Ditchdoc
Western North Carolina
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Joined: 04/08/2008
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Hi all, I have been lurking for a while. I have been wanting to get a TT for years now but my wife was against the idea. I just recently talked my wife into going on a vacation and borrowing my brothers TT and going to the beach for a week in it  . Well to make a long story short we ordered a Wildwood 27BHBS and it should be ready soon.
My question is how hard is it to install the Equal-I-zer hitch system yourself? I am pretty handy with tools and stuff, I have just never been around trailer hitches that much. The dealer wants $100 to install the hitch if they do it. I was trying to save a little money if it was possible.
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Humpty
Clayton, NC
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Joined: 04/20/2006
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Not hard at all. Go for it!
The only problem you may have is installing the ball onto the hitch head. I believe it takes a 'special' thin wall socket.
2007 Challenger 33DBB w/ Sidewinder
2002 Chevy 3500 CC DRW D/A
B&W Companion Hitch / Prodigy
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2manytoyz
Central FL
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Joined: 06/16/2002
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First, watch the installation video on their website. Makes the installation much easier. It took me about an hour. I wasn't in a rush, and tried a couple of settings before getting the measurements where I wanted.
No special tools are needed, EXCEPT for the socket as previously mentioned. I did order my Equalizer hitch through RVW, and they installed the ball for me, which saved the day. The nut for the ball is in a recessed portion of the hitch, making it impossible to use a wrench. You must use a socket. I eventually bought the right sized socket at Northern Tool.
This is definitely a DIY project.
Robert
Cocoa, FL
2007 Rockwood TT 2502
Equalizer Hitch
Prodigy Brake Controller
2005 Nissan Xterra
2006 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited
Yamaha EF2400iS
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davidj54
South Alabama
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Joined: 06/23/2006
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My experience mimics 2manytoyz. Took me about an hour and I had to add more washers than recommended. Might take all of two hours if you're really slow. I bought my hitch from RVW too and they installed the ball, but many have had truck or trailer shops install it for them. Definitely something you can do yourself and you'll know it's done correctly.
Dodge Ram 2500 Mega Cab (Yeah, it's got a Cummins)
2006 Forest River Grand Surveyor GS-280
Prodigy Brake Controller
1000/10000lb Equal-i-zer with 4-way sway control
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camsa5
Canada
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Joined: 01/20/2007
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One EQ hitch, One good friend, One hour and One case of beer afterwards. That was a good time. Definitely save yourself the $100 and DIY.
- 2004 Chevy Astro
- 2007 1272ST Coachmen Clipper
- Equal-i-zer 600
- Me, Wife & 5 kids
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vanman250
Indiana
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Joined: 01/21/2004
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Watch the video. If you call the trailer manufacturer they can tell you the hitch height and if you fallow the instructions you can set the hitch up close enough to get the trailer home then do you fine adjustments. That's what I did but the dealer said they would set it up for me. The had it so wrong it was unbelievable they didn't even have the L brackets in the holes they went between. If they had left it alone it would had been fine. From setting it up as the directions said I was 1 washer off which is no big deal towing empty. As for the ball I tightened the nut as far as I could then put a pipe wrench on the base of the ball and tightened it that way still tight. I got that idea from someone here that had done the something a few years ago and it never came loose. To answer you question it's very easy to setup and install. If you can read and know which end of a wrench to use you can do it.
vanman250
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Ditchdoc
Western North Carolina
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Joined: 04/08/2008
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Thanks for the advise, I guess I am going to be ordering one and doing it myself.
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ttstansfield
tulsa
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Joined: 01/30/2006
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It is a piece of cake to install. You can even get around the ball hitch nut problem. Not sure if it is entirely the "right" thing to do, but I just jammed the handle of a wrench down the side of the recessed nut, and tightened from the ball end...it has a squared off base to the ball so you can do this with a regular wrench.
Tony
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KC8WX
OH IO
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Joined: 12/23/2007
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I pre-assembled as much as I could at home on a table, then I had the Dealer watch me do the rest when I picked the trailer up. (they sold Reese). They did Torque the Ball for me using the Thinwall Socket and Breaker Bar that I had picked up at Tractor Supply Co.
I just removed the head at a campground two weekends ago and added three more washers for a total of 8 instead of the usual 5. Just used Standard Sockets to do that. Pretty easy to work with really.
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2006 Durango SLT 4.7L, 545RFE, 4.10 Motive Gears with TracLoc 2WD AIRAID Cold Air Intake, PML Deep Tranny Pan, KYB Shocks
2007 Wildwood LE 27RB
Equalizer Hitch
Prodigy Brake Controller
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Chuck&Gail
In the Colorado Mountains
Senior Member
Joined: 06/16/2004
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IMO get someone in a truck repair place to put on the ball. The socket is the easy part. A 450 ft pound (as I recall) torque wrench is the hard bit. Lots of folks use prayer, I prefer a torque wrench. Everything ELSE is simple.
Chuck
Wonderful Wife
Lovely German Shepherd.
1999 Mercedes ML320 TV
2003 Wanderer 187TB Toybox (3620# UVW, 4800# loaded)
Not yet camped in Hawaii, 4 Canada Provinces, & 2 Territories.
I can't be lost because I don't care where this lovely road is going
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