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GD 30G Toy Hauler with Propride hitch - still have sway

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  • #31
    JH2112
    Jeff
    You’re a heck of a good guy for someone I’ve just met over the internet! I really appreciate your effort! Our setups are very similar. My trike is just a couple of hundred pounds lighter but I have a couple hundred pounds of tools in my truck bed.
    Have a safe drive to Texas. I hope you enjoy the race in Austin @ COTA! Many Thanks?
    Kelly & Susan
    Dallas, TX
    2015 GMC 2500HD Denali
    2021 Honda Goldwing Roadsmith trike
    2021 Grand Design Momentum 30G Toy Hauler

    Comment


    • #32
      kdocker as fate would have it, I woke up to 20mph winds this morning, so I'm going to have some movement for a while no matter what. I re-routed to take the 60 east versus the 10 down through Tucson. The 10 is notorious for severe wind; the weather channel shows 35mph gusts right now (no thanks). The 60 has some hills, so I get to find out how the RAM will handle them too. Reports to follow.
      Jeff
      2021 Momentum 30G
      2021 RAM 2500 6.7L Diesel HD

      Comment


      • #33
        JH2112
        Jeff, Take it easy and hope you have a safe trip to Texas. I know the winds in west Texas can be tough. I was up in Fayetteville AR a couple of weekends ago dealing with this sway problem and there was a day when it was windy. Having a light front axle, heavy tongue weight, and wind only compounded my problems.
        Safe travels!
        Kelly.
        Kelly & Susan
        Dallas, TX
        2015 GMC 2500HD Denali
        2021 Honda Goldwing Roadsmith trike
        2021 Grand Design Momentum 30G Toy Hauler

        Comment


        • #34
          kdocker

          Hey Kelly, I'm at a rest stop in Iraan. Before leaving Peoria, I pulled the rzr as far forward as it would go, but left room for seating on both sides of the kitchen table so I don't have to rearrange a bunch of furniture when I need to work with the rzr loaded. The left front tire of the rzr is about 10" from the kitchen counter. To make a long store short, it's a definite improvement over loading further back. On normal surfaces, ie., not rutted, grooved, torn all to shreds (hello, El Paso), the trailer didn't sway at all. On the rougher roads, the truck porpoised a bit, and I got a little bit of rear movement, but nothing terrible.

          One important note is that I had no gas in the trailer tank until this morning, so my tests are a little skewed. I filled it up, and the hitch scale showed a couple hundred WD pounds had come off the tongue. I adjusted it back to 2700#, went on my way, and noticed a little more movement on the junky roads than before. If your gas tank is/was full, it's probably having an impact. The plan now is to continue as-is and hopefully get some clean roads to compare when totally fueled-up.

          After I do that, I'll test it with the rzr in backwards. I realized it would be nice if the cargo area was easily accessible from inside. The engine will be in the rear, and I'll probably put 100 lbs worth of stuff in the cargo, so I'll make a note of the effect on the TW and ride when I do that.

          PS - check the screws in the base of your recliners. All of mine were loose. All of them.
          Jeff
          2021 Momentum 30G
          2021 RAM 2500 6.7L Diesel HD

          Comment


          • #35
            JH2112
            Jeff if you can, attach a pic of your interior how you have your RZR loaded. I do typically load my gas tank because gas in Texas is cheaper so I’ll have to keep that in mind. Also can you attach a pic of your hitch and weight distribution set up? What brand model are you using.
            Kelly & Susan
            Dallas, TX
            2015 GMC 2500HD Denali
            2021 Honda Goldwing Roadsmith trike
            2021 Grand Design Momentum 30G Toy Hauler

            Comment


            • #36
              kdocker Hi Kelly,

              I just unhooked in Austin and will post the pics as soon as I can. I'll have to upload the hitch pic when I get to COTA on Thursday since I presume the ground will be very level. I put it in my signature, but for some reason it cuts off after three lines. It's a Weigh Safe.

              I rearranged the interior last night then dry camped at the rest stop (first time dry "camping"), This morning I checked the scale on the hitch, and the TW had gone down a hundred pounds or so. I didn't think it would matter much and took off.

