What weight Distribution Hitch

[jmak]

Do I go with the 1000lb or 1500lb Blue Ox Distribution Hitch?

26RBI XLite 710lb dry tongue wieght which is 12% of the dry weight of 6100lbs.

So do I stay at 12% of the max weight of 7800lb for max tongue weight of 936lb or do I do up it to 15% of the max weight of the trailer?

[BirchyBoy]

BO is nice in that you can always change the bars out if you need to. Too heavy of a bar could impact your ride quality. I'd probably go with the 1k bars, or even call BO for their advice.

[Outback 325BH]

Originally Posted by jmak

Do I go with the 1000lb or 1500lb Blue Ox Distribution Hitch?



26RBI XLite 710lb dry tongue wieght which is 12% of the dry weight of 6100lbs.



So do I stay at 12% of the max weight of 7800lb for max tongue weight of 936lb or do I do up it to 15% of the max weight of the trailer?

Bars have a "range" that they are good for. Usually the low end is 1/2 the max. The max is what is advertised.

What is the GVWR of the camper? It is common to load up and reach the GVWR. If you do, use 12-15% of GVWR.

People underestimate tongue weight a lot. I would get the 1500 bars. Anything over 750 lbs tongue weight and you will be ok.


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[xrated]

Given the two choices you mention, 1K or 1.5K bars, I would go with the 1K spring bars. I just bought a B.O. for my new trailer which has a T.W. on 1365 lbs, so naturally, I went with the 1500 lb set up.

[smpremier]

I have a 26rbpr which I believe has a 720 dry tongue weight and I went with the 1000# bars. It was a close call but loaded ready to camp my trailer weigh's 6700#.

[michael_h]

I know Blue Ox is suppose to be a good hitch but after some research I choose instead the Reese Straight Line with 1200 pound round bars though the installation is a bit intimidating over the BO. So far in my test runs I'm pleased with the choice with my new 26RBI

[sconner]

I also run the reese straight line WD system. I have never in three years experience sway. Definitely a fan.


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[busterbrown]

Blue ox hitches and other mid-level hitches all perform great under normal driving circumstances. But when you get into the longer trailers, elevations changes, and have significant cross winds, your rig is going to experience some degree of sway. Only two hitches completely eliminate sway by design and I own one of them. I started out with a Blue Ox (1000 lb bars) on my 7200 lb loaded trailer. Worked great for the first 4 short trips I towed the trailer. Then I experienced 30 mph crosswinds on a return trip from Michigan's west coast. White knuckled it all the way home. Too many trailers to count parked on the side of the road.

Thought maybe I needed 1500 lb bars. Decided to bite the bullet and invest in a hitch that functions like a 5th wheel. Never looked back. Out deer hunting with the trailer now and wind gusts were freaking crazy driving up yesterday. One finger on the wheel is all it took to keep it straight. We drove 1200 miles to Disney over the summer. The wife drove about half the way relaxed over mountains in Tennessee and Kentucky. No way in heck would I let her drive with the Blue Ox.

BTW, My Blue Ox sway pro is for sale.

[mosquitoman]

I have Blue Ox on my rig, with it set up properly and once I found the proper number of links for the weight that I tow with 1000lb bars I have almost no sway even with cross winds and passing trucks. It took a little testing, remember that you need to include the weight of items in the bed of your tv behind the rear axle.

[AV3NGER]

I upgraded from Husky friction sway control hitch to a Blue Ox Sway Pro this Summer, got sick of having to remove friction bar every time I backed up etc. I was going to get 1000lb bars, ended up getting 700lb bars. The bars need to flex to operate properly.

We completed a 10,000km trip to west coast Canada this summer with zero problems with the hitch. Love my Blue Ox Sway Pro. There are better WDH's out there, but this one is great for the value.

