Level while towing

[Mrmojo3200]

Hi everyone... This is my first camper so I am new to the camper world but ive been on about 6 trips so far. My question is about level towing. My camper is a Springdale and its bumper pull, 29' inside and i think 32' total. Anyhow, when the camper is hitched and on the ball it is completly level but when i hook up the weight distrubition bars its a 2" difference from the front to the back with the front ball side being the higher. The camper pulls fine but is this going to hurt something long term? Is 2" that big of a deal?

If 2" is a big deal should I just not hook up the wd bars and pull without or adjust the chains? I did have a blow out on one of the rear tires on the trailer recently.

Thanks for any advice!!

[SteveC7010]

Originally Posted by Mrmojo3200

If 2" is a big deal should I just not hook up the wd bars and pull without or adjust the chains? I did have a blow out on one of the rear tires on the trailer recently.

Thanks for any advice!!

Neither! Instead, adjust the WD so that the trailer is level when hooked up. Towing without WD, especially with a "half ton" tow vehicle is not a good idea. Most current WD systems have adjustable height shanks which allow for fine tuning your setup to deal with the exact situation you are describing.

There are a number of posts here about fine tuning a WD system so that the trailer and tow vehicle ride pretty much level with proper weight distribution on all axles.

[Mrmojo3200]

Ok, I will try to find some older post on it. If you are talking about on the hitch side there are 2 bolts that if moved to different holes it drops or raises it about an inch but I am bottomed out now and cannot go any lower. My truck is a 3500 dually that has some large tires so it's raised slightly from normal height.

[SteveC7010]

Originally Posted by Mrmojo3200

Ok, I will try to find some older post on it. If you are talking about on the hitch side there are 2 bolts that if moved to different holes it drops or raises it about an inch but I am bottomed out now and cannot go any lower. My truck is a 3500 dually that has some large tires so it's raised slightly from normal height.

They do sell longer shanks for this exact purpose. You can usually sell the one you have on craigslist or similar. Some trailer shops with even take them in trade. When I had a TT, I wheeled and dealed my way from 800# up to 1200# trunnion arms, and found a deep drop shank for just a few bucks in the want ads.

I even have a deep drop shank in the shop somewhere. If you're near the Adirondacks, I'll sell it to you for cheap.

[Mrmojo3200]

Well im in Louisiana so thats about 1500 miles away.

Until i do get another do you think the 2" difference will be an issue?

[SteveC7010]

Originally Posted by Mrmojo3200

Until i do get another do you think the 2" difference will be an issue?

I have no way of knowing from here if it will be a problem or not. Every rig is a bit different. If it was my unit, I would not tow nose high or low for very long without fixing it.

[B&T]

It might be helpful if you could post a side view picture of your WD hitch hooked up to your trailer.

But without seeing it, just a few questions:

In addition to the adjustment holes, many shanks can be un-bolted and flipped which will either make the trailer higher or lower. If you flipped it, which way would it go?

With WD spring bars hooked:

Are you getting the correct amount of load distribution on the front and rear axles of your TV?

Do you have the minimum 5-6 chain lengths between spring bars and attachment bracket?

Are your spring bars parallel to and below the bottom of the trailer frame?

[Mrmojo3200]

I will check all of those things when i get home from work and take pictures if needed. I have already flipped the shank to get more lenght and am bottomed out.