Can Sway Control Be Used for Boat Trailer with Surge Brakes

Question:

I need to tow boat and trailer. Total weight including the trailer around 5000 lbs. Tandem axle. My vehicle is LX 470 weighs around 6000 # and is rated to pull 6500 #. I looked up a sway control on your site,m but it said not with surge brakes. Whats up with that ?

asked by: Barry I

Expert Reply:

I definitely have a solution for you, however as you mentioned in your question a standard friction sway bar like the Reese # 83660 or a full weight distribution system that uses this type of friction sway control cannot be used on trailers with surge brakes. This is because the tension they put on the tongue will limit the movement and effectiveness of the surge coupler (and thus your braking).

With all of that being said, there are still weight distribution systems with integrated sway control that are rated for use with surge couplers. For your 5,000 pound loaded trailer I really like the Fastway e2 Weight Distribution System # FA92-00-0800 that's completely compatible with surge brakes and features integrated 2-point sway control that will do a great job of limiting side-to-side movement during travel. You will just need to add a compatible hitch ball like the 2" # EQ91-00-6080.

Now if your boat trailer happens to have a straight pole tongue (instead of a standard A-frame), you can still use the Fastway system by adding the Pole-Tongue Adapter # EQ95-01-5950. This will mount to the trailer tongue to provide the proper mounting points for the Fastway L-brackets.

I have attached a couple short video reviews below that you can check out as well.