New to the TT game.
 

Just purchased a TT for some family fun.

I purchased the WDH and my truck has the tow package with built in break controller. Just brought it home (a 55mile trip) had very little issues with acceleration or braking. Actually had to set the cruise control due to exceeding 70mph a few times... got on the highway no issues... I got 10MPG on the hour trip which I thought was pretty good...(usually avg 22) question I have is what mods can I purchase to help with the little bit of sway I experience at speeds higher than 60 mph? My truck has a tow limit of 11000# with WDH and max tongue weight of 1110#.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...5ab4fe1c0.jpeg
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...a6495e2a8.jpeg
Tongue weight of the trailer is 635# and the trailer weighs 5866# dry. I am well within the limits of my capacities and can put an additional 800# in my truck including people. (Pretty sure that math is right I'm a newbie) I plan on getting higher ply tires (needed tires soon anyway) and tow mirrors. Any additional input would be greatly appreciated.

Cheapest thing: Keep your speed down. In fact, I'd double check those tires because there's a good chance they have a 65mph speed rating if they're the ones the factory installed.

Next up, Weigh your trailer loaded for a trip. Dry weights are useless. I'd put money on your hitch weight being significantly higher. Using dry weight is a complete waste of time. What's the yellow sticker on your door frame say? With most half ton trucks, you'll hit the payload limit well before you hit the 11,000 pound max gross because a travel trailer will put around 12-13% of the weight on the tongue.

I guarantee your tongue weight will not be that light ever again. Load it up, keeping weight forward. Make sure your front wheel well returns to the empty height and the sway will go away. It's all in how you load the trailer. Get the weight on the ball to 13% and you should be golden.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...efe97544d5.png
Even at max weight with 1700 pounds of cargo (overkill) I'm Within my limits. 5866+1700x.13=983.58. Sticker shows 1592. I can't see having more than 800# of cargo for a crew my size. The. Add 500# in the truck and I'm still within limitations.

I posted the hitch weight from manufacturer. I was surprised as well. I looked on these forums before the purchase and the info on here was very useful. I will try to keep my speed between 60-65. Donyou have any recommendation on tire? Should I go higher ply?

Part One: Trailer tires. I want about 25% more weight capacity than trailer GAWR. You can get that by increasing load range or tire size or both. Depending on tire size and room in the wheel well, that may be easy or difficult or impossible.

On my 5er that came with Goodyear Marathon ST205/75R15C tires on 5.5" wide rims, I had three blow-0uts during one trip from Texas to New York and return. So I changed tires and wheels to Cooper ST225/75R15E on the required 6" wide rims. The assembly barely fit in the wheel wells, and rubbed on the top of the wheel well when bouncing over bumps. But I wore out two sets of tires with about 50k miles on each set without any tire problems. (Cooper no longer sells those tires)

When the belt broke on the spare that had never been on the ground, I replaced it with Goodyear Endurance ST215/75R14D with 2,200 pounds weight capacity. That gave me the 25% increase in weight capacity I was looking for,
https://www.etrailer.com/Tires-and-W...724865519.html

Part 2: Weight distribution and sway control

1]. There are numerous WD hitches available that are not very good for sway control. If you paid less than $500 for your hitch from a discount on-line retailer, then it's a cheap one. Throw it away and buy one of these"

>>>Equal-I-Zer 4p

>>>Blue Ox SwayPro

>>> Reese StraitLine tunnion

Your max wet-and-loaded tongue weight (TW) will be near 1,000 pounds, so buy a hitch rated for at least 1,000 pounds TW, The Reese StraitLine doesn't offer 1,000 pounds TW, so go with 1,200.

2]. Know your weights. Load the truck and trailer with everyone and everything that will be in them when towing. Go to a truck stop that has a CAT scale and fill up with gas, then weigh the rig three times:

a. Truck and trailer with WD hitch installed and spring bars adjusted to where you think they should be.

b. Truck and trailer with WD hitch installed but spring bars disconnected and placed in the back of the bed.

c. Truck only, without the trailer.

3] Compute GVW of the truck three times, by adding weights on the front and rear axles.

GVW of b. minus GVW of c. = tongue weight

Gross weight of b. minus GVW of c. = gross trailer weight

Weight on the trailer axles from b. plus tongue weight also = gross trailer weight (with scale-pad rounding factor of 20 to 40 pounds).

Tongue weight divided by gross trailer weight should 12% to 14%, with goal of 13%.

GVW of a. should not exceed the GVWR of the truck.

Gross weight of a. or b. should not exceed the GCWR of the truck.

4]. With a good sway-control hitch, then install it and adjust it "by the book" to return the height of the front fender well back close to unloaded height.

