Oh Well... here we go!
1. Adjust the trailer jack until it measures level to the ground from the front of the frame to the rear of the frame & measure the ball socket on the hitch/or get the accurate ball height from the manufacturer.
2. If... you have an adjustable hitch head adjust it to as close as you can to that ball height. When in doubt go to the next highest adjustment hole. 3. Hook the trailer on to your ball and let it down enough to free up the hitch lock, &
will let the hitch lock slide forward & lock. Make sure it is locked
3. When locked securely, put on chains for safety & then lift up the trailer & rear of truck a few inches with the trailer jack to make it easier to lift up the equalizer bars. Stop when it gets hard to turn the jack crank.
4. Pick a link that your are going to put on the hook of the bracket on the trailer frame & (then straighten the chain & "drop" the other links down while holding the link that will go on the bracket hook in your fingers) so the links drop out of the way and don't get jammed in the chain. When both equalizer bars are on, raise the trailer jack and let all the weight rest on the truck.
5. Stand back and look at the trailer & truck.
The goal is to have the frame of the trailer "slightly" lower in the front & the frame of the truck level. Try repeating the process and "dropping" different numbers of links to get to that goal. If a
ridiculous amount of pressure is necessary to get the front of the trailer & the rear of the truck up you may not have enough spring for the tongue weight. Hopefully that will not be a problem, not likely. If it is, I recommend a set of standard overload springs like you find on 1 ton trucks. Why? Because overloads will not affect the ride of your truck until enough weight is put on the hitch (the trailer weight) while you are driving around town. Other types of springs stiften up the ride all the time!
6. One last note, make sure the angle of the adjustable head is right vertically. Hopefully the people who sold you the trailer should have set that up right. The angle of the head will make the equalizer bars more or less parallel to the ground and therefore put more or less pressure on the chains lifting the trailer. The more the hitch head leans forward towards the truck bumper & 90 degrees the more level horizonally the bars will be creating less lifting pressure on the chains.
Usually you want the hitch head tilted away from the truck a little and the bars running slightly downward from the truck. A good hitch place can help you with that if you get confused.
7. Get a friction sway bar (or two if necessary/ they go on reversed in position on each side of the "A" frame) and learn to adjust it based on wind and driving condition. I keep them fairly tight when windy! Loosen it completely when backing up the trailer or turning very sharply or it will fight you especially in dirt or gravel.
8.
Make sure the hitch on the truck is rated for the tongue weight! I bent the hell out of a GM hitch and had to replace it on a trip because it would not hold a 900 lb. hitch weight!
Do this and you'll find out what's what! It will probably turn out just fine!
Hope this helps! An old friend who is gone now helped me years ago when I started. Now, it's my turn!