First tow with Ram 1500 Ecodiesel - Page 3

aslag54 · 10-20-2016, 01:38 PM

Shane

Some photos would be great, thanks!

Will

Shane826 · 10-20-2016, 02:12 PM

I apologize ahead of time for the multiple posts. iOS and all that...

Here you see the outer bracket with the spacer between the bracket and frame. Note the washers; when we made the tongue removable we cut a little further back than originally planned so I had to add a bit more space to get the socket to clear the lower frame.

Shane826 · 10-20-2016, 02:14 PM

Side view. Note the holes have surface rust already, I need to clean that up and shoot some paint. Most of the holes are untouched from Andersen and they rusted. You can also see I drilled out the threads on the set screw hole.

Shane826 · 10-20-2016, 02:22 PM

Here's kinda from the back. The spacer gives enough clearance to push the threaded rod out past the lower frame so you can get the adjusting socket on the nut that compresses the bushing.

Once it's set up correctly it's very easy to use. I'm able to raise the TrailManor & Envoy enough with the tongue jack that it takes the tension off the chains and I unhook them from the triangle plate. That way I can leave the nuts & bushings set where they need to be and not have to reset them every time I hook up, aside from minor adjustments.

I also plan to have the brackets welded to the frame, as I have had them move a little bit on a 700 mile round trip tow. Other than that and the not-really-greaseless deal mentioned before, I have no complaints about the Andersen.

aslag54 · 10-20-2016, 04:18 PM

Do you know if your custom tongue has the same dimensions as the factory swing away? And did you just get 4 additional brackets from Andersen to use as spacers?

Thanks
Will

Shane826 · 10-20-2016, 06:04 PM

It's not. I had to make the trailer shorter by 28" to fit in the garage. I believe the removable tongue is almost 30". I had to add a quick link to the Andersen chains to make them long enough so I could put the brackets past the break for the tongue. That's the beauty of the Andersen setup; you can shorten or lengthen the chains as needed. You can't do that with the traditional WDH with spring bars.

I made the spacers with the help of a metal worker friend. I tried to ask Andersen to make a set but I couldn't make them understand what I was trying to do. You don't need 4 spacers, just 2. Only need to push the outer brackets put away from the frame. The inner brackets are fine as is.

Skyjim73 · 10-20-2016, 10:08 PM

Ahhh, Shane, I didn't get that from their instructions. Thanks!

Skyjim73 · 10-20-2016, 10:13 PM

..but as Shane points out, as long as you use quality links you can adjust length as needed.

I'll get you a number Saturday and pass it on.

Shane826 · 10-21-2016, 06:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skyjim73

Ahhh, Shane, I didn't get that from their instructions. Thanks!

Sorry, what did you miss in the instructions? The Andersen is really a pretty ingenious little device. I'm pretty impressed with it.

Skyjim73 · 10-21-2016, 04:53 PM

I read them as requiring a totally dry ball in order for the anti-sway to function.