# Sway Go Away



## ortizone (Oct 23, 2005)

this is our 3rd trip out and the sway is gettig worse 1 st round trip nothing but now I was driving around 40mph just to get here [Campland} any advace?


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

When you first asked us about your TV, there were a lot of question on what you were going to do for a hitch.

What is your hitch set up?

Do you have some pictures? I'm guessing you don't have the hitch properly adjusted. Your TV should be able to two your 26' with no problems.

Did you have any unusual weight in the trailer? Like all heavy gear up front?

More then happy to helpâ€¦just need a bit more information.


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

Pictures for sure if you can.

Set up is critical so let us know what hitch hardware you have and what the dimensions were when you set it up.

If the dealer did it then get the instructions and start over. MOST dealers just slap them on without too much effort in getting it set correctly.


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

CamperAndy said:


> Pictures for sure if you can.
> 
> Set up is critical so let us know what hitch hardware you have and what the dimensions were when you set it up.
> 
> ...


exactly


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## stapless (Feb 20, 2005)

my trailer swayed quite a bit with the dealer set up







. Once properly adjusted, it was MUCH better







. I would agree with the others that the most likely problem is with your set up. fortunately, you've come to the right place as the folks here have a wealth of knowledge and experience and should be able to help







.
scott


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## ortizone (Oct 23, 2005)

I'm getting the kids to help with pic. It is factory set I 've not touched anything other the today leveled out my hitch ball on TV it was riding kind of low compared to all the others i seen around park. As far as wt nothing unusal other then I did fill up my water thinking it would help but it seemed worse?


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

Looks can be deceiving. You need to take actual measurements on how much the TV squats when the trailer is hitched.

Do you have any type of sway control device installed?


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## stapless (Feb 20, 2005)

mine will also sway a little more with full fresh water tanks, though it can be mitigated with some water in the gray or black. I try to travel with minimal fresh water as it seems to help with the front to back 'porpoising (sp?)', but even with them fairly full, it is not much sway. I think adjusting your hitch will likely improve things alot.

scott


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## ortizone (Oct 23, 2005)

ortizone said:


> this is our 3rd trip out and the sway is gettig worse 1 st round trip nothing but now I was driving around 40mph just to get here [Campland} any advace?
> [snapback]92031[/snapback]​ this is our 1st trip out with the sway bar but i had to take it off it half ways here seemed worse with it on


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

ortizone said:


> ortizone said:
> 
> 
> > this is our 3rd trip out and the sway is gettig worse 1 st round trip nothing but now I was driving around 40mph just to get here [Campland} any advace?
> ...


With your comment on the fact the water in the tank made it worse and when the sway bars remove things got better, really really really tells me you need to adjust the hitch. Get the manual and (as others had said) start over.


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## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

Like everyone else said, getting out the instructions for the WD hitch, and starting over is the best place to start. If you let us know what brand and style hitch you have, there is bound to be someone here who has the same set up, and can help you through it.

You do have a WD Hitch, don't you??? Your comment that everything is at factory settings concerns me. What are factory settings for a WD hitch?

Tim


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## ortizone (Oct 23, 2005)

hatcityhosehauler said:


> Like everyone else said, getting out the instructions for the WD hitch, and starting over is the best place to start. If you let us know what brand and style hitch you have, there is bound to be someone here who has the same set up, and can help you through it.
> 
> You do have a WD Hitch, don't you??? Your comment that everything is at factory settings concerns me. What are factory settings for a WD hitch?
> 
> ...


Looks like I have a pro eagle hitch, now I dont know to much about set up I just went by what they told me at the dealer and ran with it. Like I said earler the hitch was at a angle so I leveled that the only other thing I see is that the hitch ison the last hole? My family and I would like to thank everyone so far for all the help.


