Blue Ox BXW1500 SWAYPRO vs Equalizer 4 Pt. Sway 1400/14k hitch

[Texdan25]

Not sure it this will be a Ford vs. Chevy discussion but looking to buy a new trailer GVWR of 12000 and 'advertised' hitch weight of 1300 and 34' length. Anyone tow something similar with either of these hitches and if so likes/dislikes? I also read good things about the Reese Straitline. I currently pull a 2015 Whitehawk 27DSRL with 7500 GVWR 750 tongue weight with a 1000/10k Equalizer and like it. Upgraded from the dealer supplied E2 (only 2 point sway control.)

[Murff]

I have been a fan of Reese hitches since my first trailer had one in 1983. That one had the Reese 1st Generation of integrated sway control in their WDH.

In 2011, we bought a 30 foot Komfort trailer and had the Reese Straight Line WDH installed and it is an excellent product.

On our newest rig, we went with the newest Reese product and that is the Reese SteadiFlex.

After searching for prices, I found the SteadiFlex at a site called Streetsideauto.com that had not only the best price but also free shipping. Real surprised when it arrived the next day! (They have a warehouse closer than their Midwest headquarters)

Murff

[Texdan25]

Originally Posted by Murff

I have been a fan of Reese hitches since my first trailer had one in 1983. That one had the Reese 1st Generation of integrated sway control in their WDH.

In 2011, we bought a 30 foot Komfort trailer and had the Reese Straight Line WDH installed and it is an excellent product.

On our newest rig, we went with the newest Reese product and that is the Reese SteadiFlex.

After searching for prices, I found the SteadiFlex at a site called Streetsideauto.com that had not only the best price but also free shipping. Real surprised when it arrived the next day! (They have a warehouse closer than their Midwest headquarters)

Murff

Thanks Murff, I will take a look at the SteadiFlex. What's the difference between it and the Strait Line?

[Camper_bob]

I towed a 28BHBE with GVWR 9600 lbs. Back when I towed that trailer, I took the dealer supplied Fastway E2 (same company as Equalizer). Towed with it for quite a while, but I always felt like it was under-spec'd for my trailer.

The choice for replacement came down to the Equal-i-zer with 4-pt sway control and the Blue Ox Sway Pro. I read everything I could find about those two hitches.

Eventually I went with a Blue Ox Sway Pro, and I liked it a lot. I can't say there was a dramatic difference between the two hitches, but I sure felt a lot better towing with a hitch I KNEW without a doubt to be within spec for my trailer. That alone was confidence inspiring enough.

I also found the Blue Ox easier to use ... so long as you ditch that "wrench" they give you for the cams and get a breaker bar and appropriately sized socket. That made all the difference in the world. I never once lost control of the brackets when I started using the breaker bar; can't say the same for the supplied "wrench".

Hey, so here's something. I see you're in Spring Branch. I happen to still have that Blue Ox Sway Pro taking up space in my garage. If you're interested, I'll make you a deal on it. I used it for less than a year I think; if more than a year, not much more... I'm out in Seguin, so getting together probably wouldn't be an issue.

ETA: Here's the writeup I did on it when I purchased it: https://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f...pro-39422.html Looks like I used it for about 18 months since I wrote that in August of 2016, and I sold that trailer in April of 2018.

[Texdan25]

Originally Posted by Camper_bob

I towed a 28BHBE with GVWR 9600 lbs. Back when I towed that trailer, I took the dealer supplied Fastway E2 (same company as Equalizer). Towed with it for quite a while, but I always felt like it was under-spec'd for my trailer.

The choice for replacement came down to the Equal-i-zer with 4-pt sway control and the Blue Ox Sway Pro. I read everything I could find about those two hitches.

Eventually I went with a Blue Ox Sway Pro, and I liked it a lot. I can't say there was a dramatic difference between the two hitches, but I sure felt a lot better towing with a hitch I KNEW without a doubt to be within spec for my trailer. That alone was confidence inspiring enough.

I also found the Blue Ox easier to use ... so long as you ditch that "wrench" they give you for the cams and get a breaker bar and appropriately sized socket. That made all the difference in the world. I never once lost control of the brackets when I started using the breaker bar; can't say the same for the supplied "wrench".

