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Old 04-11-2011, 10:04 AM   #1
Hillbilly Hagrid
 
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1973 29' Ambassador
Stanford , Kentucky
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Use of hitch system..

I am looking into a new hitch system and finding it hard..
Problem is my TV is very tall in the rear...its a 2001 F350 Dually 2WD with a utility bed...it sits very high..
All the weight distribution systems I look at(including the OG one that came with it) put the ball very high and the rear of AS would almost be hitting the ground..... how do you drop a weight distribution system down?
My local RV Stealership has a ezlift elite for next to nothing on clearance but I'm not sure how to make it work..

Next question is.... Is it doable to not even use a weight distribution/sway hitch system?
My truck is a monster.....could just a strong drop hitch be safe?

Thanks for any info
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Old 04-11-2011, 10:11 AM   #2
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Do a web search on drop hitch draw bars. Eventually you'll find what you need. Most of the manufacturer sites (Reese, for example) will have a 9" drop available. The bar is actually 14" in height, but keep in mind the drop spec is for the top of the ball drop. here are longer ones but you'll have to search. Maybe someone else with a monster truck can be more specific. 9" drop worked perfectly for me.
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Old 04-11-2011, 10:43 AM   #3
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Asking hitch questions always draws a large response here on the forums. I offer the following as an opinion.

I have had two AS trailers, a 31' and now a 27'. My only TV is a Chevy 2500HD. I have found the anti-sway function on the Reese dual cam system to allow for a bit more forgiveness while towing in high cross wind conditions and roads with deeply worn tire tracks.

I feel that I have plenty of tow vehicle capacity and probably don’t require the weight distribution of the hitch system, but I do like the fact that it transfers some of the tongue weight off the receiver on the truck.

After purchasing the front bed model, and having more cabinet space to the rear of the trailer, we began noticing a lot of movement of stored items after a day’s travels. I have since purchased an Airsafe hitch and have had great results in dampening the ride of the trailer. Items seem to stay put.

I do use the Reese dual cam WD hitch with the airsafe, and like the way it tows and rides.
I also have the centramatic dynamic balancers on the trailer.

As mentioned above, search for Reese hitch shanks. Here is a link, for example.

http://www.reese-hitches-online.com/wd_shanks.htm
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Old 04-11-2011, 10:49 AM   #4
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Reese makes long drop shanks up to 12" or so that will work for any stock truck or reasonable lifts (2 to 4")

Weight Distribution - Reese

If your truck is lifted higher than that you'll have to get a custom hitch made that places the receiver lower.
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Old 04-11-2011, 12:25 PM   #5
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I had a 79' Ford F350 with a 12' dump flatbed on it. I had two 8" Channel iron welded down form the frame pivot point on the dump bed to a receiver tube looking from the rear it was a V going down to the receiver. I could take the hitch out and use the dump bed when needed. THE BED HAD TO BE VERY SECURE TO THE FRAME.

The base of the bed was 6" channel iron with a 4" channel iron frame on top of that with a 6" light weight channel around the outside. This was all hanging out at least three feet from the end of the chassis.

Do you have a condition like this with the flatbed? ( if there is no dump you would have only one level or steel added on top of the chassis.)
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Old 04-11-2011, 05:08 PM   #6
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it is only 2wd...but sits very high in rear.....

my biggest problem is the width of the bed...I can't turn much at all and my bumper is into side of AS... I already tore up one front side of AS trying to back into my own driveway... I have to have a hitch that will get the AS off my butt and back abit from TV.....
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Old 04-11-2011, 07:44 PM   #7
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We have a Ram 3500 dually with our AS. We installed the ProPride hitch for safety ( anti-sway) and WD. The 3P is actually easy to install and "tune in" for the WD.

The interesting part of the install is the "drop" of our truck bed height. The height of the top of the receiver space on the truck was 24". When we placed our camping cargo in the truck the receiver dropped to 23". ProPride sent us a longer drop piece for the hitch install, but we found that with the hitch install the receiver dropped another inch to 22" (hitch weight and tongue weight) and thus the trailer was level and we didn't require the additional drop piece.

The WD portion of the hitch easily transferred 400# to back to the front axle.

