Do I need WDH and sway control?

[CedarCreekWoody]

Originally Posted by floridela

Next question what weight of bars should I get. I have seen on equalizers Web site the 10,000 recommended when I put in my gvwr 7000 and hitch 550 -600 lbs.
Is there a need for heavier 12000 lb? I am almost certain this is my last trailer and do not think I will get anything larger, I want smaller even.
Comments please!

My trailer is a bit smaller than yours but I run an Equalizer 12k WDH. That is what the dealer recommended and I've been happy with it.

[CampingGator]

Originally Posted by youroo

I notice a Lot of Misinformation here, when using "Equalizer or Reese" you DON"T have Sway Control Without Weight Distribution,that is what Loads the "FRICTION"! Sorry! Youroo!!

Yeah. What do I know. I'm a woman. I just watch and help load and pin up the sway bars. I thought it all went together - WDH and sway bars.

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by floridela

Next question what weight of bars should I get. I have seen on equalizers Web site the 10,000 recommended when I put in my gvwr 7000 and hitch 550 -600 lbs.
Is there a need for heavier 12000 lb? I am almost certain this is my last trailer and do not think I will get anything larger, I want smaller even.
Comments please!

Personally, I bought the heaviest hitch and bars that my truck can handle.
You never know what camper you will get next.

[david_reaves]

My Reece straight line is a weight distribution system, but it has the dual cams added that supplement the WDS with sway-control. As I said before, I'm very happy with it. I think I understand the point that it can't be sway-control without the weight distribution portion... because the weight distribution is actually connected to the sway-control cams. The sway control cams are the gold-colored parts. The long black "trunion" bars and chains are the weight distribution portion.

[crunchman12001]

Originally Posted by floridela

Next question what weight of bars should I get. I have seen on equalizers Web site the 10,000 recommended when I put in my gvwr 7000 and hitch 550 -600 lbs.
Is there a need for heavier 12000 lb? I am almost certain this is my last trailer and do not think I will get anything larger, I want smaller even.
Comments please!

I would go with the 10K / 1000 unless you plan on putting an electric golf cart in your truck bed, then I would go up to 12K.

[Mr Havercamp]

Although I have a Reese round bar standard WDH without sway control, I have seldom used it for the last few years since I have had the GM 2500's. Granted our Roo is shorter and slightly lighter by about 600 GVW than the 30'er the OP is asking about. I can find no noticeable difference towing ours with or without the WDH. In fact when I finally got around to using it last year just to try it I could not go by the Reese instructions to set it up. When I drop the trailer on the ball the front end of the truck doesn't move at all and one of the adjustments is to get the front back down to the ride height it was before. So i did a lot of guessing and used it on a trip to Vermont. On the way back I didn't use it. I could not tell any difference. If anything it took a little bit of bounce out of the combination, not that it has much except when you hit a certain type of road condition.

I like getting to a campground and having one less thing to do even though it only takes a few minutes. I pull other types of trailers more than the camper, flats and box equipment type, and 99% of them are set up with pintle hitches. No WDH or sway control with those. I would give it a try without it if anything just to see how it handles, especially if I had a 3500. I don't believe in chasing problems if I don't have them to begin with.

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by Mr Havercamp

I would give it a try without it if anything just to see how it handles, especially if I had a 3500. I don't believe in chasing problems if I don't have them to begin with.

There is a lot to be said for this method, though I would have the camper loaded as you camp and keep the trip local. You will know soon enough if a good sway control system is needed with a 30 foot TT.

Hopefully not like this guy's dually, though this camper is much longer than 30 feet.

[aeblank]

I'm in the "eh" category. I'm in a similar boat with a 2500 and 2306. I'll probably get one eventually, but I've already got a few hundred miles on without. Never (my rig or dads, which I have thousands of miles on) had an ounce of sway control. Can't say I've ever had an ounce of sway, either. Maybe that's a proper setup, maybe that's knowing how to react, maybe that's luck, maybe it's all of that. None the less.......

[asquared]

Likely your trailers tongue weight will be over the load bearing capacity On your 350's hitch and as such will require the wdh. I agree a wdh with integrated sway control is a good idea. I would go with the 1200 lb bars. I had a 30 ft tt that weighed 7300 lbs loaded. We ran the reese dual cam with 1200 lb bars.

[Johntgif]

I "ditto" the above remarks because the extra control & peace of mind while towing is worth every cent. I've got a 321BHTS Surveyor and the 36+ ft has no problems when I tow it with my 2017 GMC 2500HD.

