equal-i-zer near impossible to hitch with more spacer washers

archer75 · 07-01-2015, 06:49 AM

I've towed successfully with the 10k equal-i-zer and my nissan titan. I had it setup perfectly. Then I got a new truck, Ram 2500, and a trailer that sits higher. Now I find it extremely difficult to hitch and unhitch. The more spacer washers I use the more difficult or impossible it is. I currently am using only a single washer and it's still challenging to get the coupler engaged and even more difficult to get it off. I've moved the L bar brackets as far up as I can. The arms are not even remotely parallel to the frame now but it's the only way I can get enough weight distribution without the use of more washers.
I am using the equal-i-zer grease on the hitch ball.

Is there any way to use more washers and make it easier to couple/decouple?

cw3jason · 07-01-2015, 06:55 AM

More washers tilts the head more, actually applying more pressure to the bars. I believe what you need to do is get a longer drop shank and drop the hitch head down, so your trailer is level again. Your new truck is to tall for the standard drop shank.

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archer75 · 07-01-2015, 06:59 AM

I have a drop shank and the trailer is perfectly level on the current position. Though I did also try the next lower position and it was just as bad.

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cw3jason · 07-01-2015, 07:05 AM

Maybe you need a longer stroke on your tounge jack. It should lift the truck and trailer up high enough to put the bars on. Try placing some level blocks under the jack to give you extra hight.

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archer75 · 07-01-2015, 07:08 AM

I have no problem getting the bars on. It's getting the coupler to engage. Whatever that thing is called that slides down in under the ball.

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cw3jason · 07-01-2015, 07:15 AM

Oh. I had to re read your post. Now I get it. I found on my equalizer hitch there was a sweet spot. When uncoupling raise the trailer until the Shank in the tow vehicle receiver centers itself. No pressure on the top or bottom of the shank. Then with the trailer chocked. Let the tow vehicle roll fwd a hair to take any rearward pressure of the ball. Then unlatch the lock and raise the trailer off the ball.. hope this helps and you can envision what I am trying to say.

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BirchyBoy · 07-01-2015, 07:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cw3jason

Oh. I had to re read your post. Now I get it. I found on my equalizer hitch there was a sweet spot. When uncoupling raise the trailer until the Shank in the tow vehicle receiver centers itself. No pressure on the top or bottom of the shank. Then with the trailer chocked. Let the tow vehicle roll fwd a hair to take any rearward pressure of the ball. Then unlatch the lock and raise the trailer off the ball.. hope this helps and you can envision what I am trying to say.

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Ditto. I've found that sometimes raising or lowering a bit on the jack helps. When coupling, let the TV roll ahead some.

archer75 · 07-01-2015, 10:08 AM

I found the issue. The truck has to be perfectly aligned with the trailer or it won't couple.
My driveway isn't a rectangle. One side is straight but the other side with the trailer is only straight half way. And then it cuts inward. The trailer sits in the straight part of that section. So typically I have the truck matching the angle of the driveway when hitching up so that it will stay on the driveway. Maybe a 30 degree angle to the trailer
Today I backed it straight up and in so one side of the truck was on the driveway and the other side was sitting in some rocks just off the driveway but this kept the truck straight in relation to the trailer. The driveway does slope down slightly in that direction.

Anyways, it coupled right up super easy.

I'm going to take it for a test drive and see how it rides with the current equal-i-zer settings. Then i'll back it in the middle of the driveway which is flatter and make any more adjustments I need. At it's current settings I appear to have enough weight distribution though the trailer sits very slightly nose down. About a 1/4" - 1/2".

**sourdough** · 07-01-2015, 11:17 AM

When I bought my new Ram 2500 I had to install the drop shank, realign the head etc. My hitch works great and I too have about a 1/2" drop in the nose of the trailer....my hitch weight is in excess of a 1000 lbs though.

cw3jason · 07-01-2015, 11:17 AM

Glad you got it worked out. 1/2 to 1/4 nose low on the trailer is no big deal, and may even improve sway control by putting more weight on the tounge

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**JRTJH** · 07-01-2015, 11:18 AM

On most(not all) hitch couplers, there is an adjustment to keep the latch tight, but to allow it to be adjusted so it will couple/uncouple easily.

Here is a picture of a "typical" hitch coupler. Notice the adjusting nut under the latch handle. If you can't uncouple your trailer, you may need to "read up on how to adjust it properly".....

