Badstang79 wrote: I'm definitely going to have to get it weighed next time I'm hooked up. So general theory would be add a washer or two to the back to increase angle on the head unit thus putting more weight to the front?..if I figured correctly?
Correct. By making the angle sharper (i.e. tilt back towards your trailer) you're changing the angle at which your bars hang when chains are down, and adding more distance between the chain end of the bar and the hooks on the tongue. This means that you will end up with more links to play with and the option to really ratchet down on the bars to bring the front of the truck down.
Don't forget to raise your truck & trailer using the tongue jack before you ratchet those chains, it really helps in getting as many links as you can and eases the amount of force you have to use with the snap-up bar.
Sit down with a drink, a note pad and watch this video a couple times. A very good explanation on setting up a WD hitch correctly. It's not rocket science once you get the ah-ha moment.
eric james wrote: Sit down with a drink, a note pad and watch this video a couple times. A very good explanation on setting up a WD hitch correctly. It's not rocket science once you get the ah-ha moment. Click here
I agree there is some good information in the video. But, IMO, there are some statements which should be disregarded.
For example:
etrailer.com wrote: ---Ideally we want to have about a 1/2 inch of sag overall and the rear measurement should not sag more than 1/2 inch.
I disagree. IMO, the front should not "sag" at all. And, a rear-end sag of up to 2" is normal and acceptable for some TVs
Quote: ---Looks like the back wheel is 36 and the front wheel is 35.---Now we will take the tension off of the jack and let the bars do all the work and check our measurements. Go ahead and measure here 35-1/2. About a 1/2 inch difference which is just fine. Then 35-1/4 which is pretty close. The rear was okay but the front did not settle like it was suppose too, in fact it went up just a little bit.---
Quote: ---With adjusting it one more notch down and we have gained about an 1/8th of an inch overall in front which is fine. Then on the back we settled it about a 1/2 inch. So a load is being distributed across the vehicle and trailer.---
So, in spite of their original specification of "1/2 inch of sag overall", they have settled for a front-end rise of about 1/8" and a rear-end squat of about 1/2".
It is very important to note the tow vehicle in the etrailer.com video is an E-350 van. That's a "1-ton" vehicle. It's not surprising there was only 1/2" of rear-end sag.
However, that does not mean all tow vehicles will have only 1/2" of rear-end sag when towing a properly-sized trailer with a properly-adjusted WDH. For many TV/TT combinations, attempting to achieve only 1/2" of rear end sag will result in too much load being transferred to the TV's front axle.
IMO, you should adjust the WDH so the TV's front height is returned to or slightly above the unhitched height. If you get the front end right, the rear will take care of itself.
The LEVELING KIT is going to force you to have some sag in the rear. If you try to ratchet up the WD system to remove the sag, you will put WAY TOO MUCH weight on the front axle, and WAY TOO MUCH stress on the receiver and WD bars.
When adjusting the WD hitch, you need to return the front fender to UNHITCHED height. Wherever the rear end is at at that point, is where it will be. Any more than that will cause damage.
I hate to say this, but the only way to get the rear end back up is with airbags.
Even with the airbags, you still need the WD hitch to push the front end back down to unhitched height.
2002 Chevy 3500 DRW 8.1L/Allison
2000 Palomino B1500
...and the reason why I need a DRW to haul a Palomino:
2004 United 7x14 tandem axle enclosed toy trailer
2011 PJ 8x20 7-ton deckover equipment trailer
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