Update to my Towing analysis paralysis resolved, I think!.

[gitane59]

I have been stuck in a state of analysis paralysis over how to alleviate the jarring and chucking with my truck and trailer over the increasingly poor road quality. The last trip through Michigan almost made me loose my mind with the violent hammering the truck, trailer and passenger's took.
I have finally decided on a Trailer Saver BD3 and a Mor-Ryde pinbox. The cost of this route is twice as much as simply installing an air ride pin box such as a 5th Airborne and upgrading my existing Demco Hijacker hitch head but I really want the trailer saver air hitch isolation between the truck and trailer.
I initially was stuck on getting a TS3 but that would have necessitated moving my generator from the bed of the truck to accommodated the larger footprint of the TS3 which I was really struggling with. I have decided there is very little chance of moving to a large trailer (unless I win the lottery) so the 18Klb capacity of the BD3 is enough.
Any comment's or thought's would be appreciated as to the pros and cons of my decision.

[cummins2014]

Cummins12V98 wrote:

pcm1959 wrote:
No brand of rigid/stationary hitch is comparable to an air ride hitch. Often, members brag about their brand of rigid hitch. However, while great quality with robust jaws, etc., an is ride hitch is going to ride differently.

Honestly don't think an air bag hitch would make much if any difference for me as I have an air bag pin box. To be honest I think the trucks rear tire air pressure and rear suspension does more than anything else.

And just think, what a difference if you could adjust air pressure .

[Cummins12V98]

pcm1959 wrote:
No brand of rigid/stationary hitch is comparable to an air ride hitch. Often, members brag about their brand of rigid hitch. However, while great quality with robust jaws, etc., an is ride hitch is going to ride differently.

Honestly don't think an air bag hitch would make much if any difference for me as I have an air bag pin box. To be honest I think the trucks rear tire air pressure and rear suspension does more than anything else.

[Cummins12V98]

JTrac wrote:

Cummins12V98 wrote:

JTrac wrote:
I'm on my 5th season with our BD3 and have been thoroughly pleased with it. I also had some chucking issues but changed trucks and bought the BD3 at the same time. I'll never know if it was more the truck or the hitch but still glad I have the hitch.

Please tell what the last hitch was.

Missed this. My previous hitch was a B&W Companion.

Thanks!

Simply no way the Companion caused chucking. If you had said CURT that is for sure a possibility as there head pivot point is several inches the kingpin connection.

[cummins2014]

gitane59 wrote:

pcm1959 wrote:
No brand of rigid/stationary hitch is comparable to an air ride hitch. Often, members brag about their brand of rigid hitch. However, while great quality with robust jaws, etc., an is ride hitch is going to ride differently.

Yes agreed but $230 for the upgraded coupler versus $2900 for a Trailersaver made me pause and decide to see how much improvement could be had without the additional expense of the air hitch and the effort of changing fifthwheel hitch rails to accommodate the air ride hitch in my old truck.
If you do not have airbag's in your suspension you will not have the experience of the improvement in ride quality that simply modification makes even with a rigid hitch. And no it's got nothing to do with increasing any weight rating.
If I am still towing heavy when I finally decide to retire my old truck for a new beast then I will certainly be installing an air ride hitch.

Anyone that has towed with aftermarket air bags with onboard air, may agree or disagree here. I have on several occasions changed the ride from jolting as some describe to smoothing things out by changing the the air pressure .

Three different fifth wheels , two different trucks ,both short bed 1 tons. Biggest difference I saw was the MORryde pin box on this last one I tow now. No chucking plus the ability to adjust air pressure gives us a pretty good ride.

Talking to a reputable RV repair shop here locally, been in business as long as I can remember , aside from IS suspension, he felt the old LRE MORryde suspension was as good as they got. That along with the MORryde pin box is about as good as it gets , again I would suppose aside from all the expensive pin boxes ,and air ride hitches. Personally I couldn't ask for a better ride then what I got with this combination, along with aftermarket air bags .

[gitane59]

pcm1959 wrote:
No brand of rigid/stationary hitch is comparable to an air ride hitch. Often, members brag about their brand of rigid hitch. However, while great quality with robust jaws, etc., an is ride hitch is going to ride differently.

