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Choosing a Trailer Hitch
Tow hitches trucks, trailer hitch bike racks, gooseneck trailer hitch, trailer hitch accessory
I was much nervous as I had to use my pickup truck to tow a trailer with
my damaged car on it. I had not done this type of work earlier and it was
natural to be nervous for a novice in the field like me. I didn’t loose
my courage and consulted a lot of books and other tutorials about towing
available all around me. I am compiling some tips based on my knowledge.
These may be very useful for you to tow a trailer loaded with a car, boat
or other type of cargo. Towing a trailer is not a difficult task but you
need some preparation work before trying it. You should have right equipment
to do the job.
Tow Rating: You should go through the documentation of
your vehicle and check its tow rating. The load on the trailer should never
exceed the tow rating of your vehicle.
Trailer Hitch: Always prefer rear mount trailer hitch.
You will find various hitches classified in 5 classes, Class-I to Class-V.
Hitch belonging to each class is suitable for different amounts of Gross
Trailer Weight. Class-I is suitable for gross trailer weight up to 2000
lbs, on the other hand Class-V hitch is suitable for up to 13000 lbs.
You should choose trailer hitch according to tow rating of your vehicle.
Towing capacity on class-IV and class-V hitches may be increased by installing
a weight distributing hitch. This is a system that uses adjustable bars
to control the tongue weight on to the tow vehicle. It keeps tow vehicle
and trailer in level by distributing the entire load on the full length
of the tow vehicle.
There are other types of hitches available in the market. Gooseneck trailer
hitch is for heavy duty trucks. You will have to spend about $ 500 for this
hitch and installation kit. It may be fitted in the bed in about one hour
by some drilling work. If you need a flat floor, quick-release handle may
be used to remove the ball. You may opt for fifth-wheel trailer hitch if
you have to tow heavily loaded trailer. This hitch is rated at 24,000 pounds.
While shopping for trailer hitch you should be familiar with terms like
Trailer Weight and Tongue Weight. The trailer weight means the total weight
of load in the trailer. The tongue weight is the weight which is forced
down on the hitch ball. It is about 10% of maximum gross trailer weight
and can be changed by making the adjustments of the load in trailer. If
you put more weight in the front side of the trailer’s axle, then the tongue
weight will be more.
Tongue weight may be reduced by keeping more loads behind the axle. Also
some trailers come with the adjustable axles that can be moved forward or
backward for adjusting the tongue weight.
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