bumper camper towing

How heavy is the camp trailer?

How heavy AND how long is the camper?

Plan on needing antisway. If you were pulling DRW I would say there's a chance you'll be alright without it, but SRW I wouldn't pull without it. There's just too much ability for the tail to wag the dog with the large cross section of a camper. And for as inexpensive as the system is, is it really worth not using it?

For reference I pull a 39' (42' bumper to tongue) bumper pull camper.

10,000 lbs, 34 feet overall

You need antisway, and Reese even says you should have 2 friction bars for a 34' camper as opposed to one like most people use.

Is this a new camper? Have you pulled this rig before?

cew702001 said:

10,000 lbs, 34 feet overall

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common sense says yes!!

leolkfrm said:

common sense says yes!!

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Unfortunately, there are a TON of voices in the RV world that spread inaccurate and dangerous information about the capability of pickup trucks in regards to pulling campers. I had a representative AT THE CAMPER DEALERSHIP where I purchased my 39' bumper pull tell me I really didn't need WDH or anti-sway with my truck because it's a heavy duty. When asking for input about WDH from friends on a social media website that I no longer frequent, I had multiple people tell me the same thing: "Your truck is beefy enough, you don't even need that stuff!"

So unfortunately, even though it may seem like common sense dictates that we should use that setup, there are a lot of voices telling owners they don't need it.

I tell people the opposite. Buy the most expensive and well-built hitch setup you can afford. For bumper pulls I recommend the ProPride 3P. Pull with it one time and nothing else will ever be good enough.

With the van yes with weight distribution and sway bar. no issues at 55mph. Pulled it 800 miles home in a 1 ton single cab dually with no sway bar no weight distribution at 70 mph no issues (truck had air bags). Just wasn't sure about a single wheel.

everything can work for a lot of situations, what about the emergency avoidance scenario?

The DRW trucks are night and day difference in sway compared to the SRW. If you have the option to run anti-sway I think it's worth your time investment to do so.

Melonhead1102 said:

The DRW trucks are night and day difference in sway compared to the SRW. If you have the option to run anti-sway I think it's worth your time investment to do so.

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I have the option and what my thinking was too. Didn't have the option with the dually, but man it was solid. So much different than the van.

I assume by anti-sway you (the OP) are referring to a Weight Distribution Hitch setup that encompasses an anti-sway feature. I agree with others, yes you’ll want it with a travel trailer. It not only reduces sway (which TT’s are notorious for) but evens out the load across all your truck & trailer axles. That will make for a MUCH more safe and enjoyable towing experience.

As noted above, I wouldn’t believe anything an RV dealership tells you about towing. Most of their salesman are not longtime RV owners, and their goal is for you to leave the lot with one of their products. They could care less about whether you know anything about towing dynamics and doing it safely.

I dont think the anti sway is needed but WDH yes.Tried moving my trailer about 2 miles without the WDH bars on and rig bounced a lot more.

cew702001 said:

10,000 lbs, 34 feet overall

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That's similar to the TT I had and pulled with my 3500 SRW. I used a weight distribution hitch from Etrailer without any anti-sway mechanism and it was rock solid through two cross-country road trips. However, without the weight distribution it was definitely squirrelly. And mine was massively front-heavy (like 1700 lbs tongue load!) so that may have helped mitigate tendency to sway as well. Maybe try it with just weight distribution and see how it behaves through a range of speeds.

The Equal-i-zer hitch does both through the weight transfer bars

If you run a load equalization hitch where you can adjust the tension so you put the front axle load restoration in the manufacturer's recommended percentage, you should not need anti sway. The extra friction in load equalization will dampen/reduce sway. If you have sway issues, the tighter you crankup the bars the less sway you will have.

#iworkforGM

But with adjustable rear air bags is WD Hitch even needed? Will rear sway bar on my truck help the trailer sway in any way? Thanks

I love air bags but they won'thelp trailer sway. Sway bar on your truck won't really help a long wagging camper either.
I don't really care for WD hitches but they're about your only defense for trailer sway. I have a dually so I can get away with considerably more whipping more comfortably than the SRW crowd.

Unless you like the feel of everything whipping side to side continually in a cross wind, you'll need something to combat trailer sway for the equipment you have. That's quite a bit of camper for a SRW truck. It'll be fine in good conditions but add some wind......

I figured I would use the WD Hitch, just the anti sway bar part and the air bags to level it out. I pulled it home with a dually, it was so nice. No sway at all, but little cross winds. Thanks