Level Hitches

[summitpower]

Hi, is their a particular brand that is better than others? We bought a Heritage Glen today that weighs 8900lbs, its a TT, my truck is rated for 12995lbs, just want the best one for keeping it under control and pulling.

[Community Alumni]

Retired JSO wrote:

Have not been across a scale. However, I towed this trailer with a 2013 1500 Chevy Z-71 and had better luck as far as level but lacked the ump to get it passed 4th gear.

I'll just say this, you're not alone. If you mention the words "Super Duty" and "Sag" over in the truck forum then you'll get a pretty lively discussion lol. If you're going to stick with the hitch then it wouldn't be a bad idea to head by a scale to verify your numbers. You could just need some help back there or you could actually have a problem. You really don't know unless you have some scale tickets.

Based on the dry weight and tongue posted earlier, it looks like you're running a 16 percent tongue. That's on the heavier end of tongue weights. An easy fix would be to rebalance the trailer so that you're running closer to 13 percent. That would give you a dry tongue that's under 1,000 lbs, which could fix your problems without much effort.

[n0arp]

Hensley Arrow or Propride 3P

I've used Camco Eaz-Lift, BlueOX Swaypro, Equal-i-zer, and a Propride 3P. The were progressively better in that order, as well. But the Propride is in a field of its own.

[Retired_JSO]

proxim2020 wrote:

Retired JSO wrote:
I am not real happy with my Blue Ox Sway Pro either. I tow a 25 ' toy hauler. 1,100 tongue and 6,700 empty with a 16 F 250. The hitch was first purchased with 1,500 lb bars then I ordered 2,000 bars. Neither set of bars gets the sag out of the truck. The trucks built in sway system seems to fight against the hitch.

When it comes to the sag, have you been across a scale to verify that the hitch does or does not transfer weight properly between the axles? It could just be that the suspension needs a little help from an air bag or rubber springs.

Have not been across a scale. However, I towed this trailer with a 2013 1500 Chevy Z-71 and had better luck as far as level but lacked the ump to get it passed 4th gear.

[Community Alumni]

Retired JSO wrote:
I am not real happy with my Blue Ox Sway Pro either. I tow a 25 ' toy hauler. 1,100 tongue and 6,700 empty with a 16 F 250. The hitch was first purchased with 1,500 lb bars then I ordered 2,000 bars. Neither set of bars gets the sag out of the truck. The trucks built in sway system seems to fight against the hitch.

Do you constantly get the light on the dash telling you that it's activated? From what I understand the system doesn't kick in until you're in a obvious sway situation. A lot of guys seem to just turn it off when their hitch system has sway control already.

When it comes to the sag, have you been across a scale to verify that the hitch does or does not transfer weight properly between the axles? It could just be that the suspension needs a little help from an air bag or rubber springs.

[Retired_JSO]

I am not real happy with my Blue Ox Sway Pro either. I tow a 25 ' toy hauler. 1,100 tongue and 6,700 empty with a 16 F 250. The hitch was first purchased with 1,500 lb bars then I ordered 2,000 bars. Neither set of bars gets the sag out of the truck. The trucks built in sway system seems to fight against the hitch.

[galexander]

Equalizer now offers a hard rubber pad to place on the L bracket under the sway bar. Reduces noises greatly, not all, but a lot. Equalizer says that it does increase sway a little bit because of the small amount of friction that is reduced by the pads but DW and I just returned from 2,000 mile trip and I myself really didn't feel any loss of sway control. I really like these pads because they do reduce noise. DW is happy about that. Cost was if I remember correctly was $15.00 plus shipping. Was with it for me.

[aftermath]

KrowNB, glad to offer up my "solution". I got all of this directly from the Equalizer website and from experienced owners.

There are two areas that create the noise. The first one is the two sockets in the head that accept the WD bars. Grease the top and bottom surfaces of these sockets. When you insert the bar you can see how they move side to side and you will also see the surfaces I am talking about. The friction that controls sway comes mainly from this head unit. There are bolts that need to be torqued to specifications and after the head is loaded, the resistance to sway is quite sufficient. Greasing these surfaces does not lessen the friction in any real way. It does help quiet the head though.

The second area is the L bracket. Equalizer has come up with a sleeve that fits on the bracket and the WD bars sits on top of that. Equalizer has also said that you can "lightly" grease the L bracket and this is what I do. I have heard that the plastic sleeve will wear out over time so I chose not to get these.

