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Old 08-19-2015, 11:16 AM   #61
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Originally Posted by OneOleMan View Post
Jim, are you saying you remove the ball from the brake material each time? Or am I not understanding what you're saying?
No, i don't, but just wanted to check wear on it, and found it stuck in their quite good. Not real hard to knock out, just that I could not pull it out by hand.
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Old 08-19-2015, 11:29 AM   #62
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No, i don't, but just wanted to check wear on it, and found it stuck in their quite good. Not real hard to knock out, just that I could not pull it out by hand.
Whew, ya had me scared there for a moment.

Like BCnomad I too at times find the ball and coupler a little sticky so with the trailer wheels blocked and raised just enough to take the weight off the ball I rock the TV back and forth a scosh to free it.
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Old 08-19-2015, 11:53 AM   #63
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Definitely DO NOT unlatch it before raising it. Last thing you want is for it to come unhooked from the ball.
Thanks, Robert. But after reading subsequent posts, I've got a new question: when you raise the trailer with the hitch still latched to the ball, do you remove the ball from its mounting? I've never had mine out so that never occurred to me.
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Old 08-19-2015, 12:26 PM   #64
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Just leave everything hooked up on the ball with the coupler closed and locked. Then jack the trailer up with the TV connected until the chains are visibly loose.
Remove the lower plate and then jack the trailer back down. Disconnect (open) your coupler latch and jack the trailer back up again to remove it from the ball.

Reverse the process to connect.
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Old 08-19-2015, 12:44 PM   #65
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Darn right I'm glad they try!! I was just making the point that sometimes a "better mouse trap" is sometimes just "another mouse trap".
Or another mouse trap with more potential problems than the older mouse trap.
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Old 08-19-2015, 01:05 PM   #66
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Thanks, Robert. But after reading subsequent posts, I've got a new question: when you raise the trailer with the hitch still latched to the ball, do you remove the ball from its mounting? I've never had mine out so that never occurred to me.
No. It would take alot of force (more than you get from jacking it up) to pull the ball from the socket, and the ball isn't being pulled straight up anyway. You're only jacking it high enough to produce slack on the chains. Give it a shot. You'll find it's easy.
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Old 08-19-2015, 02:18 PM   #67
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Originally Posted by Kountrykamper View Post
Just leave everything hooked up on the ball with the coupler closed and locked. Then jack the trailer up with the TV connected until the chains are visibly loose.
Remove the lower plate and then jack the trailer back down. Disconnect (open) your coupler latch and jack the trailer back up again to remove it from the ball.

Reverse the process to connect.
Thanks, Tom; appreciate it. (I used to have a boss that would drill into me, "English is a very precise language." I appreciate your command of your native tongue Makes me REAL GLAD I got that electric jack!
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Old 08-19-2015, 03:28 PM   #68
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Thanks, Tom; appreciate it. (I used to have a boss that would drill into me, "English is a very precise language." I appreciate your command of your native tongue Makes me REAL GLAD I got that electric jack!

In the south, the less words you use the better you are understood. Hope I did not sound short.
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Old 08-19-2015, 03:44 PM   #69
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Aah, the old Chinese proverb, "It is better for some to think you are stupid in lieu of you speaking and confirming their thoughts"
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Old 08-19-2015, 03:47 PM   #70
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i have the conventional hitch with the bars and chain i don't do all that up down stuff to secure the chains just use the pipe to flip it up to tighten the chains the leverage seems to make it easy enough. My issue is that it's heavy -to stick in mt car receiver. Are the new ones lighter smaller easier to set up?
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Old 08-19-2015, 03:47 PM   #71
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In the south, the less words you use the better you are understood. Hope I did not sound short.
Not at all!!! One of my favorite quotes is,“If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter.” by T. S. Eliot (not that I've ever read anything of his). I believe that it's much harder to communicate effectively with fewer words.
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Old 08-19-2015, 10:00 PM   #72
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As I have posted before we got the Andersen hitch but was extremely disappointed with it. As an equalizer it worked well, but there was so much wear on the ball and as well on the trailer coupler that it made me quite concerned. Sent some pictures to Andersen, and they told me that the wear was normal but I'm far from convinced, especially since the trailer coupler was also showing so much wear.
The ball and coupler wear issue is inherent with the Andersen No-Sway design, due to the high force forward on the trailer. This is the one fundamental concern I have with the design. Andersen has identified one coupler type (not used by Escape) which is incompatible with the No-Sway, and says all others are compatible... but the day before they acknowledged problems with that one, they said everything was compatible.

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Also showing a lot of wear were the chains where they came out of the square tubing. all of this after one 6000Km trip (4000 Miles)
The issue of chains rubbing on the tubes is presumably alignment. I think a better bracket design,or possibly just bolting the bracket through the frame instead of just clamping around the frame, could address this effectively.

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Add to that the sway control was horrible (It was nonexistent) felt every truck, van and even cars as they passed me. And the noise it created was none stop, even at hwy speeds to point were I was ready to just remove it and try driving with out an equalizer.
I'm surprised by the lack of sway control. This design is fundamentally a very effective damper, at least by the standards of anything damping with friction. Combined with the noise, I wonder if there was a problem with the lining material.

