Hey everyone,I finally concluded I have the B&W turn over ball hitch in the new to me truck I purchased. But the ball is rusted in the socket pretty good (or bad)...not sure when and if ever anyone has removed it. I finally got the pin free but still can't free the ball. I have sprayed wd40 and PB blaster....beat on it with a very large hammer. Even tried to figure out a way to use a floor jack and push on it but can't get a straight shot at it. Not alot of room under there to work in. Hoping for someone to tell me their brainstorm of how they got their's free???Thanks,Phil

I assume this ball does not have a nut on it that's stuck. Take it by a welding shop and have them put the torch on it and then whack it when it's really hot. Other solution is a big pipe wrench with a cheater bar

agesilaus wrote:I assume this ball does not have a nut on it that's stuck. Take it by a welding shop and have them put the torch on it and then whack it when it's really hot. Other solution is a big pipe wrench with a cheater barNo, this is a square steel block with chamfered edges that gets flipped over and fills the hole in the bed for a gooseneck hitch. No threads no wrenchable surfaces. OP, you may be able to have someone weld a bar to the top of the hitch to give you leverage to wiggle it loose. You could also call B&W. They have always been helpful to me. Mine started to get corroded after a year in this New York Salt so I never put it back in. I just leave the hole open.

This can be very difficult. Keep spraying PB blast and tap on it everyday this seems to work most time. U may have go to a wrecker shop put cable around and give a tug

Heat is my first thought. That always seems to work well to free a metal to metal sticking problem. I would heat the socket area while trying to keep the heat away from the ball. Hopefully the socket will expand enough that tapping on the ball will free it. Just make sure there's nothing flammable under the pickup bed near to the hitch plate.Or take a large pipe wrench with a piece of pipe on the end for leverage and try to wiggle the steel block back and forth to loosen whatever is holding it in place.Or if you have access to a gooseneck trailer I would connect it to the ball, drive around on a (not too) bumpy surface to help loosen and then use the trailer landing gear to raise up on the ball

Any ideas on how to free a rusted ball on B&W hitch?

35 Replies

Me_Again
Explorer III
May 01, 2016
Cummins12V98 wrote:
I hope you were heating the turnover ball hitch surrounding the ball. If you heated the ball it just made it tighter.

Yes it might however push out on the rust and when cooled back down fall out! Chris
Cummins12V98
Explorer III
May 01, 2016
I hope you were heating the turnover ball hitch surrounding the ball. If you heated the ball it just made it tighter.
Me_Again
Explorer III
May 01, 2016
Don't bend your pumpkin! Chris
Jimf1234
Explorer
May 01, 2016
If the ball is directly above the 3rd member jack up the body of the truck not the rear end until the tires come off the ground. Wedge a 4x4 or 6x6 between the rearend and the ball. Let the jack down and go for a drive around the neighborhood. Hit a few bumps you could even have someone taping on the top of the ball while driving.
meleavingsoon
Explorer
Apr 30, 2016
rskeans wrote:
My understanding is that the ball is in the down position and he can't get it to the top side.

Correct...the ball is in the stowed position (the ball is upside down).

As an update I did take it to a buddy's house today and he used his torch to heat it up pretty good (not red)...then we took an air chisel and worked on it for a while but no luck getting it to move.

But I do believe the heat helped clean out the corners and now when I spray PB Blaster it actually does run thru and drip some on the garage floor. So I think it had to help if nothing else but gives the fluid a better chance to work.

I am going to mix up some of the home brews tomorrow and start using them.

Phil
rskeans
Explorer
Apr 30, 2016
My understanding is that the ball is in the down position and he can't get it to the top side.
YC_1
Nomad
Apr 30, 2016
Ok, I get the picture now.

Will a long pinch bar work? Turn the receiver over so the ball is on the top side and place the pinch bar between the 2 inch tube and the ball. Then you can stand on the end of the 5-6 ft bar.

Pinch bar
OH48Lt
Explorer
Apr 30, 2016
PB Blaster is pretty good stuff, but my go-to for these situations is Kroil. Soak it and keep it soaked, tap it every time, it'll eventually loosen up.
meleavingsoon
Explorer
Apr 30, 2016
Thanks so much guys!....I will keep working on it and let you know when I am successful. And will tell you what ended up working and once out it will not be neglected in the future.

I have probably read hundreds of post about this...clearly not the first time this has happened. The PO of my truck just never cared or thought about using it.

I would post some pictures but don't know how...and not sure if they would help anymore than looking at the website.

I will try a little heat on the outer socket...I did like the dry ice suggestion, that was new and hadn't seen that before in any of the previous reading.

Thanks,
Phil
greende
Explorer II
Apr 30, 2016
laknox wrote:
This issue is the one real weakness of the TO Ball, IMO, and one that we often overlook when cleaning our trucks. I wonder what would happen if someone machined a small groove about 1/8" or 1/4" from the bottom and put an o-ring in it, with just enough sticking out to create a bit of a seal? The other option would simply be a cap that covered the hole and extended down far enough to engage the locking pin. Downside to this is that you'd have to store the ball somewhere.

Lyle

Lyle,
I just store mine under the back seat of the truck. I noticed after the first winter here in Syracuse that the ball was starting to corrode so I just left it out. Have often thought of making a plastic "Goof Button" for the hole.