The first and last vehicle I hauled with this trailer caused quite a bit of squat that kept me on edge for several hundred miles. With the prospect of many more such vehicles to move from Georgia to Florida, I decided that a load leveler would be a good investment. So I ordered Harbor Freight’s 10K weight distributing hitch.



This is what FedEx initially delivered to me. This is not the usual Harbor Freight packaging. All of the critically important small parts escaped from this hole in the box. If only boxes could talk and tell us what happened. I’ll bet that this would be an interesting story.




There was no styrofoam or anything else in the box to keep these very heavy pieces (85 lb) from moving around and destroying the box and each other. It’s a wonder that I got anything at all. Harbor Freight was quite gracious in correcting this. They sent me a new one and arranged for the return shipping of the incomplete unit at no cost to me. FedEx even picked it up at my residence.




The second one came in the regular Harbor Freight packaging, again via FedEx. Still, the box arrived with a hole in it.




At least this one had some formed styrofoam packaging to keep these parts from beating each other up and escaping from the box. This one was only missing the chains and U-bolts for the spring bars which came in a sealed bag with the original shipment. So that whole bag must have gotten out of this shipment via that hole in the box. So between the two shipments all parts are now finally present and accounted for. The remnants were shipped back to Harbor Freight.




Mocking everything up went smoothly until I got to the connection brackets that connect the spring bars to the hitch.




The assumption in the design of this system was that the trailer tongue would be a simple > shape. Not so with my Hooper trailer.




Here is the configuration that actually has to be worked with. The connection bracket cannot encompass both of these frame members. Modification of these connection brackets will be necessary.




First off I removed the part of the connection bracket preventing its being mounted properly. This way I can mock things up so that further modifications can be designed and implemented.




The bracket has two holes not mentioned in the manual so I figured that I can use them as part of the alternate mounting system that I am developing. Using the bracket as a template, I started two holes in the frame which is 3/8” thick at this point. A 5/16” hole was drilled and a 3/8-16 tap was used to thread the hole for 3/8” bolts.




This should be a good location for the connection brackets. It’s not as adjustable as the original design so I had to be very careful in locating it on the frame. The chains that attach the connection bracket with the spring bars are supposed to be straight up and down for the hitch to work properly.




The question at this point is what to do with this part of the bracket. Handling a significant downward force without allowing the bracket to rotate away from the frame. Those two 3/8” bolts on the connection bracket may not be sufficient.




Mocking everything up confirms that the connection bracket is in the right place. The chains for the spring bars are straight up and down as they are supposed to be. The next step is to strengthen that connection bracket.




The first step in strengthening the connection bracket is to cut the excess material off as shown here. That excess metal was straightened and ground more or less flat. It will be used to create a lip to hold the connection bracket against the edge of the channel iron that forms this part of the frame.




Here is that lip piece held in position with magnets prior to tack welding.




After tack welding the lip piece in place on the trailer frame, I move to a better fixture to do the finish welding.




Final welding is done and …




… ground down a little for appearance sake.




A bit of paint and we’re ready to tackle final assembly and measurements.




Both sides are bolted in place and ready for final assembly, measurements and testing.




As per the instructions I used the jack to raise both trailer and truck about 3” before attaching the spring arms as shown here. Lowering them leaves this connection really taught. Note the retaining pin.




I had to lower the hitch by flipping it upside-down so that the tail gate of the truck could be fully lowered. Here is the new set-up.




The original jack would not allow the tailgate to be lowered. This was corrected by removing the old jack and replacing it with a drop leg unit. Thus, I did not want the weight distributing hitch project to undo the achievements of the drop leg jack project. My original guess as to the proper height of the hitch was too high. So, now, there is room to spare with the tailgate fully lowered..




So here is the whole package. I believe that this is going to be pretty close to the final configuration.




The trailer is separated from the truck and the hitch is all greased up. Those bolts will have to be torqued to 260 ft/lb but my big torque wrench is in Georgia so I sent off for a new one. That 1/2” torque wrench is only capable of 150 ft/lb so that will have to do for now.




