How we made this guide: picks and specs come from our catalog and fitment data, owner quotes come from verified reviews and every guide is checked and edited by Trevor Hall.
Setting up a weight distribution hitch means measuring the loaded truck's front wheel well height three times: unhitched, hitched with the bars fitted but not tensioned, and again while you tension the bars until the wheel well reaches a target the first two readings set. B&W's Continuum, from $1,299 as a complete kit, tensions the bars with a hydraulic hand pump and pressure gauge and has friction sway control built in.
Shop weight distribution hitches
This guide follows B&W's 14-page Continuum installation manual. A first install needs a ratchet with a 9/16 inch socket, a torque wrench, a tape measure and a grease gun. B&W says the work belongs to someone who understands the hazards of hitch work. The steps, torque values and warnings below come from the manual in our own words, so the manual has the last word on your hitch. B&W's install video is about three years old and the manual is newer, so follow the manual wherever a video differs.
Quick answer
With the truck and trailer loaded for the trip and level, measure from the ground to the top edge of the front wheel well before you couple (A). Couple, fit the load bars, lift the jack foot off the ground and measure again (B). Choose a front axle load restoration of 50% to 100%, work out the target height, then close the needle valve and pump until the wheel well drops to it. Write down the psi.
Before you start: the manual's checklist
After its parts list, the manual's safety notice says the Continuum belongs only on a truck and trailer built to use a weight distribution hitch, and its compatibility check comes next. What a weight distribution hitch is and when you need one covers that question, and types of trailer hitches compares the alternatives. More B&W towing gear is in B&W trailer hitches.
- Receiver: at least 2 inches across. A reducer sleeve may be used in a larger receiver, but on some trucks it lowers the tow ratings. We do not sell receiver hitches.
- Height match: with the trailer level, measure the coupler height and the receiver height (top inside edge) from the ground. The standard head unit, which every kit we carry uses, couples when coupler height plus 2 inches, minus receiver height, lands from minus 1-1/8 to 9-3/8 inches.
- Ball: our kits include a 2-5/16 inch ball for 2-5/16 inch couplers. B&W sells a 2 inch replacement ball, but the manual warns that changing it takes specialized tools and a nut torqued to 475 ft. lbs., so B&W recommends having a dealership do it. A ball nut that is not torqued correctly could lead to serious injury or death. We do not sell loose hitch balls.
- Trailer frame: an A-frame coupler with rails about 2 inches wide and 5 to 6 inches tall (4 to 7 inches works with alternate bolts from B&W), 6 to 9 inches between the rails behind the coupler, at least 2 inches of open space in front of the next object and a clear stretch of driver's side rail for the pump. A jack foot pad wider than 6 inches must come off for the install.
- Ratings and extras: up to 16,000 lb of trailer and 600 to 1,600 lb of tongue weight. B&W's manual forbids going over any of the coupler, hitch, truck or trailer ratings, so the weakest one sets your limit. Surge-brake trailers are allowed, though most have a central tongue member that blocks the install.
The coupler also decides the load bar unit. Measure down from the top of the trailer frame to the top of the coupler. A coupler higher than the frame, or less than 2.5 inches under it, takes the WDHL4510 in the manual. A coupler deeper than 2.5 inches under the frame takes the WDHL4511, which adds a cylinder extension. Our four kits, all in our weight distribution hitches range, split like this.
| Kit | Receiver | Coupler | Head unit | Load bar unit | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WDHK4500 | 2 inch | Standard | WDHH4500 | WDHL4510 | $1,299 |
| WDHK4501 | 2 inch | Underslung | WDHH4500 | WDHL4511 | $1,319 |
| WDHK4502 | 2.5 inch | Standard | WDHH4502 | WDHL4510 | $1,319 |
| WDHK4503 | 2.5 inch | Underslung | WDHH4502 | WDHL4511 | $1,339 |
2 inch receiver, standard coupler
B&W Continuum Weight Distribution Hitch, 2" Shank, 2-5/16" Ball, Standard Coupler (WDHK4500)
From $1,299 · A 2 inch head unit and the WDHL4510 load bar unit with a 2-5/16 inch ball, for a trailer with a standard coupler.
The manual's tool list adds a marker, grease, a vent hose cutting tool and eye protection, and the WDHL4511 needs a socket and box end wrench for its extension nut.
