Andrewmart
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Re: Heavy tongue weight - change from PP 3P?
:B Ha! I didn't even think about that when I typed DW. A few months ago I spent a lot of time on forms trying to solve my death wobble that DW was ingrained in me as death wobble. Rereading it as dear wife, many parts still fit... Ha699Views0likes0CommentsRe: Heavy tongue weight - change from PP 3P?
carringb wrote: Whoa! Running at normal PSIs should not cause Death Wobble! Have you had the alignment checked? I'd be suspicious if not-enough-camber. Hooking up a heavy trailer makes it worse because as the front end rises, it removes even more camber. Your WD bars regardless of hitch should restore at least half the unloaded ride-height up front, but if your camber is marginal, you may need to do it the old fashioned way and completely restore your front ride height. As long as your ProPride is able to bring the front down far enough, I'd keep it. I had a Hensley for a short time, and it towed great with 3,200 pounds of tongue weight. Unfortunately the construction of it just couldn't hold up to that much. Death Wobble was fixed. I have not had it for 3 months. I have a family member who works for Ford, and they did all the work and looked it over repeatedly. They did an alignment after I had the work done and got the tires. I haven't had death wobble since BUT my truck feels a little shakier (not DW) at lower PSI than higher PSI, so I run at higher PSI (in 70s). I got DW around October 2020 after I had an oil change with tire rotation. This was after towing with the truck all summer with no DW. One of my tires was significantly more worn then the others. I didn't add it in the earlier info because I didn't think it could be an issue since I had it addressed and was running on new tires. Learning that new tires cause a little squirming was something I didn't know, and I thought I learned a lot about towing, trucks, DW, etc.699Views0likes0CommentsRe: Heavy tongue weight - change from PP 3P?
Thanks for all the help John! Spent last hour reading about tire squirm. I am running my tires higher than I usually do. Last year I was running front around 65 psi and back around 70 psi when towing and 55-60 unloaded. Then I did a tire rotation and had a case of death whobble. This ended up in new dampener, tire rods and a few other things. Also got new tires (which probably was the culprit). I drove them home at whatever psi Ford installed them at (around 70-75 psi) and had no problems. Well I aired them down to my unloaded psi and had more shaking. Not death wobble but just not as smooth. Read some forums where people swore that Michelin tires needed to be aired up to 70+psi to stop death wobble. Did it and it helped. So since then I've run these tires at 70+. I'll slowly play with the psi when towing. I'll hitch up sometime this and see what it's like.699Views0likes0CommentsRe: Heavy tongue weight - change from PP 3P?
Interesting thoughts. Here are the answers. 2015 F250 gas engine. Has about 90k miles on it. I've had it for about 9 months now. 1. 75 psi front and back 2. Driver door says 80 max. 3. Tires are new. Probably less than 1000 miles on them. All highway or city miles No off roading. All four are new. Michelin LTX AT2. LT275/65R20. 5. Tires are OEM to the truck. No after market stuff. I bought truck used but dealer said these tires were original. While these specific tires are new and bought in January 2021, I towed with the same brand tires all last summer. 6. No after market lift kit. 7. I'm not sure. I think everything is stock. Right now, I'm thinking/hoping it was just crazy wind. My wife was being pushed around pretty good on the way home too, and she was just in her vehicle. I just checked the weather and sustained winds were 20 mph with guests 30+ mph when I was driving home. And when I say pushed around, I'm probably exaggerating a little. I was never pushed into the next lane (not even close), and never felt like I was going to wreck or hit another vehicle. But I was also being cautious and staying around 55-60mph. This was the most I've ever felt anything though while towing in the F250. I've grown used to barely feeling it back there while towing. We have towed our TT 2-3 times with a half ton vehicle, and this drive was still much better than those 1/2 ton drive. It's just more than I've been used to and wanted to make sure it wasn't because of hitch weight or something I was contributing to. Another note is I towed it a few days earlier to the camp site and didn't necessarily notice or feel anything. Winds were sustained around 15 mph and gusts around 20 mph on the way there. I towed with this exact same setup last year except for getting new tires. This was the first time I towed on these new tires. Your thoughts are very interesting and something I didn't even think of. Figured since they were new tires, that wouldn't be an issue.699Views0likes0CommentsRe: Heavy tongue weight - change from PP 3P?
I checked my TV w/ and w/o the PP WDH on last year, and I return all but about .5 inches of height w/ the WDH. My Cat scales reading yesterday shows I return 260 lbs back to the front axles, which is 50% of the weight back on. So I think I have it dialed in pretty good. I'll remeasure this upcoming week and make sure everything is good. I think yesterday's being pushed around was all due to wind gusts. I just wanted to make sure I was not contributing by having a heavy hitch weight.466Views0likes0CommentsRe: Heavy tongue weight - change from PP 3P?
valhalla360 wrote: Higher hitch weight is almost always better. Where people get in trouble is they try to take a light duty (low payload) 1/2 ton and then get caught between keeping within the payload but above 10% hitch weight. With a 3/4 ton, it should be able to handle a 1200lb hitch weight no problem. 5th wheels are some of the nicest towing trailers and run 20-25% hitch weight with no fancy hitches. Semi's are commonly at 50% or higher. Unless you are having sway or other handling issues, run with it. I haven't had any swaying problems with it but yesterday I was towing and getting pushed all around. Weather app said wind gusts were up to 25mph. I think more... My wife was in her expedition and also getting pushed around. It's the most I've felt the RV since I got the F250. I know there is nothing I could do to stop the crazy wind hitting our 33 foot long wind sail, but wondered if me being too hitch heavy contributed. Google says too heavy hitch can cause TV steering problems. It wasn't necessity swaying, it was more getting pushed around out there with each gust. In between gusts or when highway changed to head wind, I had no problems.466Views0likes0CommentsRe: Heavy tongue weight - change from PP 3P?
