ihsolutions
Well-known member
My new 2012 DRW Silverado is on the dealer's lot now, and it's time to decide on a new hitch.
I am torn between the Hensley Trailersaver TS3 vs. the BD3.
The TS3 is rated for 20k and the BD3 18k. The TS3 can handle up to 4,500lb pin weight, where the BD3 only goes up to 3,500lbs.
I like the BD3 because it breaks into two pieces and I can remove it myself. The TS3 is 300lbs and does not come apart.
I have a lot of experience with heavy hitches, coming from a pullrite superglide that weighed 250lbs. I hated that I couldn't remove it myself.
I'm committed to one of these two hitches, but it seems silly to have a truck with huge payload capacity only to de-rate it by getting a hitch that can't handle the payload. Aaron at Hensley says most of the hitch is over-engineered per the stated specs, except the airbags. If you go over the 3,500lbs of the pin weight, you will have problems (he says).
Right now my BH 3670RL is well under 3,000lbs loaded, but what if I decide to get a newer, heavier unit in the future? Probably all the Heartland rigs are OK, except maybe a toy hauler. I have no expectation that I will go to something that heavy, but I probably said the same thing about never getting a fifth wheel...and that was 3 trailers ago!
Any advice or recommendations are appreciated. It's been a tough call and I need someone to push me over the fence, one side or the other.
Jeff
I am torn between the Hensley Trailersaver TS3 vs. the BD3.
The TS3 is rated for 20k and the BD3 18k. The TS3 can handle up to 4,500lb pin weight, where the BD3 only goes up to 3,500lbs.
I like the BD3 because it breaks into two pieces and I can remove it myself. The TS3 is 300lbs and does not come apart.
I have a lot of experience with heavy hitches, coming from a pullrite superglide that weighed 250lbs. I hated that I couldn't remove it myself.
I'm committed to one of these two hitches, but it seems silly to have a truck with huge payload capacity only to de-rate it by getting a hitch that can't handle the payload. Aaron at Hensley says most of the hitch is over-engineered per the stated specs, except the airbags. If you go over the 3,500lbs of the pin weight, you will have problems (he says).
Right now my BH 3670RL is well under 3,000lbs loaded, but what if I decide to get a newer, heavier unit in the future? Probably all the Heartland rigs are OK, except maybe a toy hauler. I have no expectation that I will go to something that heavy, but I probably said the same thing about never getting a fifth wheel...and that was 3 trailers ago!
Any advice or recommendations are appreciated. It's been a tough call and I need someone to push me over the fence, one side or the other.
Jeff