BD3 trailer-saver hitch

[dlowr31733]

i have a question. my hitch, meaning upper and lower plates do not come together. trailer weight is being carried by jaws, which i believe is not proper and is dangerous. have never seen hitch where upper plate does not come in contact with lower plate. comments, please

[big_buford]

dlowr31733 wrote:
ok people one more time, lower plate and upper plate don't come tog ether. entire weight of rv is being carried by the pin. the pin is the pin it is not a weight carrying device. the weight of rv is carried by the plates, the object of the teflon disk is for anti-friction in lieu of grease again, a pin is a pin not a load-carrying device.

So to be clear, you are using a teflon plate? When hitched up there is clearence between teflon disc and plate of pin box? You are not expecting the teflon disc to compress and both plates sit on top of eachother? A pic would help.

[barlow46]

I can picture what you are saying. I have the TS-3 hitch with a trailsaver pin box. I am guessing that your pin is not machined evenly to the plate on your pinbox. Is there something on the pin catching just above the jaws of your hitch or are the jaws so tight that the pin box plate can't come into contact with the hitch head plate. What about your angle that the pin box is in relation to the hitch head? I realize the Binkley head is articulating and has plenty of movement both side to side and front to back. Gotta have something to do with the actual pin on your pin box.

[TXiceman]

I'd get on the phone with Trailer Saver (Hensley) and discuss it with them. But as I asked on page 1, they will probably want a photo or two showing your problem.

DO NOT hitch by getting the pin high and then setting it down into the hitch. You have to start with the pin plate a bit lower than the hitch plate and let the pin plate ride up and onto the hitch. As you push back, the hitch jaws will open and then latch.


Ken

[wirenutz]

a picture is worth a thousand words

[ken_white]

Post some pictures of your set-up when connected so we can see/verify what you are saying...

[JIMNLIN]

dlowr31733 wrote:
ok people one more time, lower plate and upper plate don't come tog ether. entire weight of rv is being carried by the pin. the pin is the pin it is not a weight carrying device. the weight of rv is carried by the plates, the object of the teflon disk is for anti-friction in lieu of grease again, a pin is a pin not a load-carrying device.

OK..one more time. With the pin sitting on top of the jaws you have a hi pinned hookup for whatever reason.

High pin = the pin sitting on top of the jaws and the jaws in the closed position.

I would say either the pin is not welded in the pin box in the correct vertical position or your hooking up procedure is causing a high pin (high hitched).

I would have someone back the truck under the trailer and you watch the pin/jaw for proper position.

Sometimes if the hitch can't articulate enough (side to side) the flange on the bottom of the pin is at such a angle it will slide across the top of the jaws enough to close the jaws. Now your hi pinned. This, and a wedged pin, was a common occurrence before the hitch industry gave us a 4 way pivoting hitch.

Time to give your hitch maker a 1-800 for their input.

[hone_eagle]

Have you raised the landing gear enough ?
I have been using the same head (binkley) and never seen this condition,bear in mind there are tons of these in use.
Is this the first time it has been hooked to this trailer? or the first time this happened ,if so what if anything has changed since the last time its bin hooked up ,any work done ?
as already suggested high hitch is possible and I have seen that. I have never got a teflon plate to fit ,too thick.

[dlowr31733]

by the way, this is replacement hitch bought for its anti-chucking properties. no doubt it will stop chucking because jaws are so close tolerance to eliminate chucking. we are not first-time fifth wheelers our 4th fifth wheel one trip being from so. fl. to anchorage and fairbanks ak and back. never encountered this problem. we believe this is unsafe engineering as it stands.

[dlowr31733]

ok people one more time, lower plate and upper plate don't come tog ether. entire weight of rv is being carried by the pin. the pin is the pin it is not a weight carrying device. the weight of rv is carried by the plates, the object of the teflon disk is for anti-friction in lieu of grease again, a pin is a pin not a load-carrying device.

[big_buford]

Maybe use 2 Teflon disc's? Pin welded too low on fiver? I would not be comfortable with all weight on pin. How much clearance is there between plates when hitched up?

Hensley does sell a thinner than normal disc. Maybe that's what you have and need a thicker one?

[Traveler_II]

It reads that maybe you are "high pinning", the pin is not down on the hitch all the way. The above post is how you use your Trailersaver.

[TXiceman]

OP, are you using a Teflon lube plate on the BD3? Trailer Saver warns that some are too thick.

Has anyone modified the pin on the trailer?

The trailer plate should set on the fifth wheel plate in the truck and you should be able to look in the rear of the hitch and see the jaws completely enclosing the pin.

Are you using the procedure as prescribed by Trailer Saver for hitching? You need to have the trailer pin slightly and plate slightly lower than the plate on the hitch. When you push back into the trailer, the pin will ride up over the hitch and latch into place.

The lever on the hitch head needs to be slightly forward at the 10 o'clock position when unhitching. When hitching, the lever should be at 9 o'clock position. When you lock into the latched position, the lever will snap back to the 8 o'clock position and the red indicator line will disappear.

Ken

[wirenutz]

sounds like a high hitch ?

[Lantley]

I also have a BD3 hitch weight is not being carried by jaws. Pin is secured by jaws. Weight is being carried by plate of hitch as is the case with most hitches