tluxon
Kirkland, WA
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Joined: 08/12/2001
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Good catch. I'm for that one.
For me, the last sentence seems to be more of a comment than a feature of the WD system, so I might preface that with the notation, "Note: ". But if you want to leave it as is, I'm okay with that as well.
Thanks,
Tim -
wife Beverly & 2 boys who love camping
2002 K2500 Suburban 8.1L 4.10 Prodigy
2005 Sunnybrook 30FKS HP Dual Cam
Replaced 2000 Sunnybrook 26FK on 8/6/04
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#20 Home Depot
Mississippi/China
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Joined: 03/25/2004
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Count me in, sounds good. (maybe tag a link to this thread on the end saying for detailed explanation click here.)
#20 Home Depot
04 GMC 2500HD SWB EC D/A SLT 4x4,Michelin LTX AT2
Timbrens, Bilsteins , color backup cam, Doran tire pressure monitor Reese Tow Beast, Torklift tiedowns w/ fastguns
Lance 8SCS Polar Cub AC Honda EU2000">
2007 Chaparral 256 SSx
2005 Jeep Wrangler
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ohmy
Vacaville, Ca
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Joined: 09/01/2004
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I just got one of these with the trailer I bought - anyone have any directions on how to correctly install it and uninstall it?
Paula
New to the non tent camping world ">
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thomas malenich
sound beach, new york 11789
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What brand is it?
Thomas and Laura Malenich
1988 Suburban 1500, 4WD
Scotty 16 1/2' , smaller and loving it
2 kids and 3 dogs
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DavidG
Richland, WA
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Barney,
Sounds good to me.
Ohmy,
There may be some brand-specific instructions you may need to follow, and the instructions should have come with the equipment. If not, you might be able to find the instructions online by doing a web search (not to be confused with the forum search) by entering the brand name. You can also find some setup instructions on my website here.
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BarneyS
S.E. Lower Michigan
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Looks like Tim and I agree again. I was a little bit bothered by adding the second sentence as part of the definition. Adding the "note" before the second sentence takes care of that problem. Now the definition looks like this:
A weight distribution system enables a tow vehicle to more effectively handle the tongue weight of a trailer by removing some of the load from the tow vehicle's rear axle and distributing it to the tow vehicle's front axle and the trailer's axle(s). Note - When the WD system is engaged the actual tongue weight does not change.
Barney
2004 Sunnybrook Titan 30FKS TT
Hensley "Arrow" 1400# hitch (Sold)
Not towing now.
Former tow vehicles were 2016 Ram 2500 CTD, 2002 Ford F250, 7.3 PSD, 1997 Ram 2500 5.9 gas engine
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thomas malenich
sound beach, new york 11789
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Barney, that definition looks good, however there is still one thing that bothers me.
Even though tongue weight remains unchanged, Ron has proved that the tension forces DO change the weight at the receiver. In Ron's drawing he notes that the WD removes 300#s from the receiver. As we all know this point really confused me because I thought that very same 300#s was removed(distributed off) the tongue as well. It seems this is not the case. Ron has shown that whether the tongue weight is 0#s or 1000#s, ONLY 300#s (in his particular example) is removed and is done so by bar tension. This is extremely important to know otherwise the hitch would be overloaded as many of you have pointed out.
I don't want to see the definition become too long - simple is always better, but I think this is a VERY important function/feature of the WD system.
Perhaps the note should read: When the WD bars are engaged the actual tongue weight does not change, however the hitch load changes because some of the downward force exerted by the tensioners on the TT's A-frame is transferred to the TT's axles. The hitch load is reduced by the same amount.
That would sum up Ron's thoughts rolled up into one sentence. How do you all feel about this?
* This post was
edited 09/02/04 09:54am by thomas malenich *
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tluxon
Kirkland, WA
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Quote:thomas malenich wrote:
...
Perhaps the note should read: When the WD bars are engaged the actual tongue weight does not change, however the hitch load changes because some of the downward force exerted by the tensioners on the TT's A-frame is transferred to the TT's axles. The hitch load is reduced by the same amount.
...
A definition shouldn't have to serve as an introductory course in physics. If we want to extrapolate the note out, we could address the additional stresses on the receiver, the tongue of the trailer, the change of torsional forces on the tow vehicle hitch frame and chassis, right on down to the additional flexing of the front tire sidewalls, etc. Any one of those changes could be of interest to the user of a weight distribution system. Besides, if you used the note above, you'd have to define what you mean by "hitch load".
Backtracking a bit, you said,
Quote:thomas malenich wrote:
... Even though tongue weight remains unchanged, Ron has proved that the tension forces DO change the weight at the receiver. In Ron's drawing he notes that the WD removes 300#s from the receiver. As we all know this point really confused me because I thought that very same 300#s was removed(distributed off) the tongue as well. It seems this is not the case. Ron has shown that whether the tongue weight is 0#s or 1000#s, ONLY 300#s (in his particular example) is removed and is done so by bar tension. ...
Thomas, I think you're getting confused by the concept of weight as opposed to force. What Ron has tried to point out - and I think he's been real consistent in this - is that the weight (probably better described as gravitational mass) doesn't get moved at all (unless you have shifting cargo). Instead, the WD system changes the reactionary forces that work together to support it all.
For example, one of the things I think you're concerned with is the force on the hitch ball. Without a WD system, this force is the same as the "weight" on the coupler, or "tongue weight". Once you introduce a WD system, that force is no longer a "weight", but a compressive force between the ball and the coupler. What Ron has explained is that the trailer axle(s) and the ball will share the reaction required to support the vertical downward force exerted by the spring bar. I know you already understand the concept, but I'm re-stating things in hopes that it will make you more comfortable with the difference between a "weight" and a "force".
Cheers,
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thomas malenich
sound beach, new york 11789
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Tim, I understand the difference between weight and force, however the receiver does not. It just realizes 300#s are gone after the WD is engaged.
It is important to know that it is the WD system that accomplishes that. I would dare say it is equally important as axle load shift in that it allows the hitch weight not to be exceeded.
Just because you use a term like "hitch weight" in a definition does not mean you have to define hitch weight. I said I want to keep it simple but how can you leave out something important that the WD system does? Besides have we not already agreed to use the term "tongue weight" in the definition? We did not define tongue weight did we? Please think about that.
PS - I am not confused about weight and force - I said it is the tensioners that remove load.
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thomas malenich
sound beach, new york 11789
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How about this then:
Note: When the WD system is engaged the actual tongue weight does not change, however some load is removed from the receiver by the force created by the bars.
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