New Owner WD hitch question....

[lvcat2004]

Hey all, just put money down on a 2009 25' international

I also had to upgrade my truck and will be getting a Nissan Titan V8 5.6L shortly as a TV.

The AS weighs about 7500 GVWR, a little over 5000 empty. 750lb. ish tongue weight, when loaded I assume.

I'm shopping for a WD hitch, but there are so many kinds (trunnion, round, etc.) and considering with/without sway control, and wanted to get some opinions.

Any particular brands and rating I should look for?? I was considering Equalizer rated for 1000lb. tongue weight and 10,000 lbs. gross trailer weight, that should be adequate....and it also has integrated sway control. It's a little on the expensive side ($500), but for what I spent on the rest of the rig and for safety, it's a small price IMO.

Thoughts, opinions, any recommended vendors?? thanks.

[Pappy]

Congradulations on the new Airstream. You will get lots of opinions on this one.
We have a 2004 Titan and I am pulling a 2006 25ft classic. We use the Hensley Arrow hitch and have pulled about 25,000 miles with it. I have never pulled with anything else but the combination we have seems to be a good match for us.

Good luck
Pappy

[ROBERT CROSS]

IMHO you will NEED sway control.

Whatever you decide proper set-up is paramount. Get that trailer LEVEL. A trip to the scales is in order, do not guess on tongue, gross, axle or combined weights.

Stream Safe.

[85MH325]

Congratulations! That'll be a great combo. What year Titan are you looking at? I have an '07 that I tow my Bigfoot 25 with, and I think you'll enjoy the combo. I wouldn't buy an older-than-'07 Titan tho... there was, IIRC, a pretty sizeable horsepower increase for '07. The '08s and newer have a stronger rear differential as well. Make sure your Titan has the "Big Tow" package which will include the towing mirrors and the transmission temperature guage in the instrument cluster. If it doesn't have those, then it'll have a much lower tow rating than the 9500 lbs of the Big Tow Titans.

I tow using a Reese Dual-Cam straightline hitch, and have towed a dozen or so trailers using the Dual-Cam setup over the years. It's reasonably priced and will do a nice job if set up properly. Proper setup is critical for ANY brand of hitch. That said, all of the weight equalizing/sway control hitches, when properly set up will perform pretty much as advertised. The Dual-Cam has one feature that the other's don't; it's self-centering. The Hensley is an excellent hitch, works as advertised, but costs six times what a Reese does. A Hensley really isn't necessary if you understand what you're trying to accomplish with a weight distributing/anti-sway hitch unless you're trying to tow with an 88" wheelbase tow vehicle.

You'll get lots of opinions here about the "best" hitch. Read them all and do your own homework. The bottom line is that YOU have to be comfortable with your purchase, and the way it works with your setup.

Roger

On Edit: Here is another recent thread you might find interesting...

[RLS]

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on the Airstream We have the Infiniti QX56 with the Reese Dual Cam set up. This has been a very good hitch with no sway what so ever. It is a little tricky to get set up right, but once you do, it is nice There is a lot of info on here about all types. For your set up, you probably would use the 600 lb. bars. Just read the info here and you will see why. I have the 800 ones and am debating about switching to the 600. Also, I think you will need an auxiliary trans. cooler. I have one ordered right now and hope to get it installed later this week.


Enjoy, Bob

[mustang]

Originally Posted by lvcat2004

Hey all, just put money down on a 2009 25' international

I also had to upgrade my truck and will be getting a Nissan Titan V8 5.6L shortly as a TV.

The AS weighs about 7500 GVWR, a little over 5000 empty. 750lb. ish tongue weight, when loaded I assume.

I'm shopping for a WD hitch, but there are so many kinds (trunnion, round, etc.) and considering with/without sway control, and wanted to get some opinions.

Any particular brands and rating I should look for?? I was considering Equalizer rated for 1000lb. tongue weight and 10,000 lbs. gross trailer weight, that should be adequate....and it also has integrated sway control. It's a little on the expensive side ($500), but for what I spent on the rest of the rig and for safety, it's a small price IMO.

Thoughts, opinions, any recommended vendors?? thanks.

congrats on your new Airstream, but as for the tow vehicle, to me its not well I"ll leave it alone. DOnt put 10 grand behind it. If you plan on using the Titan, dont skimp on the hitch, or torsion bars or sway control, your gonna needum, especially when a semi passes you.

