Sway bars?

[dkottum]

To me the cost of our ProPride/Hensley design is justified by towing ease for the driver in crosswinds, gusts, or the bow wave of passing semi's, more so when you have all three. The trailer stays in a straight line behind the tow vehicle, the wind cannot move the trailer out of alignment with the truck. There is no angle between truck and trailer, only the truck can initiate a change of direction.

The driving difference is remarkable compared to the reliable but rigid Equal-I-Zer and troublesome Andersen hitches we used.

[ALANSD]

I suggest Etrailer.com they have what you need and the price is right. Call them for suggestions.
A good set of WD bars and an adjustable hitch will do it for you.

[m.hony]

Originally Posted by dkottum

To me the cost of our ProPride/Hensley design is justified by towing ease for the driver in crosswinds, gusts, or the bow wave of passing semi's, more so when you have all three. The trailer stays in a straight line behind the tow vehicle, the wind cannot move the trailer out of alignment with the truck. There is no angle between truck and trailer, only the truck can initiate a change of direction.

The driving difference is remarkable compared to the reliable but rigid Equal-I-Zer and troublesome Andersen hitches we used.

I totally agree with you. I just don't have $2,400 right now, but when I do...
Equal-i-zer is a pretty good second best as far as ease of use.
Equal-i-zer is good enough that I got rid of my Eaz-Lift...
An Airstream shelter is higher on the list of priorities- and a new a/c unit for the house, and more driveway- we don't have enough room to park everything in our 1960's subdivision built when apparently everyone had only one automobile-
One thing at a time as money happens...
We did get step 1 done- tree trimming and removal.
Step 2 changes according to the day- different day different mood- or the weather- on rainy days driveway is more important, on hot days a/c is more important, during bird migrating time Airstream shelter is more important...

[dkottum]

One advantage I can see of Eaze-Lift type hitches with separate adjustable friction sway bars is you can loose the friction if on slippery roads (to ensure the trailer returns easily to center for better control) without losing any weight distribution.

With built-in sway control hitches the friction is gained by the weight distribution bars being tightened, so loosening the friction removes weight distribution. With the Propride/Hensley design there is no friction sway control involved so it makes no difference.

[GAStreamin]

Originally Posted by ALANSD

I suggest Etrailer.com they have what you need and the price is right. Call them for suggestions.

A good set of WD bars and an adjustable hitch will do it for you.

Thanks for the tip on actual place to buy them.

[GAStreamin]

Originally Posted by perryg114

I bought a hitch off of craig's list but ended up using what came with the trailer. I use a friction sway bar and it works fine when tight. Don't loosen the sway bar in the rain like they say. I almost died doing that. It does the job. You need to measure your tongue weight so you don't over do the weight distribution. Too stiff is not good. The old school equalizer type hitches work fine and you can get them used for $200-$300 with the sway bar. Make sure the trailer brakes are in good working order. If you even do get into a sway situation you can apply the trailer brakes on the controller manually to pull the trailer straight. This maneuver saved by butt. The Propride and Hensely hitches are fool proof but they add some weight and at $2000-$3000 a pop they are a significant investment. If you are one of those folks that can spend $70-80k on a trailer and $50k on a truck then $3000 for a hitch is nothing. If you make less than 6 figures and you have a family then the hitch price is a big deal. I have less than $20k in my trailer and tow vehicle.

Perry

We installed the brakes you are talking about where it is controlled manually in the truck.

[GAStreamin]

Originally Posted by ALANSD

I suggest Etrailer.com they have what you need and the price is right. Call them for suggestions.

A good set of WD bars and an adjustable hitch will do it for you.

Something like this?

[m.hony]

He is talking about the electric brake controller in the truck. It has a slide switch that applies the trailer brakes. You squeeze the control to apply trailer brakes without putting your foot on the brake pedal. It is to test the trailer brakes before starting a trip or to apply trailer brakes in an emergency.

[GAStreamin]

Originally Posted by m.hony

He is talking about the electric brake controller in the truck. It has a slide switch that applies the trailer brakes. You squeeze the control to apply trailer brakes without putting your foot on the brake pedal. It is to test the trailer brakes before starting a trip or to apply trailer brakes in an emergency.

Yes, I knew what he was talking about. We had those brakes installed on Expedition.

[perryg114]

That is it. The older ones are much heavier duty than that.

Perry

Originally Posted by GAStreamin

Something like this?
Attachment 209806

[perryg114]

That little lever is also used to tune the controller. You usually crank up the gain/voltage setting so that when that lever is pushed all the way that the brakes just begin to lock up. Then you back off a little. There are two types of controllers that are aftermarket. The most simple type applies the brakes at 100% with a delay after you hit the truck brakes. The more advanced type uses a g-sensor and it senses when you apply the brakes and it produces a proportional response to the trailer brakes. Some of the newer vehicles have an integrated controller than sends out a signal that is proportional to how hard you are pushing on the brakes. These are probably the best solution. I have a Techonsha PIII and I am not nuts about it. It seems that it works best when you are almost stopped. Some of this is the crappy drum brakes though.

Perry

[GAStreamin]

Originally Posted by perryg114

That little lever is also used to tune the controller. You usually crank up the gain/voltage setting so that when that lever is pushed all the way that the brakes just begin to lock up. Then you back off a little. There are two types of controllers that are aftermarket. The most simple type applies the brakes at 100% with a delay after you hit the truck brakes. The more advanced type uses a g-sensor and it senses when you apply the brakes and it produces a proportional response to the trailer brakes. Some of the newer vehicles have an integrated controller than sends out a signal that is proportional to how hard you are pushing on the brakes. These are probably the best solution. I have a Techonsha PIII and I am not nuts about it. It seems that it works best when you are almost stopped. Some of this is the crappy drum brakes though.

Perry

This is helpful. I looked and found out what we installed in the Expedition. It is Curt Venturer Brake Control,

[perryg114]

That brake controller is the delay type. The longer you hold the brake pedal down, the more brakes it applies. After a certain ramp time it applies 100% brakes no matter how much braking you are using. If you are a brake tapper, you will end up overheating your brakes. You can adjust the ramp time it takes to reach 100%. 100% is controlled by the max you set the brakes to during the calibration. Let's say that is 8V. So after a certain time, it will apply the brakes at that max setting which should be just below lockup. Setting the lockup can be tricky because sometimes only one wheel locks up before the others. This is a fact of life with drum brakes. Sometimes it is hard to tell when you are dragging a tire. The new radials don't make much noise when they skid. I have come close to ruining tires trying to set the max on the brake controller.

Perry