Andersen hitch - nut size?

[Cypherian]

Originally Posted by tractors1

The whole point of page 8 is to demonstrate chain tension application; the urethane spring only works in pure compression so the chain needs to pull as straight on the cushion as possible.

Yep and if you read back some have gotten some incorrect information on how to do it hence my post.

Cypher

[Parker]

Dennis set ours up (second one he installed) so we have seven threads showing when ready to tow.

[gbaglo]

I liked that he tells you to tension one side one turn and then the other, and then he does two turns and never goes to the other side.
Not that I'm buying an Andersen hitch anyway...
Do you really have to hop from one side to the other and back?

[Cypherian]

I do it all from one side but yeah when ever you are tensioning something it should be done evenly.

Cypher

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

Do you really have to hop from one side to the other and back?

I really don't, maybe just once back and forth to fine tune. So long as you have the right amount of threads showing, it will all work nicely into place the minute you pull away.

[Parker]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

So long as you have the right amount of threads showing, it will all work nicely into place the minute you pull away.

Agree. And if you first take most of the weight off the hitch with the tongue jack, you have very little actual wrenching to do to get seven threads (or whatever you want) showing behind the nut.

[gharper]

I have seven threads showing for my 19 Escape and Highlander and find once the hitch is secured on the ball it is easier to tighten the nuts on the Anderson hitch if there is a load on the jack. I tighten each side separately and then lift the jack.

[cpaharley2008]

Okay, let's try another approach. with conventional w/d (not Andersen) you raise and lower the tongue jack to relieve the stress on the bars, some have chains that need to be adjusted in order to tighten, thus you raise the unit, reset the chains and lower the unit, measure and repeat if necessary for the other side.

With the Andersen, all of your adjustment maybe accomplished with the unit hooked without using the tongue jack. You will hand tighten each side and then you will wrench tighten each side until the desired vehicle leveling has been accomplished. A ruler to measure the front rise and fall of the tow vehicle is necessary. However it does become harder to tighten as you add more stress to the chains. Once you have both the trailer and tow vehicle level, remember the number of threads showing, some members here painted the thread for ease. Mark it down someplace.You have to go side to side with any w/d set up to insure equal pressure is being applied.

Once you have your mark, then you can then use the tongue jack somewhat to raise the trailer and this will release the pressure on the chains, allowing you to loosen the big nuts to unhook. Like wise after hooking up you can raise the trailer which will allow tightening the chains easier, but you must stop at your mark or number of threads previously determined.
Does this make any sense to those confused?

[Tonny LR]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Okay, let's try another approach. with conventional w/d (not Andersen) you raise and lower the tongue jack to relieve the stress on the bars, some have chains that need to be adjusted in order to tighten, thus you raise the unit, reset the chains and lower the unit, measure and repeat if necessary for the other side.

With the Andersen, all of your adjustment maybe accomplished with the unit hooked without using the tongue jack. You will hand tighten each side and then you will wrench tighten each side until the desired vehicle leveling has been accomplished. A ruler to measure the front rise and fall of the tow vehicle is necessary. However it does become harder to tighten as you add more stress to the chains. Once you have both the trailer and tow vehicle level, remember the number of threads showing, some members here painted the thread for ease. Mark it down someplace.You have to go side to side with any w/d set up to insure equal pressure is being applied.

Once you have your mark, then you can then use the tongue jack somewhat to raise the trailer and this will release the pressure on the chains, allowing you to loosen the big nuts to unhook. Like wise after hooking up you can raise the trailer which will allow tightening the chains easier, but you must stop at your mark or number of threads previously determined.
Does this make any sense to those confused?

I agreed with Jim that when you raise the trailer which will allow tightening or loosening the chains easier. I found this out the hard way.

Tonny LR

[tractors1]

Raise/Lower exercises with my last WDH bars taught me how much simpler things are with an electric jack, too.

[dave macrae]

Electric tounge jack is really nice for this

[bolerfan]

If Dennis has only done two Andersons, then ours must have been #1. He suggested 7 turns, we now find we use 4/5 max and the chains are super tight. Yes, side to side as otherwise the triangle gets skewed. Has anyone found getting the trailer to unhitch from the ball an issue with all the raising and lowering on the jack? Seems to me that a lot of pressure is placed on that piece of metal clamping the ball while doing this and I have wondered if that is factored into its design loads and whether in time it will weaken the clamp.

[cpaharley2008]

It is no different than using conventional w/d set up and hopefully it is designed for some pressure. Either way, I just loosen the nuts without using the jack, the old fashion way.

[Parker]

Originally Posted by bolerfan

If Dennis has only done two Andersons, then ours must have been #1.

Didn't say that Dennis has only installed two. Ours was the second one he installed as of June 2013 when we picked up our Escape. I'm sure he's installed a bunch of them by now.

[bolerfan]

Yes, I am sure he has, we picked up in Nov/2013. Still a unique hitch as in our month of various campgrounds around southern Vancouver Island, we didn't see another Andersen setup. After watching someone with the standard bar type struggle, I am sure glad we went with it.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by bolerfan

Has anyone found getting the trailer to unhitch from the ball an issue with all the raising and lowering on the jack? Seems to me that a lot of pressure is placed on that piece of metal clamping the ball while doing this and I have wondered if that is factored into its design loads and whether in time it will weaken the clamp.

Yes, the Andersen No-Sway design puts a huge load on the back of the ball (and thus on the coupler latch of most coupler designs) whether or not you are jacking it up. This is why Andersen advises not to use it with one particular Atwood coupler design (which has failed for some people using the Andersen WDH), and why at least one member here has reported wear on the back of the ball.

A conventional bending-bar WDH adds downward force on the ball, rather than forward force on the ball.

[Parker]

Originally Posted by bolerfan

Yes, I am sure he has, we picked up in Nov/2013. Still a unique hitch as in our month of various campgrounds around southern Vancouver Island, we didn't see another Andersen setup. After watching someone with the standard bar type struggle, I am sure glad we went with it.

I think you'll like it. I'm likely the one who reported wear on the ball, but that's after 9,000 miles, and it's really not significant. Regarding difficulty unhitching sometimes, I think that's a characteristic of the hitch coupler that ETI uses. It sort of hooks over the front side of the ball, maybe more than some others, so I sometimes have to back up just a tiny bit to get some clearance on the front side of the ball before I can get the coupler lifted clear. This can be a little tedious if stopped on non-level spot.