Installed the Equalizer hitch today....question.

[Bob McAlice]

All went well with the installation. Took the trailer out for a test ride and have a question. When making normal left or right hand turns I can hear creaking snapping noises back there. Will this go away after some part surface break in time. All looks to be OK, I am assuming the noises are the spring bars sliding on the L- bracket shelf. Has any one else experienced these noises on their Equalizer set up ?

[JBinKC]

With the creaking of the Equal-i-zer hitch, the roar of the diesel, and a cloud of dust, it's going to be very hard to sneak up on anybody with my rig. I believe, though, that the creaking is subsiding somewhat as the L-brackets wear through the paint on the bars. And you'll hear from others about lubes and sleeves offered by Equal-i-zer, which I haven't tried. Best wishes, John

[handn]

Mine creaks and groans also. You can grease every thing (ball and contact points of the sway bars) and it will quiet things down somewhat.

[halimer]

I use these on my Equalizer since 07' and have not had any problems.
Here is the link:
Sway Bracket Jacket (pair) [95-01-5150] - $19.95 : Equal-i-zer Hitch Store

Mark

[aftermath]

Lube the ball, the head where the square bars insert both on top and on the bottom and then put a small dab of grease on the L bracket. It does get messy but it will calm things down.

I was worried about reducing the sway capacity of the hitch but the folks at Equalizer have said that this has very minimal impact on the hitch. I have mind dialed in nicely now and the squeaking and creaking is minimal. It will get better over time.

[SARGE/AF]

Originally Posted by Bob McAlice

All went well with the installation. Took the trailer out for a test ride and have a question. When making normal left or right hand turns I can hear creaking snapping noises back there. Will this go away after some part surface break in time. All looks to be OK, I am assuming the noises are the spring bars sliding on the L- bracket shelf. Has any one else experienced these noises on their Equalizer set up ?

What kind and which one do you have? there are many different models and it is hard to answer your question.
I have the one where the load bar rides on a brake pad and I have not had any of those issues.

Sarge

[Bob McAlice]

It is the Equalizer #1000 lb. unit. It is set up on a F150 long bed Super Cab. The trailer is an '08 Safari 25 ft. Thanks for the replies, I will lube the areas mentioned and go out on another test "road trip". The noises are not that bad, I was just curious if this was common issue with this hitch.

[dkottum]

The noise is normal for this hitch. It is caused by the rubbing of the w.d. bars at their contact points. Greasing is not recommended and will reduce friction and thereby reduce the sway control ability of the hitch. It also makes one he.. of a mess. You have to handle these bars to hitch/unhitch. You will only hear it during turns so no big deal. Mine got a bit quieter as the paint and contact points began to wear, but not much.

[handn]

I don't lube either because I don't like the mess.
I have towed a lot of miles on my hitch and notice only cosmetic wear.
I have gotten used to the creaks and groans.

[SARGE/AF]

Originally Posted by Bob McAlice

It is the Equalizer #1000 lb. unit. It is set up on a F150 long bed Super Cab. The trailer is an '08 Safari 25 ft. Thanks for the replies, I will lube the areas mentioned and go out on another test "road trip". The noises are not that bad, I was just curious if this was common issue with this hitch.

Like the other have said, and I strongly agree with them and suggest that you not grease the L bar, the only part on this type of hitch that should be greased is the ball and you only need a drop or dab. You might also place a dab in the cup on the hitch where the bars attach which will also reduce the noise and is where the majority of the noise comes from anyways and will no effect on the sway friction. The part where the bars rest on the L bracket are designed to decrease sway through friction of metal to metal and is designed to last, as time goes on the noise will decrease and you will become accostom to the noise and will be of little bother, but on the other hand if you should decide to grease the L bar you will lose a certain amount of friction thus loosing some of your sway control which will be more than you plan on.
I have the Reese version of this and on the L bar they placed a brake pad to increase the friction and reduce the noise level which I prefer much better. In fact since I bought our current 34 Legend which came with a Hensley and I am torn between staying with the hensley or removing it and going back to my reese which worked so well on our 31 soveirgn.

Sarge

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Hi, I grease the 2 5/16" ball, spring bar sockets, and recently started using the "L" bracket pads. I have no sway and vertually no noise now. I never lubed the "L" brackets. [or spring bars]

[gsmithii]

Hello Bob and All,

We had the same concerns with popping and cracking noises when making tight turns with our newly-installed Equalizer.

Since everything I know about towing I learned yesterday (!) that darned noise demanded an immediate call to Tech Support. We were assured as noted in the posts above that all was well.

To summarize: no grease is best for sway control but noisy. Grease reduces noise and has minimal reduction of sway control but makes a mess. The "injection molded jackets" reduce noise without the mess with only slightly greater, but still minimal, reduction of sway control.

It would seem the choice is a matter of preference.

The site for the Sway Bracket Jacket is:

<< Equal-i-zer Hitch Store >>

At that site you can read the factory's succinct summary of most of the info in the prior posts.

Sheesh! but this RVing 'n towing sure is technical.

[Soyboy]

I am now on my 7th year with my EQ bars. The more you use them the quieter they get. I too used to grease the L brackets, but now I just leave them dry.

[ShinyRoad]

I've done over 3,000 miles in six months with our Equalizer. I was told the creaking is good as it means the hitch is doing its job. The two aluminum L-brackets will eventually wear down as they are 'sacrificial.' I am buying spare cotter pins and L-brackets for when the day comes.

All in all I feel safe and secure with the hitch in all conditions.

'11 F250 SD Diesel FX4 crew cab

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Originally Posted by ShinyRoad

I've done over 3,000 miles in six months with our Equalizer. I was told the creaking is good as it means the hitch is doing its job. The two aluminum L-brackets will eventually wear down as they are 'sacrificial.' I am buying spare cotter pins and L-brackets for when the day comes.

All in all I feel safe and secure with the hitch in all conditions.

'11 F250 SD Diesel FX4 crew cab

Hi, ShinyRoad. Get your magnet out and check all of your hitch parts. I don't think you will find any aluminum parts, although some parts are very close in color.