Trailer towing question: WD or sway control hitch?

[Colorado Osprey]

That said, if you do go WD, I've been very happy with this 6K Fastway ....It's a near knock-off of the Equal-i-zer, but the bars are way easier to remove.

I hope they are close. They are both made by the same company. The Fastway E2 is the economy line of the Equalizer hitch.

Fastway Trailer Products – Progress Mfg. Inc.
353 South 1100 West
Provo, UT 84601

Equal-i-zer Hitch/Progress Mfg World Headquarters
353 South 1100 West
Provo, UT 84601
Phone: (800) 478-5578

Both are great. Any WD will help you with the dropping of the back of the truck. A lot of times people forget and load up the back of the truck as well greatly decreasing the rear ride height in addition to the trailer. Sounds like your are a great candidate for WD and suspension upgrade.

Have you looked at Active suspension from Roadmaster. It only works when you have a load and doesn't effect the unloaded truck ride with no air bags to leak or puncture.
I recommend looking into the Roadmaster Active Suspension instead of airbags. If you want more clarification on their system give them a call, they are great to work with.
https://activesuspension.com/

[OtterbatHellcat]

You shouldn't need a WD hitch setup for that trailer, but it wouldn't hurt.

That said, if you do go WD, I've been very happy with this 6K Fastway I used for my boat (3800#) behind my fiver. Mostly just for the sway control, so I had it loaded about as light as I could just to get friction on the bars for sway control and it helped with sway and the vertical snake. https://www.etrailer.com/Weight-Dist...2-00-0600.html

It's a near knock-off of the Equal-i-zer, but the bars are way easier to remove.

I got lucky and found one on CL for $75 when I was looking.

DON'T buy anything with chains, ugh, and they're not surge brake compatible.

What's the tongue weight?
What did you have loaded in the Burb?
Do you have oversize, spongey tires?
Did you run the tire pressure up some for towing?

Brutal and others have provided great info here. I used the stabilizers with chains on a near 5K lb Terry which was much bigger than yours, and I loved them. I also don't see why you'd need them with the trailer you pictured....unless it's loaded too heavy on the tongue, or, the Burb was too ass heavy when it was all hooked up and ready to head out...or both were happening.

[Martinjmpr]

You shouldn't need a WD hitch setup for that trailer, but it wouldn't hurt.

That said, if you do go WD, I've been very happy with this 6K Fastway I used for my boat (3800#) behind my fiver. Mostly just for the sway control, so I had it loaded about as light as I could just to get friction on the bars for sway control and it helped with sway and the vertical snake. https://www.etrailer.com/Weight-Dist...2-00-0600.html

It's a near knock-off of the Equal-i-zer, but the bars are way easier to remove.

I got lucky and found one on CL for $75 when I was looking.

DON'T buy anything with chains, ugh, and they're not surge brake compatible.

What's the tongue weight?
What did you have loaded in the Burb?
Do you have oversize, spongey tires?
Did you run the tire pressure up some for towing?

The Fastway 6k model is exactly the one I was looking at.

As far as tongue weight, we haven't weighed it (just got the trailer, literally, yesterday afternoon) but given that the trailer weight is close to 3000 I'd guess 300 - 450 (10 - 15%)

The 'Burb does have slightly oversize tires (285/75/16, nominal height about 33".) Stock size was 265/70/17. About 2" of lift with Z71 springs in the rear.

Our first camping trip is to Bear Creek in a couple of months so I may see how it does on just the air bags for now.

Thanks for the input, everybody!

[Rumline]

As far as tongue weight, we haven't weighed it (just got the trailer, literally, yesterday afternoon) but given that the trailer weight is close to 3000 I'd guess 300 - 450 (10 - 15%)

Late to the game but I've learned that you cannot trust the manufacturer's specs with regard to weight. Also most travel trailers are well above 10% tongue weight, more like 15-20%. You really need to take it to a CAT scale, not only to get the real weight of the (loaded) trailer, but also to ensure you've got the weight distribution dialed in correctly.

This trailer is pretty light so you're probably fine but I still recommend checking out your truck's payload rating (on a sticker in the driver's door jamb). Depending on how many people and how much stuff you cram in there for a trip (plus the tongue weight and hitch weight) you could exceed it.

Congrats on the camper! I hope you enjoy the heck out of it.