Step by step: install the Continuum and set the tension
Step 1. Level the rig and load it
Park on flat, level ground and chock the trailer tires. Level the trailer by measuring from its frame to the ground at the front and the rear, then adjusting until the two distances match. Load the truck and trailer the way you will for a trip, because the manual wants the install and set-up done under that load. If the truck has auto leveling, switch it off and leave it off while you set up and tow. If your truck's owner's manual explains how to set up a weight distribution hitch, B&W says to follow it. If not, use the wheel well or tongue scale method below.
Step 2. Take reading A: front wheel well, unhitched
Before you couple, measure from the ground to the top edge of the front wheel well and write the number down. The manual calls this measurement A and marks the spot in its Figure J1. It prints this step after the coupling steps but wants the reading before coupling, so take it now. With a tongue weight scale you skip it (see below).
Step 3. Set the head unit height
Measure from the ground to the top of the trailer's coupler. Put the head unit in the truck's receiver and measure how high the top of the ball sits; the manual wants it 1 to 2 inches above the coupler. To change it, pull the head unit and move the pins in the pin block, whose holes are 1-1/2 inches apart (the block can also be turned over). Pin the head unit in the receiver with its receiver pin and a cotter pin, then secure the block pins with lynch pins, each spring closing on the same side as the bump on top of its pin.
There is no tilt to adjust: the listing says the head angle is preset at the factory, with no shims or washers.
2.5 inch receiver, standard coupler
B&W Continuum Weight Distribution Hitch, 2.5" Shank, 2-5/16" Ball, Standard Coupler (WDHK4502)
From $1,319 · The same system with the WDHH4502 head unit, for a truck with a 2.5 inch receiver and a standard coupler on the trailer.
Step 4. Mount the pump and cylinder on the trailer
Clear the A-frame: lift off the propane tank cover and tanks if there are any, and the tank tray if less than 2 inches separate it from the coupler. Mark their edges on the frame first, and re-route any breakaway cable, propane line or wiring the hitch would pinch. The manual allows cutting or removing non-structural parts that block the cylinder, such as a long flange on a propane tank tray, with the right protective gear.
Bolt the pump mount bracket and inside clamp to the driver's side rail, level with the frame and about 4 inches behind the cover mark if there was one. Torque its 3/8 inch nuts to 40 ft. lbs.
On a WDHL4511 unit, first bolt the cylinder extension to the cylinder's cross tube and torque its nut to 150 ft. lbs. With the cross tube end up, lift the cylinder between the A-frame rails with its hose under the driver's side rail, pin it to the top cylinder mount and secure the pin with the supplied cotter pin. Rest the top cylinder mount on the frame.
Lay the cylinder below the A-frame for now and bolt the pump to the bracket with its three flange bolts, torqued to 40 ft. lbs. Leave the pressure relief valve on the bottom of the pump alone: the manual says it is set at the factory and that adjusting it could cause serious injury or death. If the pump handle hits the trailer once everything is on, move the pump.
Fit the frame clamps loosely and refit the propane tanks and cover. If the cylinder sticks out more than 1/2 inch from its barrel, close the needle valve and pump just enough to draw it in; the gauge should still read zero. Work the needle valve by hand only, since tools or force will damage the pump.
Pull the vent hose up between the frame and the pump, push in the blue fitting to pop the plug from the pump's air fitting, cut the hose to length and press it in firmly. Some pressure escaping is normal. Refit the tank tray if you took it off, using your marks. Finally push the top cylinder mount as far back as it goes, check with a tape measure that it is square and centered, then tighten the four clamp nuts evenly to 40 ft. lbs.
Step 5. Grease the head unit
Turn the spindle 90 degrees toward the passenger side and grease the top fitting. Turn it 180 degrees toward the driver's side and grease the bottom fitting until a small bead of grease shows between the head unit and the spindle. Spin the spindle all the way around a couple of times. The manual names a multi-purpose lithium complex grease, NLGI grade 2 (printed in the manual as NGLI).
Step 6. Couple the trailer and fit the load bars
Couple on the same level surface. Raise the jack until the load bar assembly can slide under it, then pin the cylinder to the center hole of the lower cylinder mount.
Open the needle valve fully and push down on the lower cylinder mount until the cylinder is fully extended with about 5 inches of chrome rod showing. Lift the load bar assembly into the bottom of the spindle until the fork's latch pin engages. If the fork will not reach far enough, move the cylinder to the upper hole of the lower mount. If the bars bind, raise the tongue with the jack. Last, connect the wiring and breakaway cable and the safety chains, which may run down through the load bar assembly if they are long enough, but no part of a chain should be tight against it.
