photos and question about level of trailer when on car

[legojenn]

Hi:

I have finally gotten around to taking more photos of my trailer. I just love the little thing.









Interior photos to come on the weekend when I take my first solo (plus hounds) trip to NY state. Right now it's loaded with camping gear.

The question that I have is that the trailer seems to be too high in the front and too low in the back and I think that the ball on my hitch is on upside down. Am I thinking correctly on this? I don't want to bottom out the back end, and I also want the weight distributed correctly.





Any advice is gratefully accepted.

Thanks in advance.

[planovet]

It looks like it you take the ball off the ball mount, turn the ball mount upside down in the receiver and re-install the ball your trailer will be much more level. Hard to tell from the pictures but it looks like you will get about a 4" drop.

I have mine mounted like you currently do but my trailer is much higher than yours.

[Creamcracker]

It looks like it you take the ball off the ball mount, turn the ball mount upside down in the receiver and re-install the ball your trailer will be much more level. Hard to tell from the pictures but it looks like you will get about a 4" drop.

I have mine mounted like you currently do but my trailer is much higher than yours.

plus the 4" rise that it has now dropping the hitch about 8inches....
Philip

[JenniferandPups]

Yeah... you need a lower ball mount height. As planovet said, I bet you will get just about the height you need by flipping it over. If it's not riding level, you may need to spend $20 on a new one that will get it to the right height... but you will probably be fine just flipping.

Trailers riding "up" of level like yours is currently are harder to control and have more sway, I've heard.

[Jiminsav]

no no no nooooo..don't flip it over..it will be too low..get a new hitch that comes straight out the receiver tube and you'll be ok..
and the other thing is, your car sits low to the ground, so you might want the trailer nose up to keep from dragging the chains.

[TPMcGinty]

When I needed to get my receiver hitch I went to Northern Tool. They let me take outside different receivers with different drops to try. This allowed me to make sure i was getting the correct one to ensure my trailer was level.

[CPlater]

Using the carpenter adage, "measure twice, cut once" I suggest you might want to measure where the level position is on the trailer and the difference to the ball height with the trailer attached. Then get the hitch bar that gets you the closest.

[Oasis Maker]

no no no nooooo..don't flip it over..it will be too low.

Yeah no doubt. I agree with Jiminsav. 4 inches up then reversed is 8 total. That's far more than I'm seeing necessary in the picture. Why not take the guess work out of it and just get an adjustable hitch? They're great. I've had one for years and it really makes life easier. I have two trailers of varying height so it's a godsend, and it would be great if you use multiple tow vehicles of varying height too. I have a Jeep with a 4 inch lift kit and 33's so it sits pretty high. I'm sure whatever other vehicle I might tow with will be much lower, but with an adjustable hitch, the trailer will always be level.
Scott G.

Adjustable Hitch Options

[bobhenry]

Get out the tape measure. Level the trailer and measure from level ground into the cup. slide in a ball mount and drop the ball in now measure to the top of the ball. You are trying to match the trailer measurement as close as possible while level.

Mounts are designed in 2" increments a 2" is 2" up or 2 " down and a 4" the same and a 6" and an 8" . Get as close as possible to level then when loaded you will be slightly nose down. You want to be slightly nosed down. Nose up make for some nasty handling largely due to the loss of tongue weight.

[b.bodemer]

Even a 2" drop was too much for my td so I went with a "no rise", like Jim mentioned.

Worked perfect.

Saved the 2" drop for towing my Scotty.

Barb

[FireLion]

To keep the chains from dragging, place a short bungee cord over the trailer nose, attach with a wire tie or twist ties, and hook each end of the bungee into the middle of each chain. You can crimp the bungee hooks to keep them attached to the chains.

[DougH]

I couldn't figure out how to keep my chains friom dragging and was trying to figure out how to shorten them. A guy at the RV store showed me a simple trick.

Before attaching them to the tow vehicle simply twist the chain a couple of times then attach. The more you twist the shorter they will become, simply figure out how much you need to keep them from dragging.
I felt pretty dumb when he showed me how simple it was

[teardrop_focus]

DougH

The more you twist the shorter they will become, simply figure out how much you need to keep them from dragging.

And always cross your two chains. This way, they won't shorten as the trailer arches in a turn and so that they might act as a sling should the trailer tongue come unhitched from the ball.

[tomm]

So from what I'm reading it's "okay" to mount the hitch "upside" down ... when I mount like this it's much more level.

[Gage]

So what says your way is upside down? That's the way I have mine, and anything I do is right.