Anti-sway Bar

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by Francesca Knowles

Here's hopin' they already had it- that puppy'll do a forty foot trailer and up to a couple thousand pounds of tongue weight. WAY more hitch than one would likely buy just to tow a Bigfoot!

While I can see why it would be a great hitch for a Bigfoot 21' I am struggling as to how well it would fix the OP's situation - which comes down to the simple fact their tow vehicle only has a tongue weight spec of 200lbs but a trailer with a total weight of 2500lbs or more loaded.

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Francesca Knowles

Here's hopin' they already had it- that puppy'll do a forty foot trailer and up to a couple thousand pounds of tongue weight. WAY more hitch than one would likely buy just to tow a Bigfoot!

FYI.... Re Pro Pride....there are four models with weight ratings for small to large TT's.

[Francesca Knowles]

Originally Posted by Carol H

While I can see why it would be a great hitch for a Bigfoot 21' I am struggling as to how well it would fix the OP's situation - which comes down to the simple fact their tow vehicle only has a tongue weight spec of 200lbs but a trailer with a total weight of 2500lbs or more loaded.

This not to mention that a Propride itself weighs in the two hundred pound neighborhood. Whatcha gonna do with all that added poundage? Why, transfer it, of course! ...

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Francesca Knowles

This not to mention that a Propride itself weighs in the two hundred pound neighborhood. Whatcha gonna do with all that added poundage? Why, transfer it, of course! ...

Right on FK.... Being a WDH and installed correctly the 150lb Propride will add only about 30lbs per tire on the rig as a whole.

These vids will help you understand the technical aspects of the Hensley and Propride state of the art connection systems.

Enjoy.......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fdM...eature=related

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDER3up7I_s

[Francesca Knowles]

I already understand the principles behind W/D, thank you very much anyway. But we're talkin' about a Scamp here, fer cryin' out loud- and on a Subaru Forester! Not that the O.P. seems to be paying any attention any more...as if that'll stop us.

That said: surely I'm not the only person whose funny bone is tickled by the notion that nearly doubling weight at the ball is the best way to begin to manage tongue weight redistribution in that case.

Smaller trailers should use much smaller systems when such a system is called for at all.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by Francesca Knowles

I already understand the principles behind W/D, thank you very much anyway. But we're talkin' about a Scamp here, fer cryin' out loud- and on a Subaru Forester! Not that the O.P. seems to be paying any attention any more...as if that'll stop us.

That said: surely I'm not the only person whose funny bone is tickled by the notion that nearly doubling weight at the ball is the best way to begin to manage tongue weight redistribution in that case.

Smaller trailers should use much smaller systems when such a system is called for at all.

Agreed, I don't see the need for a WDH on any Scamp.
Now that Airstream is a different story... and a different kind of fiberglass!

[MC1]

Jeesh, not on the same page.

Some of us are talking about Ron's Bigfoot and now we are back to the OP's scamp. The ups and downs/twists and turns of driving the forum freeway....LOL

[carlkeigley]

I have to declare "ignorance."
But that lego demo spelled it out for me. haha

Maybe if I had ever seen one before I would
understand it.

But Rednecks don't need no stinkin' stabilizers........

Thanx for the lego vid.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by MC1

FYI.... Re Pro Pride....there are four models with weight ratings for small to large TT's.

Yup but note per the their website the weight rating differences are not reflected in the price by more than a few dollars in difference!

As far as the ups and downs of this topic..... some of us are at least attempting to stick within reason to the reality of the OP's question and concerns with towing their set up.

While others have indicated having an anti sway bar on a trailer/tug set up is a nice additional added security it is not designed or meant to be used as a means of stopping a trailer that is often swaying - no matter how much one pays for it. If an anti sway bar is having to stop sway on a regular bases it may actually cause some damage to the tug, due to the added stress its putting on the vehicle. Nor will an anti sway bar totally stop a big wag!

Best/safest option as others have suggested is for the OP to stow the trailer correctly. In this case even though the OP has not come back with any indication of the factual loaded axle and tongue weights of the trailer I suspect based on what info they have provided that too small of % of weight on the tongue is most probable the cause of the sway. Whether or not the tug has a tongue rating spec that will allow them to put the required amount of weight on the tongue to stabilize the tow without also damaging the rear suspension of their vehicle is part of their issue as is the fact the vehicle manufacture does not recommend the use of a WDH on their vehicles. The use of the WDH on this particular tug may in fact case an equally unsafe towing set up.

Having faced this situation myself with the same trailer and tug brand I don't have an answer for the OP and I know no one else here has ever come up with one when this topic has come up time and time again in regards to the issues of towing a 16' trailer with any Subaru. For had they done so I myself would have loved to have heard about & probable used it!

[Bob Miller]

Usually peeps get into the problem of a mismatched TV and trailer by accident, they either buy to big a trailer or to small a TV. But, as I understand, the OP bought both at the same time with knowledge of the mismatch.....

What can one say?

[Infogypsy]

Info gypsy is a she and I towed last autumn 4500 miles in 40 days without getting your message and did fine. I do appreciate the input and as I said, I am level and in great shape - getting 24-30 mph gas my expert on this list says I am in great shape per stability; just avoid towing in 40-60 mph crosswinds on interstates. I'm from Michigan and we never have those kind of crosswinds (with trucks bumped to bumper around us). Again I am leaving the subject here and will take private messages if they are not righteous. I've had some great ones. Good travels.