I am on my second hitch and while there is some sound, I would not call it noise. My first hitch was rather loud and it took me a while to follow the suggestions from the manufacturer. I also make sure that I grease the ball like most of us do.

Yes, your hitch can be messy to deal with because of all the grease but I keep mine as clean as I can and I don't over grease things. I do have to be careful when handling it but I still really like the Equalizer. As someone as stated, with an electric tongue jack, hooking and unhooking is not a real physical challenge. I don't have to deal with snapping chains into place while under tension either.

[coolmom42]

Noise from the Equalizer is mostly when turning, the tighter the curve, the more noise you get. And if it's wet, the noise seems worse.

One time in WY we missed our turn and made a big U-turn in the parking lot of a vet's office (closed, because it was Sunday.) That hitch made a big groan.... we joked that the vet was going to come out and offer to euthanize our dying cow, because that's what the hitch sounded like!

Seriously, the noise is rarely a problem. Once the bars get a little wear on them it decreases greatly. If you are moving slowly in a campground, you can always stop and take the bars off.

[TurnThePage]

My Equal-I-zer hitch can definitely be noisy when going slowly through a campground, regardless of noise mitigating efforts. It also tends to be a little greasy for my tastes. However, it is extremely easy to use and really shines when combined with an electric tongue jack. A bonus is that you can leave the weight distributing bars attached to the tow vehicle after unhitching, and just push them up near the rear bumper. They don't need to be stored or left on the ground. Aside from the mentioned caveats, I'm very happy with mine.

[rbpru]

My 25 ft. Dutchmen tows very well behind my F-150 with a Blue Ox hitch.

[Huntindog]

KrowNB wrote:

aftermath wrote:


There are ways to mitigate the noise in an Equalizer and I have used them and have very little noise in my set up.

I'm about to purchse a new TT with an Equalizer hitch because of recommendations here and elsewhere. This will be our first TT towing experience ever, moving from a small motorhome. Could you please elaborate on mitigating noise?

Turn the radio up.:B

Seriously, I have never understood the noise complaints. It is not like it makes noise all the time. Going down the road it is quiet. I can only hear it at low speed,and sharp turns... Lets me know it is working... If the radio is off.

[KrowNB]

aftermath wrote:


There are ways to mitigate the noise in an Equalizer and I have used them and have very little noise in my set up.

I'm about to purchse a new TT with an Equalizer hitch because of recommendations here and elsewhere. This will be our first TT towing experience ever, moving from a small motorhome. Could you please elaborate on mitigating noise?

[aftermath]

There are lots of good hitches out there but they are all different and some work certainly as good or better that others depending on lots of factors.

I use an Equalizer and have for many years. I chose this hitch because I did not want to deal with snapping chains into place and I wanted a hitch I could back up a trailer without disconnecting. Today, most hitches have worked out these concerns. I have also noticed that a lot of the newer hitches use the same basic physics employed in the Equalizer brand. The Sway Pro has replaced the rectangular torsion bars that rest on the L brackets with bars that connect with chains. This does reduce the noise factor.

There are ways to mitigate the noise in an Equalizer and I have used them and have very little noise in my set up. Again, there are lots of good hitches out there. I would look at many of them and ask how you hook up and unhook. You will find one you like better than the rest.

[73guna]

I own a Blue Ox and Im not real happy with mine.

The rotating latches are down right dangerous when unhooking if you dont have enough tension off the hitch. This can be tricky to figure out how much you need to raise the hitch at times when camp ground pads slope differently.
Ive been smacked in the wrist and cheek a couple times with the breaker bar and thats another cost you'll incur, a breaker bar and socket. The bar supplied with the blue ox hitch is almost worthless.

I have a heavy TT and a lot of tongue weight so Im using the bx1500.
Maybe this heavier unit requires more effort twhen hooking/unhooking.
Im to the point now of nearly having my rear truck wheels off the ground to hook/unhook.
My electric tongue jack is only rated for 3500-4000lbs I believe.
Im on the tenth chain link, this is where it pulls the best for me.

Now it does a great job distributing the weight and pretty much did away with most of the "bucking" I got on some roads.

If I had to do it over Id probably go to the Equilizer hitch and deal with the noise.

As always this is just my opinion...