Trailer ball hitch question

[Petr51488]

I need a drop hitch for my new truck, but don't know how much of drop i need. The truck should be here in 2 weeks. I was looking in northern tool and found this ball hitch. http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200180874_200180874?cm_sp=Customer%20driven-_-Recently%20Viewed-_-Category%20Page

It says it has a 12 inch vertical adjustment. Now this may sound like a stupid questions, because i've never done it before, but can i flip this hitch around so it acts as a 12 inch drop? Or is it only made to be a raised hitch. The last thing i need is this thing snapping off while towing 13k pounds. Any opinions on this one from northern tool? Also it doesn't state the reciever size. Would this be the standard on all trucks? Its for the New body style gmc 2500hd

[IA_James]

You could buy that, and it should work for ya. 12" of vertical adjustment could be used in either direction. But you're going to wind up with about 6" extra inches of receiver hanging down. If you got a 4x4, a 5 1/4" or 6" drop should be plenty, depending on how much the truck actually sags with the trailer on. It looks like this one is only good up to 10k lbs. though, do you need more than that?

[Petr51488]

I would rather have more than i never need so i never have to worry about it. But on the other hand, i dont want to spend 300.00 on a hitch.

[TLS]

The drawbar you listed in your link won't tow 13K lbs.

And without a CDL, you can't anyway.

Will you be towing different trailers with different hitch heights?

I would just see what you need and buy that.

When I went from my '90 C/K to my '04 new style, I went from a 2" drop to a 4" drop. From what I've heard the new '08's aren't different.

Here is what I have now.
http://www.etrailer.com/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/dt/bm/40331.jpg

If you DO need 13K capacity, you'll need to go with a Class V reciever which are 2 1/2" square.

[Petr51488]

The drawbar you listed in your link won't tow 13K lbs.

And without a CDL, you can't anyway.

Will you be towing different trailers with different hitch heights?

I would just see what you need and buy that.

When I went from my '90 C/K to my '04 new style, I went from a 2" drop to a 4" drop. From what I've heard the new '08's aren't different.

Here is what I have now.


If you DO need 13K capacity, you'll need to go with a Class V reciever which are 2 1/2" square.


I don't necessarily need 13k and might only tow once with 13k pounds, but 13k is what the truck is rated for. Like i said, i would rather have it to be safe if i ever needed to tow something that much. The one in the link isn't a 2 1/2 inch square? The one in the link doesn't give too many details. I wanted something with the interchangeable hitch balls too. I'll prob never use the smaller one, but the 2'' is a must, and 2 5/16th might also be used. Thanks for your reply BTW. Oh, and the one in your picture does look alot more stronger than the one in my link.

[SOUTHERNGREENSCAPES]

That hitch would probally work fine, even for 13k as long as it is for short hauls. Just don't get busted by DOT. I have a 2 5/16 pintal hitch that is rated at 10k and have hauled 14k for a very short distance with my 2500hd gasser. I would though spend my money differently. for the money that you are looking at spending there, you could buy a good 2" drop mount and then a different drop mount for a 2 5/15 that is rated higher. Just keep in mind that almost all of your mounts and hitches on the market are rated up to 10k only unless you have a camper style. I recently replaced my 2500hd with a 3500hd and had them put a class 5 2.5" hitch on it. It is rated distributed up to 16k and undistributed up to 12K. Don't get side tracked by fancy hitches, keep it simple...

[MJLsLawnCareNmoreLLC]

I actually have the black one of this ball mount and it is actually cheaper than the red one. $150 vs. $180.

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_245756_245756

They are both rated the exact same. But it only goes up to 10k lbs. not 13k lbs! Now I'm not saying it can't pull this kinda weight as it's a very strong ball mount, but it's only rated at 10k lbs. It is an absolutely great ball mount. I'd buy another again in a heart beat. Super easy to adjust and versatile. It will allow you to go up or down 6" and has 3 different sized hitch balls. This will allow you to pull a variety of trailers with different vehicles and allow you to pull them all at the correct level. Plus they are all rated higher than standard hitch ball ratings. Now the black one I got weighs in at 55lbs so it's freakin heavy. I dont know why they are both rated at 46lbs now. It is made by buyers. I personally like the pin design better on the black one as they use those snap rings like on a walkbehind mower caster wheel to hold them on vs. a normal clip. Plus they cable them all together so you cant loose them or forget to put them all in. There's a little bolt too that you can tighten to help remove any of the play in the ball mount from all the components. Plus it's powder coated rather than painted.

