WDH yes or no? |
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lostagain
Senior Member Joined: 06 Sep 2016 Location: Quaker Hill, CT Online Status: Offline Posts: 2595 |
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Topic: WDH yes or no? Posted: 24 Apr 2023 at 5:54am |
Carlisle load range D tires are made in China. I have purchased several over the years and they all are stamped with their country of origin. Load range D tires work better to dampen trailer sway, but the comfort achieved by using a WDH and keeping the trailer and TV balanced makes a tremendous difference. If you have a vehicle with a high towing capacity so that the weight balance is not really an issue, then it's overkill. But, when you have a vehicle that has a 5000 pound tow limit, the WHD for a typical rPod 170 series makes the cost well worth the comfort, safety, and stability you achieve. When we towed our 172 with our Dodge Dakota it clearly needed the WHD and I am very glad we had it, especially in high cross winds.
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Never leave footprints behind.
Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
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Yedmonds5
Newbie Joined: 21 Apr 2023 Location: California Online Status: Offline Posts: 4 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 24 Apr 2023 at 1:33pm |
My Rpod 176 weighs 2600lbs. And my TV is rated for 5000lbs. So I will definitely be getting the brake controller, thanks to all the responses. Now I’ll have to do my research on the WDH. I don’t want to get anything that’ll tow something bigger as most likely it’ll be just me camping and I don’t see myself getting anything bigger then this Rpod.
Thanks for all the responses. |
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gpokluda
Senior Member Joined: 11 Nov 2018 Location: NM Online Status: Offline Posts: 327 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 24 Apr 2023 at 2:23pm |
Congrats on the 176. Hope you make many happy memories with it. Glad you have settled on the need for a brake controller and WDH. My vote goes to the Fastway E2. Used that on our 179 for 10's of thousands of miles. Never felt out of control.
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Gpokluda
2017 Rpod 179(sold 2023) 2022 Escape 5.0TA 2022 Ford F150 4X4 3.5EB Kawasaki KLR650 |
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Ben Herman
Senior Member Joined: 26 Apr 2018 Location: Gr Junction, CO Online Status: Offline Posts: 355 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 24 Apr 2023 at 9:25pm |
what I would suggest doing is easing into it. Get the brake controller installed and dial it in. Take the trailer out for a trip w/o WDH (maybe a few day shakedown trip) and see how it feels to you. If it feels the least bit squirley on the highway, then consider a WDH. Alot of it depends on how far you are going and under what conditions. I use a WDH and would not travel without it (179), but might feel differently with a smaller trailer. I have a friend who tows a smaller RPod with a Tacoma without a WDH and she does fine.
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lostagain
Senior Member Joined: 06 Sep 2016 Location: Quaker Hill, CT Online Status: Offline Posts: 2595 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 25 Apr 2023 at 5:41am |
Yedmonds5, I think the weight you are referring to is the "dry weight" specification. It assumes a completely empty trailer with no batteries, and no LP tank, etc. What you need to consider is the gross vehicle weight or GVWR, which is in the neighborhood of 3750 lbs. for a 176. Trailer manufacturers play a little game in marking lightweight trailers by significantly understating the real in use weight. By the time you add liquids, all your gear, a battery or two, and LP gas, you will be well up into the high 3K lbs. range.
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Never leave footprints behind.
Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
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GlueGuy
Senior Member Joined: 15 May 2017 Location: N. California Online Status: Online Posts: 2653 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 25 Apr 2023 at 9:31am |
+1 to the empty weight metric.
You will never tow that trailer at the empty weight because it will never be "empty". The best rule of thumb is to go by the gross weight of the trailer, and I'm betting that is going to be in the range of 3200 lbs (or maybe more). Further, if you "front load" your trailer (put too much stuff forward of the wheels), that will also have an outsized effect on the tongue weight.
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bp
2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
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jato
Senior Member Joined: 23 Feb 2012 Location: Kewadin, MI Online Status: Offline Posts: 3252 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 25 Apr 2023 at 1:09pm |
+2 Your best bet, load your R-Pod as though going on a trip, don't forget to fill your FW tank with water if you travel that way. Go to your county garage and they will weigh it for free. Take that total weight and make sure you have 11% or more of that weight on your tongue to reduce/eliminate trailer sway.
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God's pod
'11 model 177 '17 Ford F-150 4WD 3.5 Ecoboost Jim and Diane by beautiful Torch Lake "...and you will know the Truth and the Truth will set you free." |
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