proper weight distribution

[hawki8624]

I have a 2015 chevy colorado z71 with the towing package of 7000 pounds and 1500 pound payload. My new microlite 21fbrs is under 3800 pounds dry. the dealer set up my hitch with 2 links left at end of chain on wd bars. it is a bouncy ride. I tried with 3 links left at end of chain and it seemed better. is there a way to fix the bounce or is it normal. the roads were not perfect and it is mainly at slower speeds. I got it weighed but don't have numbers with me. Thank you for help

[MtnGuy]

If you have already weighed it with the truck solo, trailer attached, and then trailer attached with the WDH spring bars in place, those figures would help here.

The other way to tell if the WDH is setup correctly is to take both front and rear fender measurements with the trailer unhitched and then hitched up........without moving the truck.

A picture of the setup is always good.

The links left hanging is not as important at the links used between the spring bars and snap up bracket. Many manufacturers state a minimum, so that the bars have plenty of "swing".

[bluewoo]

The front end should be the same height loaded and unloaded is a good start.
My set up for example no camper Frt end 36 1/2 inches and with camper @ 37 inches without WDH and using 3 links the frt is back to 36 1/2 inches.

[aceinspp]

Install some Timbren subbers in rear will reduce the bounce and also more stabization for sway. Cheap and easy to install. Later RJD

[hawki8624]

so if I get distribution perfect will that eliminate bouncing or should I expect some?

[youroo]

You will always have some bounce,this is the way suspension works! Youroo!!

[hawki8624]

so if i go to the scales and set it up with getting weights with and with out trailer would I need to be prepared to adjust ball height on hitch or would the chains be all the adjustment I need? if so what torque do I torque them back to? I noticed I have two holes in the shank of my hitch (the part that goes into truck receiver) I have it in at the furthest in position, would having at the other hole(further out of truck) help any?

Sorry for the dumb questions I just want to be safe for my trip to Ohio at the end of the month. It has been decent to pull on the 3 local trips so far but just worried about the 8 hour drive. Thank you for the help

[MtnGuy]

Originally Posted by hawki8624

so if i go to the scales and set it up with getting weights with and with out trailer would I need to be prepared to adjust ball height on hitch or would the chains be all the adjustment I need?

You stated in your 1st post that you already had it weighed ??

If you need to weigh it, make sure you weigh the truck without the trailer ( you can usually drop the trailer in the scale lot), truck and trailer with the spring bars in place, and truck and trailer without the spring bars in place. Make sure all cargo and passengers are in the same position each time. When using a sectioned scale, make sure each TV axle is on a separate section, and the trailer axles are on another section.

If the trailer is riding level, the ball height will probably not need to be adjusted. However, the head assembly may need to be adjusted to keep the minimum links of chain used between the spring bars and snap up brackets. If major adjustments are needed, then you may have adjust the ball height once you get the weight distributed correctly.

Originally Posted by hawki8624

However, the if so what torque do I torque them back to?

The torque specs should be in your WDH manual.

Originally Posted by hawki8624

I noticed I have two holes in the shank of my hitch (the part that goes into truck receiver) I have it in at the furthest in position, would having at the other hole(further out of truck) help any?

Probably not. Extending the shank might even give you a worse ride.

Originally Posted by hawki8624

Sorry for the dumb questions I just want to be safe for my trip to Ohio at the end of the month. It has been decent to pull on the 3 local trips so far but just worried about the 8 hour drive. Thank you for the help

Good Luck !!

[prof_fate]

Is tounge weight right? Too little will cause bouncing as the tt rocks back and forth on it's axle in stead of always 'leaning' on the truck.

truck WB is also a factor. we moved from an expedition to a 4door pickup, added nearly 24" to the WB of the TV, changed nothing else and it made a big improvement in the ride.

also, what tires are on the TV? Properly inflated? P rated tires vs E rated will bounce more (less air, 4 ply vs 10 ply sidewalls)

[hawki8624]

I weighed it with the whole thing hooked up with the wdh. so I will probably just get all three done with the dw this weekend. Thank you

[Krawler]

Good video on setting it up.

http://youtu.be/ymcB2yeZr4s


Jim

[aceinspp]

Eliminating bounce is taking up the slack in the area of the spring distance to axle with the factory snubber you have excessive clearance causing more bounce. Add the Timbren snubbers and now no excessive clearance and reduced bounce. Later RJD

[hawki8624]

so I took the rv to get more weights today. I got 4
1) truck only
front axel 2900
rear axel 2100
gross weight 5000

2) no wdh
front axel 2680
rear axel 2900
trailer axel 9200
gross weight 9200

3) wdh with 3 links loose (more distribution)
front 2940
rear 2500
trailer 3740
gross 9180 (not sure how I lost 20 pounds)

4) 2 links left (less distribution how dealer set up)
front 2800
rear 2700
trailer 3680
gross 9180

I did notice that with my trailer level that My ball sits about an inch or so above the top of trailer tongue

[thebrakeman]

1. What is your loaded TW?
2. What is the rating on your WDH?
I assume that #2 is greater than #1.
But if these 2 numbers are too close together, the WD bars are too easily flexed, and this can lead to that bouncy ride (known as "porpoising", as it's the center coupler area that is actually bouncing up and down from those "spring" bars).

I had this problem when I was using a 400 lbs rated WDH to tow our previous popup camper at 375 lbs TW. I needed the WDH because we were using a minivan. Crank it down hard enough to get the loading right, and it was bouncy. Don't crank it down enough, and the front loading was too light. The solution was to lighten the TW a good bit, and rely on the friction sway controller. Not a great solution, but it worked.

[OldCoot]

I would add air bags that you can control in lieu of Timbrens where you have no control.

[hawki8624]

My wdh is rated at 15000 lbs and 1500 tw
The only tw I have is that I was going off of what is transferred to truck. Which would be around 460. Which is a little over 10% of the 4200 trailer loaded.

[Happy Vibe]

I would say that wdh is too big for that trailer. The bars are going to be so stiff that the back of the truck is not going to move much.

[DaveSchwartz]

If the spring bars are as oversized as the hitch, that's probably correct. What is the rating (weight range) on them?... there should be a sticker. Probably can exchange those and keep the hitch (which you can use with your next, bigger TT).

[hawki8624]

Thanks I will have to look at the bars this weekend when I go to take the trailer out of storage. Last weekend trip before leaving for our 8 hour trip.

[asquared]

I would add a little more weight to the front of your trailer as you are at about a 12% tongue weight. Ideal is 13-15% and with the bouncing a bit more will help. As stated above if you have 1500 lb bars, they are way too big. I would get a 600/6000 lb bars. If not made for your brand (what wdh do you have?) then get 800/8000 lb bars. This will help. The p rated tires do have more flex but I would change them after you try fixing the hitch. When adjusting your wdh, you want your drop to have your trailer level when hooked up. Remember the rear will drop a little on the truck so measure front and rear on the trailer after hooking up. If high in the front then lower the drop shank. If slightly lower in front that is ok but not significantly lower in front and not higher in front. The idea with the wdh and adjusting by weight is to get your front axle as close to unloaded weight as possible without going heavier than unloaded weight. You may find the following links helpful.

travel trailer hitch set up procedure
wdh, how it works