Ford F 350 Travel Trailer Towing Issue

[Lund]

The early super duty's would wander bad but the newer ones 08' and up seem to drive nice. Probably the equalizing bars.

hhhmmm, my 04 doesn't wonder and i tow a big azz aluminum jetboat back and forth from Kelowna to Chilliwack over the mountians to fish the Fraser river.
Check your tire pressure bud, you need atleast 65lbs on all 4. Plus are your tires 10ply or 8ply. That makes a HUGE difference, an 8ply will make your vehicle feel squirmy when loaded in comparison to a 10ply.

 

[OnlyPolaris]

you need to bump them tire pressures way down. Your just wasting tires. For towing 50 front 60 rear. Then I will run 50 all around for normal driving. This is on my 08 with 305 duratracs. truck handles great.

 

[Murminator]

Just play around with the shank height on your hitch if you have you hitch too high puts more weight on the back end of the trailer then the trailer will want to wag the truck witch is a crappy feeling putting it a bit low keep the weight forward feeling more control. I put mine 1 bolt hole lower than level then if then what ever is in the back make it dip a touch more and mine feels pretty stable.
I have also noticed when I pass or get passed by a big truck it feels the back of the trailer feels a little loose like it is getting sucked int the truck I have also noticed the same when a four wheeler flies by me on the highway just feels loose but it doesn't move around

 

[ZRrrr]

Got back from a trip on Saturday and thought I would post up my observations and changes. Before heading out I aired up the tires evenly to 70 PSI as Ric suggested. It may have made a slight difference but the general wandering was still there. I had lots to think about and watch for during the drive and noticed that as the tank emptied the truck seemed a little better. To me this meant I did not have enough weight on the front axle. For the return trip I did indeed "crank it up" another notch on the weight distribution bars. Took measurements at the wheel wells and made a startling revelation. It seems the suspension on this truck is so stiff that it did not matter what the weight distribution bars were set at, the front and rear wheel well measurements always ended up the same! With a little WD or a lot of WD measurements were always 43 in back and 42 in front. So with the WD cranked up a little more we hit the road. Difference was noticeable right away and certainly at speed. No more wander. Truck road less harsh, tracked straight and actually felt real nice. Seemed to run smoother all around. I think a little more weight could go over the front axle, but I would likely have to raise the ball and as it stands the trailer is perfectly level and everything feels good rolling down the road. I do not feel any sway from oncoming or rear passing semis. I do feel wind buffeting a little, but it's a big setup were rolling and we saw other setups getting buffed more than us.

Only had one harrowing moment when a storm cell came rolling in. We were on slight uphill curve in the road, cruising 110kph and just at the middle of the curve got hit sideways by an air blast that pushed us just over the yellow line. Cleaned up the poop and no issues after that.

Although I feel sooo much better about how the truck is now setup and what I discovered about the weight distrubution and fender well height measurements, it still does not seem as "tight" as the Titan was pulling the same setup. Titan with this trailer never got pushed by the wind like that even cruising right through storms. I realize the 350 is a much bigger truck and has a lot more surface area. Might try airing up the rear tires to 75psi, then maybe 80 and see how it feels.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

 

[ZRrrr]

Another update.............as I mentioned above, the 350 was just not feeling at tight as the Titan had, and I was not comfortable with all this cranking up on the bars and such. Under certain conditions the 350 did just not feel "right". Started to notice some damage to the sway components so figured it was still not as it should be. Walked around the campsite looking at setups and contemplating the issue over a few cocktails with the camping friends. I decided to start from scratch, pulled the sway stuff off, reset the ball one hole lower and loosened up on the chains as a few here have mentioned. Well..........learned a lot about 1 tons that day. Seems everything I had learned over the years about setting up half tons does not apply to 1 tons at all! Truck was fantastic down the highway, hardly knew the trailer was behind me. Pulled over and tightened up the chains again just for chits and giggles. Wander came back. Pulled over and loosened the chains even more. Truck seemed even a bit better! Found the speed creeping up down the highway as the ride and pull was so good. Need to watch that!

My advice for anyone going from a half ton to 3/4 or 1 ton having wander or hitch issues........throw your half ton knowledge out the door. I really think the hitch manufacturers should even have specific instructions for these big trucks it's just that different. This whole concept of getting weight over the front axle to stop wander and lifting the rear to get it back to stock ride height does NOT apply to 1 tons. Complete opposite actually.

So thanks a lot for the advice. Lesson learned and one happy camper again.

 

[Bnorth]

Like I said earlier I don't ever use a WD hitch with my one ton.

 

[KawisakiRider]

Interesting, I noticed some damage on my WD hitch last time out also. I might have to try without and see how it feels?
I don't remember reading, how big is your trailer? Mine is 35' and I pull it with a 2500HD.