The optional fork holder bracket gives the bars a rest when the trailer is unhitched. It fits a jack leg 2 inches or smaller across and bolts around it, in front of the jack and above the jack foot, with two 3/8 inch carriage bolts and nuts torqued to 30 ft. lbs. If it will not fit, the manual says the safety chains can hold the load bar assembly.
The load bar unit also sells alone as the WDHL4510, from $1,065. It is the standard-coupler unit with no cylinder extension and needs a WDHH4500 or WDHH4502 head unit, depending on your receiver size, so buy a complete kit unless you already own a Continuum head unit.
2 inch receiver, underslung coupler
B&W Continuum Weight Distribution Hitch, 2" Shank, 2-5/16" Ball, Underslung Coupler (WDHK4501)
From $1,319 · A 2 inch head unit with the WDHL4511 load bar unit and its cylinder extension, for a coupler more than 2.5 inches below the top of the frame.
Step 7. Take reading B and choose the FALR
With the trailer coupled and the load bar assembly in the head unit, lift the jack foot off the ground and measure the same wheel well edge again. This is measurement B. Next choose the front axle load restoration (FALR), the industry term the manual uses for the percentage of the trailer load on the rear tires that is moved back to the front. B&W recommends 50% to 100%, and putting the wheel well back at A is 100%.
Step 8. Work out the target and pump to it
The target wheel well height, C, is B minus ((B minus A) times the FALR percent divided by 100). B&W's example has A at 39 inches, B at 40 inches and a 75% FALR: 1 inch times 0.75 is 0.75 inch, so C is 39.25 inches.
Close the needle valve, take the pump handle out of its holder, push it in and twist it counterclockwise to lengthen it, then pump until the front wheel well drops to C. If the cylinder bottoms out before the wheel well gets there, move the cylinder to the lower hole in the lower cylinder mount.
Step 9. Log the psi and check the rig
Read the gauge and record the psi in the log on page 13 of the manual, with the date, truck, trailer and FALR. Shorten the handle and put it back in its holder. If that raised the pressure, ease it down with the needle valve to the reading you had at the right height. A loss of up to 10% in the first few minutes is normal while the closed hydraulic loop settles.
Then check that every connection is secure, raise the jack foot above the load bars and clear anything else from between them.
Adjusting and re-checking the Continuum
B&W says each towing configuration needs its own pressure. A different truck, trailer or load means working the pressure out again and logging a new psi, whether through Steps 2, 7, 8 and 9 or the tongue weight scale route below.
If you have a tongue weight scale
With a tongue weight scale, the manual says to skip to its Step 4 (add pressure to the cylinder), so the wheel well readings and the target C drop out. Weigh the tongue, choose your FALR and read the cylinder load in psi from the manual's chart. Then close the needle valve, pump until the gauge reaches that psi, record it and finish as in Step 9. A few cells from the chart:
| Tongue weight | 50% FALR | 80% FALR | 100% FALR |
|---|---|---|---|
| 600 lb | 800 psi | 1,050 psi | 1,250 psi |
| 800 lb | 1,050 psi | 1,400 psi | 1,700 psi |
| 1,000 lb | 1,350 psi | 1,750 psi | 2,100 psi |
| 1,100 lb | 1,450 psi | 1,900 psi | 2,250 psi |
The chart runs from 600 to 1,600 lb of tongue weight and stops at 2,250 psi, so heavier tongues get fewer FALR columns: the 100% cell is blank above 1,100 lb, and at 1,600 lb the chart lists only 50% (2,250 psi).
When to adjust and when to leave it alone
- Adjust only on a smooth, flat surface with the truck and trailer in a straight line. If the rig feels wrong on the road, stop, straighten it up on level ground, check the gauge and adjust there.
- Expect the gauge to move. Pressure runs lower in a turn or when the rig is angled down and higher when it is angled up, and the manual calls that normal. Do not adjust for it.
- To add tension, close the needle valve and pump. To release it, open the needle valve by hand.
- The manual says the hydraulic system is designed to relieve pressure automatically above 3,000 psi, to prevent damage to the hitch, tow vehicle and trailer during discrete or overload events. Do not adjust the pressure relief valve on the bottom of the pump.
