ouR escaPOD mods

The newest addition to our towing equipment is a Hensley Cub. This hitch normally sells for over $2500, but Hensley is having a special, offering a significant discount as they are introducing the Swift Arrow and Swift Cub models. These new models use chains and a snap-up bracket to set the weight distribution instead of the jacks to do the job.

I originally ordered the Swift Cub. I installed it and found that there were things about it that made it less than desirable for us. In addition to the chains and snap-up bracket and lever, it has two support rods that are used to hold the spring bars while the chains are disconnected, stabilizing the hitch so it can be set for easier hitching and unhitching. These are less expensive to manufacture but for someone with arthritis, dealing with the pins, bars, and chains is more of a problem. I ended up exchanging the Swift Lift Kit for the standard jacks. They are a lot simpler once set up as one only has to deal with the hex nut on each jack to adjust the spring bars.

I did a short test drive with the chains/snap-up brackets, and then another with the jacks. There is no noticeable difference in performance. Both are a big improvement over the Equal-i-zer. There is no movement of the trailer and the hitch is virtually silent. I could not hear any hitch noise--no bumping, groaning, squeaking or popping. The real test will be when we take off next month on our cross-country trip.

Is it worth it? If it makes my wife and me feel more secure while towing, it is. I also expect that because of the way it works, it will be better at keeping us stable in conditions which might be too much for a friction-based sway control system.

I returned the cover. It did not fit to my satisfaction. I will make a cover. I have some ideas about how to do it. Since the hitch stays attached to the trailer except for the hitch bar, I locking it two ways. First is the hitch coupler lock. The second is to bring the chains up through the Over Center Latch (OCL) bars and locking them together with a heavy-duty padlock. While these are not foolproof, when coupled with the fact that not too many people have Hensley hitches, it is likely to baffle the opportunistic thieves.

A couple of pictures and I have to run. We have to leave shortly.

Originally posted by lostagain I installed an electric igniter similarly to what StephenH did, but with a few differences.  I got nervous about putting holes in the burners to attach the electrodes, in case I had to abort the project.  So, I made a little bracket to hold them and screwed it onto the burner support post that's just a thin piece of sheet metal.  I also had problems getting the electrodes to fit into the space between the burner and stove top.  For the longer electrode I shortened it and had to bend it to get it close enough to spark near the burner holes.  For the shorter electrode, I had to slide the electrode up higher in its bracket so it would get close enough for a spark.  They're pressed in pretty tightly, so it was a bit of a hassle to get it to move but I finally got a good alignment.  I ran the wires out of the hole where the gas pipe enters and had plenty of wire to mount the spark generator on the face of the cabinet below the stove, similarly to what StephenH showed in his foto. The fit between the stove top and the electrode is really tight and the hold down screws for the stove top are a little bit at an angle, but it lights quite nicely.  I suspect I'll be replacing the spark generator button from time to time as they're not very sturdy.

I just finished my install just as Fred did above but used this https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007VAXQF8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Otherwise, I followed StephanH's method.  Works great.

Sounds good. Have a safe and fun trip. 

We'll be leaving in a couple of weeks to go cross-country again to visit our daughters and grandchildren. We will be able to do a good test also. We both have AZ and UT in our plans. It would be quite a coincidence if we were to see each other out there. 

Fred, did you get the battery operated spark generator or the piezoelectric spark generator?