# Weight Distribution Bars



## Reggie44 (Aug 12, 2005)

When we bought our trailer the dealer set up our hitch system. With the popup we had the reese 350 mini where we just popped the bars onto the friction pads. The 21RS now has the "L" shaped bars. The dealer told us to use the 3rd link from the end. The pressure required to attach is pretty easy (my 12 yr old can attach). Is this enough pressure to properly transfer the weight? I was talking to one of the guys I work with and he says he actually needs to take a little weight of the hitch with the tonuge jack to make it easier to attach his bars. Soooo what is the approximate amount of correct pressure. Our system is called "Husky". I think our bars are called trunion bars. thanks JR


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## Castle Rock Outbackers (Jan 18, 2004)

Depends on the height of the hitch ball and how level your trailer is when hitched up. Using the third link from the end leaves "2 hanging" links. We use "5 hanging."

Check the w/d bars when they are latched. Are the bars parallel to the ground? If not, you are not set up correctly. The more pressure you put on the bars (the more links hanging), the more weight-distribution you are getting.

Randy


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

I would suggest to get the instructions for proper set up from that manufacturer and set it up from scratch. If there is no load, then it is not transferring any weight.

John


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## huntr70 (Jul 8, 2005)

Castle Rock Outbackers said:


> Are the bars parallel to the ground? If not, you are not set up correctly. [snapback]118333[/snapback]​


I don't really agree with that.....

The only way you would have the bars parallel to the ground would be to have the ball fairly flat instead of tilted, or the bars pulled way too tight.

There is no way a dual cam sway system would work if the bars were parallel to frame and the ground.

Steve


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

tdvffjohn said:


> I would suggest to get the instructions for proper set up from that manufacturer and set it up from scratch. If there is no load, then it is not transferring any weight.
> 
> John
> [snapback]118347[/snapback]​


John's got it, get out the directions and follow them EXACTLY. If you can cinch the bars up easily, you're transferring little to no weight. It doesn't matter how many links hanging, etc. what matters is if you're tow vehicle is dropping equally front and back.

With our equal-i-zer I could never get the bars onto their brackets even with the cheater bar, just too much tension. I have to hook up and raise the truck and trailer together, then I can slide the bars onto the brackets with no effort.

Did I mention get out the directions and follow them EXACTLY









Mike


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

Mike is spot on with this one.









The bottom line is how much the front of your tow vehicle is dropping relative to the back (or more accurately, if you have a scale handy, the relative weight changes on each axle). The alignment of the bars, number of links, etc. is all incidental to that.

As the installation instructions will tell you, when you get them.









Happy Trails,
Doug


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## huntr70 (Jul 8, 2005)

PDX_Doug said:


> Mike is spot on with this one.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Realistically, does this hold true.....??

I set mine up this way also, dropping 3/4 inch on front and rear.

I'm not really sure this is ideal though....the front end of my truck has a lot stiffer springs than the rear. The rear has almost no weight when the box is empty, so the springs are lighter. The front supports the engine all the time.

If I am compressing softer springs the same as the heavier springs, is this really ideal???

Not doubting this method...just a curious question.

Steve


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

Steve,

You bring up valid points. Differences in suspensions, spring rates, etc. all can work into the equation. But all in all an equal drop is good to shoot for. In the case of my Titan, I could not get the front down as much as the back. It is much softer in the rear than the front. Still it is tuned very well, and very effective.

The only sure way to know it is optimized, is to weigh the vehicle axles (both with and without the trailer attached). If the increase in weight is spread equally over the two axles, you are spot on. This method will also remove other factors from the equation, but is not very convienent for most people, thus the measuring drop method.

Happy Trails,
Doug


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

I did not even measure my front on this truck, just went with tension


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## gregjoyal (Jan 25, 2005)

huntr70 said:


> Realistically, does this hold true.....??
> 
> I set mine up this way also, dropping 3/4 inch on front and rear.
> 
> ...


I'm no expert, but I am assuming that if you can get the truck to squat equally in the front and the rear, what you are doing is maintaining the original distribution of weight over the front and rear axles... By maintaining the original stance of the truck, you will also maintain the original steering/ride characteristics (with the obvious addition of a few thousand pounds being towed behind you).

If the front squats too much, you are likely overloading the front axle and I would bet sway from incorrect loading could come into play..

If the rear is squatting too much, then you don't have enough weight on the front tires and steering could be adversely affected in emergency situations.

Oh my and experience with the bars being parallel .. I don't think it holds true for all scenarios - but they should be CLOSE to parallel. If they are way off, then the amount of friction from the downward force won't be the same and you aren't getting the true benefits of the sway control even though your weight distribution could be just right (this would apply to the Equalizer, or Reese Dual Cam setups - I don't know how the Hensley works). You should always be able to get close by moving the hitch head up or down on the shank and tilting the ball. I had to turn my shank upwards to get it high enough since the hitch on my Av sits fairly low for a pickup (it's about 2 or 3 inches lower than my old Jeep Grand Cherokee).

These are of course my theories which have been refined by all the information I have tried to assimilate from this website and the Av website I frequent.

