Advice on buying a weight distribution hitch

Well I guess I'll be needing a weight distribution hitch for this trailer of mine and to be honest I'm a little blown away at the price of them! I'll only be towing at most once a year and so I've been thinking of trying to find a good used one. With that in mind is there anything that I should be on the look out for when buying a used one like common problem points such as wear, abuse and so forth?

If I can't find a good used one does anyone have some good advice on buying a new one? Like does brand, and type really make much difference for one that will only see occasional use or should I go for the cheapest one I find?

Thanks

 

Reese and Valley are the best. Only one trip in the ditch with one that fails when you need it most will convince you.

 

Check out Etrailer.com their prices seem fair.How heavy are you hauling ,what are you hauling with? If you are able ,you could build a custom one for your set up,then buy the drawbar and ball. good luck!

 

Something like this http://wenatchee.craigslist.org/rvs/1752118548.html or the piece that bolts on the back of the tow rig?

I see Either the Reese or Eaz-lift units on Craigslist all the time around here for between 1 and 2 hundred complete.
I think the only thing to worry about is bent bars or worn or damaged pieces.

 

use to haul a 50 pro sled with a 59 ford wagon, without the hitch set up it would sit on the ground, loved it towed thousands of miles with it, you need to talk to a hitch man tell him what you towing wt. and he'll be able to tell you what wt bars you need

 

I always use a Reese. Have 5,000 lb. bars for car trailer and 10,000 for enclosed. Won't be without them.

 

Finding a used unit would be the best. If you do , make sure you have all the pieces. Buy a incomplete unit and you may not be able to find the missing pieces. You need the hitch part that slides into the receiver hitch. The two long bars with chain. Some hitch set-ups have attachable sway bars, some have it built into the frame of the trailer. Good used units are about 1/3 the cost of new, if you can find them. Good Luck

 

Lets define a hitch and a receiver. The receiver is what is bolted to the tow vehicle. The hitch is what slides into it. With that said, I've never bought a new hitch. Look around they are out there. A piece of advice though. Buy one that is adjustable for height, not one that has the head welded to the shank/bar.

 

http://motors.shop.ebay.com/i.html?_trkparms=65%253A12%257C39%253A1%257C72%253A2998&_nkw=equalizer+hitch&_nkwusc=equaizer+hitch&_rusck=1&_sticky=1&_trksid=p4506.c0.m245&_sop=15&_sc=1

 

buy a new one so it adjusts, SEE ABOVE
i THREw THE $100 Craigs list one in the iron pile
you have to be able to set the ride height and the angle of the bars

 

I've bought used adjustable units as low as $50 for head w/shank and $125 for head w/shank, 1000* bars and snap up brackets

 

If you find a used unit, the set-up adjustments are very important. I found set-up instructions with a internet search, on mine.

 

I always think about their first advertising campaign when someone mentions these hitches. They hooked up a heavy trailer to a 68 Toranado and towed it all over the country with no rear wheels on the front wheel drive Toranado. It was very weird looking.

 

Thanks for the advice guys. I see there isn't much local for used ones so I guess it will be new unless I get lucky.

One other question though. My truck (03 GMC 1500 4x4) has a tow rating of 8,800 lbs. My trailer is rated for 10,000 lbs so my limit is still 8,800 lbs.

What rating of a weight distribution hitch should I be looking for?

 

When I bought mine, I got a Valley. The heaviest one they offered. Now I won't tow without it unless it is a very small trailer. The adjustability comes in very handy.

 

I was under the impression that it has to be "sized" to the truck-trailer combo and that too heavy could be just as bad as too light or am I wrong about this?

 

I was looking for any possible future usage. It sure as hell came in handy when I had to haul a friends full size 4X4 on my car trailer. Trailer was overloaded, but not the hitch or my PU. I could adjust the torsion bars to compensate. Thankfully it was a short trip.