Uncoupling and routine care
To unhitch, chock the trailer tires, open the needle valve and let the cylinder extend (pressing down on the lower cylinder mount helps) until the load bar assembly can leave the head unit. Pull up the latch pin release lever, slide the bars out, rest them on the fork holder bracket and lower the jack to the ground. If the load bar assembly is coming off the trailer, move it so the jack foot is no longer between the bars before you lower the foot.
Grease the head unit before every trip and again every 250 to 500 miles you tow. At the same points, inspect the hitch, bars, receiver, coupler and frame for damage, check the hose, pump and cylinder for leaks and confirm that every pin is present and clipped and every bolt is tight. Look for wear or gouging where parts rub. As needed, the manual also has you spray white lithium grease on the load bar latch, the top of the fork, the pump handle and the cylinder's swivel ball end, and clean and lubricate the pin block pins and holes. If the load bar assembly bolts ever work loose, the manual gives 125 ft. lbs. for the 1/2 inch by 4-1/4 inch bolts and 80 ft. lbs. for the 1/2 inch by 2 inch bolts, on dry threads and tightened from the bolt head only.
Common mistakes the manual warns about
- Setting up unloaded or on a slope. The manual wants both vehicles level and loaded as for a trip.
- Modifying the hitch or mounting it on damaged parts. The manual says never to modify the hitch in any way and never to install it over vehicle or trailer parts that are broken or structurally weakened, so check for damage and excessive corrosion as you work.
- Chasing the gauge in a turn or on uneven ground. Straighten up on a flat surface first.
- Using tools on the needle valve or touching the relief valve.
- Leaving the jack foot or any large object between the load bars, where the bars can strike it in a tight turn.
- Towing on poor tires. The manual says under-inflated, overloaded or damaged tires sharply cut the speed a trailer can hold steady, so check them before each tow.
- Going over a rating, which the manual forbids. A trailer near the top of the 16,000 lb and 1,600 lb tongue weight limits is where gooseneck vs bumper pull is worth a read.
Frequently asked questions
Can you put too much tension on a weight distribution hitch?
Yes. B&W recommends a front axle load restoration of 50% to 100%, and 100% puts the front wheel well back at its unhitched height (A), so pumping until it drops below A goes past that range. The manual warns that an improperly adjusted hitch can damage the truck, trailer and towing components. Its psi chart tops out at 2,250 psi, and the system is designed to relieve pressure automatically above 3,000 psi to prevent damage in discrete or overload events, which makes that figure a safeguard, not a setting to pump to.
How do I know my weight distribution hitch is set up correctly?
With the rig loaded and level, the front wheel well sits at your target C and the gauge shows the psi you logged. The gauge shifts in turns and on slopes, so check it on flat ground with the truck and trailer in line.
What happens if the hitch ball is too high or too low?
Outside its height range the Continuum cannot couple. The manual sets the ball 1 to 2 inches above the top of the coupler before you couple, by moving the pin block pins or turning the block over. If coupler height plus 2 inches, minus receiver height, falls outside minus 1-1/8 to 9-3/8 inches, the standard head unit in our kits cannot reach. B&W makes an extended pin block head unit with a wider range, which we do not list.
Is it okay to back up with a weight distribution hitch?
B&W's manual says yes for the Continuum. It attaches at a single point, which leaves plenty of room to turn, so you can reverse with the load bar assembly attached.
Do you need a sway bar with a weight distribution hitch?
Not with the Continuum, which has friction sway control built in. The manual adds that sway control matters much less than speed, road and weather conditions, load distribution and tire condition. It says to slow down if sway starts.
How tight should the chains be on a weight distribution hitch?
The Continuum sets its tension with the pump and gauge rather than chain links. The manual's only chains are the trailer's safety chains, which may pass down through the load bar assembly if they are long enough, with none tight against it.
Do I need a ball mount with the Continuum?
No. The head unit pins into the receiver and already carries its own ball, so you do not add one. A standalone ball mount is a different part, and the ball mounts in our range are B&W's Tow & Stow models.
A ball mount, not a weight distribution hitch
B&W Tow & Stow Adjustable Ball Mount, 2" Shank, 5" Drop, Dual Ball 2" x 2-5/16", Chrome (TS10037C)
From $329 · An adjustable mount with a 2 inch shank, a 5 inch drop and a dual 2 inch and 2-5/16 inch ball.
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