Now the downsides. It sticks out past the vehicle bumper pretty far, farther than most standard ball mounts. Therefore you need long safety chains and electrical plugs on the trailer to reach the truck. Also if you flip the ball mount to drop the height, it sticks down quite a bit and can catch going up and down curbs if you have a low truck. But with the chevy 2500 you have it shouldnt be a problem.

[grassmanak]

if you want the best, then buy a B&W hitch, they make 2 and 3 ball models and they adjust more than youll ever need.

[Petr51488]

I actually have the black one of this ball mount and it is actually cheaper than the red one. $150 vs. $180.

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_245756_245756

They are both rated the exact same. But it only goes up to 10k lbs. not 13k lbs! Now I'm not saying it can't pull this kinda weight as it's a very strong ball mount, but it's only rated at 10k lbs. It is an absolutely great ball mount. I'd buy another again in a heart beat. Super easy to adjust and versatile. It will allow you to go up or down 6" and has 3 different sized hitch balls. This will allow you to pull a variety of trailers with different vehicles and allow you to pull them all at the correct level. Plus they are all rated higher than standard hitch ball ratings. Now the black one I got weighs in at 55lbs so it's freakin heavy. I dont know why they are both rated at 46lbs now. It is made by buyers. I personally like the pin design better on the black one as they use those snap rings like on a walkbehind mower caster wheel to hold them on vs. a normal clip. Plus they cable them all together so you cant loose them or forget to put them all in. There's a little bolt too that you can tighten to help remove any of the play in the ball mount from all the components. Plus it's powder coated rather than painted.

Now the downsides. It sticks out past the vehicle bumper pretty far, farther than most standard ball mounts. Therefore you need long safety chains and electrical plugs on the trailer to reach the truck. Also if you flip the ball mount to drop the height, it sticks down quite a bit and can catch going up and down curbs if you have a low truck. But with the chevy 2500 you have it shouldnt be a problem.

Yea, i looked at the one you have and read the reviews. They also said it was great, but stuck out too much. How much does it stick out? I would hate to buy it then have to return it because it stuck out too far.

[IA_James]

Yea, i looked at the one you have and read the reviews. They also said it was great, but stuck out too much. How much does it stick out? I would hate to buy it then have to return it because it stuck out too far.

That's the thing. If you flip it so you can drop it 4 or 6" or whatever you need, you've still got 12" of drawbar hanging down.

[PLM-1]

I actually have the black one of this ball mount and it is actually cheaper than the red one. $150 vs. $180.

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_245756_245756

They are both rated the exact same. But it only goes up to 10k lbs. not 13k lbs! Now I'm not saying it can't pull this kinda weight as it's a very strong ball mount, but it's only rated at 10k lbs. It is an absolutely great ball mount. I'd buy another again in a heart beat. Super easy to adjust and versatile. It will allow you to go up or down 6" and has 3 different sized hitch balls. This will allow you to pull a variety of trailers with different vehicles and allow you to pull them all at the correct level. Plus they are all rated higher than standard hitch ball ratings. Now the black one I got weighs in at 55lbs so it's freakin heavy. I dont know why they are both rated at 46lbs now. It is made by buyers. I personally like the pin design better on the black one as they use those snap rings like on a walkbehind mower caster wheel to hold them on vs. a normal clip. Plus they cable them all together so you cant loose them or forget to put them all in. There's a little bolt too that you can tighten to help remove any of the play in the ball mount from all the components. Plus it's powder coated rather than painted.

Now the downsides. It sticks out past the vehicle bumper pretty far, farther than most standard ball mounts. Therefore you need long safety chains and electrical plugs on the trailer to reach the truck. Also if you flip the ball mount to drop the height, it sticks down quite a bit and can catch going up and down curbs if you have a low truck. But with the chevy 2500 you have it shouldnt be a problem.

That's the one i've got too. Love the thing. I like the length because I can turn a cul-de-sac without the fear of turning the trailer into the truck. Do you have your bolt on the top (like the linked picture of the red hitch) or bottom like a weight distributing ball mount? I've seen them both ways but didn't know if there was really a difference. One way the weight will be on the bolt, the other way the weight will be on the vertical bar.

