# Loose Hitch



## fredykes (Jun 24, 2006)

My triler hitch (the part the ball sits in) has a little play in it and therefore it shifts forward (clangs) when I stop and backwards when I start. I have heard there are some spacers you can install to fix this situation--tighten things up, but I can' t find any such parts. Any info on the parts and how you install it will be appreciated.

It is the receiver for the ball.

Thanks


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

fredykes said:


> My triler hitch (the part the ball sits on) has a little play in it and therefore it shifts forward (clangs) when I stop and backwards when I start. I have heard there are some spacers you can install to fix this situation--tighten things up, but I can' t find any such parts. Any info on the parts and how you install it will be appreciated.


Is the hitch moving in the reciever? If so maybe a new pin would fix things.


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## outbackgeorgia (Jan 28, 2004)

When I had that noise, the ball was actually loose and was moving.
There should be no "clunk" moving or stopping. Even a loose pin will not let the receiver move under normal situations.

Dave


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## Scoutr2 (Aug 21, 2006)

What brand hitch do you have? Reese? Equal-i-zer? Other?

And is the shank moving in the reciever (on the back of your TV), or is the hitch head shifting on the shank?

Are you sure that the ball is not loose?

Check these questions out, answer back, and then we may be able to help.

But whatever you do, please don't tow your TT until you get this solved. We certainly don't want you or others to get hurt! Or your Outback, either!

It may be OK, but no sense taking chances.

Mike


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## fredykes (Jun 24, 2006)

Nathan said:


> My triler hitch (the part the ball sits on) has a little play in it and therefore it shifts forward (clangs) when I stop and backwards when I start. I have heard there are some spacers you can install to fix this situation--tighten things up, but I can' t find any such parts. Any info on the parts and how you install it will be appreciated.


Is the hitch moving in the reciever? If so maybe a new pin would fix things.








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Thanks


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## fredykes (Jun 24, 2006)

I'm sorry, it is what the ball goes in rather than on. then you slide it up and your ready to go.

Should I look for hitch parts?

The pin, etc.

If it something I can fix I'd like to.

Thanks


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## Justman (Jul 22, 2006)

Howdy!

Can you post some pics of what you're talking about? It'd help us out a lot!


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## LarryTheOutback (Jun 15, 2005)

fredykes said:


> It is the receiver for the ball.


I wanted to clarify some terminology, as there is some mixed terminology being used in this thread.

Receiver - The thing attached to your tow vehicle. It has a square hole in the back; you slide the "ball mount" into this.
Ball Mount - The thing that holds the ball. Sometimes called a Stinger.​In your first post I believe you were saying that the ball mount was moving forward and backward in the receiver. Correct?

Ed


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## aplvlykat (Jan 25, 2004)

I think he is talking about the sideways play in the stinger/ball mount when it is in the receiver. When I had my 2003 Tahoe with the factory reciever and when I would insert the ball mount, I also had alot of sideways slop. Reese does make a shim that goes into that gap and tightens everything up. These shims are apox. 1/16 of an inch, are the same size as the ball mount square rod and come with the hole punched. The way I had to use it was when I slipped the ball mount in the shim went in at the same time. You have to be on the look for the hole and when all three are lined up then put the pin in place. In my case the slop was really bad and you could move the ball mount sideways a good 1/8 inch and it would go clunk all the time. I do not remember the part number but I got them from reese for free. I think I called their service trouble line that is in the installation guide, explained the problem they told me they are aware of the issue and mailed them out to me. I no longer have that problem seeing as how I got rid of the 2003 Tahoe and the older receiver on my 1999 3/4 Suburban is a snug fit. Is this the movement you are talking about? Do you have a 2001-2007 under mount reciever on a GM product? If this is not the movement you are talking about and the ball mount is moving forward and back then the next question is. Are you using a 5/8 pin? They also make one that is 1/2 inch and if you had that installed it would move . Kirk


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## W4DRR (May 17, 2005)

I have a Husky WD hitch, and the ball mount part is two-piece, with two very large bolts holding it together. It is done this way so that both height and angle are adjustable. When setting the angle, flat washers are used as shims, as well as a single bolt threaded into the ball mount to take up slack. The washers keep it from going forward, and the bolt keeps it from going back. I have found with mine, the threaded bolt can work loose and occasionally needs to be tightened. If it is loose, the ball mount can rock back and forth when starting and stopping.