Towing is a dream with this hitch. The anti-sway component of the hitch works quite well. I have spoken with some other AS owners who have other hitches and they expressed the desire to buy the 3P if they could do it over again. A friend has a "standard" WD hitch, and he changed to the 3P and has subsequently stated that he felt the 3P was a superior hitch by comparison.....

Some may say that the 3P is "over kill" but my stance is that I would rather err on the side of being "overly" safe, than take chances.

Hope some of this info helps......Zigi
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Old 04-11-2011, 07:47 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KyMoonshine View Post


it is only 2wd...but sits very high in rear.....

my biggest problem is the width of the bed...I can't turn much at all and my bumper is into side of AS... I already tore up one front side of AS trying to back into my own driveway... I have to have a hitch that will get the AS off my butt and back abit from TV.....
Zigi here: after thought: the ProPride lengthens your AS by about a foot....giving you some additional space behind your TV.....
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Old 04-11-2011, 08:28 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by [LEFT
KyMoonshine[/LEFT];977310]

it is only 2
wd
...but sits very high in rear.....

my biggest problem is the width of the bed...I can't turn much at all and my bumper is into side of AS... I already tore up one front side of AS trying to back into my own driveway... I have to have a hitch that will get the AS off my butt and back
abit
from TV.....
All you need to do is extend the ball further back from the bumper. Reese makes a hitch extender but I have also extended the 2x2 stock going to the hitch head by cutting out the old 2x2 and putting in a new peace I also added a outer tube piece for a stiffener and when finished slide the 2x2 stock in until the outer stiffener contacts the receiver and the pin hole was already lined up. I used the stiffener to stop the head when it was at the pinning point.

I did this application back in the 80's and at that time they didn't have all the accessories that they do today. It worked great and I never had it bend with loads up to near 20.000# (Landscape trailer) I moved up to Tractor trailers for fuel economy after pulling it for about 90,000 miles.
The truck setup a F350 was described toward the front of this thread.
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Old 04-11-2011, 08:34 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Zigidachs View Post
Zigi here: after thought: the ProPride lengthens your AS by about a foot....giving you some additional space behind your TV.....
GULP!!! I dont think I can purchase a $2400.00 hitch system anytime soon...

Another question I have is: Do the WD/Sway hitch systems put more of a strain on the receiver? Mine is a custom install and has a lot of flex.....Utility beds are really hard to install hitches on....
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Old 04-11-2011, 08:42 PM   #11
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Yes they do, and some hitches that aren't designed to handle the torsional load from the WD do very badly. The Jeep Wrangler is one example, where the hitch just bolts up to an existing frame crossmember that isn't very strong. And, the OEM hitch on my Chevrolet Suburban had distortion and cracks from many thousands of miles of towing when I bought it.
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Old 04-11-2011, 08:47 PM   #12
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Also when you put a WD hitch on it will be dropped from the frame about 6" I think my Factory Ford drop is around 6,5" to the top of the receiver tube. Your truck is not any higher than mine and you should be able to use the standard Reese type drop, as stated earlier I am in the top hole with my holes to the bottom and I can still lower my head two inches. Your truck is within these parameters. Go to a dealer and measure the hitches
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Old 04-11-2011, 08:50 PM   #13
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I'm thinking I'll just pull my AS down the highway with my standard Heavy Duty hitch with no WD/Sway....
My truck is very heavy....rides stiff as crap anyway....when I pulled AS home for the first time I didn't even notice it back there...and that was without trailer brakes....
Im a truck driver and have learned long ago to deal with the jerks and pitches...
I am fixing the trailer brakes first thing....
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Old 04-11-2011, 08:54 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by [LEFT
KyMoonshine[/LEFT];977420]GULP!!! I
dont
think I can purchase a $2400.00 hitch system anytime soon...

Another question I have is: Do the WD/Sway hitch systems put more of a strain on the receiver? Mine is a custom install and has a lot of flex.....Utility beds are really hard to install hitches on....

You will not hook to the utility bed. you will hook to the bottom of the truck frame if it is not out near the end of the truck you use a Reese extender
Hitch Accessories - Reese
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Old 04-11-2011, 10:00 PM   #15
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My fuel tank is in the rear so attaching stuff to the frame is difficult...I have a I-beam welded to frame and hitch is welded to that and bottom of bumper....... I pull heavy loads all the time.... but I never really trust it....
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