Anderson WHD too much?

[mitch]

Just completed my first trip with the new F-150 and 13 QBB and I have a question about the way the Anderson WDH may have impacted the ride.  Backtracking a bit, on my Tacoma when I installed the Anderson it made a noticeable positive impact, the combination truck/trailer felt more like one unit and the sway was reduced.  On this truck it almost seems that using the Anderson shifts the weight at such a low chain tension that my tongue weight becomes too light and I'm actually increasing sway.  If I had set the tension any lower I was afraid the nuts would have backed off due to vibration. Am I thinking about this incorrectly?  I don't need weight shift at all but I like sway control. 

[tinkeringtechie]

Is the (loaded) ball height different on the two tow vehicles? If so, the tongue weight should be the same, and therefore the ride characteristics should also be the same. But if you started with the same ball height, the F150 will probably drop less when loaded and therefore the trailer will be tilted up more, and negatively affect stability. Basically I doubt the hitch itself can negatively affect the ride, but other variables may have changed between the two vehicles that could affect it.

[mitch]

[quote timestamp="1466429853" author="@tinkeringtechie" source="/post/22364/thread"]Is the (loaded) ball height different on the two tow vehicles? If so, the tongue weight should be the same, and therefore the ride characteristics should also be the same. But if you started with the same ball height, the F150 will probably drop less when loaded and therefore the trailer will be tilted up more, and negatively affect stability. Basically I doubt the hitch itself can negatively affect the ride, but other variables may have changed between the two vehicles that could affect it.[/quote]I used the Anderson instructions when setting up both vehicles and because the Ford is much higher I did buy the longer drop hitch ball holder thingy (that's the technical term I think) so in answer to your question I think the level of the ball on both is about the same.  I can say for sure that when the trailer is hooked up to the Ford it is almost exactly level based on the leveling doomahickey (also a technical term) I have stuck on the trailer frame near the jack.  I don't recall ever looking at the leveling doomahickey when I had the Tacoma. 

[daplumbr]

[quote timestamp="1466429127" source="/post/22361/thread" author="@mitch"]Just completed my first trip with the new F-150 and 13 QBB and I have a question about the way the Anderson WDH may have impacted the ride.  Backtracking a bit, on my Tacoma when I installed the Anderson it made a noticeable positive impact, the combination truck/trailer felt more like one unit and the sway was reduced.  On this truck it almost seems that using the Anderson shifts the weight at such a low chain tension that my tongue weight becomes too light and I'm actually increasing sway.  If I had set the tension any lower I was afraid the nuts would have backed off due to vibration. Am I thinking about this incorrectly?  I don't need weight shift at all but I like sway control. [/quote]I appreciate use of the technical terminology.   Try tightening the chains more. You have quite a bit of latitude to do that within the Andersen install instructions. Also, send a message to Whoofit because I vaguely remember he had a similar situation when he hitched up his new F-150 to his 14DB via an Andersen.

[mitch]

I was thinking that if I tighten the chains more it would shift more weight off the trailer end and actually the trailer tongue would try to pitch upward a bit.  I know the ideal is to have the trailer at a slight downward angle.

[charliem]

[font size="3"]Chain tension sets the weight distribution. On the Andersen the sway control is handled by the friction sleeve, but is also dependent on tongue weight and, to a lesser degree, chain tension. The final trailer level setting should be accomplished by ball height adjustment on the shank and is independent of chain tension.

I like to setup so the trailer tows slightly nose down for stability, but still within reason so the fridge is happy and I can level at a level campsite by using the electric tongue jack if I don't want to disconnect for a single night stop. Long run-on sentence to follow.     
[/font]

[mitch]

Hmmmm, I'd like to be nose down a tad but perhaps I just can't because the trailer is lower than the truck. If the chains are slack I'm pretty much level.  If I didn't use the chains at all would I still get sway control?  I assume the answer is no because you need that tension to make the trailer coupler rotate the sleeve and not just freely rotate on the ball.

[pinstriper]

More drop on the hitch.

[david]

I agree with Pinstriper. This is a problem of trailer attitude, not wdh. You don't need a wdh with that rig.

But as Charlie noted above, the Anderson's sway control capability is influenced by chain tension. More tension puts more force on the friction cones.

Also, and although my head is too old to figure out the geometry and physics, I am pretty sure that transferring more weight forward with tighter chains does not affect sway.

So, I would get the attitude right with a deeper hitch drop and maybe tighten up the chain a bit.

David

[mitch]

Thanks Fellas!