Greg


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## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

Also Steve, when comparing spring weights, look at the GAWR's. On most, if not all trucks, you will see a heavier GAWR on the rear axle. My Excursion for example, even with that big 'ole cast iron block oil burner up front, is 4700# FRONT, 5280# REAR, with a GVWR of 9600#.

reggie, are your bars round or squared. The trunnion style bars are squared, and flatten out as you move towards the cam end. You should count the number of links from the bar, not from the end. I wasn't able to find the installation instructions on line.

Tim


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## gregjoyal (Jan 25, 2005)

tdvffjohn said:


> I did not even measure my front on this truck, just went with tension
> 
> 
> 
> ...


You probably don't even need the weight distribution with that beast... Where's that jealous smily?


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## chetlenox (Feb 3, 2004)

I'm with Tim, I'm not sure you want equal distribution. The rear suspension is designed to be taking more load, especially on a pickup truck. I'd guess the load should be more like 1/3 front and 2/3 rear (which is about how I have mine setup).

Chet.


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## Reggie44 (Aug 12, 2005)

Thanks for the info. The trailer is at the dealer, but I do not recall getting any info on the hitch setup that is why I posted the question. I will double check my package when I pick up the trailer.
Hatcity the bars are round that go into the hitch and are flat where the chain comes from. JR


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

Everyone can have a different reason for how or why but IF ALL ELSE FAILS READ THE INSTRUCTIONS.

My instructions indicate that they want the bars level to the ground and they are. It also wants equal squat on both the front and rear and it does.

The Dual cam should also be able to be set up level to the ground, it just depends on how you set the head and where you place the cams.

The only thing that changes when I hook up is the number of links as some times I have a full load in the bed and some times I don't so I can have 3 or 2 links hanging respectively depending on bed load.

I think that if your 12 year old can connect the chains either he is a brute or the WDH is not set and or functioning correctly. I need to use the tongue jack to release some of the load to connect my chains correctly, per my instructions.


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## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

The following is an excerpt from the instructions for my Reese Trunnion style WD hitch, pertaining to TV settling.



> 7. Lower Jack. Re-measure front and rear wheel well reference points (vehicle should settle evenly, within about 1/2 inch).........It is preferred that the rear of the vehicle settle the same, or more then the front.


That being said, I would say that all WD hitches follow the same theory on vehicle settling.

Reggie, the best thing for you to do is when you pick up the camper from the dealer, ask him for a copy of the installation instructions for the hitch. If he asks you why, tell him you want to make sure you are familiar with its workings, and design. If he pushes the issue, tell you want to make sure his boys hooked everything up right.

Somebody posted something the other day saying that an article related a huge percentage of hitches installed by dealers were installed or adjusted incorrectly. I can't remember what thread I saw it in though.

Tim


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## snsgraham (May 18, 2004)

Wow Camper Andy! What a response! 
That was great, I felt like I just popped in on a college course.
Very well put old boy!

Scott


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## Kyoutbacker (Apr 26, 2006)

The end result should be whatever you are comfortable with when towing on the road (after following directions for initial setup). If too much weight is placed on the front tires/suspension the tow vehicle will move too quickly with a steering wheel change and will require constant steering wheel movement to stay straight. Too little weight on the front will result in a similiar feeling, but the back will be more controlling of the front.
Mine is very close to the recommended setup (not dealer setup), but by adjusting the ball tilt 1-2 notches either way you can fine tune the setup.
Be careful also of placing too much weight inside the Outback behind the rear wheels. You should have 10-15% of trailer weight on hitch. Too little weight on the hitch will show up as more sway in the trailer rear end.
You might also adjust everything with your tow vehicle loaded as you would normally travel with the Outback. Keep the tow vehicle/Outback level if possible.
I carry tools to adjust mine if necessary, but now that I have it setup it seems to do fine with various weights.


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## kjdj (Sep 14, 2004)

huntr70 said:


> Castle Rock Outbackers said:
> 
> 
> > Are the bars parallel to the ground?Â If not, you are not set up correctly.Â [snapback]118333[/snapback]​
> ...


Mine does? The instructions say they should be close to parallel to the ground.


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## cookie9933 (Feb 26, 2005)

Parallel to the ground isn't the object, but approximately parallel to the ground is what you get when the Reese WD is set up properly. Ball angle changes will vary the tension, or preloead, of the spring bars at parallel. This means that there are a variety of tension settings available at approximately parallel. Chain link choices will then fine tune for best tension and weight distribution. Works for me.

Bill


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

cookie9933 said:


> Parallel to the ground isn't the object,
> 
> Bill
> [snapback]118931[/snapback]​


The object is to make sure the tip of the bars do not drag from being too low or hitting the frame from being too high. Getting them close to level/parallel with the ground (a long with any other written instruction) ensures as well as possible that this is objective is achieved.


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## emaggio (Apr 9, 2006)

You can check my TV below. It's a heavy van (2500) with trailer package. We're using a Reese/Drawtite setup with one friction sway bar on our 21RS and set up with 3 links hanging. I don't think it could ride and handle any better. But that's not with the TV or TT loaded for a road trip. I would think I might need 4 hanging to keep it level. Seems to me the total load has a lot to do with the torque in those bars necessary to get the whole package level.

emaggio


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