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Originally Posted by MIFL19H
Welcome to the Forum... as you have already seen there are lots of good people and help on the JOF.
We live on the Island and we recently bought our 2nd Camper from ORV... '16 28BHBE.
Where do you normally go for your weekend trips? We do the same and have trips planned each month.
I purchased another Equalizer (had one on our old Hybrid that I let go with the camper) and I am not completely satisfied with it with the camper we have now and have heard good things about the Blue OX.
What made you choose the Blue OX?
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We go to places typically within an hour. last month we went up to New Smyrna, to a place called Sugar Mill Ruins, was a good time, great shakedown cruise. We will also occassionly go to Jetty Park. For the quick weekenders we try to stay within an hour (so we can work, get home, loaded and to camp before dark). Outside of the weekend trips or for long weekends we will hit the keys or the west coast of Florida or up to Jekyl Island, GA. We are planning a trip to Tallahassee in October to go watch my beloved Seminoles play.
As for the Blue Ox, I have a buddy, who's damn near an expert on all things travel trailer. When I told him we were selling the pop up for a travel trailer, I picked his brain on everything from sizes, to features, to brands and price. The one thing he said constantly was the Blue Ox WDH w/Sway Control is the best on the market. The price, albeit higher than most, is worth it. It levels extremely quickly and quite easy and there is no sway at all when towing. The ability to be able to back up the rig without undoing any bars or parts from the hitch was a big part of his reasoning as well. And lastly, and probably the point that stuck the most, was "towing 7000lbs down the highway, not having the right hitch or the right set up could cause a severe accident and death, when towing with your kids in the truck, you want the best protection available, regardless of price". You cannot argue with that logic. I knew nothing about WDH's before buying this travel trailer. He explained the ins/outs of how they worked, why one brand or model was not sufficient and why the blue ox was my best choice (ease of initial installation/maintenance, ease of hooking up each time, quality of product,etc...) so, I took his advice, paid $500 and change for the Ox, and have not looked back. One of the biggest perks to me, is that the chains, after backing up and getting the TT positioned just right, the tool they give you to release the chains, prevents any snapping or flying parts or chains (I have read horror stories on here about people with different WDHs) that are scared to death when it comes time to unhook them because of the tension.
One point I will make is when you do get the TT position, put the jack down and start raising the TT tongue while it's still attached to TV and still has tension on chains, doing this will relieve a lot of that tension before you take the tool to release the chains entirely. Then pull the receiver end off the truck and the bars and stow them for the weekend. Could not be any easier. I cannot speak to any other brands, not good or bad, as the OX is the only WDH I have ever had or used. He has another brand on his (dealership installed wrong hitch when he bought his latest Toy Hauler) and he has not swapped it out yet because of the way they damn near permanently installed it on his tongue). That's the other thing about this one too, is there is no cutting/drilling or welding to install this hitch on the tongue, measure back from ball, bolt it down, torque bolts, and you are good to go.
The one thing that I will say about the OX, not a negative per say, but it weighs about 100 LBS by itself, it's a bulky heavy ass hitch, that's for sure. Like I said not a negative, but this is something that needs to be taken into consideration when you are looking at weight capacity on your hitch/tongue set up.
Overall, we are extremely happy with the 26BH, how it tows, the floor plan, the amentities, and the build quality. I have done a few modifications to it, but nothing major. I am extremely happy that I spent the extra cash and bought the OX for it as well, it does everything it says and allows me to pull this trailer seamlessly with my 2014 Nissan Titan Pro-4X, which is "rated" (supposedly) for just over 9000lbs.
If you are planning any upcoming trips here nearby soon, give a shout, we are always looking to get the camper out and go somewhere, and it would be nice to meet another local family that enjoys camping. I work on the Island, so we are not that far away!