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Old 08-08-2017, 06:26 AM   #61
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Originally Posted by EarlM View Post
How long does it take to hook up if the truck and trailer are not level or the truck rear wheels are in a ditch or the truck is not parallel to the trailer?

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I assume you're referring to a PP or HAHA? No longer at all, once you get to understand the angles and account for them. I use a cheap Chinese magnet mount camera on the stinger and hit first time every time.
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Old 08-08-2017, 06:51 AM   #62
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Originally Posted by EarlM View Post
How long does it take to hook up if the truck and trailer are not level or the truck rear wheels are in a ditch or the truck is not parallel to the trailer?

thanks
Earl
Referring to the ProPride/Hensley, the hitch head is easily adjustable in every direction and tilt using the w.d. screw jacks. But why? If you disconnect in a camp site, when you reconnect the hitch head would remain in the same position relative to the stinger. We have done this many times on some really awkward sites without problems. Just a matter of backing in and latching up.

How long does it take . . . ? Same as any other site. I don't time it but some have, about 4-5 minutes.
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Old 08-08-2017, 07:53 AM   #63
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Doug's point is was that seems to come up frequently. Once you unhitch, if you do not change the WD jack positions you will only need to adjust the height with the tongue jack, assuming you did change that to level the trailer. Hitching is quick and easy.
I suppose if the ground under the trailer or the truck changed after unhitching, one would need to adjust the tilt with the WD jacks, but I have never encountered that.
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Old 08-08-2017, 12:24 PM   #64
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Originally Posted by DaytonaDan View Post
The AS dealer told us that they only install the Equalizer hitch.
Equalizer sells through dealers at significant dealer markup.

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We feel that, with the money we are investing in our brand-new AS and Expedition Max Platinum, the extra expense of the ProPride WD hitch is a deserved quality towing addition to our 'See the USA' touring package.

What should we do?
I have been traveling with a ProPride hitch since 2010. It has worked out OK but I do not consider it the pinnacle of perfection as others sometimes do.

Among the modest installed base of ProPride hitches, there has been at least one structural failure due to a defective weld.

I find the hitch difficult to connect and disconnect under demanding conditions, particularly on uneven ground or when it is necessary to unhitch at an angle.

It is a nuisance to handle the "stinger" when unhitching, and a hazard to knees and shins to leave it on the truck.

We have had problems with the "yoke" sliding out of alignment when it is necessary to make a tight turn while backing uphill into a campsite.

It does control sway very well, but there are other hitches that control sway to an acceptable degree.

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Originally Posted by DaytonaDan View Post
Here's another question.

Would it be smart or really stupid to load the trailer's batteries and the EMPTY LP cylinders into the Expey to lower the trailer's hitch weight?
Not something you would want to do on a regular basis.
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Old 08-08-2017, 01:00 PM   #65
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I'd point out that the folks who praise the PP and add, "We don't have any sway" don't actually know if they would have HAD sway with a Equal-I-zer, Blue Ox, or naked ball. They just assume their $2500 hitch cured the problem.
I'd be more impressed if someone took the same trailer, same tow vehicle and noticed a significant difference in hitches.
In general, I agree with that. The best available information I have seen shows that WD provides the majority of the benefit, and other mechanisms to control sway play only an ancillary role.

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I look on the highway, large boat trailers never have WD hitches.
The weight distribution, wind area, and aerodynamics for large boats are considerably more favorable than they are for RVs.

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RV trailers, for the most part, have a WD with round bars. I've never seen a PP on the highway. Trailers aren't crashing all the time either.
I'm not sure that's true. The data is thin because the RV industry lobby discourages its collection. Trailer sway accidents usually result in a total loss of the trailer but rarely result in serious injuries or fatalities, and so the government isn't especially interested in studying them.
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Old 08-08-2017, 01:12 PM   #66
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Not something you would want to do on a regular basis.
Sorry, didn't see the context for this....

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Originally Posted by DaytonaDan View Post
Sounds good to us! Where can we get one? Is it safe to tow an unloaded 25' AS with our new Expedition to the PP dealer without a WD hitch?

Sue & Dan
My former boss used to race Porches, and he and his friends all had enclosed box trailers to haul them and all their tools and parts to and from the track.

When I was moving, I asked him whether he thought I needed a WD hitch when moving my stuff from one end of town to the other.

He told me the story of a friend who was moving to a new house 25 miles across town. He had borrowed a 30' box trailer from one of his racing friends and into it he had placed all of his worldly possessions. He figured that if he drove conservatively and kept his speeds down he could tow it 25 miles on the ball.