[hosejockey2002]

I use a Rapid Hitch (http://ultrahitch.rpmsolutions.biz/index.cfm?Section=73). It's the cat's ass. It's rated to 10K, which should work for you because your factory receiver probably isn't rated to any higher than 7500 lbs. unless you use a weight distribution hitch. Costs about $200 but worth every penny.

[MJLsLawnCareNmoreLLC]

Yea, i looked at the one you have and read the reviews. They also said it was great, but stuck out too much. How much does it stick out? I would hate to buy it then have to return it because it stuck out too far.


It's not all that bad. Most electrical plugs are long enough if the trailer is manufactured by a major company. If not it's not hard to lengthen one. Same thing with the safety chains. Buy about a foot of chain and cut a couple links or whatever you will need to reach the truck. Then all you need is those chain link connectors and put it all together. I have done this with one of my big tex trailers already. In fact I like longer safety chains on all my trailers as you never know how long of chain you're gonna need depending on what vehicle you are using at the time. (Same reason I bought this ball mount, versatility. I want to be able to pull a trailer properly with a variety of vehicles in a variety of circumstances). All you do is twist the hook and chain around a couple of times and it shortens the length till it's just the right length. (just long enough to reach, in an x pattern, but doesnt catch on the ball mount or drag on the ground). If I had a camera with a charged battery and the time I would take a picture of what I'm talking about.

But just so you know, I did however go measure the buyers adjustable ball mount and a regular ball mount. Now all ball mounts are different but here is typically what you can expect. From the center of the hole on the ball mount where the pin slides through to lock it to the truck to the center of the ball is 17" (buyers). The same measurement on a typical ball mount was 11". So you looking at a 6" difference in length. I've had some trailers work and others I had to lengthen both the plug and the safety chains. It all depends on the truck and the trailer and how far things have to reach as they are all different.

Now B&W and other companies make a sweet set up too. For example the B&W one is shorter in length than the buyers and does the same thing. It is also about a hundred dollars more. John deere even makes one that is all stainless steel and coated in a rhino lining type coating. It is also adjustable up and down. But I cant remember what it cost but I want to say it was around $300.

So this is just my experience and opinion. Dollar for dollar you're not going to find a stronger more versatile ball mount. Plus if you ever decide to use one of those clevis pin, tow hooks, or pintle hooks they make ones that plug into the buyers ball mount. Where some of the other more expensive brands dont allow you to do this because of the design.

[MJLsLawnCareNmoreLLC]

That's the thing. If you flip it so you can drop it 4 or 6" or whatever you need, you've still got 12" of drawbar hanging down.

What the heck are you talking about? It's 12 total inches of adjustment. 6" up or 6" down. It's and "L" shapped ball mount. You flip it in either direction to either go up or down depending on your needs. With just about any truck or trailer it is plenty of room to clear basic bumps and whatnot. Unless you have a super low trailer and an over-loaded truck driving over a curb you're not gonna catch.

[MJLsLawnCareNmoreLLC]

That's the one i've got too. Love the thing. I like the length because I can turn a cul-de-sac without the fear of turning the trailer into the truck. Do you have your bolt on the top (like the linked picture of the red hitch) or bottom like a weight distributing ball mount? I've seen them both ways but didn't know if there was really a difference. One way the weight will be on the bolt, the other way the weight will be on the vertical bar.

Honestly it doesnt make a bit of difference which way you have it for weight distribution. All the bolt is doing is taking out a little of the play that you get from all the components that make it adjustable. It acts like one of the pins taking the weight from the trailer if its down, but at the same time in the up position it is pulling the adjustable mount away from the vertical support to take the play out of the unit. The bolt orientation matters more with getting the height right when your at the top or bottom of the vertical support. You have to flip the thing one way or another to get it just right. According to the directions it claims you can have it in either position. But more times I have the bolt upwards. Regardless I always tighten the bolt before the trailer is connected.

But yeah for sure it helps having that extra length to make tight turns without jackknifing as easy.

[Petr51488]

So i guess i'll just compare the length of the new one to the one on my current truck. Wost case is that i cut the new hitch to the length of my old one and re-drill the whole. No big deal. Thanks for all your help guys!