Hitch Failed - Trip Cancelled!!!!!!

reubenray · 12-01-2012, 07:13 AM

Our third trip is not going to happen. We hooked up the fiver and did our two test pulls. So we raise up the legs and load up the blocks and start to drive off. We did not go 5' when the fiver came out of the hitch. Our Husky hitch has a green popout when it hitched securely and his was green. Down it came. It appears that only the tailgate is damaged, but ******.

I immediately tried to raise it off of my truck. The pinbox was under my hitch so I had to remove the top section of my hitch. It was a good thing it was in two pieces. We (neighbor) then had to remove the tailgate back panel to get the tailgate to unlatch.

Now to figure what happened and what insurance to get in touch with. Can I trust this hitch and how can I check it?

jsmith948 · 12-01-2012, 07:45 AM

Sorry to hear of your misfortune. Take solace in the fact that your disconnect occurred at low speed and in your driveway!
You stated that you did a 'tug test' and the green indicator had popped out to indicate the jaws had locked.
A common problem with fifth wheel hitches (even on the big trucks) is coupling when the kingpin is positioned too high. This will allow the jaws of the hitch to 'lock' around the lower flange of the kingpin. When the rig is moved, the kingpin will be forced upward and out of the jaws.
A good practice to help avoid this is too adjust the height of your trailer so that the leading edge of the pin box 'pick-up plate' contacts the tilted fifth wheel about half way up the 'ramp'. This will ensure that the truck actually slightly lifts the trailer as you back under - preventing a high pin lock up.
You should still have your hitch checked out to make sure that everything is as it should be - just offering a possible cause - hope it helps and good luck.
Please let us know what you learn?

Outbackmel · 12-01-2012, 08:05 AM

Certainly sorry to hear of your issue. In addition to a tug as you indicate, i also get out of the cab and look to ensure that locking bar is closed and around mid hitch pin. I agree you need to have the integrity of the hitch inspected to ensure it is not damaged. Key is was stated above. At hook up, allow sufficient tilt so 5er rides up and locks properly.

Jim W · 12-01-2012, 08:10 AM

Sorry for your loss. I high hitched once in a camp ground in South Dakota and had some sight damage to the tail gate not as bad as yours; legs were down doing a brake check. I install a bed saver on my hitch after the high hitch incident from “Blue OX” to prevent this from happening again in case of hitch failure. I have seen this before on other trucks also with much more severe damage including the bed.

I would suggest contacting your auto insurance for the tailgate damage since this is what has been damaged.
Jim W.

reubenray · 12-01-2012, 08:18 AM

I went home and looked at my hitch. It seems to stick when opening and sometime closing so I lubricated it some. Before I lubricated it the slide bar would only slide in part way. We went back to the storage yard to move the fiver back into its spot. Everything seemed to work OK, but it took a few pulls to get the hitch to unlock. The last trip we took it was very hard to open from the hitch pin. Now I am concerned about the hitch. Is there someway to test these?

I keep thinking of my steps I go through and there is one step that I did not do. This was to actually climb into my truck to look at the slide bar. Being I did not do this was the slide bar all the way across or not. My concern is the bar was all the way across, but for some reason it unlatched.

tileman · 12-01-2012, 09:25 AM

Wow sorry to hear and see the damage.
At lest you were not on the road when it came off.

Last week we have a small cargo trailer that we put our motocross bikes in
16'x7 Well I had to work last sat and my wife was going to take the kids to the track with the trailer in tow.

Well I load the trailer and put it on the truck and have done this over 80 to 100 times. My wife pulls it out of the shop and up to the front of the house.

Well I leave for work sat am and my wife leaves around 9am or so.
Half way down our road the trailer comes off hits the gate of the truck and digs into the road. Cost so far $412.00 to fix the gate and the trailer is looking like around $300 to $400 if I do it myself.

I am just glad she was not on the road at 45 mph or 55

Ron.

davidjsimons · 12-01-2012, 09:49 AM

I'm not experienced with a fifth wheel in a pickup but on a regular truck, when the fifth wheel is hard to unlock, sometimes it is adjusted too tight and does not have enough slack to release.

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reubenray · 12-01-2012, 09:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tileman

Wow sorry to hear and see the damage.
At lest you were not on the road when it came off.

Last week we have a small cargo trailer that we put our motocross bikes in
16'x7 Well I had to work last sat and my wife was going to take the kids to the track with the trailer in tow.

Well I load the trailer and put it on the truck and have done this over 80 to 100 times. My wife pulls it out of the shop and up to the front of the house.

Well I leave for work sat am and my wife leaves around 9am or so.
Half way down our road the trailer comes off hits the gate of the truck and digs into the road. Cost so far $412.00 to fix the gate and the trailer is looking like around $300 to $400 if I do it myself.

I am just glad she was not on the road at 45 mph or 55

Ron.

My wife's initial response was that we are glad it happened then instead of being on the road. But it is her fault. She made a comment to me as we was driving off that we must be getting better being it took no time to get setup this time. She jinxed it. Her next words was "motorhome". But she has calmed down and still loves our setup.

We most likely could have still made the trip with the damaged tailgate, but I want check out the hitch somehow. If nothing else I will drive it round and round the storage lot.

tileman · 12-01-2012, 10:08 AM

We have a Curt 5th wheel hitch and it has a little green dot that you can see when its hooked up. But I still get out and look at the jaws around the pin thing and a few pull test to just to make sure.

After seeing pics of yours and after you said you did the pull test I be on alert next time we hookup.

Hope the rest of the day go's good for you

Outbackmel · 12-01-2012, 10:45 AM

When we travel, I replace our Dodge tailgate with a gate style tailgate which works great with our Roll n Lock slider bed cover. Very difficult for anyone to snatch anything from the truck bed. Carry our RV spare and golf clubs back there.

reubenray · 12-01-2012, 01:06 PM

Getting one of the v-shape tailgates was the first thing my brother said to get. But the tailgate kept the weight off of the siderails. I rather replace a tailgate that an entire bed.