[Mr Havercamp]

Originally Posted by aeblank

I'm in the "eh" category. I'm in a similar boat with a 2500 and 2306. I'll probably get one eventually, but I've already got a few hundred miles on without. Never (my rig or dads, which I have thousands of miles on) had an ounce of sway control. Can't say I've ever had an ounce of sway, either. Maybe that's a proper setup, maybe that's knowing how to react, maybe that's luck, maybe it's all of that. None the less.......

I'd place my money on proper setup of a WDH and balance of the rig before throwing it down on the luck option. Knowing how to react (experience) also counts.

There are literally millions of people towing large TTS with conventional WDH's that have no added sway control. But if you need it just for reassurance that's your decision. You have to drive it, not anyone else.

A lot of times a trailer is purchased and at the same time the dealer puts on a WDH with built in sway control. The trailer was new and unloaded at the time of install or the person Installing was clueless. In a lot of those cases the combo has a huge setup and balance issue that the sway control is masking.


As far as the video in Herks post, no amount of sway control or type of hitch was stopping that. That was all excessive cross winds and the driver should of not been in the situation to begin with. That video has been floating around forums for years. On another forum someone local to where that happened stated that the winds were in excess of 60 mph and high wind warnings were in effect at the time for high profile vehicles.

[Norw40]

We pull a 33' Surveyor, #5000 dry weight, with a 1/2 ton Ram, with Curt wdh and two sway bars. No problems.

[johns3962]

I have a 30 foot TH and it came with a WDH but my truck (bought uses-2010 Dodge Ram 3500 DRW) came with a Ranch Hand Bumper and ONLY a Trailer Ball, the previous owner removed the Receiver Hitch. No one offers a receiver hitch that will fit with that bumper. I have pulled my TT with just the Ball (duh). It pulled fine at 70-75 MPH on I-65. I WOULD rather have the WDH but until I spend 350 to 400 bucks to replace the bumper I'm stuck.

[youroo]

Originally Posted by johns3962

I have a 30 foot TH and it came with a WDH but my truck (bought uses-2010 Dodge Ram 3500 DRW) came with a Ranch Hand Bumper and ONLY a Trailer Ball, the previous owner removed the Receiver Hitch. No one offers a receiver hitch that will fit with that bumper. I have pulled my TT with just the Ball (duh). It pulled fine at 70-75 MPH on I-65. I WOULD rather have the WDH but until I spend 350 to 400 bucks to replace the bumper I'm stuck.

Wll you Please Post when you are going to Tow at "70-75 MPH with the Bumper again" so we can Not be on the road at the same time! Youroo!!

[johns3962]

Originally Posted by youroo

Wll you Please Post when you are going to Tow at "70-75 MPH with the Bumper again" so we can Not be on the road at the same time! Youroo!!

I will most certainly do that! First time I pulled it without the WDH was the day I brought it home. No sway at all. I was not happy about it but I had to get it home.

Thanks for the encouragement roo!

[jeffnick]

I have an E350 and pulled a 12,000 lb trailer successfully for ~20,000 miles by just dropping the coupler on the ball. Then tried an equalizing hitch and sway bar. The addition made life easier, but isn't critically necessary.

[5OHcampers]

I got the husky centerline ts and love it. I'm towing a 16 salem 26tbud with an 04 suburban 1500. The tbud has a dry tongue weight of 815lbs. Honestly I can't believe they still sell anything with chains and a sway bar you can't backup with. With the husky and some good lt tires I've never had even a slight moment of sway.

[debit]

I have a new Surveyor 251RKS. Up to now, I use only a ball hitch. The receiver is properly welded to the frame. I do own sway bars but have yet to find that I need to install them on the TT. I do keep the speed at around 60 mph (about 1700 rpm). My TV is a Ram 2500, diesel, 6 speed manual, 8 foot bed.

[Mr Havercamp]

One thing I noticed in this thread, and also in conversations at campgrounds and such, is many people who have a standard WDH seem to think that "spring bars" are "sway bars", or they call them "sway bars" which they are not. They do not provide any sway control whatsoever. I have even had them referred to as sway bars by RV dealers. If the hitch is an Equalizer, Blue Ox, and some others, then you have sway control. The only standard WDH I am aware of that you can add sway control to that is not simply a friction device is the Reese. They make the dual cam sway system that can be added to some of their standard WDH hitches.

Debit, if your using your WDH head without the spring bars check it's specs. They do not have the same capacities when used without the spring bars as a weight carrying hitch.

[debit]

Mr. Havercamp,
Yes, it is a Reese, and yes, I'll re-look up the specifications for the hitch.
I had previously used the hitch with a 29' Holiday Rambler TT. And yes, I really should install the spring bars. The bars were especially helpful up in the Yukon, where we experienced those frost heave dips.

--------------------------
Ram 2500, diesel, 6 speed manual
Surveyor 251RKS