wrong size hitch installed ??

[HIDE OUT]

Well dealer strikes again. yesterday I had a new equalizer 4 pt. hitch installed and when I got home and read the manual and checked some measurement's found they were off so fixed it .Just when I thought it was all over I was showing a friend the hitch today and noticed that on the shank it said 14,000 GTW and1,400 TW and I purchased a 12,000 1,200 lbs hitch. My tt when loaded is under 8,000 lbs so we decided that a 12,000 lb hitch would work best. so my ? is. Is this in fact a 14,000 lb hitch or not and is this a good thing or a bad thing? Is to much hitch bad or better? should I go back and get what I bought or keep this one and everything will be fine. Any help would be appreciated . I can't understand why they just can't get anything right Its not like they didn't charge me for this.

[raspivey]

Look at the rating on the bars (not real familiar with Equilizer, but it should be noted somewhere). The trailer weight isn't the problem, the bar rating for tongue weight is. To answer your question, too much hitch is just as bad as not enough regarding WDH. If the bars are too stiff they won't flex like they should. At under 8000 lbs, I doubt you're 1200 lbs up front. If you're only a few hundred pounds under the rating on the bars with regard to tongue weight I wouldn't worry too much. Under, let's say 800 lbs up front when loaded, I'd personally look at the smaller hitch.

[HIDE OUT]

ok just checked my bars and they do say 1200lbs tw. do you think they are to stiff or would they be alright . Dealer said that size hitch would be fine when I questioned them on what size I needed. Don't know if I can trust their opinion sense they couldn't even measure right.

[acadianbob]

Your tongue weight has to be at least 800 pounds I would think. What are the trailer specifications? And remember that is DRY weight not wet. I bet you are just fine with 1,200 lb bars.

[HIDE OUT]

Dry is 6235 tw is 560

[raspivey]

That'll probably put you somewhere in the high 700 - low 800 lb. TW range loaded. While I personally would look for something in the 800 - 1000 lb bar range, you could probably get by with the 1200. Make sure it's adjusted right then hook it up and see if it pulls OK for you.

[Twisty]

See how it rides and handles.
Softer bars could lead to that porpoising feeling.
I don't like it and I like stiffer bars.
The 1400/14000 shank is standard. The dealer only needs to stock one part number to cover everybody. I had one for my popup.

[HIDE OUT]

Thanks guys for all the help . will be leaving Thursday to give it a good test on how it drives hope its better than my last set up for some reason my Reese duel cam was giving me to much sway with my new truck (F150 Eco boost max tow) all last season and this year after trying to dial it in with no success I decided to get new set up Hope it works also may need to get LT tires.

[thebrakeman]

The shank is a standard part. 6k, 10k, 12k, 14k, I think it's the same 2" shank. It's the head and bars that are different for each size (although I think the 10k and 12k heads are common).

8000 lb trailer = TW between 800 (10%) and 1200 (15%). If you were purchasing new, and asking advice, I'd steer you to the 1200. Chances are you are very close to 1000 lbs TW. You probably could use the 10k unit, but 12k is perfectly fine.

For reference, many of us with lightweight hybrids have TW in the 700 lb range. Equalizer does not make an 800 lbs unit, so we get the 10k package. No problems here!! When you are in-between sizes on WDH kits, it's always advised to go bigger, not smaller. It will run just fine, plus you likely won't need to upgrade the hitch if/when you upgrade your trailer.