Sway Concern

[mitchellm68]

I am new here and new to the big trailer pulling. I have a 2018 Wildwood 27RKSS. Very bad sway with 10-15 mph winds. I have a 2014 RAM 1500 quad cab, 2x2, 3.92 gears, 5.7 Hemi. Dealer installed Blue OX Sway Pro 750lb hitch. I am thinking I need to bump up the bars to 1,000. Have tried all adjustments, and cannot get truck level. Any Thoughts would be very appreciated.

[timfromma]

Sounds like you need to move more weight forward in your trailer. The nose is probably too light. Also, if your trailer is like mine, the FW tank is mounted up front. If so, fill it with water to increase the front end weight.

[timfromma]

Also, load your camper and TV exactly how you would if you were going camping and head to the scales to check out your weights.

[SeaDog]

X2 on loading it sounds like you don't have enough tongue weight. I don't think increasing the bars will help with the sway.

[mitchellm68]

Moved all weight to front on my last leg of the trip last week. Better, but truck sitting low, and still sways with small winds, and could not tighten enough to get level. will the stronger bars help, or do you think I need a hitch with the separate sway bar? Thanks again!

[timfromma]

Is it possible that your trailer is too big for your truck?

[thebrakeman]

This camper is 6400 lbs empty. Add the typical 1000 lbs for options and cargo, puts estimated loaded weight at 7400 lbs. GVWR is 7700 lbs.
7400-7700 * 13% = 962-1001 lbs loaded TW
The 750 lbs bars are DEFINITELY too light. Being anywhere near the TW rating of a WDH is a recipe for instability (typically the sickening up-down "porpoising"). I always recommend being at least 100 lbs under your WDH rating, to avoid these issues.
But it's especially wrong for the Blue Ox, which uses "spring steel" as the variable for adjustment, instead of providing a head-pitch adjustment. You are almost definitely over-bending those bars. They are designed to be properly flexible thru 700-750 lbs or so. Any more, and they will simply bend without transferring hardly any more weight.

So your gut is right. Take the system back, and ask for the 1000 lbs bars. In fact, you should get an actual loaded trailer weight, and TW. If loaded TW is more than 900 lbs, I would go with 1200 lbs bars.

My loaded TW is about 750 lbs, and I use 1000 lbs bars. Smooth as silk.

[mitchellm68]

That's possible. Is there a better hitch setup than the Blue OX that I have?

[SeaDog]

I looked at that hitch and I don't see any sway control with it, or the provision for adding a sway control bar. the larger bars would help with the level issue I would think. the Ram should pull that trailer fine, recheck your loading and your hitch setup.

[mitchellm68]

Thanks!! I have tried all adjustments, etc., and I know my hitch weight is about 830-850. I will swap the bars out. Post my outcome.

[mitchellm68]

SeaDog, the hitch is called a BlueOx Sway-Pro. I guess its works without the 3rd bar for sway??

[Primorver]

I might suggest sellign the system you have and going to the the Reese dual cam anti sway system. It has been on the market a long time its market proven and works well even when cornering.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlFlGSn2L6I&t=155s

[emm-dee]

I think most are right about needing heavier bars. However, if you haven't done a few things to the truck then no matter what you do to the hitch you're going to have sway type problems.

The '14 Ram came with coil springs and cheap P-series tires. Those make for a nice ride but are not tow friendly. Put in a set of Airlift 1000 airbags. Less than $100 and an easy install taking about an hour or so. Get rid of the stock tires and replace with a good E-load tire. If you have the 20" tires there aren't a lot of options but the Nitto Dura Grappler is available in that size and are as good as they get. I'm picking up a brand new Ram 3500 Dually on Friday and my tire dealer will install six of the Nitto tires Saturday morning.

It also helps a lot if you have E-load tires on the trailer.

I've done all the above to my '14 Ram 1500. I have the cheaper Eaz-Lift hitch with dual Reese swaybars. The trailer is 31 feet and 8,500 pounds loaded (cat scale number). Hitch weight is 1,260 and with 1,200 bars it pulls great. No sway or drift. Even big trucks passing are hardly noticeable...minor push but no sway.

And, for the weight police crowd who think any trailer over 6,000 pounds needs a diesel dually to pull, my cat scale weights come in close to but still below all max payload, gross trailer and truck weights, combined weight and axle weight, with axle weight being the most restrictive factor (200 pounds under max).

