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Old 08-07-2019, 09:10 PM   #1
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Help diagnose a sway issue with a Blue Ox Sway Pro

Have a 2018 F-150, 2014 Coleman CT274BH, and a Blue Ox Sway Pro.


I have 13.5% tongue weight, transferring 400 to the front axle, and 200 to the trailer, removing 580 off the rear axle.


I have 1500 pound spring bars.



The problem I am having is that a car, SUV, or pickup will move me, and a light breeze will move me, but a passing semi moves the entire rig the way it is supposed to. I have it dialed in the best I can, at 60 MPH or below, no issues, can tow all day and not feel a thing. Get above 65 MPH and it can wiggle and squirm at random.



Is this due to the bars being too strong? My Sherline scale is a 5000 pound one, and measures just under 900 pounds of tongue weight, but the weigh ticket shows more like 1100 pounds weight. When distributed it is 910 pounds of weight on the ball.



Trailer is dead level too, setup by the book. I have tried adding and subtracting a link to no avail only made it worse. From the bar, 7 links is too much and sways are bad over 65, 9 links from the bar and it sways at 50 MPH. 8 links and it is the most stable, but still has more sway than it ever did with my 2014 F150 using a simple Husky round bar with a single sway control brake on it. I towed this trailer with that truck up and over the IKE into Utah and back to Illinois without a single sway issue. Had to replace the truck when it got totaled out on an icy road, with a 2016. I thought the issues with handling was with the 2016 truck itself, and the Husky, because it would wander all over the place, but not sway like it is doing now, just wander.



Now with the 2018 I have, which pulls it great, it will be nice and straight for miles and miles and then wiggle. An SUV goes by, and wiggle. Then today, I played with different lengths, and now have it with one link at 7, and one link at 8, and wiggle. I cannot seem to get this dialed in at all, yet my distribution is spot on.


So, thoughts? Too heavy a spring bar? Since the tongue weight is so close to 1000, and anything added to behind the rear axle should also be included, along with the weight of the hitch itself, it was over 1000 pounds, so went with the 1500 pound one.



I just hope it is something as simple as this and not an issue with the trailers axles causing it.
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Old 08-07-2019, 10:21 PM   #2
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Can post a picture of your hitch, also of truck and trailer hooked up. Everything you said seem correct. What are the tire pressure for back wheels of truck and trailer, are the trailer tires new or old.
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Old 08-08-2019, 01:10 AM   #3
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I have the same question as Chily3 about tire pressure. I experience virtually no issues with sway, don't even give a second thought to an eighteen wheeler going by. Only time I had any sway issue was when the nice tech at the dealer lowered my tire pressures to 60 psi front and rear so I would have a more comfortable ride. Quick scroll of the dash displays pinpointed the problem. Per the door sticker, truck is 65 psi in the front and 70 psi in the rear. Trailer is at 65 psi per the tire sidewall data. With these air pressures the trailer is locked in behind the truck. Make sure you are running the right air pressures in all tires.

Looking at your trailer specs, I would say you have too much bar and not enough preload on them, my chain setting is the tenth link. Instructions that came with my Blue Ox hitch said to have the chain at the nineth to the eleventh link. I have 1500# bars on a 9000# dry weight trailer, about twice your dry weight. From what I found online about your trailer specs I would have picked the 1000# bars. I would call eTrailer and talk with one of their customer service reps about the sway problem you are having if adjusting tire pressures doesn't help.
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Old 08-08-2019, 01:27 AM   #4
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All above is good advice. Also consider the new truck may have active sway control that is conflicting with the Blue OX. Check with Blue Ox for recommendations.
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Old 08-08-2019, 03:29 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pctomlin View Post
I have the same question as Chily3 about tire pressure. I experience virtually no issues with sway, don't even give a second thought to an eighteen wheeler going by. Only time I had any sway issue was when the nice tech at the dealer lowered my tire pressures to 60 psi front and rear so I would have a more comfortable ride. Quick scroll of the dash displays pinpointed the problem. Per the door sticker, truck is 65 psi in the front and 70 psi in the rear. Trailer is at 65 psi per the tire sidewall data. With these air pressures the trailer is locked in behind the truck. Make sure you are running the right air pressures in all tires.