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[itat]

I have the 12K Equalizer 4 point hitch for my 32' long TT that weighs about 7800# fully loaded. I had the 10K Equalizer for my previous hybrid that weighed 5200# loaded. I've been very happy with the Equalizer. IMO, the only better hitches are the very pricey ProPride and Hensley hitches.

If the weights you quoted are brochure weights, add at least 1000# to get a real world weight.

[jmak]

First trip with Blue Ox did 9 chain links and was getting some pull as trucks where passing by me. So I called Blue Ox and they suggested to go up to 10 chain links. Made a huge difference and no pulling as people passed me.

Also got to drive on a very windy day. We had a front moving in when driving back on Sunday. It was 20mph winds and overall did very well. Had to keep the speed between 55-60. While I was not white knuckled the whole time there where a few times the wind would give the trailer enough sway for my wife riding passenger to feel it. I an guessing some wind gust kicking in. When this happened it was only a single quick sway and the hitch seemed to do it job and put everything back in line.

So the questions in on a windy 20mph day should I be feeling the occasional wind?

[xrated]

A little update on my Blue Ox setup. I decided that the B.O. pull up system was too much of a pain in the rear to deal with, so I bought a set of the Straptek pull ups. These make "winching" up the spring bars so much easier and you don't need to raise the truck/trailer with the tongue jack to hook up.....and you you don't need to make any adjustments when you are ready to unhook. Simply hook up to the trailer, winch up your spring bars to a predetermined amount, retract the tongue jack, and life is good....you're ready to go.

[jmak]

Originally Posted by xrated

A little update on my Blue Ox setup. I decided that the B.O. pull up system was too much of a pain in the rear to deal with, so I bought a set of the Straptek pull ups. These make "winching" up the spring bars so much easier and you don't need to raise the truck/trailer with the tongue jack to hook up.....and you you don't need to make any adjustments when you are ready to unhook. Simply hook up to the trailer, winch up your spring bars to a predetermined amount, retract the tongue jack, and life is good....you're ready to go.

How is the releasing of all the tension done when ready to unhook? That is only part that worries me about the chain setup is if I don't raise everything up there can still be tension on the chains.

[xrated]

Originally Posted by jmak

How is the releasing of all the tension done when ready to unhook? That is only part that worries me about the chain setup is if I don't raise everything up there can still be tension on the chains.

That's a great question, and I wondered the same thing before I talked to a guy from Lippert. So you're ready to unhook. You put your ratchet wrench with the 1 1/8" socket on the adjusting hex piece. You have your ratchet set to the "tighten" position and you push down just as if you were going to add another click of tension. When you push down, you then reach over with your other hand and release the spring loaded latch. You can then allow the the winch (with all the spring bar pressure pulling down) to rotate as slowly as you are comfortable with. When the angle of the wrench gets to a position where you need to get another bite on it, you simply release the latch and it re-engages the winch teeth and holds it exactly where you stopped. Re-position your wrench, push down enough to release the latch and hold it back with your other hand and continue letting off the tension. Two or three times of this and you have released all the spring tension and you're ready to disconnect everything. Easy - Peasy.

Edited to add.....when you go to the other side and get ready to release that winch, reverse your ratchet position to the "loosen" setting. Of course, you could just use a breaker bar instead of the ratchet, but I prefer the ratchet wrench because I also carry a 3/4" socket and extension for taking off lug nuts in case of a flat.

[BirchyBoy]

Originally Posted by xrated

That's a great question, and I wondered the same thing before I talked to a guy from Lippert. So you're ready to unhook. You put your ratchet wrench with the 1 1/8" socket on the adjusting hex piece. You have your ratchet set to the "tighten" position and you push down just as if you were going to add another click of tension. When you push down, you then reach over with your other hand and release the spring loaded latch. You can then allow the the winch (with all the spring bar pressure pulling down) to rotate as slowly as you are comfortable with. When the angle of the wrench gets to a position where you need to get another bite on it, you simply release the latch and it re-engages the winch teeth and holds it exactly where you stopped. Re-position your wrench, push down enough to release the latch and holds it back with your other hand and continue Leon off the tension. Two or three times of this and you have released all the spring tension and you're ready to disconnect everything. Easy - Peasy.

