Equalizer hitch question

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cic317

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Nov 22, 2015
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Trapped on LI NY
I got a 12K equalizer hitch from a friend, Just purchased a 2017 Funfinder 21RB TT,  Dry wt 5000, Gross 7400, tongue wt 430. Will be towing with a 2017 F150, wondering if I can use the 12K hitch or will it be to stiff and make the ride unbearable?
Thanks for any advice 
 
It won't really have any effect on the ride in the F150, one way or the other. A WD hitch shifts weight from the ball hitch to the front of the truck, improving the load balance but not changing the overall weight the truck carries.  The ride and handling is [potentially] affected if you don't have WD.

A WD hitch rated for a 12,000 lb trailer has 1200 lb spring bars and those are overkill for a 7400 lb trailer.  Possibly so stiff so you won't get any tension on them and they won't do their load shifting job properly. You really should swap those 1200 lb bars for the 1000 lb version. That's what Equalizer recommends for trailers in the 7000-10,000 lb range. The rest of the hitch is the same - Equalizer uses the same hitch from 6k to 14k, just different spring bars.

You can view the manual for that hitch at https://www.equalizerhitch.com/manuals-guides/manuals/6k-14k-model-owners-manual
 
It won't hurt to try using the bars you have before spending money on new ones. See if you can adjust the tongue weight on the tow vehicle level adequately with what you have.  If you can spread the weight adequately, it should be ok.  The set-up instructions for the Equalizer should lead you through how to do that. If you did not get the manual with the hitch, you can download from Equalizer.

We also have an article in the Library that explains a procedure that works with most any brand.
http://www.rvforum.net/joomla/index.php/26-towing-and-towables/195-using-a-adjusting-a-weight-distributing-hitch
 
I would imagine that there are lots of people who would like to upgrade to the 1200 lb bars and would be happy to swap with you.  Perhaps an ad in the classifieds would save both of you several hundred dollars.
 
Gary RV_Wizard said:
...The rest of the hitch is the same - Equalizer uses the same hitch from 6k to 14k, just different spring bars.
Click to expand...

A minor note - I think the head socket sizes are different.  The 10k spring arms are 1 3/8? across, and the 12k are 1 1/2?.  In my 10k hitch the arms are a fairly snug fit in the sockets.  This wouldn?t allow upsizing the arms.  But I suspect that (as usual) Gary is right and this wouldn?t be a problem for downsizing them.  I think you?d get some vertical slop movement when free, but not under tension.
 
Keep the bars you have. At 7400 pounds your actual hitch weight will be close to 1000 pounds so those bars will be fine. Nobody camps in an empty trailer and with food, gear and water you will be very close to your gross trailer weight. It is the rare trailer that has more than 1500 actual pounds of capacity left at delivery. Brochure dry weights are seldom within a few hundred pounds of scaled empty weight.
 
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