Looking at your trailer specs, I would say you have too much bar and not enough preload on them, my chain setting is the tenth link. Instructions that came with my Blue Ox hitch said to have the chain at the nineth to the eleventh link. I have 1500# bars on a 9000# dry weight trailer, about twice your dry weight. From what I found online about your trailer specs I would have picked the 1000# bars. I would call eTrailer and talk with one of their customer service reps about the sway problem you are having if adjusting tire pressures doesn't help.

This is probably the case. My tires are 50 PSI on the trailer, at the max, and my truck tires are max of 44 PSI, and running up to 48 when hot. I'm already moving more weight forward than I should by 20 pounds.



I just went out and counted links. I marked the one link that goes in the hook, and it is the middle link, 8 up from the bar and 8 down from the last link. Counting 11 links that leaves 4 exposed, so looks like I need new bars. I don't have as much tongue weight that I planned on having after doing some upgrades. I added a memory foam queen to the front which weighs well over 100 pounds, and I was going to put one of those gen mounts over the LP tanks, but wont fit on the A frame with the Blue Ox unless I cut out some holes in the plate in front of the tanks. That took 130 pounds off the tongue, which would have put me in the correct weight category for the bars I now have.



I think what I will do is move the generator, tools and cooler to the tailgate instead of in front of the bed, that may help put more weight on the bars, but once I went over all my scale numbers, I can't add any more weight to the truck, already over GVWR by 250 pounds. Why a 2WD can't have the same GVWR as a 4WD considering it has the same frame, and a higher GAWR for the rear is beyond me.



Quote:
Originally Posted by persistent View Post
All above is good advice. Also consider the new truck may have active sway control that is conflicting with the Blue OX. Check with Blue Ox for recommendations.

I tried disabling Sway control, made no difference.
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Old 08-09-2019, 10:17 PM   #6
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Found the RV store and got a new set of 1000# bars. After talking to the guy, he knew his stuff, which is refreshing, half these guys don't know their dark side from the front, and after saying that I get sway with the 1500 pound bars, but it properly distributes, he said that if you don't have at least 10 links and a nice curve to the bars, the sway control is pretty much non existent. Well, we shall see on Monday when I head home. I also found out the reason the trailer swayed so much to start with is I-65 is not a very smooth road, it has parts where my truck was wallowing without anything attached to it, and that right there contributes to causing sway. Felt like I was being hit with 30 MPH cross winds, yet barely a breeze is blowing.



If all goes well, I will no longer feel cars passing me, just the Semi's.
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Old 08-13-2019, 07:55 PM   #7
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1000 pound bars did the trick. I got them to 10 links, nice carve to them, kicked the sway when it happened. No issues towing up to 75 MPH where hitting 65 was a handful.
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Old 08-13-2019, 09:05 PM   #8
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Please check your tires make sure they are good for 75 and not 65 as most trailer are.
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Old 08-13-2019, 09:16 PM   #9
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That was the first thing I did. They are rated 85. Need new ones though, they are showing their wear, so getting some Endurance put on next season.
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Old 08-13-2019, 09:24 PM   #10
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Thanks, was just concerned. Also like our Goodyear Endurance. They tow and track so much better than others I have had over the years.
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Old 08-13-2019, 09:27 PM   #11
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One thing I do at every stop is get my infrared thermometer out and measure all the tires and hubs. I don't take chances, my trailer has the boxed in wheels and if one of those goes it will tear up the inside of the trailer, either the cabinet with the refer and stove, or the dinette.
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Old 08-13-2019, 10:42 PM   #12
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Glad you got your sway issue sorted out, makes towing a much more pleasant experience.
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