are the jacks to align the head to the hitch bar.