Towing
Hitches, weight distribution, brake control and trailer security.
- 21 guides
- 7 calculators
- Updated
Start here
Where most readers begin
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RV Towing Payload Calculator: Tongue Weight, and What It Costs You
Works out your tongue weight, spends it against the door sticker, and turns it into the hitch rating you need. No green light or red light — the margin in pounds, and the assumptions behind it.
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Hitches, weight & sway
Weight distribution, sway control, ball mount drop and the payload numbers that decide what you can safely pull.
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RV Cargo Capacity Calculator: How Much Can Your Trailer Carry?
Compare added load with your trailer's cargo label or GVWR minus baseline weight. See water, other cargo and remaining allowance on the same scale.
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RV Towing Payload Calculator: Tongue Weight, and What It Costs You
Works out your tongue weight, spends it against the door sticker, and turns it into the hitch rating you need. No green light or red light — the margin in pounds, and the assumptions behind it.
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Ball Mount Drop Calculator: How Much Drop or Rise Do You Need?
Two measurements and one subtraction give the drop your ball mount needs. Work out the number, see which way to miss if you cannot land on it, and where one-input estimators go wrong.
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Andersen vs Equal-i-zer Weight Distribution Hitch
The category calls this chains versus spring bars. That is the weight distribution half. Both control sway by friction — the real difference is what the friction is made of, and what it weighs.
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Equal-i-zer vs Blue Ox SwayPro
Compare Equal-i-zer friction contacts with Blue Ox caster and spring-bar tension: diagrams, coupler fit, maintenance and manufacturer noise claims.
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Why Does My Trailer Sway? The Question Behind the Question
See how a trailer can settle after a disturbance or develop growing sway, and what to check in speed, loading, tires and hitch setup before buying hardware.
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What Size Weight Distribution Hitch Do I Need?
The question has three answers — the hitch load, the shank rise or drop, and your receiver's own rating. Every page ranking for it gives you one.
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Brake controllers
Whether you need one, proportional or time-delay, and what to check when the trailer brakes stop responding.
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Do I Need a Brake Controller?
Answer it from the trailer, not the tow vehicle. Work out what your brakes draw, which controllers are actually rated for your axle count, and when a controller does nothing at all.
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Proportional vs Time-Delay Brake Controllers
See how proportional and time-delay brake output differ in gentle and firm stops, then compare mounting, settings and trailer compatibility.
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Tekonsha P3 vs REDARC Tow-Pro Elite
Almost every comparison of these two is published by someone who sells one of them. Here is what both manufacturers print in their own manuals — including an axle limit that rules one out entirely.
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Trailer Brake Controller Not Working
Compare loaded voltage at the connector and brake magnet, then isolate the magnet for resistance testing. Use the controller's test procedure before blaming an empty-socket reading.
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Trailer security
Coupler, hitch and king pin locks — what fits your rig, and what they actually stop.
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Proven Industries vs Ft. Knox Coupler Locks
The shortlist RV owners keep arriving at on forums, settled on what each company publishes — and the built-in versus replaceable cylinder that actually separates them.
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Do Trailer Hitch Locks Actually Prevent Theft?
An honest answer using what lock manufacturers publish about their own limits — including the one that states in writing it is not an insurer.
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What Size Coupler Lock Do I Need?
Match your ball size, coupler model and latch to the right lock. Download a Letter or A4 fitment card with size conversions and measurement blanks.
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Tires & wheels
Pressure by weight, tire age from the DOT code, and lug nut torque.
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RV Tire Age Calculator: Read the DOT Code and What It Costs You
Find and decode a tire's DOT date code. See its approximate age and the five-year warranty estimate for Lionshead ST radial tires, separate from condition and replacement guidance.
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RV Tire Pressure Calculator: Motorhome Tire Pressure by Weight
Find motorhome cold tire pressure from weighed axle ends and Michelin RV tables. Download a Letter/A4 PDF with your weights, selected tire chart and pressure-limit warnings.
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Trailer Lug Nut Torque Calculator: Ft-Lbs by Wheel and Stud Size
Look up trailer wheel nut torque from Dexter's and Lippert's own tables, in staged passes — and see where the two makers publish figures that do not overlap at all.
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