[mitchellm68]

emm-dee. I have put Airlift 1000 and Load Range E 10 Ply Rating tires on truck. Also as noted above, changed out axle ratio from 3.21 to 3.92. Has no problem pulling. The only thing left that I can think of is the bars. Truck squatting is not too much of my concern. I just thought if it was more level it would not sway, I tried leveling TV with airlifts, but did not change sway. Should I even use the Airlifts? Does that mess up the configuration of the WDH?

[stevensmith2859]

Originally Posted by mitchellm68

emm-dee. I have put Airlift 1000 and Load Range E 10 Ply Rating tires on truck. Also as noted above, changed out axle ratio from 3.21 to 3.92. Has no problem pulling. The only thing left that I can think of is the bars. Truck squatting is not too much of my concern. I just thought if it was more level it would not sway, I tried leveling TV with airlifts, but did not change sway. Should I even use the Airlifts? Does that mess up the configuration of the WDH?

I have a 2013 Quad cab Ram 4x4 Express 5.7L and a 2015 28DBUD. My tongue weight dry is something like 805 lbs. Had 750lb bars from my old camper, upgraded to a set of 1,000lb bars (it didn't even occur to me my old bars were underrated, by my dealership wouldn't let me leave the lot without upgrading to properly rated bars) that being said the 1,000's keep her pretty good. Like anything else, sudden gusts, etc. will push you around a little. Its a bear to cinch them up nice and tight, but a long piece of schedule 40 pipe will help you get them tight. Granted I never pulled with the 750 lb bars, but comparing the 750lb bars to the 1,000lb bars is actually eye opening. I do have a reese set up.

[aceinspp]

I have used several types of WDH and the best one that is now working for me is the 4 point Equal-i-zer hitch. It will also get your tv back to level. Later RJD

[herbike]

Originally Posted by stevensmith2859

I have a 2013 Quad cab Ram 4x4 Express 5.7L and a 2015 28DBUD. My tongue weight dry is something like 805 lbs. Had 750lb bars from my old camper, upgraded to a set of 1,000lb bars (it didn't even occur to me my old bars were underrated, by my dealership wouldn't let me leave the lot without upgrading to properly rated bars) that being said the 1,000's keep her pretty good. Like anything else, sudden gusts, etc. will push you around a little. Its a bear to cinch them up nice and tight, but a long piece of schedule 40 pipe will help you get them tight. Granted I never pulled with the 750 lb bars, but comparing the 750lb bars to the 1,000lb bars is actually eye opening. I do have a reese set up.

Are you saying you can use the same hitch, ball and stinger, just change to heavier bars. If that is the case we sure got took for a bunch of bucks. Dealer sold us a complete 1000# hitch when we bought our new toy hauler.

[mitchellm68]

Originally Posted by herbike

Are you saying you can use the same hitch, ball and stinger, just change to heavier bars. If that is the case we sure got took for a bunch of bucks. Dealer sold us a complete 1000# hitch when we bought our new toy hauler.

My dealer said it's all the same but the bars. I am getting the tomorrow and let you know.

[stevensmith2859]

Originally Posted by herbike

Are you saying you can use the same hitch, ball and stinger, just change to heavier bars. If that is the case we sure got took for a bunch of bucks. Dealer sold us a complete 1000# hitch when we bought our new toy hauler.

That is exactly what happened for my wife and I. They took the shackles off the old trailer, put them on the new, and then adjusted everything based on my rear bumper height. Let me also add the caveat that my hitch is a reese from the late 80's that my parents had before they went up to a Class A. This is the 3rd trailer the hitch and "shackles" (stingers) have been used on. I would assume a ball is a ball. The hitch was on a 24 ft sunline, 27 ft chateu, and now a 30 ft Wildwood.

[emm-dee]

Originally Posted by mitchellm68

emm-dee. I have put Airlift 1000 and Load Range E 10 Ply Rating tires on truck. Also as noted above, changed out axle ratio from 3.21 to 3.92. Has no problem pulling. The only thing left that I can think of is the bars. Truck squatting is not too much of my concern. I just thought if it was more level it would not sway, I tried leveling TV with airlifts, but did not change sway. Should I even use the Airlifts? Does that mess up the configuration of the WDH?

That's good. Have to assume it's the bars. My truck squats about one inch when hooked up, which is not noticeable using the Mark One Eyeball. Have to use a tape measure. There front of the truck raises ¼ inch.

Also, the instructions in the AirLift package say to set them up to 30 psi. I had heard of folks using more so I contacted AirLift directly. They said it should be set at 35 psi. They also said some folks go higher but they don't recommend it. The difference in ride height between 25 psi and 35 psi is less than ¼ inch.
They don't have a lot of affect on ride height but a major (good) affect on stability, even when not towing.