We made our first maiden voyage out with our new camper (Jayco eagle 298RES) over Easter weekend. This was our first time out actually towing a camper fully loaded. We always had a permanent site since 1995 but gave it up to travel. We went to a campground (Evergreen Resort in Dundee Ohio -- an amazing place) about 80 miles away to give a test run. No problems pulling down the highway and back country roads going to the park and they were hilly for Ohio. We check in and back up into our site. After setting up I realize my electric cord wasn't long enough to hookup. So a Wal-Mart was only 15 miles away. The weekend went great only surprise was the kitchen sink drain pipe leak, but an easy fix.
Now for the drive home winds really pick up avg. 12-16 mph with gust up to 20-25 mph all west winds and was traveling north 90 % of the way. Trailer pulled pretty well but did have a few good sways from the wind gust. My question is I have a Husky sway on both sides of tongue is their anything else I can due to help reduce sway when wind is bad? The camper did sway and return fairly quickly to center. Is it typically to get sway with alot winds? I know once the wind was at my back side I didn't have any sway at all plus when we traveled to the campground I had no sway but also very little wind.
Ron3rd wrote: Jared,
I think your setup is fine and you don't need another wd hitch. The wind is the enemy of all of us no matter what setup you've got. 20-25 mph gusts will certainly get the attention of anybody, so don't worry about it. Just make sure your WD Husky is properly setup, that makes a big difference. Improper setups like having too light of a tongue weight can cause tail wagging, etc. In summary, I don't think your hitch was the problem, the wind was.
I agree 100% here. Definitely make sure you are NOT light on the tongue.
Kevin
2012 Keystone Outback 312BH 10th anniversary edition
2011 Ford F-250 Super Duty Crew Cab, 6.2L
Jared,
I think your setup is fine and you don't need another wd hitch. The wind is the enemy of all of us no matter what setup you've got. 20-25 mph gusts will certainly get the attention of anybody, so don't worry about it. Just make sure your WD Husky is properly setup, that makes a big difference. Improper setups like having too light of a tongue weight can cause tail wagging, etc. In summary, I don't think your hitch was the problem, the wind was.
Small tip, when you feel the trailer move, hit the gas and tighten up the truck and trailer together. The ball fits tight into the tongue but there is still a small amount of play to allow for easy turning. You only need a short burst of speed. This tip will make towing a lot easier during the windy trips. I got this from a semi truck driver that used to haul doubles for UPS.