How critical is ball height?

[hwitten]

Manufacturer gave me 16-17 inches to top of ball. I'm at 17 1/2 inches with my supplied receiver (2 inch).

Is that acceptable or do I go shopping for one with an inch less drop. Will be towing dry weight of 800-900 lbs.

[CarlLaFong]

This could be taken the wrong way, but 1/2" of ball height is not enough to worry about

Unless you're a hurdler

[suckerpunched]

depends on how long your legs are.......sorry,,,,don't give me any oppurtunities....can't resist

[hwitten]

I guess I did leave that wide open now didn't I

Thanks for the answer(s). I forgot about junk in tow vehicle so I'll probably be "just right".

Hopefully just one more package from eTrailer to finish my 5-->7 pin upgrade.

Heinz

[pete42]

I would think with the weight of the trailer tongue pressing down the receivers trailer ball will be close to 17 inches high.
In my experience it is best to have a little nose down or near level when pulling a trailer the trailer seems to follow better

if you are pulling two axel trailers you most defiantly want it to ride level to far down or up will cause one set of the tires to
carry more of the weight than the other not a good condition.

[hwitten]

Thanks everyone.
Seems like I'll be ok. I'll remeasure once I get all hooked up in Quebec.

[sagebrush]

If front of trailer is lower, you will get better fuel mileage as trailer is always going downhill


Will

[Steve_Cox]

Tongue weight alone would probably bring down the height of the hitch ball a half inch.

[Al in PA]

Harbor Freight has drop hitches to lower your ball 2" - 4". Here's are links:

http://www.harborfreight.com/ball-mount ... 94901.html

http://www.harborfreight.com/ball-mount ... 94902.html

One of these should solve your problem.

[Steve_Cox]

Harbor Freight has drop hitches to lower your ball 2" - 4". Here's are links:

http://www.harborfreight.com/ball-mount ... 94901.html

http://www.harborfreight.com/ball-mount ... 94902.html

One of these should solve your problem.

How would a 2" - 4" drop solve his problem?

[Al in PA]

Steve, he seems concerned that his trailer is lower than the hitch on his tow vehicle. By using a drop ball mount, the trailer tongue should be level or slightly lower in the front. In this position, the trailer should be less likely to have sway problems.

[CarlLaFong]

If front of trailer is lower, you will get better fuel mileage as trailer is always going downhill


Will

You can also turn your baseball cap backwards and lean forward.

[hwitten]

Thinking on this some more and re-reading I think my setup may actually be right on considering that I'm bound to have some junk (luggage) in the Santa Fe and tongue weight of 60-70 lbs may just bring it perfectly into the 16-17in range.

Thanks for bearing with me. Being an ex-MH'er this hitch, tow bar, tongue weight, electric brakes, etc. stuff is somewhat new to me. Up until I bought myself a trailer I thought all there was to it was to hitch the sucker up and go but I'm learning.

[Fenlason]

won't the boxers vs briefs question affect all this also

[len19070]

1/2" high in the front equals about 1/8" lower in the rear.

By the time you load stuff up....

Your fine.

Of course you could ask Dr. Sheldon Cooper What the exact difference would be? if you want that kind of an answer.

Happy Trails

Len