Hello All,
I just picked up our new to us 2004 Jayco Jayfeathher 25G with a gvwr of 5800 - 25 feet long
I am using the following WDH setup
http://www.adventurerv.net/reese-pro-series-weight-distribution-system-friction-sway-control-750-p-29421.html
The dealer set it up for me and it worked great on the ride home for 50 miles, on highways and 2 lane roads.
I told them that I would install the friction sway control when I got home but the dealer said not to bother as a properly setup WDH will have minimal if any sway, and a friction sway control is a pain as it needs to be taken off when backing up(?) etc.
There was not any real sway on my way home, and now I'm not sure if I should install it. I have it already as it came with the WDH so its no extra cost to me. Just wondering if the added sway control (that I may not even need) is worth it
BTW, my tow vehicle is a 2000 Toyota Land Cruiser.
A sway control is not supposed to be used to control sway on a rig that is not behaving correctly due to improper loading, setup, or construction. A trailer that is built correctly and loaded and set up properly with a good hitch should not normally sway.
A sway control is necessary, in my opinion, for that day that may come along when you have to swerve to avoid a collision, or when you may run off onto the shoulder, or are coming down a mountain and have to brake or slow down on a curve. These are the situations where you may need one and if you don't have it, it is too late to get it!
My advice - You already have it, use it!
Barney
2004 Sunnybrook Titan 30FKS TT
Hensley "Arrow" 1400# hitch
2002 Ford F250 Super Duty, 7.3L PSD Visit our website here
Your hitch is NOT likely to be the cause or cure for sway situations. They are much more often cased by alignment problems, or incorrect tires, low pressure on tires, improper weight balance in the trailer, broken suspension parts etc. I've never HEARD of sway being caused by an improperly set up WD system. I think the dealer was blowing smoke up your pantleg. ANY of the conditions mentioned above could occur at any time for a variety of reasons and once your trailer begins to sway it a VERY bad time to be installing a sway dampener. Install it ALWAYS and tighten the handle as tight as it will go.
Good luck / Skip
I believe that all manufacturers of friction bars recommend they be removed when backing but as long as you are accurate and don't over compress the bar or over extend the bar by turning too sharp they don't need to be removed.
2011 F-150 HD Ecoboost 3.5 V6. 2550 payload, 17,100 GCVWR - 2004 F-150 HD (Traded after 80,000 towing miles) 2007 Rockwood 8314SS 34' travel trailer
US Govt survey shows three out of four people make up 75% of the total population
IMHO... Adding the sway control is a good measure.
What it will do is "tighten up" the connection between the TV and the TT. This creates an amount of "holding power" that the TT or must overcome before it starts swaying.
Mostly it helps with the "wiggle" from passing vehicles..
I like for a passing vehicle to push on my entire rig, not just the TT.
I went from Single friction, to dual friction control, eventually to dual cam sway control.
Now passing vehicles, simply pass me. There is no wiggle from the TT now, there is still a push from passing vehicles, but being slowly overtaken by a semi is no longer a white knuckle experience.
With that said, Dual friction sway control was pretty stable and secure on the interstate.
However, a properly set up WD hitch, TV and TT should not naturally sway.
Add on sway control helps do two things
1) tightens up the connection between the TV and the TT
2) Helps you maintain control when the unexpected comes. (Big pressure wake from a Semi or big RV traveling in excess of 80 mph, sudden wind gust, Evasive maneuver, ETC.)
There is probably much more that I am leaving out.
In other words, it is better to have it than to not
Kind of the same reason I went to a proportional brake controller. The time based unit worked great under ideal conditions (gradual stop) but almost any other time (95%) it was not matched properly for the conditions.
Thanks!
Jeremiah
TT: 1995 Layton 2910
Tow Vehicle: 1999 F-350, v10, 2wd, Crew Cab, Dually
Hitch: Draw-Tite Trunnion WD Hitch
Sway Control: Valley dual friction sway control
Brake Control: Tekonsha Voyager
"It's Kind of Fun To Do The Impossible"
~Walt Disney~
Yes you need sway control. Yes friction types are a pain as they should be removed when backing. That is why Equalizer and Reese Dual Cam are so nice. Sway control built in and need not be removed for backing.
Have friends who RV'd for years with no sway control. Then one day they were coming down a hill, in a crosswind, when a big semi blew by (those are worst case conditions for causing sway by the way). They lost it, rolled TV and TT many times leaving pieces over all lanes, blocking them all. Fortunately nobody was coming, and neither of them suffered major injuries.
You know you needed it about one minute after you REALLY NEEDED IT.
Chuck
Wonderful Wife
Australian Shepherd
2010 Ford Expedition TV
2010 Outback 230RS Toybox, 5390# UVW, 6800# Loaded Not yet camped in Hawaii, 2 Canada Provinces, & 2 Territories I can't be lost because I don't care where this lovely road is going
I would recommend the sway control for all the above resons. As far as removing when backing in over 50 years of towing I have never removed the sway bar, and I have towed TT from 12 ft long up to 34 ft. I even use a sway bar on my enclosed Hallmark MC trailer and cargo trailer
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