Darned Tow Hitches... What's Your Favorite, Anyway

[swatski]

If you feel comfortable with the way your vehicle tows

I think I might!!!! - see below.
I stopped at a little place called "etrailer" this evening - they are headquartered in Wentzville, MO, which is basically a St. Louis suburb - and picked up a nice little Weigh Safe!


Well, this thing it's not exactly little, lol:


But it seems to fit like a glove - and I have it exactly where I want it!


It does seem to rattle a little bit more than most, but that just seems to be the nature of this beast - w/lots of moving parts, I will need to figure something out to mitigate it.

First impressions - very good, nice quality parts. Will see how it performs, I'll update.

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[PeterB]

It can be challenging at best! The problem is that a lot of trailer frames have some variation.
On a dual axle trailer, I mainly want the frame section by the axles level. Since the road may be off, I generally measure from the ground to the frame just in front of, and just behind the axle assembly, looking for matching measurements, rather than using a level. You can also check near the front and rear of the trailer.
I have also used a level when I know I'm on level ground.
Again, it's not an exact science - the idea is to be reasonably level.

 

[swatski]

You see, the hitch is somewhat expensive and in an effort to protect my investment I purchased a set of locking pins (steel locking pins). After a winter full of driving on wet salty roads with the 2-5/16 ball the steel pins had welded themselves solid inside the hitch thru a process called "galvanic corrosion". Thor's hammer couldn't get the pins out...

Very good points! That will be an issue with the Weigh Safe as well as the swap-able 2' and 2 5/8"balls are SS and the hitch is Aluminum. I will be keeping an eye on it

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[PeterB]

I find etrailer very helpful! Hope that hitch works well for you. I considered it, but was concerned about possible rattling. I look forward to hearing your impressions!

 

[djetok]

It can be challenging at best! The problem is that a lot of trailer frames have some variation.
On a dual axle trailer, I mainly want the frame section by the axles level. Since the road may be off, I generally measure from the ground to the frame just in front of, and just behind the axle assembly, looking for matching measurements, rather than using a level. You can also check near the front and rear of the trailer.
I have also used a level when I know I'm on level ground.
Again, it's not an exact science - the idea is to be reasonably level.

Geez you guys are making me feel bad about my prep. I just throw a level on it before the season. Now I'm gonna have to put a tape in the truck.

 

[bronze_10]

I put after market air bags under my old durango, not really to help with leveling because it didn't squat much.. Maybe an inch but it was just enough to make people blink their headlights at me on the drive home. Once the air bags were under the back it was a non issue but the truck felt much more stable. Now I tow with a f250 spnits not an issue bit instill like a level trailer. The I beam trailer I bought has torsion axels. They are much more forgiving about keeping the weight distributed correctly. And it just glides along.

 

[F.M.]

B&W Tow and Stow

All three ball sizes, lots of adjustment, and it folds under when not in use so you don't rack your shins on it and you can back into those tiny parking spaces a little further. I swapped out the cotter pins for rapid hitch locking pins as well.