Yeah, what he said. My post is aimed at using weight distribution hitch for weight distribution. I was trying to give you the contingency plan if you are unable to get your weight bars to work correctly on your truck since you have an unusual ride height.

All I've ever used for sway control is a friction bar. I guess I'm confused, I didn't realize you were trying to solve the weight bar issue and sway control in this thread. My bad.

I do contend that using air bags does in fact bring some weight back to the front wheels though. Not to the degree those hitch bars do, but it's not nothing. Using air bags to raise the rear of the vehicle back to original height does in fact bring the nose of the vehicle back down to original height as well, which does compress the coil springs, thus returning the lost weight in the nose. The only difference is, the bags don't act as a lever pushing more weight front. So the bags return the vehicle weight to normal but don't further add any weight. They just bring you back to ground zero, if you will.

 

I"m using an equal-i-zer 1200 lb. I purchased it with my trailer, and I don't recall what I paid (pathetic I know). I had an F150 at the time, and it made towing the 7000 lb trailer with the 1/2 ton safe. Now, with the F350, I probably don't "need the WD as the back doesn't drop much, but the sway control is worth it. It's nice and solid in cross winds, and semi wash. Setting up the equal-i-zer is a little tricky with washers to add/remove, and height adjustments on the head, tongue brackets etc. but the RV dealer did it for free on my new truck since I bought the hitch from them. Once properly set, it's awesome. Peace of mind for me.

I'll finish by saying make sure the tongue weight on your trailer is close to 12-15% of the trailer weight. Very important, and this can eliminate sway all by itself believe it or not. Good luck.

 

Equal-iz-er brand sized appropriate is true 4 way sway control and weight distribution and is really the best until you go up to Hensley types. But same as the problem the OP is having is my experience is leave the ball lock on and lift the back of hte truck with the tongue jack so there is NO pressure on the L brackets to either take the bars off or put them on. Dont ever use the pry bar, its to hard on your back and 1000 or 1200 or ? pound bars are too hard to move a significant amount. I find even if hooking up on uneven ground or from an angle, I will move so the truck is straight, flat as possible before I do this, saves a lot of cussin and what not. I have been towing with my 1000, 10,000 for 8 years and it is a great hitch. Yes, I use with a SD F-350 and it may be overkill, but it doesnt matter how its loaded, what tanks are full and empty, it tows perfect.

 

So I went out to the RV to get it inspected so I could transfer the title. While the inspector was doing his thing, I spent some time looking at the hitch. Something didn't look right. The dealership I purchased it from had installed it as part of the sale. What I noticed was that the weight distribution spring bars on the hitch were resting at near the end of the L brackets on the trailer. I'm surprised I didn't notice how close they sat to the end of the spring bars. This concerned me and I decided to see how much the bar slides when I made a sharp turn. When leaving the inspector i made a relatively sharp turn into another street and stopped midway. I was SHOCKEd to see that the spring bar had almost slid completely off the L Bracket. It only had about 3/4" still resting on the Bracket. I could only imagine the problems had it become wedged In front of the retainer clip or even the L bracket. I discovered they did this because they didn't even attempt to install the brackets In front of the battery tray. They were being lazy. The L brackets were supposed to be between 24-27" from the center of the coupler. They were 29" away. Aftering moving them to In front of the battery, they now sit at 24.5". Angry but relieved .

Here are some pictures takes before and after I moved the brackets.

 

Glad you caught that before you had any troubles Justin...

I would think that closer to the end of the bar would be better, but certainly not so close that you'd come disconnected in a tight turn or over a dip!

 

Hmm, glad you caught that. It's been about 12 years since I've messed with that stuff, back in my day there were just chains on the springs and a hook on the trailer frame. They moved around pretty easy, I wonder why they changed?

 

I bought mine in 2012 and it uses chains too. My setup uses a friction brake between the trailer frame and the hitch for sway control BTW.

 

They use the bracketsfor both sway control (through the friction created when the spring bars rub the metal L brackets) and also weight distribution.

 

I have had the air bags on my last two trucks and have not had to take my weight dist. hitch out of the shed since then. I had both the firestone and air lift brands and found the air lifts work better then the firestones, but they harder to install but center the weight over the springs better. They are well worth the 4 or 5 hundred bucks, just keep the lines separate to prevent sway. I could put 3 or 4 thousand pounds in the bed of the truck or pull my 12,000 lb. boat with no problem. If you are going to keep the truck for a while they would be a good investment. I do use my truck for work and carry a lot of weight all the time.

 

Cause this has dual side action built in and is easier to setup. But the bars on the brackets and u are done.

Fewer parts too

 

For what it is worth. I recently switched from a tension bar based WD to an Anderson No Sway ED Hitch. I really honestly think this Anderson Hitch is a much better design for WD as well as No Sway.

Andersen 'No-Sway' Weight Distribution Hitch

 

I too have looked closely at this hitch. I've read all sorts of complaints about the rubber urethane sleeve around the hitch ball wearing out and causing big problems when towing larger TTs. Also heard that the triangle plate sometimes doesn't shift back and causes a chain to go slack while towing. Also hear that the weight distribution isn't as effective. The product itself seams way over priced for what you get. What have been your experience?

 

I remember when the Reese dual cam sway/weight hitch came out and it was supposed to be the best of both worlds. Is it still around? I haven't seen one but I think it used the leverage of tongue weight against trailer sway, so, the more weight distribution you set into it, the firmer the geometry of the arms would hold.

 

I have used the hitch for about 4 months now with 2 500+ mile trips. I do see a huge improvement in using this hitch than the Haul Master WD tension bar setup. I have a 26' Ellipse Attitude Toyhauler. Loaded is around 11k. I have issues with sway on this trailer but this hitch really has controlled it. I can't say there is never sway but totally controlled it and limited the sway to a minimum.

As for the sleeve (brake liner) they have a new liner out now that they will replace for free if you call and request it. The liners are free for a lifetime. The one that I understand was an issue was the red liner. They have since replaced that with a new type and it is black. So if you have the red liner, you can get it replaced for free. I am a true believer in this Anderson No-Sway Hitch. It has allowed me to not have a white knuckle drive each time we go camping.

I have never had the chains go slack once I add tension to them with the socket they provide. The triangle plate turns appropriately and the chains stay tight.

I purchased it on Amazon for $392 as an open box order. When it arrived, the box appeared to have never been opened and all contents were in perfect condition.

I hope this helps....

 

After speaking with the regional sales manager for Anderson,I decided that hitch isn't for me. He told me thatfor some reason it doesn't work on some trailers and that it is really designed for trailers with the wheels behind the center point (no idea why).

I ordered a Equilizer 12k hitch from etrailer.com. should be in mid next week.