 

Bigger is good. That way you don't have to upgrade. Hitch rated for 10,000# and bars rated at 750# should do you otherwise buy 1,000# bars. I just bought a reciever for my recently aquired dually and got one rated for 16,000# with WD hitch

 

Feel free to give me a call, Joe's Truck & Trailer Supply, Joe Bruns, 541-746-0646. Free advice if you like. I can talk faster than type.

 

Just do it, spend the money...
If you have ever had a trailer start doing the sway at 70 mph, you will know why, plus the weight transfer and stability are amazing, the ride is smooth also.......

 

X2, What he said!! Look for Valley, or Reese. Shop around, and save as much as you can, but don't cut corners with cheap, faulty, worn out, wrong application, or no adjustability! It won't save anything in the long run, and it could be way more expensive than you could ever imagine. Once you get one, get it set up, and start using it, you'll be happy you did it!!!

 

I'm not sure why you'd be "blown away" buy the price. My Reese weight distributing hitch set up was around $350 from the local RV store, new. That seems pretty inexpensive to me. I bought a used one, from the same store, for the first trailer we had, and paid 250. It had short torsion bars, which was good as the trailer, a '48 Spartan, had a very short tongue.

What are you towing, and what's your tow vehicle? Do you already have the reciever?

Brian

 

being a RV mechanic i have seen some pretty bizzare things. 1st buy the right sized unit for your trailer. tounge weight........ dont get bigger than you need. it works against your reason for needing one....

is "our" and Your life only valued at 300 to 500 bucks?
Ive see it all. when other peoples lives rest in your hands, "that should be ok" doesnt cut it.

 

If you know what the interchange is, it's easy to prowl the wrecking yards for one, but it helps to have an older tow vehicle. I picked up a cl*** III/IV reciever for my van in decent shape for all of $15, not factory but bolts on the same as factory (replaces lower bumper brackets), put it on with new grade-eight bolts and was done with it. Hardest part was one rusty bolt in a rotty frame rail on the clunker I pulled it off from.

And the first time I used it I had a blowout - never had any issues maintaining control of the van to pull over and change the tire.

 

I was blown away because by nature I try to do things as cheap or economical as possible(with-in reason) and I was thinking that I'd be okay with just a $40 10,000 lb hitch so once I saw how much the equilizer hitchers were I was a little caught off guard!

Anyways, wiser heads have prevailed so I made some calls in town and have narrowed my available choices down to two types.

Reese 1200 for $350
or
Valley 1000 for $300

They are both adjustable for height but the Valley doesn't have a sway bar/shimmy damper mount provision(not sure if I need that anyways).

My truck is a 03 GMC full size(8,800lbs towing capacity), the trailer is rated at 10,000 lbs but the most I will ever tow is about 7,500-8,000 lbs. That said, I thinkI should I go with the Valley 10,000 lb one because the Reese 12000 lb one might be too heavy to work properly....

What are your thoughts?

 

IMHO ... you NEED IT

I have one on each side of my trailer. It PREVENTS swaying when the big trucks p*** you. I can drive mine with one hand ...

Tow vehicle = 2009 Silverado
Trailer = Pace enclosed ( Limited ) with 5200 LB axles.

 

It's not the weight carrying capacity of the hitch that makes the difference of being more than needed it's the bars. They come in 500#, 750#, 1,000# and 1250#

 

Get the Reese.

 

I'm running a Curt Manufacturing Trunnion Weight Equalizer Hitch on my GMC 2500 HD Duramax tow rig and have been for over 10 years. Works well.

I've done a lot of towing and there's no subs***ute for a long wheelbase and engines without spark plugs when it comes to towing.

You can get yourself in a jamb quickly towing with a short wheelbase vehicle that is inadequate. Trouble towing usually comes with an off road experience so you can't have too much power and weight in a tow vehicle.

 

We haul our vending trailer behind a Superduty Ford, we have used our Reese set-up on three trucks now and wouldn't attempt to pull a trailer without it. All it takes is one defensive action at highway speed to make you really happy its back there............Kelly and Jeanne Long dba Kelly Hot Rod parts