Trailer Hitch Trick?

[John & Jodi]

I've hitched our trailer to our truck about 10 times now and have intermittent difficulty getting it seated properly. Specifically, I have great trouble getting the silver latch-thingy down so that it locks around the ball. The trailer appears to be fully seated (all the way down) on the ball. I will jiggle the trailer forward-backward and left-right. Sometimes when I start over (raise the trailer off the hitch and reset the latch), everything works like a charm. But for me it seems like luck. Any insight would be appreciated.

 

[rotus8]

I had this happen a few times and the problem for me is the latch part that is supposed to go under the ball gets trapped on top of the ball, nothing but to lift it up and start again. If you start with the trailer a little forward of directly over the ball, this will happen every time. I have learned to put the hitch down on the ball starting slightly back from directly over the ball. When dropping the hitch, it slides down and forward so the latch goes under the ball.

 

[Evan]

Exactly. Start with the trailer a little behind center on the ball and let it roll forward as its weight settles on the hitch.

 

[Warren Mary Ellen]

synthetic grease on the ball helps a little but do what everyone else has said about where to position it. It will get your attention if you brake and the tongue hits the bumper of your tow vehicle. You can read my story in the confessionals. I do lift up on it have it in place to see if it will pop off just as a safety check.

 

[Jan]

I once (and only once - learned fast) had the tongue slip off the ball because it was not properly seated. Fortunately, I had just pulled out of my camp site and was not moving very fast. A swarm of nearby campers rushed over to help but for some reason could not lift the tongue. The solution was to have three campers stand on the rear bumper and the tongue was easy to lift.

Is the tongue really that heavy when on the ground? I have never measured the downward force there.

 

[jpbrew]

I believe the design weight of my 560 is about 150 pounds.

 

[Mary & Mark]

I've hitched our trailer to our truck about 10 times now and have intermittent difficulty getting it seated properly. Specifically, I have great trouble getting the silver latch-thingy down so that it locks around the ball. The trailer appears to be fully seated (all the way down) on the ball. I will jiggle the trailer forward-backward and left-right. Sometimes when I start over (raise the trailer off the hitch and reset the latch), everything works like a charm. But for me it seems like luck. Any insight would be appreciated.

In addition to making sure that the ball is froward in the coupler, try closing the latch before the coupler is all the way down, maybe 1/4" above full down. I've noticed on some balls there is a flange at the base of the ball that can catch the latch and keep it from closing - especially when the TV is on a slope downward from a level trailer (my driveway and garage). The latch needs to close on the narrower part of the neck just below the round part of the hitch ball and if it catches the base it won't close. If you try this method it's a good idea to raise the coupler after you latch it to be sure it has grabbed the ball properly. I use the tongue jack to raise it until I see the coupler pull up lifting the hitch ball before letting it all the way down for towing.