Ron, if it was me I would be going back to who ever sold you these and ask for assistance as the way you have them hooked up looks like they serve no purpose. The idea behind the weight distribution hitch is to do as it suggests, distribute the weight. Now what you have done may keep the chain vertical, but the chain is fixed to the bar for a reason and the use of a couple of "D" shackles regardless of their strength would deem the bar ineffective as they would slip and if stopped, by some RTA inspector you might get a defect?? Just my opinion and others on the site might see it differently. The following may assist, and is from Hayman Reese. Good Luck Mate hope the problem can get solved.

Note: On some caravan applications the gas bottle (or other accessories) may need relocation if the chain does not hang vertical.

How much weight should I put on the bars? or Which link should I use?

Whilst there is no answer to suit everyone we do have some good guidelines to follow. Firstly the spring bars should be under a good deal of pressure. It should take some amount of effort to hitch up the snap up bracket and there must be a need to use the handle. Secondly we would like to see a little bit of bend in the bar when under load to satisfy us they are working

Remember, if they have no weight on them they will not be transferring weight forward to the cars front wheels and therefore not doing the job you purchased them for. Thirdly, the number of links can be tricky to calculate depending upon the rigs tow height, mount position of the coupling and set up of the Ballmount. Hayman Reese specify the minimum number of working links to be four. These are the chain links actually under load. At least four are required to give the spring bar the scope it needs to move forwards and backwards when you turn a corner. Hardings will aim for at least five working links so that you have the option of adjustment whilst on your trip.

A Pic from above would assist greatly.
OJ

Hi Molluscan

                 You have only one choice to fit your. WDH. and that is to shift your jockey wheel mounting bracket and a frame cross brace forward towards your coupling just as Rocklizard ,said, that is going by your pictures ,your pictures are a  NO NO .

Lance C

OK photos here for you,,

First one shows A frame and original mount section in middle of the plate and the others different views.

You can have the plates manufactured to fit around any obstacle and the beaty of this is you move them to fine tune adjustment if required.

Hope this helps

Cheers Baz

 Years ago I had a torsion bar system(round hi tensile 1 !/2 ") which( slid inside tubes) on the tow bar 

(positive front wheel weight transfer, and anti sway system). Even that system created unstability, and in the end I

fitted heavy duty bolt on helper springs to the rear springs of the tow vehicle. With low tension on the anti sway bars it made driving a dream,

and stability was great. Too much front wheel weight transfer is not the answer to safe towing. 

Gday...

Foolishly stickin' me neck out a bit here ... but - going on the photos put up by Molluscan wouldn't the 'bracket' Baz has devised still be in the way of the existing jockey wheel mounting on Molluscan's A-frame. The jockey wheel and mounting bracket are centrally located on the 'central brace' on Baz's A-frame.

It certainly would negate the interference of the 'central brace' on the A-Frame (if Molluscan has one).

Hopefully Molluscan can provide some clarification and shoot me down in flames.

Cheers - John

John, from what I can see the jockey wheel mounting cross member are in similar positions. It's just a simple matter of cutting out the piece to accommodate the cross member to suit the position of that member. The cut-out does not have to be right in the middle as in the one Baz constructed.

There was another solution posted at the end of November. It involves a rolled hollow section (RHS) that is clamped to the top of the drawbar - see this link - it also gives you an extra working link in the chains.

Take the whole rig and bars you have to the nearest Hayman Reece dealer/outlet and get them to set it up properly.

Why did the caravan dealer let you drive away with the incorrect set up?

03_troopy wrote:

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PeterD wrote:

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There was another solution posted at the end of November. It involves a rolled hollow section (RHS) that is clamped to the top of the drawbar - see this link - it also gives you an extra working link in the chains.

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 That is a link to this page Peter?

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 Tks, I was able to correct the original message but here it is again - see this link

Thanks to everyone for their comments.
Ron has come up with a solution that hopefully will work well and allow us to keep the tool box and leave the gas bottles where they are. I have attached photos. He has added a steel bar bent to follow the HR bar and as you can see from the photos
1) the chain now hangs vertically,
2) there are 4 links in the chain as specified by HR
3) the new bar actually transfers the load back to the correct position on the HR bar, (the sloping part with drilled holes). This setup means the hitch will work as the original hitch.
We haven't tried it our yet. Tomorrow is the big day. I'll keep you informed.

Sorry here we go, photos should be there now.

-- Edited by MOLLUSCAN on Saturday 28th of December 2013 07:39:23 PM

They don't make 28" bars with the round end. We have a 6" drawbar and need the round end type to avoid scraping when making sharp turns. HR only make 30" bars for this shaped bar.

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