Yes agreed but $230 for the upgraded coupler versus $2900 for a Trailersaver made me pause and decide to see how much improvement could be had without the additional expense of the air hitch and the effort of changing fifthwheel hitch rails to accommodate the air ride hitch in my old truck.
If you do not have airbag's in your suspension you will not have the experience of the improvement in ride quality that simply modification makes even with a rigid hitch. And no it's got nothing to do with increasing any weight rating.
If I am still towing heavy when I finally decide to retire my old truck for a new beast then I will certainly be installing an air ride hitch.

[pcm1959]

No brand of rigid/stationary hitch is comparable to an air ride hitch. Often, members brag about their brand of rigid hitch. However, while great quality with robust jaws, etc., an is ride hitch is going to ride differently.

[JTrac]

Cummins12V98 wrote:

JTrac wrote:
I'm on my 5th season with our BD3 and have been thoroughly pleased with it. I also had some chucking issues but changed trucks and bought the BD3 at the same time. I'll never know if it was more the truck or the hitch but still glad I have the hitch.

Please tell what the last hitch was.

Missed this. My previous hitch was a B&W Companion.

[gitane59]

Well I now too have "sperience". My experience is that even with Bilstein HD shock, airbags in truck suspension and proper correct air pressure the experience of towing with severe chucking and bone rattling jolt's can be made markedly better with a reasonable investment.
After installing a Mor-Ryde Pin box and an upgraded Demco coupler onto my old Hijacker hitch I had my first tow today back over the same roads I just drove a week ago before the upgrades.
I could immediately notice a vast improvement as I pulled out of the driveway onto the gravel road and got onto the freeway.
The pinbox created a cushioned isolation affect between the truck and trailer.
I could not longer feel the secondary sharp jolt's of the trailer going over the expansion joint's and potholes in the roads. The sharp jolt's and chucking are now very muted and has a cushioned or isolated feel.
The concrete road we were on I know very well and this is the first trip over it in many years when I did not become uptight and tense, dreading every mile and every broken section of patched concrete. While it was not perfect it was more than bearable.
My wife said this road always caused my Tourette's syndrome to burst forth with very jolt and bone jarring rattle. But today there was none of that at all.
My wife commented that for the first time in a long time she did not have a sore neck from all the chucking and jolt's.
I chose not to install a air hitch since I had the supplemental airbag's on the suspension and found I could upgrade my old hitches coupler.
While the old coupler was very secure it was very sloppy around the pin being the old style with simply a large bar of steel going across holding the pin into a "U shaped" steel plate. The replacement coupler encloses the pin fully encompassing it tightly all the way around.
At this point I do not feel that an additional $2900 investment is needed.

[Cummins12V98]

I’m telling y’all what to do before spending a bunch of money. Been there dun that! I gots sperience.

[Cummins12V98]

JTrac wrote:
I'm on my 5th season with our BD3 and have been thoroughly pleased with it. I also had some chucking issues but changed trucks and bought the BD3 at the same time. I'll never know if it was more the truck or the hitch but still glad I have the hitch.

Please tell what the last hitch was.

[pcm1959]

I noticed in your signature that you have MorRyde IS so no one can suggest that it should help the ride. I don't have IS and feel the ride is fine with my 15400 pounder with 8k axles, 17.5 wheels with MorRyde center point equalizer. So since you DO have IS, the hitch and pin box upgrade is about all you can do.

[garyp4951]

They are not causing it, nothing will cure worn out highways, but these are good items to look at doing.
The old concrete highways are the worst, due to the expansion joints that have separated, or sunk, causing your truck, and FW to move at different rates of speed when going over them.

[gitane59]

Cummins12V98 wrote:
Air bags on truck set to 30psi loaded,Check Bilstien shocks Checkand PROPER tire pressure will do wonders.Check The RV has far less impact on the truck than the road does. Cure that problem FIRST before wasting your $$$.

I'm not sure how these 3 item's alone would cause the severe jerking fore and aft on poor concrete roads with bad expansion joints. Also when hitting sections of concrete that has dropped an inch or 2 the transfer of vertical energy between the truck and trailer is so severe it rattles the teeth and with the quality of the Lippert frames and the condition of roads not getting any better I am definitely becoming afraid to tow for fear of major frame failure.

[JTrac]

I'm on my 5th season with our BD3 and have been thoroughly pleased with it. I also had some chucking issues but changed trucks and bought the BD3 at the same time. I'll never know if it was more the truck or the hitch but still glad I have the hitch.