[moosetags]

First off, welcome to the Forums. We're glad to have you with us.

We have an '05 25FB that we have pulled 50,000 miles all over the country with a 2500 Suburban.

You definitely want a hitch that provides both weight distribution and sway control. There are several brands out there that Forums members are happy with. Do a little searching here on the Forums, and you will find a lot of information on all of them, both good and bad.

We use a Hensley. It is the most pricey, but it works the best. We tow a lot and do not want any sway at all, ever. The Hensley provides this.

Shop and consider your towing set-up carefully. Uncomfortable towing experiences will quickly turn your wonderful new Airstream into a very expensive piece of yard art.

Brian

[lvcat2004]

I'm getting a brand new 09 Pro-4x, with telescoping mirrors, so I think I have more than adequate towing power. I've read quite a bit about WD/sway, and I'm hearing a lot of different things, which probably means that Hensley may be good, but not worth 2-3x better than others....

I'll keep reading some more, thanks for the info

[Mikethefixit]

We use like alot of others a Reese Straight-Line and have had good results with our combination. We use 600 lbs square bars. We do alot of 2 lane roads cause the wife hates INTERSTATES. I have intentionally droped the right side off the edge of the pavement to try to produce sway I can NOT.
PLEASE Do not listen to those who say take fender measurements,or guess at the tongue weight. THE TAIL IS IN THE SCALE. There is no replacement for a proper setup and the only way to do that is WEIGHT IT. Public scales are available almost everywhere ,at truckstops,scrap yards,recycling companys all have them and for a small fee. I even saw where a state scale master accomedated one person just as he was closing. There is no substatute for actual weights.
As far as brand It makes me no difference.I feel my setup is just as good as spending 2 or 3 K $ to do the same job. Just my opinion.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Roger said it, no substitute for the scales, fender measurements got me on the road but only the scales told me the coach was 300#s overweight.

[lvcat2004]

Well since I'm a noob, let me ask a question regarding weight.

Why does it matter what the weight, or tongue weight is?? From the specs, I have a fairly good idea of what the tongue weight is supposed to be. Besides, when I was looking at WD/sway hitch installation/adjustment, weight does not determine how you adjust/set-it up (of course besides from WHCIH weight category hitch you get).

It seems that the importance is to set it up "properly" so that the weight is distributed evenly betwenn the two axles, and whether the tongue weight is 500 or 750 doesn't seem to matter, or that it makes a difference in how you set-up the WD/sway hitch as long as it's done "properly". Please correct me if I'm wrong. I guess what I"m saying is that from what I've seen/read knowing "exact" tongue weight is not essential to properly setting up the WD hitch.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Originally Posted by lvcat2004

It seems that the importance is to set it up "properly" so that the weight is distributed evenly betwenn the two axles,

You are dealing with four axles. It is important not to exceed the axle weight ratings of the TV. Tongue weight reduces the load capacity
of the TV. You should find the axle ratings on the door jam spec. sticker.


Understanding Vehicle Weight Ratings | FIRE CHIEF

HowStuffWorks "How Tongue Weight Works"


Trailer Loading and Towing Guide

[ole81]

We have a Pullrite 180 degree hitch. It has taken ALL the stress out of towing our '81 Excella II and our 24' box trailer when we haul our Packards to shows.
Not cheap, but worth every penny.
It simulates a 5th wheel because it makes the ball rigid and puts the pivot behind the differential.
Yes, it does allow you to back up perpendicular to the trailer..AND it allows you to lower your tailgate completely.

[85MH325]

Originally Posted by lvcat2004

Why does it matter what the weight, or tongue weight is??

It seems that the importance is to set it up "properly" so that the weight is distributed evenly betwenn the two axles, and whether the tongue weight is 500 or 750 doesn't seem to matter, or that it makes a difference in how you set-up the WD/sway hitch as long as it's done "properly".

In theory, you're correct. The actual weight should be irrelevant if you're only concerned about distributing it across the four axles. In practice, the number itself still isn't terribly important, as long as it's under the rating your receiver and tow vehicle, and all of your axles are under their rated capacities when the hitch is set up. What IS important about that number is the percentage of the actual trailer weight it represents so that you have from 10% to 15% of the total trailer weight on the tongue. In the U.S. trailers are built to need that much on the tongue to properly balance them to avoid sway; exactly what you're trying to do. If you unload the tongue weight to less than that, you're setting yourself up for a sway episode.

Roger