Reese Adapter for Ram Trucks, 30154

[Chief Mole]

We recently purchased our Sprinter fifth wheel and Reese towing hitch. The dealerships technician followed the instructions supplied which, unfortunately, are vague in the point regarding vertical movement after installation. The adapter had nearly 22mm of vertical movement which allowed the anchor bushing to clear the key of the puck. Being a resourceful person, I was able to make adjustments to reduce this movement to less than 1mm. I have submitted a request for technical assistance with Reese stating all of the above, I will post their response when it arrives.

[Chief Mole]

And the answer from Reese is........

3/4" of an inch would be excessive. 1/8" is very acceptable.

The answer says a lot to me. They don't want to state that [blank] or less vertical movement is acceptable in this application because it would state a limit that a lawsuit could win damages from. The use of English scale in reply to a question that used Metric scale leads me to think that a staffer in a cubicle looked in their corporate answer book and posted the company's response.

[ctbruce]

As a rule, CYA always comes first.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

[MerlinB]

Just curious. Why would you submit metric measurements to a U.S. manufacturer in the first place?

[MattHelm21]

I’m using the Reese adapter for the Ford puck system with my hitch and I had to adjust each of the tee pin anchors repeatedly to get it right. The manual for your model includes the following method to remove the vertical play:

“To adjust handle tension when locked; first remove adapter from pucks. Next, while keeping the handle to tee pin orientation, remove the cotter pin. To loosen, rotate the tee pin counterclockwise 1⁄2 rotation, and replace cotter pin. Conversely, if there is too much clearance in the attachments when locked, the clearance can be removed by rotating the tee pin clockwise 1⁄2 rotation, and replacing the cotter pin. If adapter still will not securely pin into under- bed mounting kit, or is still too loose, steps may need to be repeated.”

On mine, I adjusted the tee pins until I was unable to close the handles and then backed them out just enough so the alignment was correct then installed the cotter pin. Now when I close the handles for each puck there is a small amount of resistance as they get to the fully closed position and no vertical play in the adapter at all on any corner. Have you looked into this procedure?

[kksfish]

I had the same problem and I resolved it was trial and no error! I reduced the excessive “play” until the handles would close completely. I then hooked up the fiver for a test and found no noticeable movement or chucking.....I have since traveled about 5000 miles with no problems.

[Chief Mole]

Just curious. Why would you submit metric measurements to a U.S. manufacturer in the first place?

Most automotive industries have moved to metric measurements over the last 20 years as the tolerances are generally getting tighter and there are only so many digits on a micrometer. I do know that on my end working as a combination millwright, machinist and electrical guru, it reduces the amount of errors due to misplaced place holding zeros. Example:
0.125" is 1/8" but 1.250" is 1-1/4" and either could be a proper dimension. On a mounting frame that I worked on the dimension on print was actually marked 1.250" (3.175mm) and found that the item was supposed to be a 0.125" item.

[Chief Mole]

MattHelm21 & kksfish: I had started by doing three full revolutions and after the third attempt I basically said, "What the heck" and ran the tee/handle combination in until I could just get the cotter pin into the hole and then backed off 1/2 revolution. This set the rear pair perfectly but the front pair needed an additional 1/2 revolution to seat without binding.