5]. Compare axle weight from a. with axle weights from b. to see the effects of adjusting the WD hitch. Ideal would be 25% of TW distributed to the front axle, another 25% distributed to the trailer axles, and 50% remaining on the rear axle. But I have never managed to get close to ideal, so I usually settle for 20% to the front axle and 10% to the trailer axles with ~70% remaining on the drive axle.

Part One: Trailer tires. I want about 25% more weight capacity than trailer GAWR. You can get that by increasing load range or tire size or both. Depending on tire size and room in the wheel well, that may be easy or difficult or impossible.

On my 5er that came with Goodyear Marathon ST205/75R15C tires on 5.5" wide rims, I had three blow-0uts during one trip from Texas to New York and return. Obviously not enough trailer tire weight capacity to drag that 5er on long trips when cruising at 62 MPH. So I changed tires and wheels to Cooper ST225/75R15E on the required 6" wide rims. The assembly barely fit in the wheel wells, and rubbed on the top of the wheel well when bouncing over bumps, but no harm done. But during the next 10 years, I wore out two sets of tires with about 50k miles on each set without any tire problems. (Cooper no longer sells those tires, so the best available now is Maxxis M8008 ST.)

On my current TT that came with ST205/75R14C Marathon tires, I got rid of the Marathons on a tip back east, and replaced them with off-brand ST215/75R14C. But when the belt broke on the spare that had never been on the ground, apparently from the hot sun shining on the spare above the rear bumper, I replaced it with Goodyear Endurance ST215/75R14D with 2,200 pounds weight capacity. That gave me the 25% increase in weight capacity over stock I was looking for,

If you need ST225/75R15 trailer tires, the Maxxis is available in both load range D and E. I have Maxxis ST225/75R15E on my cargo trailer.

Goodyear replaced the Marathon trailer tires with the new Endurance. The Endurance tires have received rave reviews from everywhere, including Consumer Reports. So when I needed a trailer tire for my TT recently, I bought the Endurance. We'll see if it holds up to the hype.
https://www.etrailer.com/Tires-and-W...724865519.html

Part 2: Weight distribution and sway control

1]. There are numerous WD hitches available that are not very good for sway control. If you paid less than $500 for your hitch from a discount on-line retailer, then it's a cheap one. Throw it away and buy one of these"

>>>Equal-I-Zer 4p

>>>Blue Ox SwayPro

>>> Reese StraitLine tunnion

Your max wet-and-loaded tongue weight (TW) will be near 1,000 pounds, so buy a hitch rated for at least 1,000 pounds TW, The Reese StraitLine doesn't offer 1,000 pounds TW, so go with 1,200.

2]. Know your weights. Load the truck and trailer with everyone and everything that will be in them when towing. Go to a truck stop that has a CAT scale and fill up with gas, then weigh the rig three times:

a. Truck and trailer with WD hitch installed and spring bars adjusted to where you think they should be.

b. Truck and trailer with WD hitch installed but spring bars disconnected and placed in the back of the bed.

c. Truck only, without the trailer.

3] Compute GVW of the truck three times, by adding weights on the front and rear axles.

GVW of b. minus GVW of c. = tongue weight

Gross weight of b. minus GVW of c. = gross trailer weight

Weight on the trailer axles from b. plus tongue weight also = gross trailer weight (with scale-pad rounding factor of 20 to 40 pounds).

Tongue weight divided by gross trailer weight should 12% to 14%, with goal of 13%.

GVW of a. should not exceed the GVWR of the truck.

Gross weight of a. or b. should not exceed the GCWR of the truck.

4]. With a good sway-control hitch, then install it and adjust it "by the book" to return the height of the front fender well back close to unloaded height.

5]. Compare axle weight from a. with axle weights from b. to see the effects of adjusting the WD hitch. Ideal would be 25% of TW distributed to the front axle, another 25% distributed to the trailer axles, and 50% remaining on the rear axle. But I have never managed to get close to ideal, so I usually settle for 20% to the front axle and 10% to the trailer axles with ~70% remaining on the drive axle.

What model Cruise Lite is that? I have a 2017 210RBXL (21' box) and it has a CAT scale verified tongue weight of 850# with the fresh water tank full (56 gal). FWIW the Forest River spec sheet said the TW was 540# dry. That is one LONGGGG trailer for a half ton TV - just my 2¢

Edit: I see the model now - 263BHXL. That model is 8' longer than mine. I have no issue towing ours (with a Blue Ox WDH) but I'd hate to have one much longer than what we have...

My tire failure was tracked to suspect factory valve stems. After replacement, I have little pressure variation aside from normal seasonal highs and lows. It's a cheap change.

Smokeywren's info is solid. If you don't have one of the hitches he recommends, try one. If you already have one of those or you try one still have more sway than you want to deal with, get a Propride hitch. They are pricey, but are engineered to prevent sway, not control it. Added benefit, you will probably be able to open your tailgate while hitched. I have one and am very happy with the way it handles my Flagstaff 26FKWS.