Fifth wheel safety chains?
I purchased an Anderson fifth wheel hitch system that has a large ball that connects to an adaptor on the trailer king pin. There are several systems coming out that are similar in design. A friend j...
Forum Discussion
Dayle1 wrote:
I believe there is an underlying technical reason for chains on ball mounts and not on king pins. There is only a single size king pin, 2 inch and any hitch should work with and pin, SAFELY. But there are multiple ball sizes and someone can carelessly drop a 2-1/4 coupler over a 1-7/8 ball and the mistake is not visible, then a tail heavy load, a bump and trouble, hence chains. Has nothing to do with which type can haul more and even Andersen won't warranty stupid.
I think (but could be wrong) the safety chain requirement is due more to how they latch. If you fail to latch a 5th wheel they'll typically drop when you pull away. If you fail to latch a ball hitch you will probably get on the road just fine but the unlatched trailer could bounce off the ball at any time and at any speed.
So I have no issues with using chains for ball type hitches whether they're on the bumper, in the bed, or elevated as in the Andersen or Pullrite designs.