These replace the chains and the bits that are on the tongue? I'm ready to get rid of my BO because it scares the bejeesus out of me every time I use it.

[jmak]

Originally Posted by BirchyBoy

These replace the chains and the bits that are on the tongue? I'm ready to get rid of my BO because it scares the bejeesus out of me every time I use it.

First trip when undoing the chains it scared me however the second trip I make sure to jack up tongue until it puts the butt end of my truck up in the air a good amount. If you can get enough distance to where to are taking off the the majority of the tension it is not scary.

As you are raising your tongue jack if the tension bars have any type of curve to them then I would personally say you are still for sure in the major scary zone to undo them.

[BirchyBoy]

Originally Posted by jmak

First trip when undoing the chains it scared me however the second trip I make sure to jack up tongue until it puts the butt end of my truck up in the air a good amount. If you can get enough distance to where to are taking off the the majority of the tension it is not scary.

As you raising your tongue jack if the tension bars have any type of curve to them then I would personally say you are still for sure in the major scary zone to undo them.

Yeah, they are still curved. I don't think my jack will lift my truck and trailer enough to let the bars go flat, which could be why it's a bear to get them on and off. It doesn't have a weight rating on it, but I'm not interested in burning it up.

[linux3]

This is my first TT that requires a weight / sway control hitch. I have a CenterLine TS. Why? The dealer said they like this sytem.
Like BirchyBoy this system scares the bejeesus out of me too. Plus all that cranking up and down. I'm 67 and not at all sure how many more years I want to be dealing with this hitch.
The StrapTek looks very interesting.

[xrated]

Originally Posted by BirchyBoy

These replace the chains and the bits that are on the tongue? I'm ready to get rid of my BO because it scares the bejeesus out of me every time I use it.

Yes, absolutely! And here's a tip for ya if you decide to buy them. BEFORE you take the B.O. chain pull ups off of your trailer, hook the trailer up one more time, using the same number of links of chain that you always do. On mine, it was 3 1/2 links showing under the chain pull up. Then, when you've got everything the way that you always hook up, take a measurement on the distance between the bottom of the A arm frame and the top of the spring bars.....right at where the U bolt and chain assembly hook to the spring bar. Mine was right at 4 5/8"......Now, you have a reference point for installing the new StrapTek winches and just exactly how far the spring bars need to be pulled up. Do this and you'll thank me later...trust me.

Remove the B.O. chain pull up assembly from both trailer A arms (frame) and install the new StrapTek units. They are marked Left and Right, and that of course is referring to the Drivers side (Left) and the passenger side (Right). Make sure that you locate them so that the strap hangs STRAIGHT down. Take off the chains from your spring bars and set them aside. When you put the U bolt back through the spring bar, you will have to tighten them down and leave enough room for the strap "J" hook to be able to go through the U bolt. Once that's done, you are ready to hook the J bolt to the spring arm and put a little bit of tension on them....not much, just a little. Doing this will give you a pretty good idea where to move the winch (forward or backward) to make sure that the strap is straight up and down (vertical). Remember, as you are cranking the winch up and the strapping is getting bigger around on the winch spool, it may make the strap not quite vertical and you may want to move the winch just a bit. Make sure that you release the spring bar tension first if you need to readjust the winches. Once you have both of them adjusted so that the strap is vertical, make sure that you TIGHTEN the bolts that secure the winch to the A arm frame and lock them down securely. The winch base even has an adjustment that will allow you to cant the winch a bit so that the strap rolls up correctly on the spool and doesn't try to track off to the side a little. I found BOTH of those adjusting bolts still loose, so check them too and make sure that they are tight....once you are making the strap roll up centered on the spool. That's about it....Enjoy the easier way to tension the spring bars...and more importantly....Take the Tension Off of the bars in a controlled manner.