BirchyBoy · 07-01-2015, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cw3jason

Glad you got it worked out. 1/2 to 1/4 nose low on the trailer is no big deal, and may even improve sway control by putting more weight on the tounge

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The Equalizer manual says that it should be slightly low in the front. The washers can be used to achieve this once the distribution has been set.

jamesmc321 · 07-01-2015, 12:01 PM

sorry for being a dumbie here, the dealer setup my equallizer last year and i am constantly getting that "front end floating" feeling - assuming its because they set it up for a standard Sierra, not one that has the leveling kit in the front.

So question is, do i add or remove washers on the hitch head to help move weight to the front to push it back down?

thanks in advance

cw3jason · 07-01-2015, 12:04 PM

Add washers or, and raise L brackets for more weight distribution. This will push your front end down

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jamesmc321 · 07-01-2015, 12:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cw3jason

Add washers or, and raise L brackets for more weight distribution. This will push your front end down

think there are 4 or 5 washers already (think i read that was the max) so looks like raising L bracket is next -

thank you!

GaryWT · 07-01-2015, 02:19 PM

Glad you got it to work. When we went from a 150 to a 350 all I did was change the height and lefty everything else the same. Have found my sweet spot to open and sometimes have to move the truck a little to get it too close. We have 4-5 washers and the bars are level. The original set up by the dealer worked for the empty trailer but once loaded, adjustments were made. Good luck.

archer75 · 07-01-2015, 03:03 PM

How critical is it that the bars be parallel to the frame? My bars are not but I have good weight distribution. If I move the L brackets down one notch the bars would be parallel but not have enough weight distribution. I cannot add another spacer washer as the coupler will not latch with 6 washers.

cw3jason · 07-02-2015, 07:10 AM

Parallel bars are not that important. I had them parallel on my first truck, but once I switched vehicles I found I needed to change the setup. Proper weight distribution and sway control with your trailer level or slightly nose low are the important factors.

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OurLuckyPenny · 07-02-2015, 02:03 PM

Needless to say, many rv owners would like to see a simpler trailer hitch system than the old standard ball and coupler. Yet, millions of trailer miles are driven each year with this system on all kinds of trailers. You wonder if the problems with trying to hitch/unhitch this kind of hitch is not par of the reason some people switch to a 5th wheel rig.

One concern I have has to do with whether or not it is a good idea to attempt to lift the trailer tongue and back end of the tow vehicle with the trailer screw (or power) tongue jack.

Getting the ball coupler properly adjusted with just the right amount clearance between the coupler and the ball is hard enough without putting all those pounds of torque on the ball and coupler when you use the trailer tongue jack to lift everything.

This is so that you can put the tension bars on the trailer part of the hitch system without having to strain too much. And remember, too, you are warned not to stand in the wrong place while putting the bars in place.

So my question is, would it work and be better to put a bottle jack, for example, under the tow vehicle part of the wdh and lift the hitch assembly with the jack. Instead of using the (inadequate) tongue jack to lift all of this weight?????

Would lifting the hitch assembly this way work in making it easier to put the bars in place?

**JRTJH** · 07-02-2015, 02:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OurLuckyPenny

Needless to say, ...
So my question is, would it work and be better to put a bottle jack, for example, under the tow vehicle part of the wdh and lift the hitch assembly with the jack. Instead of using the (inadequate) tongue jack to lift all of this weight?????

Would lifting the hitch assembly this way work in making it easier to put the bars in place?

If you look at my post (#11) in this thread, there is a picture of the "typical" ball coupler. If you "imagine" 2 fingers slipping under the ball to hold it inside the coupler, that's essentially what the adjustment nut "tightens/loosens" when being adjusted. You are correct in assuming that lifting the trailer when hitched to the truck puts a significant amount of the truck's rear axle weight on those "two fingers"..... Can it damage the coupler assembly? Possibly, can it cause it to not couple correctly? Probably.... Would it be "less stress on the coupler fingers to lift the hitch with a bottle jack positioned under the hitch head? Yes it would, but would it be enough less potential to damage the coupler to make it a recommendation? Probably not. The coupler is pretty sturdy and isn't easily damaged, but it can be "tweaked out of adjustment" making it difficult to uncouple (pull the lever to unlock the fingers)... It's a good idea to actually spend some time adjusting the coupler properly and then making sure it's clean and properly lubricated.

As with anything "mechanical" it can malfunction. The chance for a malfunction increases if the "mechanics of the coupler" are ignored repeatedly. Take a few minutes to clean, lube and properly adjust your coupler and you'll find it works much smoother for your efforts. Unfortunately, many RV owners ignore the coupler unless it's either broken or stops working. Seldom does a coupler allow the trailer to separate from the tow vehicle, but many owners have "cussed and fussed a hard to release coupler"..... There's really no need for it to be more difficult than just using two fingers to lift the unlocking lever.

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