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Old 09-12-2012, 09:47 AM   #1
CrazyCampers
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Default Equal-i-zer hitch and TM 2720SD

We are going to pick up our new 2013 TM 2720SD on Friday. In reading through posts here, I read that there was a potential problem with the Equal-i-zer hitch and the slide out models. Does anyone know if this problem still exists concerning the interference of the bars with the swing away hitch and slide out? (The thread was from 2006.)

The dealer is supposed to install the hitch for us. What should I look out for? How will I know if there is a problem? What is an acceptable way to deal with the problem if it occurs? This dealer is relatively new to selling TMs and I am concerned that they may not deal with the issue correctly. They told us we would not need a WDH when we purchased the TM, but finally did agreed to provide one.

Thanks for any advice!
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Old 09-12-2012, 10:24 AM   #2
Bill
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Can you give us a link to the thread you reference? I don't think I have seen any problem with the slideout, but there have been occasional fit problems with the swing hitch and a number of different hitches, not just the Equal-i-zer. It has to do with springbar length, and where you can mount the springbar hangers.

The Equal-i-zer is a good hitch (though a bit expensive for my taste), and many of our members use one. Have you used the Search tool on the term "Equal-i-zer"?

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Old 09-12-2012, 10:30 AM   #3
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Here was the thread that concerned me. It seems like the placement of the horizontal propane could cause problems.

http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...r+hitch+2720sl
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Old 09-13-2012, 10:37 AM   #4
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So does anyone know if there is still a problem with the equal-i-zer hitch and the swing hitch? How would we know if there was a problem when driving? Would there be problems on turns?

Is it reasonable to ask the dealer to cut down the sway bars if they don't fit? Is it safe to drive with the Equil-i-zer hitch but without the sway bars until we get home and find someone else to cut them down for us? It's a two hour drive.

What options would we have?
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Old 09-13-2012, 11:07 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CrazyCampers View Post
So does anyone know if there is still a problem with the equal-i-zer hitch and the swing hitch? How would we know if there was a problem when driving? Would there be problems on turns?

Is it reasonable to ask the dealer to cut down the sway bars if they don't fit? Is it safe to drive with the Equil-i-zer hitch but without the sway bars until we get home and find someone else to cut them down for us? It's a two hour drive.

What options would we have?
The issue is whether the hitch bar clamps will be able to be installed at or near the swing hitch pivot point. The unknown is the length of the spring bars and from what i read here, you don't know that? You'll know it when you or the dealer attempts to install the system. Not all dealers will install the WDH due to liability issues down the road, no pun intended.

Also, the sway bar is not necessarily needed. The low profile of the TM cancels the majority of any sway that exists for full upright non folding tow behind RVs.

I'm running a V8 Tundra and pulling a larger and heavier TM than you and don't use the WDH unless I load several hundred pounds of cargo in the truck bed and have never used a sway bar while towing a TM. That's not to say you can't use both, but your posts suggests practical experience opinions.
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Old 09-13-2012, 11:34 AM   #6
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I have a 2009.5 2720SL, swing away tongue, WDH (not equal-i-zer, but a similar model.) No sway control (not needed).

The brackets for the chains, on my set up, fit perfectly between the pin/join of the swing-away hitch, and the hinge where the slide-out is. It's like that small segment of the tongue was left empty specifically for the brackets to sit. I leave 2 chain links off the end (7th link from the bar end) and there is no issue with interference. This has nothing to do with the horizontal tanks, it's all about the slide out hinge and the swing-away points, and neither of those have been an issue for me. If the ends of the bars hit the slide-outs, you may need to tip the hitch ball away from the TV to give the bars more room. The height of the ball should also be adjustable.

I can see it being an issue if the WDH bars were significantly longer than they are, but mine are 800# bars, standard length, and there's plenty of clearance in either direction.

I wouldn't start messing around with sway control, because that might be too much hardware for that space, but a straightforward WDH? Nah.
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Old 09-13-2012, 11:46 AM   #7
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Bill and rvcycleguy, thank you for your advice.

I decided to go ahead and call customer service for the Equal-i-zer hitch and talked to a technical rep there. He said that they do not know of any problems accomodating swing hitches but offered to help out if we encounter a problem. Worse case we can use the hitch without the sway bars to get the trailer home. We could then take photos and send them in to the tech rep to look at so they can recommend a workaround for getting the bars working. He said that cutting the bars would void the warranty so they would try to find another solution.

I was very impressed at how friendly and helpful they were!
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Old 09-13-2012, 11:54 AM   #8
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ThePair, that's great. I am always getting myself worried about potential problems that turn out to be nothing. So hopefully, everything will go smoothly.

The Equal-i-zer has long vertical brackets instead of chains so hopefully I can find an adjustment that works. I believe there was also an option of turning the receiver bar upside down to change the height also if needed. (They have some nice videos on the web site.)

By "sway control", I was referring to the rigid brackets on the Equal-i-zer hitch. They supposedly provide "sway control". I also verified with the tech rep that there would be no conflict between the sway control provided as part of the Durango and the sway control that they provide.
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Old 09-13-2012, 12:09 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CrazyCampers View Post
Bill and rvcycleguy, thank you for your advice.

I decided to go ahead and call customer service for the Equal-i-zer hitch and talked to a technical rep there. He said that they do not know of any problems accomodating swing hitches but offered to help out if we encounter a problem. Worse case we can use the hitch without the sway bars to get the trailer home. We could then take photos and send them in to the tech rep to look at so they can recommend a workaround for getting the bars working. He said that cutting the bars would void the warranty so they would try to find another solution.

I was very impressed at how friendly and helpful they were!
Your welcome.

I will offer my experience with terminology. There is only one sway bar associated with towing. It's a friction clamp bar that generally mounts on the curb side of the hitch and TM A-frame. It has two mini balls with a locking pin. One on the WDH and the other on the frame. It's commonly referred to as an Anti-Sway bar. The opinions offered here are real life experiences and gained over many years of towing. There are no shortcuts in safe towing. Your asking the appropriate questions and have learned quite a bit as you've expressed already. Keep notes, do the same things each time you tow, don't be in a hurry when hitching up, maintain greater distances from traffic while towing, increase your braking distance, stay under posted speed limits, and understand you may be towing more weight than your tow vehicle weighs. That unequal relationship poses new issues you will be unfamiliar with for awhile. Utilize the electric brakes on the TM as the safe way to slow your tow vehicle. Without getting too technical, the trailer brakes should slow your truck in direct proportion to the amount of braking you apply. Just think about the weight? If you had no brakes on the trailer, the truck would be expected to stop your combo all the while, emerita, momentum from the trailer is pushing you down the road. Using the trailer brakes in proportion with the truck brakes greatly reduces stopping distance.
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Old 09-13-2012, 12:53 PM   #10
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The rep at Equal-i-zer called them "sway bars" but the company just calls them "spring arms" in their literature. So I guess that is the proper term. They also refer to the brackets at the the of the spring arms as "sway control brackets".

We just installed the Tekonsha P3 last night, so we should be good on the braking issue.

My DH will probably do most of the initial driving, but my job has been to be the one to do all the research. I have a background in engineering so that helps a little but it is still a lot to learn! He asks questions and then I scurry around doing the research. He should nickname me "Google".
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