I’m going to have yet another redundant tool when the big trailer ball wrench gets here. It is 1-1/8” X 1-1/2” and 18-3/8 “ long. I have one in Georgia but not here in Florida. When I was in the military they called that a 6 Ps problem. BTW, those tiny little pegs that hold onto the spring bars are a little finicky. One of them got misaligned and then dropped to the floor. This was easy to deal with in the shop but out in the big wide world that could be a serious problem. Maybe I should pack a magnet in the trailer toolbox.




The manual suggests taking measurements of the vehicle front and back both before and after attaching the trailer to the weight distributing hitch. Here we see that the rear bumper is 21.5” before and …




… the front is 35” before attaching the trailer to the weight distributing hitch.




After attaching the trailer to the weight distributing hitch, the rear measurement changes to 20.5” and …




… the front remains at 35” which isn’t much of a change. Perhaps this is because the trailer is not loaded. I should repeat these measurements after putting something heavy on the trailer. Thus, I’m calling it done for now.

 

Great write up!

I'm often hesitant with Harbor Freight stuff, and never bought a hitch from them before. Does Haul Master have a good reputation yet?

 

Great write up and great adaptation of what I would consider a kit sub-optimal to the task. Can-do!

Do please give us your impression of the kit in use and/or longevity. I have bought plenty of HF tools. Some are suited to purpose, others not so much.

 

Thank you.
I expect to use this trailer and hitch in the next month or so hauling a full sized truck loaded with stuff from my place in Georgia to Florida. That's about 350 miles each way. I will report back here after that is done.
My impression of this unit was generally positive. It's all heavy steel welded together in a workman like manner. HF has embarked on broadening its tool selection with new brand names that I suppose reflect a higher level of quality. So you can buy a wrench by Pittsburg or Icon, the latter being more expensive and presumably tougher.
So, we'll see.

 

You seem like the expert I need! I have a 2017 F250 and am looking to buy a 14' enclosed trailer and am making multiple trips moving my personal stuff to Alabama from Chicago....I just bought the BW Stow and Go 3 ball hitch. I don't plan on packing the trailer modestly and not overpacking...do I need a weight distribution setup instead of what I purchased?

 

Let us know how your WDH setup works. HF isn't a brand I'd want to use for a WDH personally, as normally you get what you pay for but interested to see how well it works.

 

No. Your 14' trailer probably has 3500lb axles and a 7,000lb gvwr. As long as you load it correctly there is no need for a WDH on a trailer that small. I've towed thousands of miles with my 95 F350 pulling my 14' enclosed trailer on just a ball without any issues. Even in 40mph winds.

 

Sir...thank you for the prompt response...I really appreciate it. That makes me feel a whole lot better....have a great day.

 

I successfully trailered a '98 Windstar w/o the WDH and a '76 F-100 with WHD about 600 miles but am still learning. Balance is still important but the WHD does help. The HF branding doesn't seem to be a factor but I did weld the part that attaches to the trailer instead of relying on the supplied bolt.

 

Would you be just as confident with a 16'? Having a hard time locating a decent 14' in the area....Thanks again....

 

Yes, I would with it behind a modern F-250, like your ‘17. The 16’ is still a 7,000lb GVWR, correct?

 

Yes sir...

 

I don't know of many WDH that would fit that trailer frame situation. The Andersen might be able to fit in the area after the two frame beams split. It's a little more forgiving with regard to the distance you can place the trailer frame part. You could even shorten the chain on the Andersen to put the frame mount forward of where the two frame beams come together.

 

You are now The Haul Master... To me that hitch looks nearly identical to the one from Curt that I've had for several years. I use it with my tilt deck utility trailer and it has taken some experimentation to know what setting to use depending on the size of the load that I'm hauling. Trailer alone, hook in end link. Small tractor with implement up one link. Larger heavier(8000lb) tractor up 2 links. Works great and the advantage to having the weight distributing setup is that it allows you to place the center of mass of the trailer farther forward without excessively changing the ride heights of the tow vehicle. Keeping the rear end up and more importantly, the front end down.