Weight distribution hitches

What is everyone running for weight distribution hitches? The HF special is tempting...$220 and an extra $30 for sway controller....but are they any good?

I would go to places like etrailer.com and get a good hitch, that one seems a little lightly built.  One thing I have noticed with WD hitches is they don't necessarily need anti-sway help, as the hitch does a good job controlling it.  This was my experience with a 28ft enclosed trailer and 12K WD hitch behind both a Dually and 3/4 ton Suburban.

You can get good deals on name brand hitches on marketplace if you aren't in a rush. 

Plus the name brands should be able to give you more support if questions come up about setup. 
 

Couple learnings to share:

- measure the tongue weight loaded for travel before selecting bars

- make sure the ball mount doesn't bind on the trailer couple, they make extended balls if necessary

Honestly, that HF hitch looks pretty much the same as the "basic" ones from Curt and others. It's not rocket science, it's just some bars, brackets and short bits of chain.

Having said that, I loved the Equalizer hitch we used when towing our 30 foot travel trailer behind the Expedition. It made for completely stress-free towing. It does weight distribution and sway control at the same time. The two downsides are that it's kind of expensive, and it's noisy when doing tight turns at low speeds.

I've liked my Andersen hitch, but it's a little on the pricier side. Still, it's fairly quiet, has built-in sway, and the amount of assist is easily adjustable. It's also about 50lbs lighter than bar styles which was important since my Taco is payload-limited. 
 

Coming back from VIR last weekend, it was insanely windy (40+ mph gusts), and my enclosed trailer outweighs the truck. I certainly felt the wind - that's just unavoidable - but the trailer never got into a swaying mode. 

If I'm towing something heavy enough to need a distribution hitch, I'm not depending on a HF one. 

I use a Husky Centerline hitch. I used it on the Tundra with the baby V8 and now the current diesel Cayenne. Works well as a combo WDH / Sway Bar. Two negatives, you need a electric tongue jack unless you want to crank that thing up and down manually to help get the bars into place. And the popping / creaking around a sharp corner will scare the crap out of you the first time you use it. I'd say you get use to it, but I haven't yet.

Looks just like my name brand one. I would at least use name brand safety chains with it. Cuz. 

I use a BlueOx TrackPro and really like it. Great job with WD and sway both and I tow a 20' enclosed behind all sorts of tow vehicles that are shorter/lighter than the trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv5bbJl99Iu40qwJ74vBkB9D4KxpjGnsQ

In reply to Hoppps :

What are you towing and why do you think you need it? 

I've towed a lot of stuff and never run one. 

I've also used a fair amount of HF towing accessories. Their stuff isn't going to be much different than the rest of the Chinese-built stuff until you get into the top of the line equipment. It gets the job done. Probably not as well as one that costs 4 times the price but it works. 

Toyman! said:

In reply to Hoppps :

What are you towing and why do you think you need it? 

I've towed a lot of stuff and never run one. 

tow something heavy and you will be happy you have it! I used one with my open trailer and odyssey and a beefier one with my 2500hd and 24' enclosed trailer. Towing capacity gets limited by a lot without one. 

I appreciate all the input! I opted for a Curt Trutrack 2P. Not the fanciest but was a solid one for my budget. Tractor supply had a sale so it was only $350.

I have a 2016 Ram 1500 towing a 20ft enclosed, probably around 7000lbs. My first tow without the hitch was kinda sketchy. Lots of squat in the rear making the steering very light, and 20-30mph winds...so not fun.

Excited to see how it tows going to the FIRM this weekend!

How was towing with the wd hitch??

Definitely worth the money for me. I could feel that it towed better, and even my wife commented the same. The ride was more stable overall - less bouncy and less trailer sway.

One unexpected thing was it was pretty noisy at low speeds. But it made a huge improvement in my confidence towing, and ride quality for the wife and dog.