trailer sway?

roachie

roachie

Taco Master
Joined
Nov 2, 2007
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Ok, I have so far only towed 1 trailer with my ford, on both occasions it has swayed at interstate speed. The first time I attributed it to my loading, bumper pull steel deck trailer, truck loaded backwards with no engine in it. Could not go over 60 mph without violent left and right swaying of the trailer.

So tonight I pulled the same trailer, this time loaded correctly,same problem but not as bad. The trailer was extremly sensitive to any input from the steering.


q9U99v3_saj.ico



I'm not sure what to start checking other than air pressure. My truck wasnt over loaded. Thinking a sway bar may help? past that I am clueless.
 
roachie said:
Ok, I have so far only towed 1 trailer with my ford, on both occasions it has swayed at interstate speed. The first time I attributed it to my loading, bumper pull steel deck trailer, truck loaded backwards with no engine in it. Could not go over 60 mph without violent left and right swaying of the trailer.

So tonight I pulled the same trailer, this time loaded correctly,same problem but not as bad. The trailer was extremly sensitive to any input from the steering.


q9U99v3_saj.ico



I'm not sure what to start checking other than air pressure. My truck wasnt over loaded. Thinking a sway bar may help? past that I am clueless.
Click to expand...

Keep the wheel steady! :lolly:
I always make sure Im loaded tongue heavy... But too tongue heavy can make sh!t get out of hand fast too...
 
Sway bars shouldn't be used to correct trailer sway, they are there for you in case you get into a situation that would cause it to sway, at that point they save your butt!

You should have the trailer loaded so you have 10-15% of the gross weight on the tongue. Best way to determine that is to take the loaded trailer to a cat scale then do the bathroom scale trick to weigh the tongue. I use this method and it works wonders. here is a link how to do it Tongue Weight

I also highly suggest using a weight distributing hitch so you can transfer some of that weight to the steer axle. Once you have it setup make sure the trailer is either level or slightly lower on the tongue, towing nose high can induce sway.

Another thing to take into consideration are your tires, a closed shoulder tire tows MUCH nicer than open shoulder such as a mud/all terrain. Some guys tow with mud tires with good results, I however have had no such luck. I tow with a dually and will run nothing other than a Highway Terrain tire and can pretty much steer with two fingers.

I don't claim to know it all but I have been towing since I was 14 years old and now have 11 years of OTR trucking under my belt. People generally have the misconception that nothing tows as good as a 5th wheel or gooseneck, I can tell you from my experiences that I can make a bumper pull trailer tow BETTER than a gooseneck. We own a 34 foot trailer trailer that tows so nice that I actually FORGET that I am towing. Our race trailer tows just as nice except its so damn heavy you know its there.

Just keep in mind,

weight distributing hitch
tongue weight 10-15%
nose down slightly
 
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Thanks for the link! Alot of good info on that sight. One final question from me, what is a good brand weight distribution hitch to go with and what style. There are so money out there that Id rather not waste my money on
 
This 2nd go around I had as much weight on the toung as I could get. The nose was just a hair low.

I have to get a gooseneck when pulling season starts (truck is too wide). But this bastard is driving me nuts.

Thanks for the input kc8yhk
 
I Have a Tri-Axle Pintle Hitch, I used it to tow my 12 valve around, and it towed perfecty fine.

IMAG0085.jpg


Then one weekend I went from chicago to NC with 2 toyota landcruisers on it. it swayed like a mofo, and the 12 valve weighed more than the 2 land cruisers.

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I think It was all about the weight placement, and also had to do with the SRW/DRW

I usually towed the trailer with my dually, so that might have played into effect.
 
5 to 10 percent total load double axle bumper pull
10 to 15 percent total load single axle bumper pull
15 to 25 percent total load gooseneck on the pin

Always works....
 
For us we have to back the truck up onto the trailer, measure the rear bumper until it goes down an inch to inch and half and never had a problem. Then we just mark a place on the trailers where the trucks need to sit and go. Measure your rear bumper unloaded then measure it when you get the truck up on the trailer.
 
I'm wondering if there i something wrong with the trailer? Are you getting any weird wear on the tires? It's easy to knock an axle out of true or even bend one. With the weight distribution correct it should tow pretty good, especially if it is a commercially built trailer. Keep your eye open for someone selling a load leverer hitch especially on craig list, they come up for sale all the time.
 
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That is the trailer, its a commercially built unit. Unloaded I cant really tell its in tow. The axles look bent in that pic due to the parking lot. It belongs to my dad, he has had no issues with it behind his 2nd gen while hauling roughly 5-6k including the trailer up to 80mph or so.
 
Alot of it is in the ford truck itself. I was a ford man cause my dad was and all that. Every single wheel ford truck i have towed with i felt like i was fighting to keep it "herded" in the lane. The bumper pulls accentuated this effect but its still their even with a gooseneck. Now all my duallys were great and didnt notice with any kind of trailer except little ones like a pop up camper and that could have been my driving entirely to fast for them little wheels. LOL

After towing with dodges, and not going to drive a chevy, the dodge steering is night and day better whether it was my first gen single wheel or my 12v dually. That aside my currant tow rig is a f250 single wheel and when i tow our 20ft mac-lander 14k bumperpull, it sways like a *****. Hook it to the gooseneck, it still is there just not near as bad.
 
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I agree with Btp 2332. I've had better success backing my truck on, 18' 14k gvw deckover and back it all the way up against the front of the trailer. I do know the bumper sinks more than an inch or two.
 
you better buy a gooseneck. just looks like a normal car trailer you got way too much weight on that trailer. most of those have 3500# axles from the factory so its pushing the limits of it.
 
The real ***** about this is the red truck pulled the same trailer, same weight, and was effortless at 90mph.

Its pretty bad that im considering turning the bastard into a 550 just to get the **** straight.
 
That looks like plenty for that trailer for sure. As far a good steering truck when you tow, I towed with all and even just driving the dodge is on the bottom for sure as far as feeling like you don't have to herd it. You can ***** about the IFS all you want but they tow and ride like a dream in comparison.
 
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