I contacted my insurance company and other than paying my $500 deductible they will cover everything else. I can choose what repair shop and was offered a rental car also.

We are still taking our vacation, but will stay with friends instead and will drive my wife's Equinox. They live on Toledo Bend which is where we was going.

Other than getting our property tax bills today everything else is great.

Scottinvt · 12-01-2012, 10:47 PM

Sorry man been there done that only it crushed my brand new gmc diesel pickup bed !! I have since traded the fiver for a TT again buy started by hitching up with legs close to ground with wheel chocks on and dragging the camper brakes to check. You will probably never do this again either

Jim W · 12-02-2012, 09:15 AM

Reubenray,
Does your Husky hitch have a single locking jaw?
The reason I ask is that I have read on another forum that the signal jaw sometimes does not lock correctly.
I prefer the two jaw locking mechanism similar to what the semi truck hitches have. The single jaw and sometimes the single bar will wear the hitch pin do to a one point contact position. With the two jaw hitch mechanism, you will have more points of contact for wear and locking.
Such as with the Reese hitch the bar that works the two jaw locking mechanism has a keeper plate that swivels down to lock the bar in place. You then put the snap pin keeper in place to lock down the swivel plate thus positively locking the jaws in place.
I would consider a different hitch before you tow again such as one with two locking jaws. I would also paint them white so you can visibly see that they are locked around the middle of the pin and not on the end of the king pin.
Jim W.

reubenray · 12-02-2012, 11:55 AM

It has a sliding bar. Attached is the info sheet on it. The green indicator is what we look for and it was showing.

http://www.huskytow.com/FTP/HuskyFea..._Hitch_hv.html

tileman · 12-02-2012, 01:42 PM

We have a curt http://www.curtmfg.com/part/16130 It has a upper and lower jaw that locks the pin into place.

I payed around $850 installed when we got our 5th wheel.
They have a 16,000 lbs one to.

**JRTJH** · 12-02-2012, 03:41 PM

We have the Curt E16 hitch which is essentially the same as Ruben's hitch. There is a slide bar that comes across behind the king pin which locks into a slot on the opposite side of the kingpin opening. I was (still am) concerned with high hitching the king pin. When the pin slides into the hitch, it triggers the slide bar to lock into place behind the kingpin. If the kingpin is high, it will still trigger the bar to slide across and lock into place, the only problelm is that the king pin is sitting above the slide bar, not in front of it.

I painted the flange at the bottom of my king pin orange and I painted the slide bar white. Now, when I check my hitch to make sure I'm coupled properly, if I should see orange BELOW the white. If I do then I know my kingpin is properly seated in the hitch. If, however I see orange ABOVE the white, I know that my kingpin is sitting above the hitch and not properly locked. We don't have the green "pin" (actually the opposite end of the locking handle) to protrude out of the hitch, but it will protrude whether there is a kingpin in the hitch or not as long as the slide bar is in the correct position.

I'd think that Ruben got his trailer hitched up "high" on the kingpin and the bar locked under the kingpin flange rather than above it. As soon as he pulled forward, the kingpin jumped off the bar and the trailer separated.

Once the hitch is checked out by a competent "hitch expert" and found to be working properly, I'd suggest a couple cans of paint, and remember to always look for the color of the king pin BELOW the color of the slide bar. Then, if the green pin is showing, you'll know that the kingpin is in the right position and the slide bar is in the locked position above the flange.

These hitches are not complex, they are simply a slide bar that locks the kingpin in place. There are no "jaws" no "double jaws" and only one "moving part" the bar. Pretty simple, as long as the kingpin is low in the hitch. But this type of hitch will not tell you if you're high pinned or not, that's something you have to simply look to make sure.

I've "high hitched" a couple of times, my orange/white makes it easy to realize that the hitch is not connected properly. Just a suggestion, it's worked for me and it has worked for a number of others that I've showed how easy it is when in campgrounds.

Try it you might like it

reubenray · 12-02-2012, 05:56 PM

There is a local dealer for the Husky brand hitch about 10 miles away. I plan on getting them to look at the hitch. Now if they have a "hitch expert" I do not know.

I already have some orange paint so I will get some white paint and do what you did.

PerryB · 12-09-2012, 02:07 PM

Considering that you have a sliding bar hitch and the bar was all the way in as shown by the indicator, you must have been high pinned. I cant see any other thing that could have happened. When the trailer is at the correct height for hitching the pin plate on the trailer will contact the skid plate ramp of the hitch about 2/3 of the way up. To get it all the way in will require a bit of throttle to push the truck under. Its not like you have a pair of jaws that could have separated. Be happy all you lost was the tailgate. -- P.S. That sure looks like the old RBW "Little Rocker". Husky must have bought the design from them. About the only thing you can do to damage this hitch is to back into it with the bar in the closed position.

T11ravis · 12-12-2012, 05:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JRTJH

I painted the flange at the bottom of my king pin orange and I painted the slide bar white. Now, when I check my hitch to make sure I'm coupled properly, if I should see orange BELOW the white. If I do then I know my kingpin is properly seated in the hitch. If, however I see orange ABOVE the white, I know that my kingpin is sitting above the hitch and not properly locked.

Great idea!

Will be getting some paint next weekend.

reubenray · 12-12-2012, 09:38 AM

I had my hitch checked out today and everything is OK. I will be getting some paint to do the paint checkout.

I plan also to see about doing a lock or pin setup where the holes line up. Would it weaken the slide bar if a 1/4" or 3/8" hole is drilled in it?

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