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I have since bought a husky brand equalizer for half the price and it works great.
A Husky is not an "equalizer", but I know you meant "weight distributing hitch"...
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Old 08-19-2015, 10:20 PM   #73
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Andersen hitch

We have used ours for almost 2 years and many thousands of miles. Canada a couple of times plus trip home to Tucson, Texas, and many trips to CA and could not be happier. I have used WDH with bars since 1970 with many larger trailers and smaller vehicles, they did work but this one is quieter and dampens sway better. We just returned from Monterey, CA, 800 miles each way and the speeds were about 65 in CA and 75 in AZ and our adult son that has towed a number of boats and trailers could not believe how well our Jeep GC would tow 4200# on the freeway, especially the CA truck lane. I do weigh the wheels and axles and the tongue weight to make sure I am very well balanced. I also adjust the chain tension occasionally if I feel that it will improve the weight distribution and the ride because of the weights in the vehicle or trailer. I would buy another.
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Old 08-19-2015, 11:06 PM   #74
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My Andersen works great. I expect wear from anything with moving parts. No big deal, just something that needs maintenance. Like adding grease to a non-Andersen hitch.
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Old 08-19-2015, 11:37 PM   #75
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We like it too. How many threads do you show ? Ours is 6 and wondering if it is a little tight.

Reading other forums it seems like the Andersen is particularly popular with rear wheel drive trucks- usually with heavier trailers. Not to say it doesn't work well with other type vehicles, however if I had a FWD crossover wanting to tow a 19 or 21 I might choose the Pro Series instead having had one with a FWD/17. I do wish my stinger extended a little further so I could more easily open my tailgate, which the Pro Series probably would do better as it does extend a little further.

Have made two inquires to Andersen over the last week or so with promises of a follow up. To date there has been none unfortunately. May be the busy season accounting for this, and fortunately it is nothing urgent.
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Old 08-19-2015, 11:54 PM   #76
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I run 5-7 threads; seems to work fine anywhere in there
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Old 08-20-2015, 12:49 AM   #77
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There seem to be alot of variables - and the setup and tow vehicle seem to make a difference. Our Andersen hitch performs extremely well. There is virtually no sway, very little noise, and we haven't noticed any wear on the ball - just a discoloration on the front upper part of the ball from the metal/paint on the receiver. There is also no wear on the tubing where the chains/absorbers go through.

I don't really know why one person's experience with it would be so different from ours, but we are completely satisfied with the Andersen - and we're happy that Reace suggested it on the day we picked up.
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Old 08-20-2015, 05:32 AM   #78
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Originally Posted by Brian B-P View Post
A Husky is not an "equalizer", but I know you meant "weight distributing hitch"...
You are right Brian I stand corrected thank you.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Jim Bennett View Post
After pulling with my Pilot, and without and equalizer hitch, for four years, then adding the Anderson WDH, I can say that it definitely smoothed out the towing nuances that I am quite used too. No sway in the least, and much less bouncing at the hitch. The two vehicles towed together quite nicely.
That’s the funny part Jim, when I traveled down a side road with lots of twists and turns the ride was excellent the two were like one. But on the highway a different story.


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Originally Posted by rbryan4 View Post
I don't really know why one person's experience with it would be so different from ours, but we are completely satisfied with the Andersen - and we're happy that Reace suggested it on the day we picked up.
I sent Reace an email asking him what he thought was the problem, and this is what he told me

“I have had a few conversations with Andersen and apparently there was a bad batch of the yoke at the ball that will cause a creaking/vibration.”

So there is part of the answer

Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian B-P View Post
The ball and coupler wear issue is inherent with the Andersen No-Sway design, due to the high force forward on the trailer. This is the one fundamental concern I have with the design.
The wear I saw on the ball, the trailer coupler and the part of the coupler called the under jaw shocked me. I even had my neighbour who has been towing TT for years, come over to look at it. And he had never seen anything like it.
I had followed ETI’s instructions “tighten till you can see 7 threads after the nut“, which I eventually backed off to 6 because it just seemed too tight to me. I wasn’t so much worried about the ball, it could easily be replaced, but the coupler and under jaw on the trailer that would have been another story.

But as they say “ All’s well that ends well” I’ve now got a system that I think I’ll hold on too for a long time, and retirement is just 2 ½ years away, can’t wait.
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Old 08-21-2015, 12:04 AM   #79
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Reading other forums it seems like the Andersen is particularly popular with rear wheel drive trucks- usually with heavier trailers.
I think that's true of WD systems in general. Is it more true for the Andersen No-Sway? Despite the high capacity rating by Andersen, my impression of online discussions has been that the design is not particularly well-suited to high load transfer applications - meaning big trailers.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rossue View Post
Not to say it doesn't work well with other type vehicles, however if I had a FWD crossover wanting to tow a 19 or 21 I might choose the Pro Series instead having had one with a FWD/17.
Ross, what would the reason be to use a conventional WDH rather than the Andersen No-Sway particularly with this type of vehicle?

An unfortunate feature of Andersen's product is that they offer it in only one capacity range. Other brands have mostly all-purpose models, and some light-duty models, usually with a range of spring bars of different stiffness for each model. A lower-capacity Andersen No-Sway could have lighter chains (the head could be lighter too, but I don't think there's much point in that). Perhaps more importantly, even if all the chains were the same, a range of springs including softer ones (the same urethane, but smaller diameter, larger hole, or longer length) would be better suited to lighter rigs.

Excessive WD spring stiffness is an issue, because it can cause loss of WD effect when going over humps and excessive stress when going through dips, and it could make the system adjustment too sensitive.
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Old 08-21-2015, 10:16 AM   #80
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We too have an andersen hitch and get a great tow from it, we tow with a Dodge Ram 1500 Hemi. The hitch is less than 6 months old and has now developed loud groaning noises on tight corners - sounds like we need to contact andersen to see what they have to say. We will let you know what they say and do.
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