hooking up a travel trailer

fallsrider wrote:
...Come back and give us a review of the Hitch Grip. Inquiring minds want to know...

Will do!

I heard from the EZ Hitch Aligner people. Said he needs to see a pic of y hitch in order to determine if his product will work with my Equalizer hitch.

mitch5252 wrote:
I would LOVE to have the EZ Hitch Align thing. I sent an email to the mfgr., asking if it would work on an Equalizer WD hitch.

I'll let you know their reply.

I also just ordered a Hitch Grip.

Thanks for the advice on helping save the back/arms of this old woman! :)

Come back and give us a review of the Hitch Grip. Inquiring minds want to know...

mitch5252 wrote:
I would LOVE to have the EZ Hitch Align thing. I sent an email to the mfgr., asking if it would work on an Equalizer WD hitch.

I'll let you know their reply.

I also just ordered a Hitch Grip.

Thanks for the advice on helping save the back/arms of this old woman! :)

Your welcome. I bought mine from Cabella's.com

I would LOVE to have the EZ Hitch Align thing. I sent an email to the mfgr., asking if it would work on an Equalizer WD hitch.

I'll let you know their reply.

I also just ordered a Hitch Grip.

Thanks for the advice on helping save the back/arms of this old woman! :)

Your profile says you bought a 5th wheel, but based on your original post, I'm assuming you are considering a travel trailer instead? If I'm wrong, ignore most of my post! :)

You can definitely travel with a TT alone. There are things you can do to make it easier.

Someone mentioned your hitch. That is the heaviest thing you have to handle. There is a carry handle you can buy to carry the hitch around. Hitch Grip Coupling Tool. I don't have one, but it looks like it would make carrying the hitch much easier. Here's a video and diagram of how it works.

The spring bars for the hitch are also a little heavy, but I saw someone's post where the bars for a Blue Ox SwayPro are lighter. I don't have any experience other than my own old WDH. The labels are gone off it, so I don't know what brand it is. It came with the trailer. It is the basic spring bars with chains and snap-up brackets.

I hitch and unhitch just fine with my manual tongue jack. It does require some cranking, but that doesn't bother me. If you found a manual jack too difficult, though, an electric jack would be easy to install, and easier to work with.

I bought a mirror from CIPA that works on the back of my Suburban (with the glass door up). It is cheaper and simpler than a backup camera, unless one came installed on your TV. The CIPA mirror I have is this one. I just slide it down over the lift gate with the window opened. Note: the suction cups don't work. They only hold for a couple of seconds on glass, then the mirror falls off.

Use an 18 volt battery drill for your stabilizers. It saves a LOT of cranking. You can just about have all 4 down with the drill before cranking 1 down manually. I forgot my drill on my last trip, and I vowed that would never happen again!

I don't see why you can't do this alone. Of course, you know your limitations infinitely better than I do, but there are definitely things you can do to make it easier. Good luck.

jerem0621 wrote:

BarneyS wrote:

djgarcia wrote:
Snip...
2. Buy "Coupler Connect HItch Aligner" from Cabella's, item # lK-521806 $39. Eliminates the need for a backup camera. You can be 2 to 3 inches off center to the right or left and this device will automatically line your hitch right over the ball, dead center. It is a V shaped piece of steel, just drop it into the slot on your truck hitch, no bolts needed.
Snip...

Have you actually used one of these? I cannot see how it can work/be installed with a WD hitch head. :h

Also, I can certainly see how it would work great with a boat trailer or other smaller trailer that has a wheel under the tongue jack but I don't think I would want to try to use it on a trailer that has a lot of tongue weight and no wheel under the jack. It would bend the jack post if you were just a couple of inches off.
Barney

Edit:
I just looked at the OP's profile and noticed that she has a 25ft 5th wheel trailer. Unless she is getting a new rig, all this advice is doing no good whatsoever. She should have probably posted this in the 5th wheel forum instead of here and would have received some good, relevant advice.

Andersen has a lightweight fifth wheel hitch now... 40 lbs and fits in her rails. I digress, this is the TT forum anyhow.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

Hello Jeemiah,
Yes I used the coupler hitch aligner on my 32' Holiday Rambler for 12 yrs. successfully with no mishaps or damage to truck hitch and/or trailer . My trailer weighed 12K loaded. The coupler has 2 parts. The truck ball has to be removed and then a plate with a hole in it is put in place then the ball is reinstalled. This plate operates like a "tongue and groove". The coupler hitch aligner has a metal tongue design. You simply drop the tongue into the metal groove and then remove after you have the trailer hooked up. It is probably not clear to you based on my explanation but once you have seen the device you will be amazed how simple and effective the design is. The Backing up and aligning is no different than you normally do it. You visually line up your truck and very slowly back up until you think you hear the coupler hitch aligner gently bump the trailer hitch, then get out and lower the trailer . It might help you if you go on line to Cabella's web sight and look at the photo of the Coupler Hitch.

The $2000 navigation system in my Suburban is worth every penny for the backup camera system. Besides that, you don't have to be strong to hook up.

rrev wrote:
....snip.....

Use whatever tools you need. Work smarter, not harder.

^^^ This right here is the key to all of this. None of us are "strong enough" to do all we need to do with these trailers.
So we use the appropriate tools and our brain.

BarneyS wrote:

djgarcia wrote:
Snip...
2. Buy "Coupler Connect HItch Aligner" from Cabella's, item # lK-521806 $39. Eliminates the need for a backup camera. You can be 2 to 3 inches off center to the right or left and this device will automatically line your hitch right over the ball, dead center. It is a V shaped piece of steel, just drop it into the slot on your truck hitch, no bolts needed.
Snip...

Have you actually used one of these? I cannot see how it can work/be installed with a WD hitch head. :h

Also, I can certainly see how it would work great with a boat trailer or other smaller trailer that has a wheel under the tongue jack but I don't think I would want to try to use it on a trailer that has a lot of tongue weight and no wheel under the jack. It would bend the jack post if you were just a couple of inches off.
Barney

Edit:
I just looked at the OP's profile and noticed that she has a 25ft 5th wheel trailer. Unless she is getting a new rig, all this advice is doing no good whatsoever. She should have probably posted this in the 5th wheel forum instead of here and would have received some good, relevant advice.

Andersen has a lightweight fifth wheel hitch now... 40 lbs and fits in her rails. I digress, this is the TT forum anyhow.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

djgarcia wrote:
Snip...
2. Buy "Coupler Connect HItch Aligner" from Cabella's, item # lK-521806 $39. Eliminates the need for a backup camera. You can be 2 to 3 inches off center to the right or left and this device will automatically line your hitch right over the ball, dead center. It is a V shaped piece of steel, just drop it into the slot on your truck hitch, no bolts needed.
Snip...

Have you actually used one of these? I cannot see how it can work/be installed with a WD hitch head. :h

Also, I can certainly see how it would work great with a boat trailer or other smaller trailer that has a wheel under the tongue jack but I don't think I would want to try to use it on a trailer that has a lot of tongue weight and no wheel under the jack. It would bend the jack post if you were just a couple of inches off.
Barney

Edit:
I just looked at the OP's profile and noticed that she has a 25ft 5th wheel trailer. Unless she is getting a new rig, all this advice is doing no good whatsoever. She should have probably posted this in the 5th wheel forum instead of here and would have received some good, relevant advice.