Hey, so here's something. I see you're in Spring Branch. I happen to still have that Blue Ox Sway Pro taking up space in my garage. If you're interested, I'll make you a deal on it. I used it for less than a year I think; if more than a year, not much more... I'm out in Seguin, so getting together probably wouldn't be an issue.

Thanks Bob. What is the weight rating of that hitch? Just so happens that IF we buy the trailer it's from Explore USA in Seguin! Might also be driving thru Seguin in a few weeks with our Jayco headed to Port Aransas if beach stays open.

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by Texdan25

Thanks Bob. What is the weight rating of that hitch? Just so happens that IF we buy the trailer it's from Explore USA in Seguin! Might also be driving thru Seguin in a few weeks with our Jayco headed to Port Aransas if beach stays open.

Well, hot dang!! One of my staff bought her trailer from there a couple years ago!

The hitch is rated 15,000/1,500. According to Blue Ox, and if I remember correctly, the 1500 on the bars is an upper limit. They actually prefer you to be somewhere lower than that.

One thing about my hitch is that it is the one designed for "underslung" couplers. If your coupler is mounted to the BOTTOM of the frame, this one will work. If it's mounted to the TOP of the frame, this will still work I think, but may not be optimal.

Also, looking at your trailer specs, 12,000 GVWR at 15% tongue weight would be 1800 lbs. So the 1500 series Blue Ox hitches may be a little under what you need?

What trailer are you looking at?

[Texdan25]

Originally Posted by Camper_bob

Well, hot dang!! One of my staff bought her trailer from there a couple years ago!

The hitch is rated 15,000/1,500. According to Blue Ox, and if I remember correctly, the 1500 on the bars is an upper limit. They actually prefer you to be somewhere lower than that.

One thing about my hitch is that it is the one designed for "underslung" couplers. If your coupler is mounted to the BOTTOM of the frame, this one will work. If it's mounted to the TOP of the frame, this will still work I think, but may not be optimal.

Also, looking at your trailer specs, 12,000 GVWR at 15% tongue weight would be 1800 lbs. So the 1500 series Blue Ox hitches may be a little under what you need?

What trailer are you looking at?

A Grand Design Momentum 28G toy hauler. And my understanding is when you haul a toy you have to be careful not to take off too much tongue weight (we will sometimes haul a 900# golf cart). I am figuring my trailer weight will be 10-11k (won't always be taking the GC), guessing dry weight is around 8800 or so(advertised at 8500). So I'm thinking a 14k-15k hitch should work. Looks like the Momentum is a top mounted coupler so don't know if yours would work?

[Murff]

Texdan,

Straight Line uses trunion bars for sway control. The Steadi Flex uses brake pads. Interesting concept.

Videos of each:

https://youtu.be/gl3ME8ZO860


https://youtu.be/09yP3iQ0KTU

Murff

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by Texdan25

A Grand Design Momentum 28G toy hauler. And my understanding is when you haul a toy you have to be careful not to take off too much tongue weight (we will sometimes haul a 900# golf cart). I am figuring my trailer weight will be 10-11k (won't always be taking the GC), guessing dry weight is around 8800 or so(advertised at 8500). So I'm thinking a 14k-15k hitch should work. Not sure if it's top or bottom coupler or how that works.

Just googled a couple videos and pics and it looks like it's a top-mounted coupler. That's not authoritative by ANY stretch. If you get a chance, you might ask your salesman to take a look, maybe send you a pic of the coupler.

It's pretty easy to tell. On a top-mount coupler, the coupler literally sits on top of the frame rails that make up the tongue of the trailer. On an "underslung" or bottom-mounted coupler, you can see the frame rails ABOVE the ball pocket on the coupler; the coupler assembly is mounted to the BOTTOM of those frame rails.

Might not seem like a big deal, but on a 6" frame rail, that's a lot of difference.

If your coupler is top mounted, I'm not sure I would sell you mine since it's specifically spec'd for bottom-mounted couplers. Unless you contact Blue Ox and they say it's okay.

