Reese Dual cam and my sway issues

Oh and to add one more thought, when your trailer and truck are loaded like you want, you want them to be level without needing the spring bars at all while initially measuring. They way to level the truck/trailer during initial setup is by raising and lowering the ball head on the adjustable draw bar with the two bolts that pass through the hitch.

Also tilting the ball head forward and back up to straight up will make a less dramatic adjustment, and allow you to "fine tune" your level of the trailer.

PSMCN: Make sure I said that right.

 

I just read some of the installation instructions for a reese RB2. Since i have an equalizer WD I thought i would check before I responded. from what I read both hitched work similarly. Here is my take in a nut shell and how I do it.

Read your owners manual completely before WD installation. Following the manual is the best way to set up your hitch. the following notes are my observation of what worked for me but they may not work for you.

Find a level spot

*Load TV and trailer
*Level trailer
*measure to top of trailer tongue
*install ball mount on TV
*Adjust ball to 3/4' higher then top of trailer tongue
*attach ball head loosely
* measure front wheel well height at top of fender
*lower TT tongue onto ball
*measure the front height of vehicle ( I measure from the ground to the height of the fender/wheel well using the center of the hub of the front wheel to center my tape)
*attach WD bars
*measure front height
The front wheel well height should be equal to the
original measurement. Some say lower is okay as well but no more then 1/2"
-if lower then original measurement loosen bars there is to much WD to the front of the TV
*If the front wheel well height is higher than originally measured, tighten the bars and recheck the wheel well measurement.
* if you have no more chain links left to adjust you need to tilt the head down to create more force on the bars and go through it all over again.
*IMPORTANT NOTE: THE WD BARS SHOULD ALWAY BE PARALLEL WITH THE TRAILER FRAME. THEY SHOULD NOT BE PULLED UP TIGHT OR HANGING LOOSE.
* In order to achieve this you will have to find the proper head tilt and chain adjustment.

Tighten/torque everything when done

*the trailer should also be level to within 1 1/4" of original measurements. If the front or rear is higher or lower then that you will need to readjust the ball hight accordingly.


I know this all sounds like a PITA but it is so worth it after it's all set up!!

Good Luck.

Paul
Now get that thing set up and go CAMPING or RIDING or What ever you may do with your trailer

 

Here is a pic of my rig loaded with the bike on the bed.The bike created 1" and the trailer 1" for a total of 2" rear sag and the front had 1" of rise. before the WD was hooked up. After WD adjsutment, 1/2"front rise, 1.5" rear sag on truck. The trailer is higher by 1/2" in the front. All with in specs It handle great!


close up of the equalizer WD. Notice the parallel bars and tilted head


Front view just for the hell of it. I'm using Mekesh mirrors


I do have the spring TSB on my truck and I think if I did not it would not handle the load as well.

Here is a picture of my previous rig w/o the TSB and you can see the sag in the truck


The trailer is level though,

Peace, Paul

 

Nice thanks for sharing and the photos help alot too.

It took me a couple tries to get my setup correct too (moving the head assembly down on the shank is a pita but it made all the difference when I had it right).

 

UPDATE: Once agian, thanks for the help. Never new these equalizer products existed! Our dealer installed a slighly older version of the Reese Dual Cam (at used $), looks a bit different, but sure works. Was able to keep highway speed on interstates, esp. downhill. Feel quite a bit more confident. As before, we stop with confidence.
NEXT QUESTION: I've taken a little different approach to trailer weight/vehicle loading. I know my trailer is below the magic 6500 lbs, even when loaded. On our last camping trip, we got weighed at a CAT truck stop scale: 9560 pounds, truck, trailer, wife, dog, fuel. There will be more stuff in truck bed and trailer for our yearly snowbird trip south, bringing us up to about 10,000-10,400, close to that other magic number of 11,070, total weigh of truck and trailer. This future trip is much different than trips around here, NO HILLS, just Rt 95 for a few days! Has anyone experienced problems with vehicle towing near capacity? What can I expect? If this is the wrong thread for this question, please advise. George

 

George,

if you know what the rig weighs and you are with in specs and comfortable with the weight, go for it. Most weight numbers are lowballed from my understanding, CYA for the manufacture. I had a 26' flat bed trailer loaded with farm equipment hooked up last weekend the trailer was 2500# with at least that much weight in equipment loaded and horse tack and equipment in the truck bed. with trailer brakes and a properly loaded trailer the Taco pulled with no problems through the rolling hill of maryland. It was a little bit of a rough ride because i did not have WD for that trailer. I put heavy equipment over the trailer axels to lighten up the tongue and it did fine.

let us know how it does after your trip.I'm sure you'll be fine

Paul

 

I concur with Paul. I've loaded up a 6000# travel trailer and pulled down the road and through some hills. Those weight limits are for legal and idiot-proof reasons mainly, not because of the trucks limits.

I absolutely don't condone going over, and since you're weighing your stuff you are taking the time to do it right anyways, but I wouldn't sweat the trucks abilities on flat lands even at the 6500#. The transmission and engine are used for other vehicles in the toyota lineup which includes v8 setups and more towing capacities than the Tacoma's.

I think the reason the Tacoma is set at 6500# is because of the wheelbase and the width. If a Tundra was sporting the same transmission and engine, along with 4 wheel disc brakes, and other factors that all go into the tow rating, then I do not doubt it would be higher, but for safety and stability's sake, we are at 6500.