[Rhodes22-list]Jim's trailer solution!

[Jim Connolly]

Two photos show my trailer with the brackets attached, and a photo of the
assembled contraption courtesy of the manufacturer.  

The hitch assembly consists of an oversized heavy (>50 lb) steel widget that
mounts in the receiver.  It holds the ball and the pivots for the two steel
spring arms.  The swing arms clip onto sway control brackets that bolt to
the trailer.  Everything bolts and clips together and is adjustable to fit
the vehicle and trailer heights and weights.  Everything attached to the
truck is removable (just like a regular hitch ball) and lives in my garage
when not in use.  I leave the sway control brackets bolted to the trailer.
Assembly was not challenging except I needed a torque wrench big enough to
fasten the ball to the widget.  

It works by effectively lifting the back of the truck and pushing down on
the front.  The attachment point/fulcrum is the ball.  Think of the spring
arms like lifting the handles of a wheelbarrow.  

You lower the trailer onto the ball normally and tighten the retaining nut
and attach the spring arms.  If you *don't* attach the spring arms to the
sway control at this point prior to raising the trailer jack fully then, the
ball (and rear axle of the truck) would take the weight,  back bumper goes
down and front bumper up. The spring control arms will hang several inches
below the sway control brackets.

If you were strong enough at this point, you could grasp the spring control
arms like wheelbarrow handles and lift them into place on the sway control
brackets.  Back of truck would go back up a bit, front of truck back down,
trailer goes down a tiny bit too.  (note that this description is to
illustrate the function and is not what I do and not what the directions
say).  Net result, nice and level.

Trailer still has safety chains and they work the same way.  The chains I
referred to in previous post were part of other manufacturer's hitched,
where short links of chain serve the similar function that the sway control
brackets do here, to attach to the trailer frame and pull up on spring arms.

Hope this helps

Jim Connolly

-----Original Message-----
From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
[mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of ed kroposki
Sent: Thursday, December 02, 2004 8:45 AM
To: 'The Rhodes 22 mail list'
Subject: RE: [Rhodes22-list]Jim's trailer solution!

Jim:

	Yes, I would like to see pictures.  Your trailer had safety chains,
I presume that they still attach as before?
	Your system attaches to the trailer.  I have heard the term 'load
balancing trailer hitches' before and from the description, presumed them to
actual vehicle mounted devices.  Any comments about that?

Ed K
Greenville, SC, USA
Addendum:
Vince's slogan "You don't do things right once in a while.  You do the right
all the time."  Jerry Kramer



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