[MC1]

Judi.... Have a quick look at this Vid. It shows how relaxing towing can be, even on a windy day when the set up is done right.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DD00Z92ON-k

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Bob Miller

Years ago, while full timing in our Airstream, we were on a long interstate downgrade in Utah and triple-tow passed us at about 80 MPH. The wind push that he gave us as he passed started the trailer swaying so violently that we swapped ends right in the middle of the interstate. Of course Mr. Professional Truck Driver kept on truckin'.

Wow, sorry to hear about your mishap BoB. Not a good experience I'm sure.

I am not surprised to hear though. Generally speaking most TT set up by RV dealers using a WDH are far from optimal. In fact most are not and it doesn't matter how capable the TV or the trailer is, crap can hit the fan.
Like the OP's rig this one (see image below) is not set up right and is an accident waiting to happen.
PS, do you have any pics of your rig before the incident? Did you tow with a Suburban too? Would luv to have a look at your pics.

[Bob Miller]

Nope, no pics, this was back in 1978 and, needless to say, at 34 & 25 y.o. respectively, we were about the youngest Airstreamers on the road at the time.

We were more interested in getting turned back around when the Utah SP's were kind enough to block the entire freeway to allow this. There was also an immediate need for a change of chonies on both our parts.

TV was a 4 y.o. Chevy Blazer 4x4, trailer was a 25' Airstream

The point I was trying to make is that there are any number of variables that have to be considered. Just stopping when there is a crosswind isn't the answer to a problematic set-up. The situation we were in was the perfect storm for what happened.

[honda03842]

Small things.

There are many little things that can be done to minimize road risk.

After a number of towing years we have yet to have a significant disturbance due to a passing truck. We typically drive 60 mph on Interstate highways.

On multi-lane roads we stay to the right in our lane as much as possible to increase the distance between our trailer and passing high speed trucks with the intent of minimizing the 'push' of the truck's displaced air.

We do have a rear view camera on our trailer that provides a good view of the trailers position with respect to the edge of the road.

We attempt to do small things beside our rear view camera, and road driving position to minimize road and rowing risk. One is tire pressure sensors on both trailer and tow vehicle.

We did have an unusual situation on a rear wheel on our Honda's passenger side rear tire. We have temperature/pressure sensors on the trailer tires and on the Honda's rear tires (apparently some tire pressure sensors do not also report temperature).

I noticed the tire temperature increasing, rising to 139F before I could pull over. Apparently the brake caliper had cocked causing the brake to drag.

We applied water to the brake to cool it (causing much steam). We than put the Honda in reverse and slammed the brakes on. This relieved the problem at least for the last few days. I'll check the problem when we get home in a day or so before leaving for Newfoundland.

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Bob Miller

Nope, no pics, this was back in 1978 and, needless to say, at 34 & 25 y.o. respectively, we were about the youngest Airstreamers on the road at the time.

TV was a 4 y.o. Chevy Blazer 4x4, trailer was a 25' Airstream

I think you may have been the youngest full timers on the roads back then BoB.

My buddy also had a 1st gen Blazer. It was a great off road vehicle. He blew up the 350 and dropped in a 302 from a 69 Z28. It didn't work that well. As a GM automotive drivetrain engineer he should have realized that torque is the name of the game when mudding, not necessary HP.

Anyway there is a guy on the RVNet forum that talked about the poor towing performance of his older Blazer (mostly stability) when towing his pop up. He found that the vehicle that replaced the Blazer (a Subaru Forester) was much more stable towing the pop up. Note the Forester was Towcar of the year many times off shore.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by MC1

He found that the vehicle that replaced the Blazer (a Subaru Forester) was much more stable towing the pop up. Note the Forester was Towcar of the year many times off shore.

Not surprised the Subaru's do indeed make very solid tow vehicles when towing trailers with weights within their limits & when the trailer is loaded correctly.

[Bob Miller]

Well, as we had only towed about 10,000 miles at that point, and rear view cameras hadn't yet been invented, I guess we were just a couple of newbies with bad luck.....

But a 60's Airstream and a 70's TV aren't a 16' Scamp or a Honda CRV. And trailer brakes were still electric, with hydraulic actuation in the TV.

[Bob Miller]

We covered almost 20,000 miles in 11 months, mostly towing the Airstream, and that was the only time that stability came into play. Now, we didn't have jacked up suspension or oversize tires as most full size Blazer owners seem to need when they encounter anything higher than a curb.

And I have pulled the Lil'Bigfoot, the Hunter, a 26' Coleman hybrid and several tent trailers with my 2003 Blazer and have never had any stability problems there either. If someone has stability problems pulling a tent trailer with a Blazer then maybe they have other causes that are being ignored.

[honda03842]

Carol, Bob wrote about his accident due to a passing high speed truck. I noticed on our way home that I stay well to the right in my lane and that this 'small thing' may help some one, maybe the original poster or even Bob.

I of course mentioned the camera because it helps me stay to the right. Sorry you didn't catch the concept.

Once on the 'small thing' topic I decided to slip in a second small thing that might help someone. There are many ways to make towing safer, many are the result of doing small things.