Anderson Weight Distribution Hitches

[madmaxmutt]

Originally Posted by KDHfan

Been considering switching for about a year now. I haven't pulled the trigger, however. Maybe I'm misreading posts about the Anderson Hitch... But doesn't it seem that the guys that are having no issues and saying "works great for me" seem to mostly all have a 3/4T and up?


2015 Coachmen Apex 288BHS
2014 Toyota Tundra 5.7L CrewMax

Sent from my iPad using Forest River Forums

Well, mine works great for me, but I drive an NON-max tow 2013 FX4 F150. I have used the Andersen alone, with Timbrens and now with AirLift LoadLifter Ultimate 5000s. It was able to put the front end close to stock by itself. The bags put the rear back where it belongs.

As I said before, it worked just as well as my Fastway E2 with this trailer. It is certainly as easy to use or easier and weighs less than half what the E2 did.




By the way, AndersEn is spelled with an E at the end. The search engine here tries to correct it, but that makes it hard to find this thread.

[msroll]

My Sierra is a 1/2 ton. Sorry should have mentioned it in my first post.

[thebrakeman]

Originally Posted by madmaxmutt

Well, mine works great for me, but I drive an NON-max tow 2013 FX4 F150. I have used the Andersen alone, with Timbrens and now with AirLift LoadLifter Ultimate 5000s. It was able to put the front end close to stock by itself. The bags put the rear back where it belongs.

As I said before, it worked just as well as my Fastway E2 with this trailer. It is certainly as easy to use or easier and weighs less than half what the E2 did.

By the way, AndersEn is spelled with an E at the end. The search engine here tries to correct it, but that makes it hard to find this thread.

Thanks for clearing up the spelling. Whenever I type it, I'm not sure, and am too lazy to look it up in another window.

Anyway, glad you are happy with your setup, and even happier to see you took the time to get measurements (even though not posted here). For what it's worth, this simply shows that the Andersen WDH was not able to return all lost front weight (for your particular rig). The suspension mods help with further leveling, but they do not transfer any more (significant) weight.

The previous post seems to be spot on. The Andersen seems to need the beefy suspension of a 3/4-ton (or a HD 1/2-ton), so that the rear suspension does not squat very much. That way, the Andersen system does not run out of travel, and should be able to return all lost weight.

Using on a softer suspension, the Andersen will return some/most lost weight, as well as give you hitch-weight advantages, simplicity, and good sway control. But there is a trade off.

[madmaxmutt]

Originally Posted by thebrakeman

Thanks for clearing up the spelling. Whenever I type it, I'm not sure, and am too lazy to look it up in another window.

Ha, yes I have a thread on here about it that is misspelled, too. I tried to correct the title to no avail.

Originally Posted by thebrakeman

Anyway, glad you are happy with your setup, and even happier to see you took the time to get measurements (even though not posted here). For what it's worth, this simply shows that the Andersen WDH was not able to return all lost front weight (for your particular rig). The suspension mods help with further leveling, but they do not transfer any more (significant) weight.

The previous post seems to be spot on. The Andersen seems to need the beefy suspension of a 3/4-ton (or a HD 1/2-ton), so that the rear suspension does not squat very much. That way, the Andersen system does not run out of travel, and should be able to return all lost weight.

Using on a softer suspension, the Andersen will return some/most lost weight, as well as give you hitch-weight advantages, simplicity, and good sway control. But there is a trade off.

I think you have drawn the wrong conclusions from what I wrote. My Fastway E2 gave similar results with the same truck and trailer. I also got the same result using the same truck pulling a similar trailer with a Husky. You cannot concern yourself with rear squat too much. You have to get the front end back in the road.

The bottom line to me is every 1/2 ton is going to squat with 850lbs on the hitch. They are simply made with softer suspensions to give a better ride as a DD. No properly adjusted "weight distribution" system should take the 850lbs away from the rear. The idea is even distribution across the available axles. It isn't to remove all the weight from the rear axle. That is still going to allow some rear squat with any W/D system without rear suspension augmentation.

[thebrakeman]

I agree. I don't think I said anything about removing all added weight from the rear suspension. Only that all lost front weight needs to be added back in. As long as you do not exceed the original front weight/height, then you will still have some additional weight on the rear axle.

But given and F150 and F250, with the same loaded trailer and all others things being equal, when you put the fronts back to stock height, the rear of the F250 would not have had to travel as far. That is a benefit for the Andersen. It may run out of upward travel on the F150 before all weight is returned to the front, as opposed to not running out of travel on the F250.

The traditional WDH system will not care about travel. If you haven't transferred enough weight, just tilt the head back further, which means the rear of the truck will be lifted a bit more when the bars are engaged.

[goduc]

You don't return all the front weight back on an F150. Only 0-50%. Actually in the manual it states to measure the front fender and return it to 50% or less. So in reality if the TW isn't abnormally high then the Andersen has a shot at getting to the 50% or less mark. Agree though that a 3/4 ton+ will retain it's front fender height easier, especially if it's a diesel. They add another 800lbs or so to the front of the truck.

[thebrakeman]

Yes, I've heard that about the F150. Most vehicles are silent on these details, and direct you to follow the WDH manufacturer's suggestion. My interpretation of the F150 wording is that returning 1/2 of the lost weight is acceptable, but returning all lost weight is best. According to the instructions for all WDH kits (except likely the Andersen), the goal is at least returning all lost weight.

If used on a vehicle with more front GAWR capacity (F250 or better), they often call for going lower than stock height, and shooting for equal front/rear compression. (Imagine the TW being distributed perfectly, such that the vehicle squats flat, remaining level).

[northstar1960]

brakeman . the only way to get my 2500hd to sit flat front and back is to raise the front and drop the back . with the Andersen i sit level front and back with a level TH . the front is about 3/4 " higher then stock and the rear about 1 3/4" lower . this gives me a perfectly level ride , just got back last week from picking up my unit , had to travel 1500 miles to get back home across 6 states and the TH and TV worked as one unit . 0 sway even when trucks blew buy and 0 bounce .the steering acted normal and did not feel either heavy or lite . if you have the truck the Andersen is a great way to go .