[Texdan25]

Originally Posted by Murff

Texdan,

Straight Line uses trunion bars for sway control. The Steadi Flex uses brake pads. Interesting concept.

Videos of each:

https://youtu.be/gl3ME8ZO860


https://youtu.be/09yP3iQ0KTU

Murff

It looks like the Steadi Flex is very similar to the Equalizer except a lot smaller head and shank plus the flex bars vs. the Equalizer square ones. Sure looks easier to adjust by just looking at the video. Wonder how the sway control is vs the Equalizer? Video says it's 6 point sway control, so must be the head and 2 pads on each L bracket (as opposed to Equalizer bar sliding directly on the L bracket). They are now selling pads for their L bracket too, I guess to reduce noise.

[Texdan25]

Originally Posted by Camper_bob

Just googled a couple videos and pics and it looks like it's a top-mounted coupler. That's not authoritative by ANY stretch. If you get a chance, you might ask your salesman to take a look, maybe send you a pic of the coupler.

It's pretty easy to tell. On a top-mount coupler, the coupler literally sits on top of the frame rails that make up the tongue of the trailer. On an "underslung" or bottom-mounted coupler, you can see the frame rails ABOVE the ball pocket on the coupler; the coupler assembly is mounted to the BOTTOM of those frame rails.

Might not seem like a big deal, but on a 6" frame rail, that's a lot of difference.

If your coupler is top mounted, I'm not sure I would sell you mine since it's specifically spec'd for bottom-mounted couplers. Unless you contact Blue Ox and they say it's okay.

I too looked at some videos and pics and agree it's a top mount. It looks like all that would be needed to make yours work is the Blue Ox BXW4011 Hitch Head ($185 on Amazon).


We are still trying to decide if we really want to spend that much $ on a new TT since we have a perfectly fine Jayco even if it is 5 years old. It's not a toy hauler though. We plan on renting a golf cart when we go to the beach (if it's allowed) since we would have to order a new trailer and would not get it in time. I will keep this in mind. Thanks.

[SouthCo]

I’m sure any of the three mentioned will get the job done. I bought a Blue Ox setup when I bought my 28BHBE and couldn’t have been happier. Never any issues...

[Whatsupchuck]

I now have both heads for my hitch and even the extended receiver to clear my tailgate and just received the new 2K bars to get weight up on my front of 2500 HD CC. Dealer guy set me up badly purchasing my 2019 330RSTS.

Have had no issues with noises etc. since going with this hitch. Sway is gone and I agree the supplied "wrench" is dangerous. New bars came with my new wrench ordered from ETrailer and is a great improvement.

Blue Ox can be easily changed to use with any other rig.

[Atlee]

I had an Equal-I-Zer hitch on my previous trailer. When I got my new Jay Flight 23RB, the dealer said the the two plates that bolted to the A Frame wouldn't fit the Jayco. He only sold Blue Ox Sway Pro hitches. I reluctantly agreed to the Blue Ox. I have never liked the Blue OX. If I had it to do over, IO woulds have waited for 3 days until the dealer could get me an Equal-I-Zer hitch.

Originally Posted by Texdan25

Not sure it this will be a Ford vs. Chevy discussion but looking to buy a new trailer GVWR of 12000 and 'advertised' hitch weight of 1300 and 34' length. Anyone tow something similar with either of these hitches and if so likes/dislikes? I also read good things about the Reese Straitline. I currently pull a 2015 Whitehawk 27DSRL with 7500 GVWR 750 tongue weight with a 1000/10k Equalizer and like it. Upgraded from the dealer supplied E2 (only 2 point sway control.)

[morleyz]

Originally Posted by Atlee

I had an Equal-I-Zer hitch on my previous trailer. When I got my new Jay Flight 23RB, the dealer said the the two plates that bolted to the A Frame wouldn't fit the Jayco. He only sold Blue Ox Sway Pro hitches. I reluctantly agreed to the Blue Ox. I have never liked the Blue OX. If I had it to do over, IO woulds have waited for 3 days until the dealer could get me an Equal-I-Zer hitch.

Just curious, what didn't you like about the Blue Ox?