Anderson WDH opinion
10-18-2018, 08:31 PM
#21
Senior Member
My TT is relatively high (a Minnie) to my truck and I was between the recommended settings for the hitch ball so I originally opted for the lower (towing 3/4" nose down) -- against their recommendations -- as I was concerned about hooking up on uneven surfaces (like my driveway). I got a new jack with a longer stroke and re-installed the WDH to be more level, This is when I first noticed the slippage as I could see the marking on the TT's frame once I removed the brackets (fyi: you may have the same thing but can't see it). On the next installs I tried to jam the lower end into the frame before tightening the bolts but once the TT is hooked up it still moves 1/8 of an inch and then gets worse (I marked the position so I could see it). Even this small a shift is significant because it is nullifying 1 turn of the threads and you can only tighten it so much (Andersen support says 6 threads max).
I think it is a combination of my TT's frame (material and the depth relative to the brackets) and the design of the WDH (all the force of the load distribution pulls directly on the lower part of the bracket). Other WDH's direct this force at 90 degrees to the frame (when you lift the tension bars) so it isn't an issue.
10-18-2018, 08:35 PM
#22
Senior Member
10-18-2018, 08:37 PM
#23
Senior Member
10-19-2018, 07:47 PM
#24
Sounds like the brackets might be bowed so aren't flush to the frame across their length or there is a gap between bolts and frame. I know on the Equal-i-er hitches center bowing away from the frame will cause racking of the brackets. The deformation on the Equal-i-zer is from over tightening the brackets. Another thing that might be the cause is a gap between the bracket bolts and top/bottom of the frame. On our old trailer I used metal shims to fill the gap as it had about a 1/4" gap allowing the bracket to rack forward.