Weight Distribution Hitch Question

[SMOKEEATERFF]

I will definitely go with a wd hitch. This may be a dumb question so go easy on me. Can you not take the fold up ramps off? I have never inspected any up close. I know they are a lot more heavy duty than the mesh gates and all which I can take off.

 

[Adiredneck]

Mine will come off. It might take a few minutes, but pulling a couple of pins will let them slide off. The only downside to that is that they have legs welded on, which means they won't store easy. I was thinking of making a set of holders for mine on the tongue of the trailer to hold them.

 

[downslope]

I apologize if this is a stupid question, but does anyone make a dovetail trailer with slide-in ramps? It would seem you could engineer a slot in the dove where the ramps could slide in.

I would think that the ramps up in the air could create quite an additional drag at interstate speeds, especially when the trailer is empty.

 

[Highbeam]

Yes. My PJ car hauler has a dovetail and slide in ramps and they work great.

 

[slowzuki]

Ditto, a WD hitch lets a vehicle tow properly not just hide the poor weight distribution. The reason I don't frequently use my WD hitch is when towing in the field it has poor ground clearance and doesn't do well crossing deep ditches.

I feel this way about overload springs and air bags but not a WD hitch. If you understand the physics behind them you would see there is more benefit than just keeping the rear end from sagging. It really helps in the stability of the truck, steering, and braking.

Chris

 

[downslope]

Ditto, a WD hitch lets a vehicle tow properly not just hide the poor weight distribution. The reason I don't frequently use my WD hitch is when towing in the field it has poor ground clearance and doesn't do well crossing deep ditches.

Ditto X2.

I have seen bad advice given where someone will say you don't need WD if you can balance the load properly. This is just not true.

Generally you want around 10% tongue weight for conventionl tow. If you try to balance the load on a heavy trailer so that the truck doesn't squat too much, or the hitch capacity isn't exceeded, then you may be well under 10% and swaying/handling problems will start. On the other hand, if you balance the load to get 10% tongue weight and don't use WD then you most likely will exceed the hitch rating or the truck's tow rating , or the truck tail may be dragging. Extra springs or air bags cannot correct the weight distribution, the hitch or truck will still be overloaded.

The factory hitch on my 2008 truck says it's only rated to tow 7,500# without WD, but with WD it is rated at 13,000#. Also the tongue weight is limited to 1,000# without the WD but is 1,500# with WD hitch. Since the truck itself is rated to tow 13,000 lbs when using a WD hitch the only way I can use it to its capacity is to have the WD hitch. Balancing the load different will not cut it if I'm pulling a loaded 12-14K trailer.

 

[joshuabardwell]

As far as wd hitches, I've always thought of them as a way to stretch a trailer/tow vehicle slightly beyond their design limits. If you NEED one, you should have bought/borrowed a bigger trailer/truck or found a better way to position your load.

Pat, with all due respect, you couldn't be more wrong here. WD hitches don't "stretch" your vehicle's capacity. They allow your vehicle to achieve its full capacity. The limiting factor on most bumper-pull vehicles' towing capacity is the hitch's rating. Most hitches have a significantly higher rating when used with a WD system than without. Without a WD system, you'll typically see a rated tongue weight as low as 350 lbs; more typically around 500-1000 lbs; and very, very rarely up to 1500 lbs. With a WD system, the rated tongue weight usually goes up into the 1-1.5k range. The reasons for this are myriad, but one of them that is commonly overlooked is how the weight of the trailer is distributed across the bolts holding the hitch onto the vehicle's frame. Without a WD system, all of the weight is on the rear-most bolts, which are acting as a fulcrum. The front-most bolts are actually being pushed upwards. Once you add the torsion of a WD system, the weight of the trailer is more evenly distributed across the bolts holding the hitch on.

There are exceptions to these statements. For example, some factory hitches are welded onto the frame (Toyota Tundra does this) and achieve full rated capacity without a WD system. Some aftermarket hitches are just engineered to work without a WD system, and achieve full rated capacity without one. Also, some vehicles, like cars and small SUVs, don't have much capacity either with or without a WD system, so it might make sense to say that the WD system "stretches" the capacity.

But it's never true to say that a WD system is stretching a vehicle beyond its design limits. The WD system is part of the design limits of the towing system. If you NEED one, it simply means you want to tow more than your vehicle is rated to tow without a WD system, but less than your vehicle is rated to tow with a WD system.

It's true that a WD system can save you some hassle in positioning your load. If your hitch is rated 500 lbs tongue weight (TW) without a WD system and 1000 lbs TW with a WD system, you can afford to be 500 lbs more careless in front-loading your trailer if you have a WD system. Woo hoo! But you still must always have at least 10% of the trailer's weight on the tongue, or you're likely to have problems keeping the trailer behind the vehicle. You can get away with a tail-heavy trailer if your tow vehicle is sufficiently heavy relative to your trailer, but it doesn't take much to get the "tail wagging the dog," so to speak.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Some photos of my 20 foot with 2 foot dove tail and slide in ramps. Also like the heavy duty tongue jack with spring loaded foot that raises/lowers by pulling a pin to allow the foot to drop to ground level rather than cranking it all the way up or down. Without the dove tail, it would make it have to load my backhoe with the short ramps that came with it as the angle is steep enough that the hoe drags the ground a bit when loading on driveway or level ground. Another foot would help but as long as I have a bit of slope, it works fine and I have loaded tractor and FEL without the ramps just use the FEL to tip the trailer and drive it on just like a tilt bed(trailer not hooked to truck)

 

[aczlan]

I apologize if this is a stupid question, but does anyone make a dovetail trailer with slide-in ramps? It would seem you could engineer a slot in the dove where the ramps could slide in.
I would think that the ramps up in the air could create quite an additional drag at interstate speeds, especially when the trailer is empty.

Yes, they slide in from the side.

Aaron Z

 

[CurlyDave]

...As far as wd hitches, I've always thought of them as a way to stretch a trailer/tow vehicle slightly beyond their design limits. If you NEED one, you should have bought/borrowed a bigger trailer/truck or found a better way to position your load.

I am not so sure about this.

When I look at the manual for my 2008 F 250 diesel, the max tow rating is 12,500 lb with a WD hitch, and only 5000 lb without a WD hitch. I suspect all the major brands of truck have the same type of rating system.

Do you really want to give up 7500 lb of tow capacity just because you don't like WD hitches?