What did you do to your HiLo Today? - Page 6 - Hi-Lo camper travel trailer forum

campthewestcoast · 07-24-2014, 09:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Luckydog671

Thanks for your input Dee and Jim. I've ordered the new bars but have not received them yet so could probably cancel the order if I do it today. Maybe I need to rethink this . . . Other than overkill, are there any negatives to using the 1400# bars?

Thanks,

Go with the 1400# bars,I have 1200# bars that work great on my 2206. I think you my need some finial adjustment on your hitch set up.

RichR · 07-24-2014, 09:06 AM

I would have gone with the 800 pound bars as well. With heavier bars the ride will be stiffer and maybe noisier.

JackandJanet · 07-24-2014, 10:06 AM

As I posted somewhere else, I read somewhere, some towing website, that you should not have a WD hitch that supports much more weight than your trailer hitch applies. I seem to remember that an ideal margin is close to 100#. In my case, the hitch load is a bit under 500# (measured with a Sureline scale) and I have a 600# hitch.

I suspect if the linkage is too stiff, it could possibly cause some serious stresses when crossing large "humps" or "dips".

Possibly, the hitch manufacturer you are getting your hitch bars from might have some advice for you here. I think I'd go with what they suggest.

- Jack

Luckydog671 · 07-24-2014, 04:00 PM

The good news: Based on several comments on this forum, I went ahead and canceled the order with my mechanic for the 1400# bars. Even if I end up eventually getting them, I can get a better price online.

The bad news: I was planning a 6 day camping trip over to the Central Coast for next month. The trip's on hold until I figure this hitch thing out.

Comments and suggestions are welcomed!

campthewestcoast · 07-24-2014, 05:55 PM

I would use the same brand of hitch and spring bars You might get a better deal on a package Sorry to hear about your camping trip till a latter date

Luckydog671 · 07-24-2014, 06:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by campthewestcoast

I would use the same brand of hitch and spring bars You might get a better deal on a package Sorry to hear about your camping trip till a latter date

That's where I'm kind of leaning, Les. The EAZ Lift hitches are pretty inexpensive. They are owned by Camco now and Camping World stocks them. In the end I may just haul the trailer down the hill and let the Bakersfield store hook me up. Still thinking . . .

I have a book that I bought years ago when I owned my Lazy Daze. It's called "Smooth Rolling, RV Care, Safety & Performance" and was published by Good Sam. There is a section on towing trailers (that I had never read back when I had my motorhome) which shows how to get your hitch weight by using a bathroom scale. I think I'll give that a try so i can get some idea of what the trailer hitch weight is. If I find out that weight, is there any other weight I need to add to it? Does the tow vehicle come into play at all?

Thanks,

Garry · 07-24-2014, 06:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Luckydog671

That's where I'm kind of leaning, Les. The EAZ Lift hitches are pretty inexpensive. They are owned by Camco now and Camping World stocks them. In the end I may just haul the trailer down the hill and let the Bakersfield store hook me up. Still thinking . . .

Greg, you do what ya gotta do. My experience with Camping World is they do not sell the bars...you have to buy the entire package and I've had to do that twice!

Luckydog671 · 07-24-2014, 06:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Garry

Greg, you do what ya gotta do. My experience with Camping World is they do not sell the bars...you have to buy the entire package and I've had to do that twice!

I may just do that and use the old hitch for backup, Garry. It's always good to have a plan B!

RichR · 07-24-2014, 06:58 PM

A good RV dealer can order what you need and shouldn't make you take a whole bundle. I helped my dealer friend that had the catalog for all kinds of hitch parts that could be ordered individually. The only exception would be if you have a hitch that is out of production.

desert trailer · 07-24-2014, 07:04 PM

Hello everyone, we just got our 1st Hi Lo, model 2310H.We did our 1st trip out, with just a tow hitch,when hitching up, the TV dropped about 5 inches at the hitch.It towed just OK, but would like to get a wd hitch. I am down to 2 setups. The Reese dual cam, with 800# trunnion bars. Or the Equalizer hitch. Rich what model did you have on your 2310H? Thanks all for any help. Looking forward to using our Hi Lo!

RichR · 07-24-2014, 08:33 PM

Reese WD Strait-Line Hitch

http://www.etrailer.com/Weight-Distr...e/RP66088.html

RichR · 07-24-2014, 08:53 PM

The photo of the Reese Strait Line Hitch shows trunnion bars but it actually has round bars. They goofed.

Luckydog671 · 07-24-2014, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by desert trailer

Hello everyone, we just got our 1st Hi Lo, model 2310H.We did our 1st trip out, with just a tow hitch,when hitching up, the TV dropped about 5 inches at the hitch.It towed just OK, but would like to get a wd hitch. I am down to 2 setups. The Reese dual cam, with 800# trunnion bars. Or the Equalizer hitch. Rich what model did you have on your 2310H? Thanks all for any help. Looking forward to using our Hi Lo!

Congrats on your new Hi Lo and first camping trip!

Yep, mine dropped about 5" in the rear also and raised about 2" in the front. When I applied my spring bars on the WD hitch, it leveled out a little but not enough.

JackandJanet · 07-25-2014, 12:59 AM

Greg, I doubt your trailer tongue puts more than 650# on your tow vehicle ball. I can't understand why almost any WD hitch would not level things out. Unless, you are not attaching the chains correctly or haven't set the L-brackets right if it uses those.