Thanks for the responses! I have a backup camera, but it's an after market license plate one. I'm debating installing a tailgate handle camera vs something like the iBall (which is overkill...). Sometimes I hitch up on first attempt, and sometimes it takes 10+ tries... I'll Google tips and videos to learn how to hitch up easier.465Views0likes0CommentsHeavy tongue weight - change from PP 3P?
I have a 2020 SPORTSMEN® SE 301BHKSE that I tow w/ a 2015 F250 gas engine. I use a Propride 3P hitch. I went to the Cat scales today and found a hitch weight of 1220 lbs (did all 3 weight measurements). TT is 7000 lbs, so that puts me at 17.4%. I can provide the data if needed. Should I consider changing to a lighter WDH to reduce tongue weight and get closer to 15%? Or is being over 2-3% not a big deal? Does being over weight w/ a 3P sort of offset the overage? Considering changing because, while I love the 3P, hooking up is a chore. We've had the 3P for about 8 months and taken about 10-12 trips with it, and I still struggle with hooking up. Before the 3P we had an equalizer and I attached to the ball easily. I only towed with the equalizer twice (on a 1/2 ton vehicle), so not sure how much of a difference switching WDH will affect the driving. We got the 3P because we had a 1/2 ton vehicle, but we ended up upgrading to the F250 after one trip. Had we gotten the F250 from the start, I doubt we would have even gotten the 3P.9.5KViews0likes33CommentsRe: 4 Kids - Quad Bunk with Ford Expedition?
I was in your same situation. We have 4 kids (actually 5, long story). They are 6, 3, 3, and an infant. We bought a KZ SPORTSMEN SE 301BHSE due to the quad bunks. Nice for every kid to have their own bed especially as they get older. We have a 2017 Expedition with the HD tow package. The expedition can tow the TT but it was white knuckling entire time. We even got a Propride 3 WDH. I posted a thread in the towing vehicles thread about a month ago and got good advice. We considered a Ford Excursion and Suburban 2500. Most excursions were rough on the inside and the suburbans back seat is tight and likely fits two comfortably. Most also had high mileage. After thinking about it, we got a 2015 F250 and what a difference. F250 tows the TT with ease. Passing semis and windy days are no problem. We got a 40/20/40 front seat and our 6 year old sits there. We went on a 4 hour trip and we all had plenty of space. Never felt cramped. Only concern is electric break is sort of in middle dashboard console by my sons feet, but we didn’t need to use it with a 3/4 ton truck. I think you need to consider vehicle payload, rear axle weight, and hitch weight. With our expedition, we exceeded all three of those once packed in and hooked up. For a quad bunk, you’re likely looking at a similar situation. I also learned we were a little hitch heavy, and I’ve since fixed some of that. I personally wasn’t comfortable exceeding all weight limits and white knuckling it places. Most of our trips are only a few hours, so having someone in middle bench seat isn’t a big deal. We could also take two vehicles if needed. If you plan on taking far trips, I can understand not wanting someone in front middle. I was same way until I test drove one. If not, consider it. If truck is out, look at Excursions, suburban 2500, or a 3/4 or 1 ton van (my wife nixed van..). An expedition can tow a quad bunk, but not as easy as the vehicles I mentioned. I’m also a newb to TT and towing large things. The confidence a 3/4 ton vehicle gives me is priceless.453Views0likes0CommentsRe: CAT Scale results - advice needed
Sorry for the delay in responding. Lots of changes in our family (for the good). Grit dog, sorry I missed your post earlier. I did not like how the TT was towing. That’s what made me question my setup, hitch, TV, etc. I’ve learned a lot from all of ya’ll here. It’s very much appreciated for a newb. To update, I got a 2015 F250 gasser w/ 8 foot bed. Picked it up last Friday and got it all set up with the Propride hitch etc. Man, what a difference in towing. It was night and day. Took it for a trip this week, and it towed flawless. Not much tug/pull going on, and semis passed me with no movement. The new vehicle also helped w/ my peace of mind, and I was much less stressed driving. This tow was mostly single lane roads with lots of hills so I was averaging about 55-60. We leave soon for a beach trip where it will be all highway miles. I’ll have a better feel of how it travels going 60-65 but I’m not anxious (like I was before). I’ve also shifted weight around in the TT to reduce hitch weight. The major things I did was moving propane tanks to rear axle when travel and putting all our clothes and ice chest in TT too. I will take it to a CAT scale soon to get actual numbers, but it’ll only be semi accurate. CAT scale trips are usually just me. It’s hard to get the entire family and TT loaded for a CAT scale trip.611Views0likes0Comments
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