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## mountainlady56 (Feb 13, 2006)

Hi, ortizone!
First of all, congrats on your new camper and welcome to the sight! Your weight distributing bars have chain links. To help level mine out, the dealer suggested that once I had the camper locked onto the ball, raise the hitch back up all the way and put it in the third link on the hook on the trailer tongue that you raise up with the bar and pin into place. (Real technical talk....I'm a woman....hehehe.) That levels out the camper/tow vehicle. You're going to have a bouncy ride, unless you have a very heavy duty tow vehicle, that's just a fact of life. However, you will have much more control over the vehicle and camper. Do you have a sway bar that connects from the vehicle hitch to the trailer tongue? I have a friction-type bar, and I adjust it til it's tight. Between the two, I don't have any problem with sway with my 27RSDS.
Darlene action


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## MJRey (Jan 21, 2005)

ortizone,

Welcome, you came to the right site for good information. First let me reassure you that your Expedition is capable of towing a 25RSS with no sway. The key is having a good hitch that's set up properly. After many years of towing a popup that was prone to sway (Coleman Niagara) I did alot of research on hitches before I got our 26RS last year. What I found was that there are three really good hitches available. They are the Hensley Arrow, Reese Strait Line Dual Cam HP, and the Equalizer. The Hensley is superb but very expensive, ~ $3,000, and in most cases is probably not needed unless the tow vehicle is marginal for the size of the trailer. The Reese and Equalizer are both very good and are between $400 - $600. Most of the other hitches are simple weight distributing systems with a friction sway control. Those are acceptable with a small trailer and large pickups. I'm afraid the best answer may be to just chuck the Eagle Pro and go with one of the ones I mentioned. You can get them from one of the sites below.

http://hitchsales.com/Merchant2/merchant.m...tegory_Code=313

http://rvwholesalers.com/catalog/home.php?cat=74

For the Equalizer I would recommend the 1,000/10,000 model but I'm not sure of the correct Reese one for your trailer. I'm sure someone here can give you a good idea of which to go with. Both hitches are about the same price so the choice comes down to personal preference. Good luck, you should be able to get you truck and trailer to work well together.


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## luv2rv (Jun 21, 2004)

I have to echo the comments about seeing pics of your hitch setup. That will certainly help.

As for leveling your hitch, not necessarily the right thing to do. My Equalizer hitch head sits off level to the tune of about 10 - 15 degrees with good reason. This helps with tension once the bars are "cinched" up.

Post some pics and I am certain you'll get the help you need and will enjoy your trips going forward.

Wayne


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## 7heaven (Jun 4, 2005)

I have not heard of Pro Eagle hitch and can't find much on the web.


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## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

I agree with luv2rv. The tilt in the hitch head is required in order for the hitch to be able to transfer weight to the front axle.

What you will need is to gather the instructions for your setup, all the tools necessary, including a torque wrench (you'll need a big one, so check with your local rental shop if you don't have access to one), a tape measure, and some masking tape, a flat/level open parking lot, and a few hours.

The object is to get the tongue weight to be evenly distributed between both the front and rear axles of the tow vehicle.

Park the truck and trailer, and unhitch, so there is no trailer weight on the truck.

Put a piece of masking tape at the top or each fender on the truck, then measure the distance to the ground from the tape. Hitch the trailer, and hook up the WD bars, (not familiar with your hitch, but on the Reese that I have, when connected the bars should be parallel with the ground). Now measure again. Each fender distance should have dropped about the same, within an inch of each other. If the rear dropped significantly more, the you need more angle on the hitch head. If the front dropped more then the rear, then you need less. Unhitch, loosen the adjustment bolts, and change the head angle as needed. This is a trial an error process that may take several attempts.

When you have it set at the right angle, go ahead and torque all the bolts to their recommended values, in accordance with the instructions that came with your hitch.

As far as the ride being worse with the sway control, something is not right there. If the water tank was full, then you could be removing some tongue wgt from your truck, which alters the hitch setup. If you didn't have the sway bar set tight enough, then it would be just like not having it at all.

Going through this process will ensure that your hitch is setup, as well as give you some familliarity with all the components so that in the future, you will be able to troubleshoot problems, and visually inspect all the parts.

Good luck
Tim


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## shake1969 (Sep 21, 2004)

Take a Saturday and do what HHH said, getting your hitch right. I know my rig is not as long as yours, but I tow with the Reese friction with no problems.

Don't know if this is a problem or not, but we had an issue a few years ago with a 15 passenger church van a few years ago towing a tandem axle UHaul. The tires on the rear of the van were passenger car tires, not even LT. The soft sidewalls and someone's desire for a soft ride, (by running low pressure) nearly ruined a mission trip.