[clodhopper]

Late to the game but I've learned that you cannot trust the manufacturer's specs with regard to weight. Also most travel trailers are well above 10% tongue weight, more like 15-20%. You really need to take it to a CAT scale, not only to get the real weight of the (loaded) trailer, but also to ensure you've got the weight distribution dialed in correctly.

This. Don't go by common thumb rules. RV makers put more time into fancy layouts than they do properly locating the axles, or they use the same frame/axle systems for different RVs and the weights are all screwy.

The WD hitch is a huge change in towing behavior. The bumper droop at bumps is greatly diminished and feels much more solid on the road. Don't get too anal on the friction bar sway control. The WD system is sway resistant without it due to the spring bar friction. Most people I know with the WD don't use the sway control. I have one that came with my hitch (craigslist purchase) and it has never been on the truck. Try towing without it first. I think you will be surprised how much the WD alone improves the feel.

[Martinjmpr]

This. Don't go by common thumb rules. RV makers put more time into fancy layouts than they do properly locating the axles, or they use the same frame/axle systems for different RVs and the weights are all screwy.

The WD hitch is a huge change in towing behavior. The bumper droop at bumps is greatly diminished and feels much more solid on the road. Don't get too anal on the friction bar sway control. The WD system is sway resistant without it due to the spring bar friction. Most people I know with the WD don't use the sway control. I have one that came with my hitch (craigslist purchase) and it has never been on the truck. Try towing without it first. I think you will be surprised how much the WD alone improves the feel.

I presume you're talking about the shock-absorber looking thing? Yeah, I wasn't planning on using one. The WD setup that has been recommended (the 6,000lb E2) supposedly has sway control characteristics due to the square bars that provide some friction and keep the trailer from wiggling around too much.

As I said above, with a Suburban I'm not as worried as I would be if I had a smaller tow vehicle, but I think just for the peace-of-mind I'm going to go ahead and get the WD system. Depending on how that works I may or may not use the air bags.

[MED]

Sounds more like a tongue weight issue to me. The coil springs in the back of my 6.0L Yukon are really soft with an anemic spring rate, and I doubt the Z71s are much better. Mine can pull well, but tongue weight kills it so I use my truck for heavy (tongue weight) trailers. I would install your airbag helpers first and go from there. If you don't have a trans temp gauge, you should get one if you plan to run it In the mountains. The weight of the trailer your running isn't that big of a deal for your suburban if you fix your spring rate issue. I definitely prefer double axle trailers vs the single ones from a stability perspective so you might like the sway control on it since it looks like a single in the pic you sent; personally, it wouldn't bother me at all with that suburban/trailer as-is if you install the airbags. However, just remember that single axle boxy trailers can get a little squirrelly on a winding road if you're not careful. Does the trailer have brakes? How are the ones in your Suburban?

[hollohas]

Sounds more like a tongue weight issue to me.

^This, for sure. You should check the tongue weight. That trailer looks like it could have a tongue weight that's higher than you'd think because the axle is fairly far back.

I use a Fastway e2 WD with sway control with my 30ft, 5500lb travel trailer and have been happy with it.

Keep in mind, the chain style WD hitches are a pain, require add on's for sway control and must often be disconnected when backing. The bar style WD hitches offer WD and sway control in one and don't need to be disconnected when backing. Also, with some of the bar style WD hitches (like 4-point styles) some bars maybe harder to remove than others. With the e2 hitch (a 2 -point style), the bars can easily be removed from the hitch itself...no pins or loose parts...making it easier to handle the hitch. If you want sway control, the 2-point style should be plenty for your trailer IMO.

[Colorado Osprey]

... the chain style WD hitches are a pain, require add on's for sway control and must often be disconnected when backing.

Trying to figure out where this rumor started(Common in the industry and internet)... If you can tow forward in a turn you can back with any WD set up including chains.

Sorry, I've been in the trailer, towing industry for over 20 years and I get sick of that rumor. Never seen one that needed to be disconnected.

[hollohas]

Trying to figure out where this rumor started(Common in the industry and internet)... If you can tow forward in a turn you can back with any WD set up including chains.

Sorry, I've been in the trailer, towing industry for over 20 years and I get sick of that rumor. Never seen one that needed to be disconnected.

Fair enough. Some manufacturers recommend it.