Bob


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## Guest (Jun 13, 2008)

fredykes,
If I understand you correctly, you're talking about the part that is on the trailer tongue that is lowered onto the ball. If this is correct, it's easily adjustable. The lever that you lower to lock the trailer onto the ball operates a threaded shaft thatpulls a wedge up and forward into the lower portion of the ball. This shft has a washer and nut on the bottom for adjustment. It should be adjusted so that it takes a little effort to lower the lever, and lock the ball in place. Once adjusted properly there should be no fore and aft movement of the ball. Move the trailer forward a couple of feet and chek it again.

Happy Camping,

Gary


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## LarryTheOutback (Jun 15, 2005)

Sensai said:


> If I understand you correctly, you're talking about the part that is on the trailer tongue that is lowered onto the ball.


I bet you are right; I went back and read the original post and your explanation makes sense. Assuming this is the problem...

The other thing that can cause this movement is the wrong size ball; if the ball is too small it will exhibit this symptom. Please check the trailer coupler (the part of the trailer at the end of the A-Frame that drops onto the ball) ... you should find the required ball size imprinted there. Picture of trailer coupler here.

Ed


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## fredykes (Jun 24, 2006)

Sensai said:


> fredykes,
> If I understand you correctly, you're talking about the part that is on the trailer tongue that is lowered onto the ball. If this is correct, it's easily adjustable. The lever that you lower to lock the trailer onto the ball operates a threaded shaft thatpulls a wedge up and forward into the lower portion of the ball. This shft has a washer and nut on the bottom for adjustment. It should be adjusted so that it takes a little effort to lower the lever, and lock the ball in place. Once adjusted properly there should be no fore and aft movement of the ball. Move the trailer forward a couple of feet and chek it again.
> 
> Happy Camping,
> ...


I checked the ball (since I have the tow vehicle at home and my trailer is stored somewhere else), it was loose a bit so I tightened it up and this may correct the problem; however your explanation on tightening the coupler is great. I will check this when I go out to the trailer. All of the information I received is useful. I didn't think the ball would be loose since it was tightned at the dealership a while back. Guess you need to check it pretty regularly.

Thanks

William *****


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## fredykes (Jun 24, 2006)

W4DRR said:


> I have a Husky WD hitch, and the ball mount part is two-piece, with two very large bolts holding it together. It is done this way so that both height and angle are adjustable. When setting the angle, flat washers are used as shims, as well as a single bolt threaded into the ball mount to take up slack. The washers keep it from going forward, and the bolt keeps it from going back. I have found with mine, the threaded bolt can work loose and occasionally needs to be tightened. If it is loose, the ball mount can rock back and forth when starting and stopping.
> 
> Bob


I checked the ball (since I have the tow vehicle at home and my trailer is stored somewhere else), it was loose a bit so I tightened it up and this may correct the problem; however your explanation on tightening the coupler is great. I will check this when I go out to the trailer. All of the information I received is useful. I didn't think the ball would be loose since it was tightned at the dealership a while back. Guess you need to check it pretty regularly.

Thanks


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## fredykes (Jun 24, 2006)

outbackgeorgia said:


> When I had that noise, the ball was actually loose and was moving.
> There should be no "clunk" moving or stopping. Even a loose pin will not let the receiver move under normal situations.
> 
> Dave


I found the ball loose, but will be checking the coupler too.

Thanks


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## fredykes (Jun 24, 2006)

Scoutr2 said:


> What brand hitch do you have? Reese? Equal-i-zer? Other?
> 
> And is the shank moving in the reciever (on the back of your TV), or is the hitch head shifting on the shank?
> 
> ...


Thanks for the advice.


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