              It mattered. I don't know if I got actual sway but one moment it felt like I did. I pulled over at the next offramp, cranked the hitch back up to 2700 lbs, hit the road, and the difference was amazing. The rest of the way I was mostly just driving my truck. The grooved roads were fun, but not just for me. A sedan I followed for a bit was driving off to the right to get out of them. Later I passed a warning sign on the highway: "Caution: grooved roads." According to the hitch app, I have another couple hundred pounds to work with, but next is a test with the rzr parked backwards. I don't have room for that at this park so that will happen Thursday as well.

              In terms of the truck balance; the front wheel well is 41" from the ground, the rear is 40.5".

              Verdict: Your truck is different than mine, but it sounds like the specs are close enough. The trailer is the same, and the toy is very close. The main difference between our setups is the hitch, and I'm really glad I have a Weigh Safe.
              Jeff
              2021 Momentum 30G
              2021 RAM 2500 6.7L Diesel HD

              Comment


              • #37
                JH2112
                Jeff, I believe you are correct. Our setups are very similar, certainly close enough to make a reasonable comparison. I believe the problem I have is that ProPride maxes out with its 1400 lbs weight distribution. I’m sure it can and does go past that stated max but never good to be operating at the edge of any specification. Your Weigh Safe has 2500 spec and this allows you to distribute a lot more weight, especially back to the front wheels, where it’s clear I have the problem and need more steer axle weight.
                I’m going to do 3 different load tests this weekend. 1.) Trike fully forward. 2.) Trike in the rear. 3.) No trike in garage. All of them will be with the maximum tilt on the Propride hitch AND the maximum adjustment on the weight distribution jacks. Doing this set up and keeping the airbag adjustments to the very end of my configuration. This was the recommendation by Sean (owner) at ProPride.

                If I don’t get satisfactory results then I am going to order either a Weigh Safe with 20k lbs total towing & 2500 lbs TW/Distribution OR go all out and get the Torklift with 30k total towing & 3000 lbs TW/Distribution. With your results with the Weigh Safe I’m thinking I would be more that OK. I also like the idea of being able to see the TW scale.

                Thanks again. I hope you enjoy the COTA track this weekend! It’s a great place and normally I would be down there too.

                Thank You
                Kelly
                Kelly & Susan
                Dallas, TX
                2015 GMC 2500HD Denali
                2021 Honda Goldwing Roadsmith trike
                2021 Grand Design Momentum 30G Toy Hauler

                Comment


                • #38
                  Originally posted by kdocker View Post
                  JH2112
                  Jeff, I believe you are correct. Our setups are very similar, certainly close enough to make a reasonable comparison. I believe the problem I have is that ProPride maxes out with its 1400 lbs weight distribution. I’m sure it can and does go past that stated max but never good to be operating at the edge of any specification. Your Weigh Safe has 2500 spec and this allows you to distribute a lot more weight, especially back to the front wheels, where it’s clear I have the problem and need more steer axle weight.
                  I’m going to do 3 different load tests this weekend. 1.) Trike fully forward. 2.) Trike in the rear. 3.) No trike in garage. All of them will be with the maximum tilt on the Propride hitch AND the maximum adjustment on the weight distribution jacks. Doing this set up and keeping the airbag adjustments to the very end of my configuration. This was the recommendation by Sean (owner) at ProPride.

                  If I don’t get satisfactory results then I am going to order either a Weigh Safe with 20k lbs total towing & 2500 lbs TW/Distribution OR go all out and get the Torklift with 30k total towing & 3000 lbs TW/Distribution. With your results with the Weigh Safe I’m thinking I would be more that OK. I also like the idea of being able to see the TW scale.

                  Thanks again. I hope you enjoy the COTA track this weekend! It’s a great place and normally I would be down there too.

                  Thank You
                  Kelly


                  Kelly,

                  Try airing up your bags first then setting up the hitch accordingly. This is no different than if your trucks factory ride height would be at the height with bags aired up first and with no load. This WILL transfer some weight to the front without anything attached to the truck. This technique moves the center of gravity of the truck forward.

                  Jim

                  Comment


                  • #39
                    Guest

                    Jim, thanks for the input. Sean, owner & founder of ProPride is specifically saying do the opposite and air up the bag after the hitch and weight distribution are complete.
                    I had originally done - connect hitch, put load on truck(raised trailer jack), aired up bags, and then adjusted weight distribution arms.