So take a look at the tires on your Expy. Make sure they are aired up to the recommended maximum pressure. Check the load range on them, make sure they are rated for the load. Think about upgrading to a 4 or 6 ply sidewall LT tire. Also eyeball your shocks on the Expy, and the whole suspension, for that matter. I had a front sway bar end link come loose on my Navigator last month, and didn't know it until I crawled under.

Do you have air ride on the Expy? Are you disabling it while hitching?

Just a few ideas. Hope it works out for you.


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

hatcityhosehauler said:


> I agree with luv2rv. The tilt in the hitch head is required in order for the hitch to be able to transfer weight to the front axle.
> 
> What you will need is to gather the instructions for your setup, all the tools necessary, including a torque wrench (you'll need a big one, so check with your local rental shop if you don't have access to one), a tape measure, and some masking tape, a flat/level open parking lot, and a few hours.
> 
> ...


Excellent write up Tim..


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## kittybuddy (Apr 29, 2005)

When I bought my 26rs In hooked up to my suburban 1500 and I had sway also.The next day I got on some forums and found out that the tires that come with my suburban are not the best for towing. I went out and bought new light truck tires they are 10 ply the ones that were on the suburban were 2 ply that alone elimanated a lot of sway I also bought new heavy duty shocks.The soft tires that give you that nice soft ride also promotes sway when you are towing.Stifer the ride the less chance of sway.


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## campmg (Dec 24, 2005)

kittybuddy - that's an excellent tip that I've heard quite a bit before. I may be trying that too. The Yukon seems to roll side to side so the LT's may help.


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

Ortizone,

Is your 'Ford Exp' an Excursion or an Explorer? If it is the later, then I would say that is your problem right there... not enough wheelbase. If it is the former, it sounds like you just need to do some tuning on your hitch setup.

Good luck!

Happy Trails,
Doug


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## campmg (Dec 24, 2005)

Possibly the Expedition.


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## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

It's either an '06 Explorer, or an '06 Expedition, as his signature shows '06 Exp. Not sure what the WB is on the newly redesigned Explorer, but the Expedition should have enough.

Tim


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## Morrowmd (Feb 22, 2005)

I don't think you can get the 5.4L in an Explorer. Must be an Expedition.


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## ortizone (Oct 23, 2005)

sgalady said:


> Hi, ortizone!
> First of all, congrats on your new camper and welcome to the sight! Your weight distributing bars have chain links. To help level mine out, the dealer suggested that once I had the camper locked onto the ball, raise the hitch back up all the way and put it in the third link on the hook on the trailer tongue that you raise up with the bar and pin into place. (Real technical talk....I'm a woman....hehehe.) That levels out the camper/tow vehicle. You're going to have a bouncy ride, unless you have a very heavy duty tow vehicle, that's just a fact of life. However, you will have much more control over the vehicle and camper. Do you have a sway bar that connects from the vehicle hitch to the trailer tongue? I have a friction-type bar, and I adjust it til it's tight. Between the two, I don't have any problem with sway with my 27RSDS.
> Darlene action
> [snapback]92140[/snapback]​


[COLOR=red]*Thank you this seemed this help the most after I took off the bike rack from the back of the TT. Now I would like to THANK everyone for your help to get me and my family home safe.I do have an appointment Wed so they can check everything out for me.Again I could not have done it with out all your help I'm so glad I bought the Outback*[/COLOR]


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## sircarryalot (Jun 23, 2005)

ortizone said:


> this is our 3rd trip out and the sway is gettig worse 1 st round trip nothing but now I was driving around 40mph just to get here [Campland} any advace?
> [snapback]92031[/snapback]​


Hi Sorry to here about your problem. I would start by measuring the front and rear bumper hieghts on your TV without the TT. Put the TT on and remeasure. I'm willing to bet that your rear bumper goes down 4 inches and your front bumper goes up 2 inches. When this hapeens you have little or no sway control. If this is the case or something close to this you must adjust your hitch. The before and after measurments need to be within an inch of each other for your better towing. E-mail the maker of your hitch and they will help you with your set up.

Strikey Mikey


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## stapless (Feb 20, 2005)

ortizone said:


> sgalady said:
> 
> 
> > Hi, ortizone!
> ...


how did you have the bike rack mounted to the back of the TT







? I know that the OB's rear bumper is NOT designed for/strong enough for a bike rack - you will tear it of of the frame. hope you're sway problems get resolved!!

happy camping!!

scott


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