# When To Lock Ball Hitch Pin?



## villui (Jun 6, 2012)

could someone clarify - do you lock the ball hitch pin before you put the sway bars on? right now we've been locking the pin and then raising the tongue up (while connected to truck hitch) in order to put the sway bars on (reduces tension). then we proceed to connect the sway bar chains etc. In doing so the hydraulic jack has to lift the entire load ( trailer tongue and truck ). I think we are doing this wrong and will damage the jack. Any input?


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## Herbicidal (Aug 29, 2003)

I do it that way to make it easier to attach the weight distributing bars using the short "cheater" bar to lock them in place with the chains. On my Reese Dual Cam system, the weight distributing bars also act as the anti-sway system. I have an Atwood 3500 jack so it's rated to do the "lift" this way.


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## Snow (Sep 27, 2011)

villui said:


> could someone clarify - do you lock the ball hitch pin before you put the sway bars on? right now we've been locking the pin and then raising the tongue up (while connected to truck hitch) in order to put the sway bars on (reduces tension). then we proceed to connect the sway bar chains etc. In doing so the hydraulic jack has to lift the entire load ( trailer tongue and truck ). I think we are doing this wrong and will damage the jack. Any input?


Sounds correct... Same way we hitch up ...


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## Jewellfamily (Sep 25, 2010)

Thats how I do it. lock the hitch pin, raise the truck and trailer with the tongue jack, hook up the WD bars, and lower the whole works back down. It makes hooking the bars up alot easier.


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## Camping Fan (Dec 18, 2005)

Lock the hitch pin, then raise the tongue with the jack. Makes it easier to hook up the sway bars and it insures that the ball is fully seated in the receiver. If you can raise the back of the truck without the ball slipping out of the receiver, you know you're good. If it isn't fully seated and slips out, better to find out and correct it before you're on the road than have it slip out on the road and have all ++++ break loose


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## jake's outback (Jul 24, 2010)

That's the way we do it too.


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## thefulminator (Aug 8, 2007)

Same with us. I want to be sure that ball isn't coming out when I raise the truck.


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## Tourdfox (Oct 4, 2012)

Same here.And much safer for attatching the bars with no pressure on them.


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## joeymac (Aug 19, 2010)

X2


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