I'm assuming you transfer the weight with chains on the trunnion bars. If the tow vehicle front is still too high, you need to shorten the chain length (attach them to the next link down). If you can't pull the chains up enough to do that, lift the tow vehicle's rear with the trailer tongue jack (the tongue is coupled to the tow ball when you do this) until you can attach the chain at a lower link. If that's not enough, raise the tow vehicle's rear even more with the trailer jack before you attach the chains. One or two links shorter should make things right.

- Jack

desert trailer · 07-25-2014, 05:57 AM

Thank you for the help on the hitch and for the welcome to the site. I am placing the order today for the reese hitch.I know what I will be working on next week! One question Rich,the propane tank cover had been replaced with a non rubbing style. Will I have any trouble with mounting the brackets on the frame, where the diamond plate battery cover is?

RichR · 07-25-2014, 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by desert trailer

Thank you for the help on the hitch and for the welcome to the site. I am placing the order today for the reese hitch.I know what I will be working on next week! One question Rich,the propane tank cover had been replaced with a non rubbing style. Will I have any trouble with mounting the brackets on the frame, where the diamond plate battery cover is?

The snap up brackets will be right about where the corners of the battery cover is. Once you get the brackets in place and the hitch all set up you can cut the corners of the cover to go around the brackets. The rubber molding from the pieces you cut off can then be moved to the cutout corners. I will try to get a couple photos to help you with the setup.

Luckydog671 · 07-25-2014, 08:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JackandJanet

Greg, I doubt your trailer tongue puts more than 650# on your tow vehicle ball. I can't understand why almost any WD hitch would not level things out. Unless, you are not attaching the chains correctly or haven't set the L-brackets right if it uses those.

I'm assuming you transfer the weight with chains on the trunnion bars. If the tow vehicle front is still too high, you need to shorten the chain length (attach them to the next link down). If you can't pull the chains up enough to do that, lift the tow vehicle's rear with the trailer tongue jack (the tongue is coupled to the tow ball when you do this) until you can attach the chain at a lower link. If that's not enough, raise the tow vehicle's rear even more with the trailer jack before you attach the chains. One or two links shorter should make things right.

- Jack

I suspect 650# is about right, Jack. The bars did seem to be transferring the weight somewhat. I did lock the coupler onto the ball and raised it up to make it easier to snap the brackets in place but it was still pretty difficult. I don't think my wife would be able to do it. That brings up another question. How long should the bar for snapping those brackets into place be? The bar I inherited is about 3 ft. long. Looks like a real long socket extension bar. My EAZ Lift is not so easy to lift!

I tried going up another chain link after measuring the front and back of the TV but the bars (weight rating unknown) started to bend up a little. That is why my mechanic recommended the 1400# bars. I guess that's what he uses on his 6 horse trailer.

My understanding is that the bars should be pretty much parallel with the frame, and the trailer should be level when the bars are installed correctly.

Recall that I recently raised the hitch ball up a couple of inches as it was too low. I'm now at the very top hole of the shank so can't go any higher. I'm wondering if I need to get a new shank to raise the ball even higher?

Still confused,

RichR · 07-25-2014, 08:43 AM

You can adjust the head angle, the ball height, and the chains to get the proper amount of lift. Having the bars level is desired but I don't believe that is a priority in the setup. If you have the proper combination in adjustments the bars probably will be close to parallel to the trailer frame. This may be a laborious trial and error process getting everything just right.

JackandJanet · 07-25-2014, 10:16 AM

A three foot length sounds very much like the length of my Equal-I-Zer bars. And, when you have everything set up right, the bars will be under a significant load - they are effectively lifting the rear end of your tow vehicle so that some of the weight of the hitch is transferred to the TV front.

I have to raise my coupled truck and trailer with the trailer jack probably at least six inches above the final ride height to move my bars into position. Then, once placed on the brackets, I retract the jack and everything settles down to the correct ride state. I ALWAYS put several leveling blocks under the jack base when camping so that I don't run out of jack lifting range when I need to lift it. At home, the jack base sits on a cinderblock for the same reason.

If the bars are angled up too much (chains too short) to transfer the weight correctly, you need to angle the ball on your tow vehicle back (the head angle Rich was talking about) so that the bars are angled down more when the chains are not connected. This will allow you to get the bars close to level with the chains hooked up. On my hitch, the angle is controlled by washers used as spacers - one washer has a large effect.

Yes, ideally the bars should be close to parallel to the tongue if things are set up right. A small deviation is not problematic, but parallel makes them work most efficiently.

Don't be concerned about lifting your coupled trailer-TV combination with the trailer hitch jack. It is quite powerful, I think at least 3000# and maybe even 4000# lifting capacity. I have to lift my trailer-TV both to put the bars on and to take them off. The bars are carrying a LOT of load. You should be able to lift the whole thing enough so that attaching the chain takes little to no effort. Yes, you'll hear the jack straining, but it's built to work hard.

One nice thing about those bars carrying that much load though, is that they force the trailer coupler DOWN onto the hitch ball. I doubt there is any way it could become uncoupled while towing if things are set up properly.

- Jack

Luckydog671 · 07-25-2014, 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JackandJanet

A three foot length sounds very much like the length of my Equal-I-Zer bars. - Jack

Sorry, I was referring to the bar that you snap the bracket into place with, not the spring bars.

This is great advice I'm getting! The angle of the ball could be part of the problem. I'm glad you mentioned carrying extra blocks to put under the tongue. That reminded me that I almost ran out of height when we did our overnighter.

I'm going to attempt to get a hitch weight using the bathroom scale method in the next day or two and will try adjusting the ball angle as well. Thanks guys!