He didn't make it. The trailer swayed and flipped and he had to pick up all of his worldly possessions in the median.

You decide
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Old 08-08-2017, 01:17 PM   #67
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Sorry, didn't see the context for this....



My former boss used to race Porches, and he and his friends all had enclosed box trailers to haul them and all their tools and parts to and from the track.

When I was moving, I asked him whether he thought I needed a WD hitch when moving my stuff from one end of town to the other.

He told me the story of a friend who was moving to a new house 25 miles across town. He had borrowed a 30' box trailer from one of his racing friends and into it he had placed all of his worldly possessions. He figured that if he drove conservatively and kept his speeds down he could tow it 25 miles on the ball.

He didn't make it. The trailer swayed and flipped and he had to pick up all of his worldly possessions in the median.

You decide
My brother-in-law decided he didn't need to attach his equalizer bars on his 30' Classic for the ride from the storage lot to his house...after all it was only 2 miles on the interstate, right.

He very nearly lost it due to an increasing sway. Fortunately he remembered to apply the manual lever on the brake controller and gently accelerate. Changed his underwear when he got home and vowed to never roll one tire revolution without WD.
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Old 08-08-2017, 01:26 PM   #68
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My porch is attached to my house....
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Old 08-08-2017, 01:28 PM   #69
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Originally Posted by lsbrodsky View Post
Doug's point is was that seems to come up frequently. Once you unhitch, if you do not change the WD jack positions you will only need to adjust the height with the tongue jack, assuming you did change that to level the trailer. Hitching is quick and easy.
I realize that I'm in the minority here but I sometimes stay in dodgy campsites. The reasons for this are many and varied, part of it regional, part of it a lack of advance planning on my part, part of it being that sometimes the worst campsites from a parking standpoint have the best view.

There are several specific kinds of campsites that pose a problem for the PP and presumably also for the HAHA.
  1. Angled or curved campsites. The main problem here is that the WD bar will hit the tongue jack, and to get it out of the way, you have to slacken it, which means it doesn't support the hitch head, and then you have a hell of a time getting it aligned when you go to hitch up.
  2. Uneven ground where the area below the hitch is higher. Problem being you can't lower the WD bars enough to make everything line up.
  3. Very tight corners with many obstacles where it is necessary to unhitch the truck and then back up to the hitch at a different angle to finish backing in.
  4. The rare situation where someone or something else moves the trailer. We had one episode where our campsite flooded the the trailer wheels sank into the mud, and we had to pull the trailer out with a strap in order to have the truck on solid ground.
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Old 08-08-2017, 02:05 PM   #70
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I would say again that if you can unhitch with a PP, you can easily hook back up, by not messing with the head. But, in the case of #3, you could be screwed. I never have, and probably never will be, in a site like that. I would just move on. I cannot imagine that should be a deterrent for 99% of us.

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Old 08-08-2017, 02:22 PM   #71
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I have been traveling with a ProPride hitch since 2010. It has worked out OK but I do not consider it the pinnacle of perfection as others sometimes do.

Among the modest installed base of ProPride hitches, there has been at least one structural failure due to a defective weld.

I find the hitch difficult to connect and disconnect under demanding conditions, particularly on uneven ground or when it is necessary to unhitch at an angle.

It is a nuisance to handle the "stinger" when unhitching, and a hazard to knees and shins to leave it on the truck.

We have had problems with the "yoke" sliding out of alignment when it is necessary to make a tight turn while backing uphill into a campsite.

