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Old 12-12-2016, 10:57 AM   #1
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Trailer hitch with built in hitch scale

15% off at Etrailer
Weigh Safe Built-In TW Scale Ball Mounts | etrailer.com
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Old 12-12-2016, 04:03 PM   #2
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Pretty nifty item. Very nice adjustable hitch even without the scale and the price seems reasonable with the rebate. Anyone have any first hand experience with adjustable hitches with or without a T/W scale?
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Old 12-12-2016, 04:09 PM   #3
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I have a vague recollection that this hitch scale was discussed before and it was not positive.
http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f1...cale-3027.html
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Old 12-12-2016, 06:32 PM   #4
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I have a vague recollection that this hitch scale was discussed before and it was not positive.
http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f1...cale-3027.html
Thanks for posting the link to the previous discussion about the useful of the scale portion of the hitch. Seems to be the consensus that in theory it's a great idea but not really useful from a practical standpoint. So scratch that.

Would it be beneficial to have an adjustable ball mount instead of one with a fixed rise or drop for towing your Escape? What I am getting at is would this be a viable solution for keeping the trailer level? Could you vary the hitch height to compensate for how your trailer weight is distributed as well as varying amount of cargo/weight in the TV?
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Old 12-12-2016, 06:48 PM   #5
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Hope you're not asking me.
I bought Pro Series WDH at Escape when I picked up the trailer. Reace installed it and I've not had to think about it since.
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Old 12-12-2016, 06:50 PM   #6
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Quote:
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I bought Pro Series WDH at Escape when I picked up the trailer. Reace installed it and I've not had to think about it since.
Ditto, except Dennis installed it.

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Old 12-12-2016, 06:52 PM   #7
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Adjustable Hitch and Trailer Leveling

Quote:
Originally Posted by gbaglo View Post
Hope you're not asking me.
I bought Pro Series WDH at Escape when I picked up the trailer. Reace installed it and I've not had to think about it since.
No, looking for comments from anyone who has an opinion or actual first hand experience using an adjustable hitch for that purpose. It is what I am hoping to do when I get my Escape. I will be towing a 2017 Escape 19 with a Ford F150 if that makes any difference.
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Old 12-12-2016, 07:11 PM   #8
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I've never used one and can't see the value unless you tow with several different tows but I do say this: mighty expensive item to forget to remove and risk getting stolen.
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Old 12-12-2016, 07:47 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike & Donna View Post

Would it be beneficial to have an adjustable ball mount instead of one with a fixed rise or drop for towing your Escape? What I am getting at is would this be a viable solution for keeping the trailer level? Could you vary the hitch height to compensate for how your trailer weight is distributed as well as varying amount of cargo/weight in the TV?
Our WDH has an adjustable ball mount but we would never move it up and down. It is basically level where it is and we certainly would not want to go to the trouble of changing it, nor would that do what our WDH does. The WDH is moving hundreds of pounds back to the trailer and up to the front of the tow vehicle. Moving the ball mount will not do that and I would think it would be impractical to move, even only every few trips.
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Old 12-12-2016, 09:40 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike & Donna View Post
Would it be beneficial to have an adjustable ball mount instead of one with a fixed rise or drop for towing your Escape? What I am getting at is would this be a viable solution for keeping the trailer level? Could you vary the hitch height to compensate for how your trailer weight is distributed as well as varying amount of cargo/weight in the TV?
Any rig which has a major change in loading (of cargo in the rear of the tug, or of tongue weight) will need adjustment. A WDH doesn't fundamentally change that, as the WDH would need to be adjusted with a large enough change (that's why correct setup depends on the tug, trailer, and loading of both), but the load transfer increases as the ball drops, so the WD system partially compensates.

I haven't needed to change ball mount height with the same trailer on my van, but we were using air bags in the springs and they could be adjusted to maintain the same rear ride height, so no hitch change was needed.

I think most people don't have enough change in loading to need to adjust ball mount height or WD spring preload significantly.
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Old 12-12-2016, 09:45 PM   #11
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... The WDH is moving hundreds of pounds back to the trailer and up to the front of the tow vehicle. Moving the ball mount will not do that and I would think it would be impractical to move, even only every few trips.
It only takes a few seconds to adjust the height of most adjustable ball mounts - if that's all that's needed, it is quite practical to do.

Most adjustable non-WD ball mounts use pins which just pull out and push into another hole; most WD systems use bolts with nuts to fix the head (ball mount) to the shank, and between those bolts and other parts used to set head angle they take much more effort to move. In theory they two adjustments have the same function, but in practice they are very different in required effort.
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