WD Hitches and Surge Brakes

[Wired2Cruze]

I'm shopping for a WD hitch to balance out pulling my soon-to-be-picked up 1996 250DA with a 1997 Ford Explorer.

I'm figuring on a tow weight of approximately 7500-8000 lbs on a 1997 Eagle tandem-axle.
The Explorer can handle about 6500 lbs, if using a WD hitch.
(Yes I know my vehicle is under-rated, but I don't plan on towing very far until I can upgrade it).
I'll be towing it just 2 miles from where the boat will be stored to the ramp, but I will be taking one trip this summer to Lake Erie, about 120 miles away.

I figured better safe than sorry, so get a hitch for that trip, and I can use it in the future with another tow vehicle.

I've done a fair amount of research, and I'm looking at a Valley hitch rated at 800 TW/ 8000 GTW.

BUT it seems that every Curt WD hitch sold has a disclaimer that it is NOT compatible with trailers using surge brakes.
Curt sells both the round bar and trunnion bar types, which look basically the same as the hitches sold by Reese, Valley, Draw-tite, etc.

I know that using an anti-sway bar prevents the surge mechanism from functioning properly, but I don't see this added on the Curt hitches as standard equipment.

My questions:
1. Are most WD hitches compatible with trailers equipped with surge brakes (as long as they don't include an anti-sway bar)?

2. Is there something in the design of Curt hitches that prevents the compression/return of surge mechanism? (or are they just being extra careful to avoid potential litigation)?

Sorry for the lengthy post, I just don't want to do something that results in a dangerous situation.

Thanks

 

[dpvandy01]

I was under the impression that WD hitches defeat the surge capacity of your brakes by up to as much as 70%

 

[Wired2Cruze]

I found this in another forum (from 2003) supporting what dpvandy said:

A WDH is not recommended for a trailer equipped with surge brakes. The torsion bars transfer some of the tongue weight to the towing vehicle and the actuator doesn't work properly.With that said, I've actually done it in the past and while it seemed to work OK, the trailer brakes didn't function as well. I think the weight transfer "fools" the actuator into thinking the load is less than it actually is.If you're using the WDH to bring up the rear of the towing vehicle, you might want to try adding heavier springs or air shocks. Just a suggestion"

I also found a site selling Equal-i-zer hitches, which claim their WD hitch does work with trailers with surge brakes. A little more expensive at $489, and slightly different design using brackets instead of chains for tensioning.

Anyone have experience using this type of hitch- do your surge brakes still work at some effective level?

 

[sappington]

I have a 91 250 weekender and a 3/4 ton suburban,tow package and 6.0 v-8 the boat is heavy and not a comfortable tow.I also do not tow it far to the ramp about 2 miles.I dont know about the exploler it will have trouble on any hills.I figure my boat at about 6500lbs with gas and water and the trailier is 1800, thats8300lbs If your boat and trailer are simular weight good luck.

 

[Wired2Cruze]

I have a 91 250 weekender and a 3/4 ton suburban,tow package and 6.0 v-8 the boat is heavy and not a comfortable tow.I also do not tow it far to the ramp about 2 miles.I dont know about the exploler it will have trouble on any hills.I figure my boat at about 6500lbs with gas and water and the trailier is 1800, thats8300lbs If your boat and trailer are simular weight good luck.

My boat's dry weight is 5300, and the trailer should be <= 2000, so I'm figuring 7500-8000 loaded.
The Explorer has a transmission cooler and there aren't any hills going to and from storage and ramp, I'm thinking the AWD should handle the ramp OK.

The PO has a 5.7L later model Explorer w/Trans cooler he used to pull it from Cinci to Lake Cumberland, about 200 miles. I don't know if I'd be comfortable with that, but we'll see once I pick up the boat in Cinci and haul it back to Columbus. :thumbsup:

 

[stephenm27]

I found this in another forum (from 2003) supporting what dpvandy said:


Anyone have experience using this type of hitch- do your surge brakes still work at some effective level?

I use this setup and the surge brakes worked as good as ever.

I have since converted to electric-over-hydraulic for better control of the trailer brakes but the WD setup worked fine with the surge configuration as well.

Our tow weight is ~12,200 lbs (loaded) and thus the WD setup is technically required by the vehicle manufacturer (Ford).

 

[firecadet613]

http://equalizerhitch.com/ is what I used before I upgraded trucks. Very simple to set up and easy to use. I highly recommend it.