Bar for snap up brackets

[Yardvarkers]

I lost the bar I use to pull up the chains to hook on the snap up brackets. Does anyone know where I can find a good bar/metal tube that has a curved end?
Thanks for any and all replies.

[Huntindog]

wnjj wrote:

Huntindog wrote:
There are several issues..

But the main one is this: On a properly tensioned WD, it is impossible for the hitch to come off of the ball. Even if it is unlatched.

Try it and see. Hitch up normally. Then release the latch. then try to raise the tongue off the ball with the PJ. It cannot be done.

Bob states just the opposite.

This can only work if the bars are wayyyy too loose. Which means they are not doing anything, so it is not working.

Forgetting for the moment the extra 3 inches above, start with the hitch just touching the ball but not bearing down any weight. Then if you connect the chains and lower the hitch, the chains will get tighter and you won't be able lift it off the ball provided your truck sags some when hitched. That's based upon the fact that the ends of the bars drop more than the brackets on the trailer do when you lower the hitch/ball. This creates tension in the chains and weight on the hitch, not unlike the increase in tension when you drive through a gully and the front of your truck pitches up.

The only consideration is whether that's enough tension or not. I don't know if it is.

Think of it this way:

If you connect the hitch to the ball and then crank up the truck and trailer together before installing the chains, it depends upon whether the ball ends up at or above the original unladen height when you connect the chains. When using the jack with them coupled, the first bunch of lifting is simply unloading the trucks's suspension again. If all you do is unload the suspension, that's no different than connecting the chains before you load it.

On the other hand, if you indeed have to jack the ball above where it was before you started in order to install the chains then Bob's method will not provide enough tension.

You wrote two important sentences:Bob's method will not provide enough tension.


The only consideration is whether that's enough tension or not. I don't know if it is.

[wnjj]

Huntindog wrote:
There are several issues..

But the main one is this: On a properly tensioned WD, it is impossible for the hitch to come off of the ball. Even if it is unlatched.

Try it and see. Hitch up normally. Then release the latch. then try to raise the tongue off the ball with the PJ. It cannot be done.

Bob states just the opposite.

This can only work if the bars are wayyyy too loose. Which means they are not doing anything, so it is not working.

Forgetting for the moment the extra 3 inches above, start with the hitch just touching the ball but not bearing down any weight. Then if you connect the chains and lower the hitch, the chains will get tighter and you won't be able lift it off the ball provided your truck sags some when hitched. That's based upon the fact that the ends of the bars drop more than the brackets on the trailer do when you lower the hitch/ball. This creates tension in the chains and weight on the hitch, not unlike the increase in tension when you drive through a gully and the front of your truck pitches up.

The only consideration is whether that's enough tension or not. I don't know if it is.

Think of it this way:

If you connect the hitch to the ball and then crank up the truck and trailer together before installing the chains, it depends upon whether the ball ends up at or above the original unladen height when you connect the chains. When using the jack with them coupled, the first bunch of lifting is simply unloading the trucks's suspension again. If all you do is unload the suspension, that's no different than connecting the chains before you load it.

On the other hand, if you indeed have to jack the ball above where it was before you started in order to install the chains then Bob's method will not provide enough tension.

[Boon_Docker]

Ok, thanks guys.

[BarneyS]

Boon Docker wrote:
Not sure why a person would want to go through the effort to raise the truck and trailer when it takes 2 seconds to use the lift handle.

When you get into the 1400 and 1500lb bars that can be quite a chore, if not impossible, without raising the truck and trailer together to form an inverted V to make it easy to hook up the chains. The higher you raise the coupler, the closer the ends of the WD bars are to the A frame or snap-up brackets and therefor a looser chain to hook up.
Barney

[Huntindog]

Boon Docker wrote:
Not sure why a person would want to go through the effort to raise the truck and trailer when it takes 2 seconds to use the lift handle.

A real good reason is safety. Quite a few people have had that bar slip from their hands. It usually hits the kneecap.:E

With a power jack, it is effortless and SAFE.
And anyone can do it. Strength, age, arthritis..

No obstacle at all.

[Boon_Docker]

Not sure why a person would want to go through the effort to raise the truck and trailer when it takes 2 seconds to use the lift handle.

[gmw_photos]

Huntindog wrote:

wanderingbob wrote:
Try it !
You say if ya hitch properly that the that the tongue will not lift of the ball , what world do you drive in . Lets say one thousand pound bars and a two thousand pound hitch jack . Insted of bad mouthing , try it .
Boy we got off topic , it is like talking politics . AND I HAVE DONE IT HUNDREDS OF TIMES !

