Camco Eaz-Lift 48653 Extra Hi/Low Weight-Distribution Hitch Shank

The Camco Eaz-Lift 48653 is the adjustable shank that lets you set the exact ball height your trailer needs. It's the piece that connects your weight-distribution hitch head to the receiver on your tow vehicle, and getting it right is what keeps a loaded trailer riding level down the road. Too high or too low and you'll feel it. Poor sway control, uneven tire wear, and a nose-up or nose-down stance that hurts braking. This shank takes that guesswork out.

What makes it an extra hi/low shank is the range. You get 8-3/4 inches of rise and 5-3/4 inches of drop off a single 12-inch shank, so the same part covers a tall tow vehicle pulling a low trailer or a lower vehicle pulling a taller one. Flip it and reposition the head, and you've changed the ball height by a wide margin without buying a different part. For anyone who tows more than one trailer, or who changed trucks and suddenly the old setup sits wrong, that adjustability is the whole point.

It's built for weight distribution, not just a plain ball mount. The shank is forged steel, so it stands up to the forces a weight-distributing head and spring bars put on it. That's a real load. Weight distribution works by using tension to push weight forward onto the tow vehicle's front axle and back onto the trailer axles, and the shank has to carry all of that without flexing. Forged construction is why this one holds its shape trip after trip.

Fitment is straightforward. It drops into any standard 2-inch by 2-inch receiver, which is the most common size on half-ton and three-quarter-ton trucks and SUVs set up for towing. Just know what you're buying. This is the shank by itself. It doesn't come with the hitch head, the spring bars, or a ball. If you're replacing a bent or mismatched shank on an existing Eaz-Lift setup, that's exactly what you want. If you're starting from scratch, you'll pair it with a compatible weight-distribution head and bars.

Who's this for? Travel-trailer owners are the biggest group. But it's just as at home under a larger boat trailer, a car hauler, or a heavy utility trailer where you're already running a weight-distribution system and need to fine-tune the ride height. Anyone chasing a level tow will get there faster with an adjustable shank than by stacking washers or swapping fixed ball mounts.

Setting it up isn't hard. Slide the shank into the receiver and pin it, bolt the head to the shank at the height that levels your trailer, then hook up your spring bars and check the stance with the trailer loaded the way you actually tow it. Measure your tow vehicle's fender height empty and hitched, and you're aiming to bring it back close to even. Take a short test drive and re-check the torque on the head bolts after the first hundred miles or so. That's good practice with any hitch component that carries this kind of load.

A couple of practical notes from the field. Any adjustable shank can develop a little play in the receiver over time, so a hitch tightener or anti-rattle device is a cheap upgrade that quiets things down and cuts wear on the pin. Keep the shank and receiver clean and give the bare steel a wipe of anti-seize or light grease where it slides in, especially if you tow near salt water or store the rig outside. A rusted shank that's seized in the receiver is a bad afternoon. Five minutes of care up front saves you that.

It's a simple part that does one job well. If your trailer rides nose-high or nose-low and you're fighting sway, the fix is often just the right shank at the right height. And that's what this one gives you.