Pull tests
In another thread there was a lot of talk about pull tests. In 1997 we got our first 5th wheel and a Hijacker 16k Ultra sliding bar hitch. We never did pull tests. The hitch in 2001 moved two a se...
Forum Discussion
The trucking industry overwhelmingly requires their drivers to do pull tests, and every hitch instruction I have seen says to do it. We're probably doing a disservice to those who are new fiver owners to suggest they are not important.
Having said that, I don't always do the pull test, and when I do I don't do it correctly. I do it as we are pulling out of a site, and the landing gear is fully retracted, chocks removed, and using the brake controller to hold the rig. If my test failed, I would still drop the fiver, most likely, because I could not stop my forward momentum fast enough. I am pretty darned confident that the hitch is not going to fail, but what I've really done is test my brakes. If the hitch makeup fails, let it happen in my own site where I won't endanger anyone on the road. If the brakes, or brake controller fails, or maybe I just forgot to plug in the cord, I want to know before I've started down the mountain.
Test or no test, I will know exactly who to blame if I drop the trailer. And it won't be the hitch design.
Having said that, I don't always do the pull test, and when I do I don't do it correctly. I do it as we are pulling out of a site, and the landing gear is fully retracted, chocks removed, and using the brake controller to hold the rig. If my test failed, I would still drop the fiver, most likely, because I could not stop my forward momentum fast enough. I am pretty darned confident that the hitch is not going to fail, but what I've really done is test my brakes. If the hitch makeup fails, let it happen in my own site where I won't endanger anyone on the road. If the brakes, or brake controller fails, or maybe I just forgot to plug in the cord, I want to know before I've started down the mountain.
Test or no test, I will know exactly who to blame if I drop the trailer. And it won't be the hitch design.
