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Topic ClosedDo you use Weight Distribution?

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Commander203 View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: Do you use Weight Distribution?
    Posted: 13 Sep 2015 at 4:57pm
I'll add my two cents worth. I am also new to towing smaller trailers. I'm not new to towing as having spent 22 years in the Army Signal Corps, I've got years of experience towing 2 1/2 ton vehicles up to 5 tons with generator trailers. That being said nothing beats the towing experience when properly set up.

We just picked up our 179 in Hamilton, Ohio on Thursday. We purchased the Fastway E-2 with sway control. Total distance from there back home to Central Texas was 1159 miles. I drove straight through for a little over 22 hours. Google estimated 17 hours, guess they didn't consider while towing. Anyway, the towing experience was wonderful. There were times I'd forget I was towing and looked down at the speedometer and realized I probably should slow down. I will never tow without a WDH and sway, sure made my trip stress free. Well at least until I got to Nashville and Dallas, but that's a traffic story and had nothing to do with the towing experience.
Mike & Erin
2013 Tundra 4.6L V8 (Tow PK)
2006 Honda Goldwing GL 1800
2005 Honda VTX 1800N
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jburns View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Sep 2015 at 6:26pm
I ended up getting both WDH and Sway and I'm glad I did... takes a lot of the stress out of it.. aside from watching your gas milage.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 Sep 2015 at 7:53pm
Sway control. Absolutely get it. WDT. Think it depends on TV weight and with my F150 I haven't felt like I needed it.  But hearing the chorus of those swearing by it maybe I'll add it.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 Sep 2015 at 10:09pm
Originally posted by Commander203

...I drove straight through for a little over 22 hours. Google estimated 17 hours, guess they didn't consider while towing...

My rule of thumb is take whatever Google says and multiply it by 1.3.  Then add another hour for lunch.  And I don't do more than 10 hours each day including breaks - unless I get to the 10 hour mark and truly feel up for another hour or two max.  The 1.3 factor takes into account going slower, times when you can't pass, longer gas breaks, etc.

I can do 14 hours straight from my house to Orlando.  Google says it is 13.5 hours - their time is for cars but doesn't include a lunch break.  If I'm towing 13.5 hours bumps up to 18 hours, but since that is now 2 days then add 2 more hours for two lunches, so two 10 hour days.
Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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Commander203 View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 Sep 2015 at 10:27am
That's a very smart way to determine road time Doug. I'm glad we made it home safely and probably will never be on the road for that amount of straight driving again. We had been gone from home since the 31st of August and was really anxious to get back home after staying in motels. I think my stress level is just now returning to normal. lol

By the way I guess to tow with or without WDH/sway depends on how comfortable one is with either option. I have yet to tow without so I can't compare. But I guess since I have towed with WDH and was very comfortable, I will not test the other option. The objective is to have a fun camping experience safely. We have planned our maiden voyage for 9-11 Oct with a trip only about 25 miles from home.

Thanks for such an informative forum, especially for newbies like us.
Mike & Erin
2013 Tundra 4.6L V8 (Tow PK)
2006 Honda Goldwing GL 1800
2005 Honda VTX 1800N
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16 Sep 2015 at 11:58am
Just thought I'd add a comment to the topic.
We have a 178 (as of Feb 2015) with WDH and tow with a Nissan Frontier (4L 6cyl).
Prior to this we towed a 17ft Casita for 2 years (also with a WDH) with a Ford Ranger (3L 6cyl).

The Casita also had an anti-sway bar. After the first trip or two we never used the anti-sway again.
It just wasn't necessary and we haven't missed it on the 178.
That's probably a statement of preference as some tow vehicles may need it.

We have 2 general class of uses for our trailer(s): local trips of an hour or less and long distance trips of 2000 miles or more.

For the longer trips we always use the WDH. It doesn't really change the overall towing experience but it goes a loooong way towards taking the 'bounce' out of interstate travel. That up and down rhythm a vehicle gets into on the long hauls. That can be very tiring on extended trips and the WDH knocks that out almost completely.

