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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / RVs / August 2005Drawbar/hitch noise
Good Morning, First time posting here, be gentle. I'm not towing a pop-up trailer, I might one day but for now I tow a utility trailer upon which I've mounted a slot car track which I rent out for parties and the like. I've read some of the threads here and you folks seem to have the information I can hopefully use. My question is this, what can I do about some godawful noises coming from the drawbar/hitch? I had the hitch assembly installed by a very reputable local place, went on fine, got the drawbar and ball from another place and it too went on fine but there are these really loud knocking noises coming from the drawbar when I tow the trailer that have me concerned. The bar doesn't seem to be a good fit into the hitch, they're both 2" square and should be and were advertised as being compatible. Are their better fitting drawbars than others? I'm using the larger cotter type pin to lock the drawbar into place, no problems there. Any ideas for possibly repairing this thing or do I need to find a better fit or ....? One more thing, how much up and down movement should there be between the ball and the clamp/hitch of the trailer? There seems to be more than I would consider good but this is my first trailer/towing experience with my own equipment. The ball is a 2" diameter, and the hitch is supposed to be 2" capacity. When I adjust the hitch to snap down over the ball, I can still lift it a 1/2 " or so after I lock down the clamping lever. Is that normal or did I get a bad hitch? Thanks for any advice or suggestions. John Emmons Celebration Racin' Pasadena, CA -- John Emmons COG IBA "when hatred calls with his package, refuse delivery..." >Good Morning, > [quoted text clipped - 32 lines] >Celebration Racin' >Pasadena, CA You should be using a 1/2" or so solid clevis pin with a cotter pin to retain it. With nothing on the hitch is there much movement? If so, as long as both the receiver and the hitch are 2", there's not a lot you can do about it. As far as sitting on the ball, 1/2" play is way too much, you should have no slack at all. I would advise you to take the whole lash up to a reputable hitch installer or RV service center and have your problems checked out. It sounds like the coupler on the trailer is the wrong size for the ball.  SignatureFrank Tabor Thanks Frank, I think the clevis pin is actually 5/8". I'll recheck the ball but I know that the marked sizes match between the ball and the coupler. The drawbar seems to be just loose fitting into the reciever, they're both a 2" square or so they say anyway. I'll try tightening the adjusting nut on the coupler. John > >Good Morning, > > [quoted text clipped - 45 lines] > -- > Frank Tabor >Thanks Frank, I think the clevis pin is actually 5/8". I'll recheck the ball >but I know that the marked sizes match between the ball and the coupler. [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > >John 5/8", you're correct. I just went an measured mine. What brand of hitch and what brand of receiver do you have? There should only be about 1/8" or less play in the hitch in the receiver. SignatureFrank Tabor > Good Morning, > [quoted text clipped - 32 lines] > > Thanks for any advice or suggestions. Sounds like normal "slop" in the hitch/drawbar combination. IIRC, somebody makes a kit that will get rid of it (second pin, maybe some rubber/plastic that fits between the receiver/drawbar) but I'll have to look around to see if I can find it. You could possibly use a piece of rubber from an inner tube to take up the space and get rid of the noise/play, but I've never tried it. I just deal with it when towing, and remove it when not. Gerry 99 Mesa 01 Sporttrac Here is what I was looking for: http://www.reeseproducts.com/products/products/hbbmacc_pinclip.shtml look at the anti wobble kit..... Gerry > One more thing, how much up and down movement should there be > between the [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > normal > or did I get a bad hitch? Some trailer couplings have an adjustment to take the slack out of the ball coupling. Either that needs to be adjusted so it's snug (not tight) or you have the wrong size ball. See if a 2 5/16" ball will go into the trailer coupling & lock in place. If it will, that's what you need. The loose play in the square tube should be of no concern. In 35 years of towing trailers, I've never had noticeable noise from the loose fit of the 2" square bar and tube. Tom J <snip> > My question is this, what can I do about some godawful noises coming from > the drawbar/hitch? <snip> > One more thing, how much up and down movement should there be between the > ball and the clamp/hitch of the trailer? There seems to be more than I [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > lift it a 1/2 " or so after I lock down the clamping lever. Is that normal > or did I get a bad hitch? If you really have 1/2" movement in the ball/coupler, then that is almost certainly your entire problem. Don't bother with anything else until that is taken care of. At 1/8 of an inch, you would have a lot of movement and noise, with an increased risk of disconnecting. 1/2 inch is four times as much. Get the coupler adjusted, and then make sure it hasn't already been damaged by banging around. Then if you still have noise problems, try looking at the receiver/draw bar combination. Austin SignatureColeman Bayside behind a Chevy Astro. No, not without a Reese Mini-350 WDH! There are no X characters in my address
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