                    I will try it both ways as I move the trike around in the garage.
                    Kelly & Susan
                    Dallas, TX
                    2015 GMC 2500HD Denali
                    2021 Honda Goldwing Roadsmith trike
                    2021 Grand Design Momentum 30G Toy Hauler

                    Comment


                    • #40
                      Originally posted by kdocker View Post
                      Guest

                      Jim, thanks for the input. Sean, owner & founder of ProPride is specifically saying do the opposite and air up the bag after the hitch and weight distribution are complete.
                      I had originally done - connect hitch, put load on truck(raised trailer jack), aired up bags, and then adjusted weight distribution arms.

                      I will try it both ways as I move the trike around in the garage.
                      Kelly,

                      I'll respectfully disagree. Reason? Because when you air up the bags after setting the pre-load on the bars, you will be removing pre-load from the bars. In other words, you will lose sway control and weight transfer via the hitch.

                      If you air up before, your pre-load at the hitch will be set as if you had no bags at all and as a result will provide maximum sway benefit and weight transfer to the front of the TV.

                      Remember if you set the hitch after airing up the bags, your hitch height may also need to be adjusted to achieve a level or slightly nose down trailer.

                      Jim

                      Comment


                      • #41
                        Guest
                        Jim, I much appreciate your input. I’m not taking a stance one way or the other. I’m willing to try different methods as this is my first trailer. I’ve always had motorhomes and never had any sway problem until I went with this new toy hauler and my 3/4 ton truck. I’m going to spend the weekend trying each of these set ups until (hopefully) I find one that works.
                        Let me make sure I have your recommendation order correct.
                        1. Air up airbags (I have been running mine at 45psi).
                        2. Set hitch so that trailer has a level or slightly down nose

                        When you say “set hitch”, I’m assuming you mean connect hitch to trailer AND apply the weight distribution. Is that correct?

                        3. Drive away with no sway! 😃

                        Im going to weigh the truck and trailer after each set up to mainly monitor how much weight I am successfully transferring to the steer axle, which I believe is a lot of my problem (not having enough weight to steer correctly).
                        Kelly & Susan
                        Dallas, TX
                        2015 GMC 2500HD Denali
                        2021 Honda Goldwing Roadsmith trike
                        2021 Grand Design Momentum 30G Toy Hauler

                        Comment


                        • #42
                          Kelly,

                          I think your good but just to reiterate.

                          1) Air up your air bags to 45psi.
                          2) Follow the Pro-Pride setup for trailer height (level or slightly nose down) as well as the pre-load procedure for your bars.. A level trailer will carry more weight and will transfer less weight to the truck. The trailer IMO should never be nose high.
                          3) Keep your garage loads toward the front. Trailers loaded heavy in the back are inherently unstable....no matter what.

                          Here is some helpful visual information on uncontrollable sway. Its in SI but the message is still the same.

                          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeEEC5eVNCk

                          Jim

                          Comment


                          • #43
                            kdocker Kelly - I forgot to take a pic of the Weigh Safe when I got to COTA, but the camping sites I'm in are not level at all, so the reading wouldn't have been good. Next stop is the KOA in Austin. I'll get it then. Here's the pic of the rzr in the camper. I'll back it in when I leave here.
                            Jeff
                            2021 Momentum 30G
                            2021 RAM 2500 6.7L Diesel HD

                            Comment


                            • #44
                              JH2112
                              Thanks Jeff. The load of your RZR is exactly where I initially loaded my trike. My front wheel would be where your front grill is positioned. Since I believe my trike is a little narrower than your RZR, I can move it over to the passenger side, which allows me to move it forward to the tie downs that are located on a line just behind the side door.
                              I just got up to Arkansas where I’ve been keeping my trailer. I’m going to spend the weekend here going through different configurations and loading options. Here’s a pic from the rear when I have it loaded forward.
                              Kelly & Susan
                              Dallas, TX
                              2015 GMC 2500HD Denali
                              2021 Honda Goldwing Roadsmith trike
                              2021 Grand Design Momentum 30G Toy Hauler

                              Comment


                              • #45
                                Hey kdocker
                                Weigh Safe released an app this week to do these type calculations. Since you (originally) had a weight question, mind taking it for a spin and see what it tells you?
                                https://gdrvowners.com/towing-and-hi...ing-app-review
                                Mike
                                2017 Imagine 2800BH pushing a 2019 Ford F150 Platinum

                                Formerly: 2002 Rockwood Popup
                                Location: Massachusetts

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