For shorter trips, we may or may not use it. The local state parks, or the dealership for service, are within ~ 30min and we'll often just hook up and go without setting up the WDH.

The nice thing with the WDH (at least the ones we've used) is you can NOT use them anytime you want. But once you get used to it, we rarely go anywhere without hooking it up.

We've logged about 10,000 mi this year with our 178 and all but maybe a hundred of those  with the WDH attached.

- Dave R

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2015 at 5:10pm
Just to share my experiences this summer, my wife and I took two longer trips, one about six hundred miles round trip without any sway control, and then a 1600 mile round trip with one. I have an R-Pod 178 and my tow vehicle is a six-cylinder Dodge Durango with a factory tow package and Mopar electric brake controller. I drove with all three water tanks empty, and kept most of our nominal added loaded weight in the front of the camper ahead of the axle. During the first trip without the sway control bar, I felt that the trailer was doing a fair amount of minor “tail wagging” but was manageable. It was fairly windy during the trip which may have impacted or created this sensation. I did not notice any significant sway however. What I did notice was that when I drove over 60 mph the trailer was prone to sway noticeably when getting out to pass in the passing lane etc. I’m not sure if this was due to speed alone or a combination of increased speed along with maneuvering in and out of the passing lane. Needless to say I kept my speed to between 55 and 60 mph. I wasn’t comfortable with that situation so prior to my 1600 mile round trip I purchased and installed a #26660 Reese Standard friction sway control bar to my trailer and hitch. I figured it wouldn’t make things worse and might actually help. I found this to be a noticeable improvement in the overall handling of my rig. The “tail wagging” sensation was now absent, even though it was windy during this trip as well, and I was able to drive 70 mph in the passing lane of the interstate while maneuvering and passing slower moving vehicles and the sway control bar seemed to keep everything stiff and in line. I even tried to induce a little sway when no other traffic was present by moving the steering wheel to the left and right in quick succession to wobble it a bit, but the trailer was much stiffer and behaved well. I still kept my normal driving speed between 60 and 65 when the speed limit permitted which is my personal preference for driving with a trailer. I do not feel that at least with my current tow vehicle I need to install any weight distribution hitch as the tongue weight of the Pod is around 300 lb. more or less with load, and is well within the maximum for the Durango which also has a self-leveling rear suspension included in the tow package. Maybe it might be necessary with smaller tow vehicles etc. but not in this case. I hope this helps with anyone wondering about sway control for their R-Pod. By the way we love the R-Pod too!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2015 at 9:04pm
Welcome.  Glad to hear it worked for you.
Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08 Oct 2015 at 11:09am
For those of you using the E2, is one model better than the other?  I was looking to get a E2 but not sure which part # is ideal and is round bar or trunnion style better?  We have a 182G and my TV is a Tacoma.  I called on of the dealerships in Orlando to talk to them about it and I am more confused now than I was before I called!  I was told the WD and Sway they carry would cause my back wheels to come off the ground?  Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated.  This is the model I was looking at.  


Thanks in advance for the input!
Brandon Roush
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CharlieM View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08 Oct 2015 at 1:02pm
Originally posted by RoushFam

For those of you using the E2, is one model better than the other?  I was looking to get a E2 but not sure which part # is ideal and is round bar or trunnion style better?  We have a 182G and my TV is a Tacoma.  I called on of the dealerships in Orlando to talk to them about it and I am more confused now than I was before I called!  I was told the WD and Sway they carry would cause my back wheels to come off the ground?  Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated.  This is the model I was looking at.  


Thanks in advance for the input!
Brandon Roush


The round bar 600/6000 E2 will work very well and is very popular. The trunnion version advertises more ground clearance, but that shouldn't be an issue. The round bar may be a bit more flexible in attachment placement. As for what your dealer told you, well...........he's a dealer.
Charlie
Northern Colorado
OLD: 2013 RP-172, 2010 Honda Pilot 3.5L 4WD
PRESENT: 2014 Camplite 21RBS, 2013 Supercharged Tacoma 4L V6 4WD
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