It does control sway very well, but there are other hitches that control sway to an acceptable degree.
I agree with all of the above. I have traveled with a Hensley Arrow for 3 years. I am just about ready to change to a more user friendly hitch that gives acceptable sway control and WD. I have a 2014 27FB International pulled by a 2015 Chevy 3/4 ton Duramax. I have several times had the tongue jack interference with the WD bars. I have had the angles change due to truck sinking into heavy gravel sites. I have been through the learning curve with this hitch and many times get it hitched on the first try, but when it wants to be contrary, it causes a major blood pressure rise. I'm tired of the hassle. What easier hitch would you recommend that still gives acceptable WD and sway control? Maybe a Blue Ox Sway Pro??
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Old 08-08-2017, 02:58 PM   #72
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Roadtech -> I bought my AS & TV from a senior who hung up the keys. The hitch it has is the Reese "Straight Line" Dual Cam. I had JC set it up for me, and it has been an easy drive of about 80,000 towing miles over the past 5+ years. I happen to like the way the Dual Cam works to actively control sway.
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Old 08-08-2017, 04:39 PM   #73
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Roadtech -> I bought my AS & TV from a senior who hung up the keys. The hitch it has is the Reese "Straight Line" Dual Cam. I had JC set it up for me, and it has been an easy drive of about 80,000 towing miles over the past 5+ years. I happen to like the way the Dual Cam works to actively control sway.
Nuttin' wrong with a Reese straight line. It is still my go-to back up after my Hensley. It's in my basement ready to go back on, if necessary.
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Old 08-08-2017, 05:32 PM   #74
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Have not yet had a problem hooking up with ProPride system, even at extreme angles and going for hookups at different angle that when I disconnected. Just a matter of getting everything lined up first by manipulating jack, WD bar jacks, and pivoting hitch socket to the right angle. I just kick the head into the right spot, then aim stinger carefully. Used to do it without a backup camera as well. Might take a bit of back and fiddle but never takes more than 10-20 minutes for full hookup, with a little practice.

Slipping an 8' wide trailer into or out of a 9' wide spot with obstructions does take a lot longer, admittedly. I no longer park there....
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Old 08-09-2017, 11:17 AM   #75
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I went from a Hensley for the same comments you made to a Equalizer and I love it.

Unhitching and hitching prior to the Equalizer was a feared process.

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Old 08-09-2017, 01:57 PM   #76
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Wow. 20 minutes to hitch and unhitched? No thanks.

Equalizer takes less than 3 minutes in all situations.
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Old 08-09-2017, 02:19 PM   #77
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I do not doubt that some people have encountered problems with a PP or Hensley. I had some growing pains, as I said. Once I learned how to use it properly, I have never taken any longer than it takes to just back the stinger to the trailer. Sometimes, it takes me a few tries to get lined up because my brain is off.
It is not as intuitive as just dropping the hitch on a ball and closing the latch. I suppose you can fault the manufacturers for not providing "xxxx hitches for Idiots" instruction manuals. The PP is probably not a hitch for someone who does not or cannot understand how mechanical things work; you must think about what you are doing. I suspect that many of us have no problems, once the learning is done. The peace of mind is well worth the price to me.
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Old 08-09-2017, 02:34 PM   #78
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Wow. 20 minutes to hitch and unhitched? No thanks.

Equalizer takes less than 3 minutes in all situations.
Living in Alabama with morning temps in the 90`s I'd have to agree. During summer travels im sweat drenched in the 3 to 5 minutes it takes to hook up my equalizer. My equalizer has done it's job very well and lashes up very smoothly and quickly no matter the angle or terrain. My neighbor`s brother tows his AS in every Christmas, every year my family watches in amazement/horror as he struggles to hook up with his Hensley hitch. The driveway is concrete with a slight slope but no funky angles. Have seen it take him an hour to get lashed up. I would stroke out.
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Old 08-09-2017, 02:37 PM   #79
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I do not doubt that some people have encountered problems with a PP or Hensley. I had some growing pains, as I said. Once I learned how to use it properly, I have never taken any longer than it takes to just back the stinger to the trailer. Sometimes, it takes me a few tries to get lined up because my brain is off.

It is not as intuitive as just dropping the hitch on a ball and closing the latch. I suppose you can fault the manufacturers for not providing "xxxx hitches for Idiots" instruction manuals. The PP is probably not a hitch for someone who does not or cannot understand how mechanical things work; you must think about what you are doing. I suspect that many of us have no problems, once the learning is done. The peace of mind is well worth the price to me.

Larry


I agree.
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Old 08-09-2017, 02:45 PM   #80
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Wow. 20 minutes to hitch and unhitched? No thanks.

Equalizer takes less than 3 minutes in all situations.
You're right. Skill acquisition is a terrible burden.

Uneven ground is a matter of 10"w x 2" pressure treat. Been doing that forever, as hitch is irrelevant.

Judging how to get both pieces to meet in a new situation takes some time. The first time.

So what?

Got caught in a tropical storm downpour. Water was about to come into trailer door. Trailer was also starting to slide sideways as it was perpendicular to flow coming downhill from a ranch pasture above us. As usual had left stinger in receiver. Accomplished that hitch up with components almost underwater themselves. Had a straight pull about fifty feet (Gee, how did he do it without 4WD?).

Experience is your teacher.

The only real burden is stinger weight.

And I'd hate to suggest that Yankee ingenuity or a thread search might offer solutions to that.

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