Actually I just happened to be hitching up today.
After I did, I released the coupler latch, and raised the tongue with the PJ. It DID NOT come off the ball. It picked up the rear of my truck, just as I figured it would. The WD bars DID NOT loosen up, they got tighter. I lifted it quite a bit, then quit. I realized that ALL of that pressure was going on the bars and brackets with no help from the coupler. It could quite possibly damage the brackets.

Back when Ron G was contributing here, I seem to recall a post he made where his calculation showed the vertical force exerted between the ball and coupler with my WD engaged was on the order of 1700 pounds or so. In other words, the two are being squeezed together very tightly.

I think I too will stick to the old fashioned way of coupling it together first, then lifting with the tongue jack. About 28 to 30 turns on my hand crank tongue jack. I like the simple reliability of a hand crank tongue jack.

Just added a set of 1000 pound bars for the blue ox for the days I'm towing the horse trailer. Will need another trip to the CAT scales to get the setting right. Lighter bars for the TT, heavier for the horsie trailer.

[CapnCampn]

I also do the "couple the trailer to truck & then lift both with the jack" method. It seems that I've thought about hooking up the bars first, but apparently when I'm standing there, I either realize why it won't work (work well?) or I keep forgetting to try it. 🙂

Either way, it's only 15 turns or so of the jack handle to raise it enough to get the bars on. (No power jack here).


CC

[Huntindog]

wanderingbob wrote:
Try it !
You say if ya hitch properly that the that the tongue will not lift of the ball , what world do you drive in . Lets say one thousand pound bars and a two thousand pound hitch jack . Insted of bad mouthing , try it .
Boy we got off topic , it is like talking politics . AND I HAVE DONE IT HUNDREDS OF TIMES !

Actually I just happened to be hitching up today.
After I did, I released the coupler latch, and raised the tongue with the PJ. It DID NOT come off the ball. It picked up the rear of my truck, just as I figured it would. The WD bars DID NOT loosen up, they got tighter. I lifted it quite a bit, then quit. I realized that ALL of that pressure was going on the bars and brackets with no help from the coupler. It could quite possibly damage the brackets.

[BarneyS]

wanderingbob wrote:
Try it !
You say if ya hitch properly that the that the tongue will not lift of the ball , what world do you drive in . Lets say one thousand pound bars and a two thousand pound hitch jack . Insted of bad mouthing , try it .
Boy we got off topic , it is like talking politics . AND I HAVE DONE IT HUNDREDS OF TIMES !

I drive in the same world as Huntindog and LarryJM. :B
When you tension the WD bars this increases the force on the ball from the coupler. It would be quite difficult to unlatch and raise the tongue with the WD bars attached and tensioned.

My question is WHY? Why not do it the normal way and raise the truck and trailer together with the jack, hook up the chains in the proper link, and then lower the tongue back down which tensions the chains?
Reverse procedure for unhooking.
Barney

[wanderingbob]

Try it !
You say if ya hitch properly that the that the tongue will not lift of the ball , what world do you drive in . Lets say one thousand pound bars and a two thousand pound hitch jack . Insted of bad mouthing , try it .
Boy we got off topic , it is like talking politics . AND I HAVE DONE IT HUNDREDS OF TIMES !

[LarryJM]

BarneyS wrote:

wanderingbob wrote:
I do not believe the OP was speaking about a fiver .
While hitch is suspended over the ball by several inches hook up the chains then lower trailer onto the hitch ball .After a pretty short time you will find that the one inch bar is unnecessary . For unhitching raise trailer the same number of inches and the bars are loose . It ain't rocket science .

:h :h :h
For the life of me I can't see the above working at all.

You have to lower the coupler onto the ball, latch it closed, then raise the trailer and rear of the truck together. When raised high enough you can easily hook the chains on and close the snap-up brackets. Then you lower the tongue which puts tension on the chains.

This is one of the main reasons why we like power tongue jacks! :B
Barney

I agree and it amazes me how some of these people come up with these outlandish posts that make ZERO sense?????? And then to top it off suggest they have done the impossible 100s of times:h:h:h:h:h

Larry

[Huntindog]

wnjj wrote:

Huntindog wrote:

wanderingbob wrote:
Here is what ya do . Picture how much you raise the back of the truck when ya lift on the bars , lets say three inches .So you place the trailer hitch about three inches above the ball , put on the bars just hand snug . Then as you lower trailer the bars will tension up and take the load , if it does not feel right ya can still use the pipe. I have owned more than ten TTs and I still do Jack Rabbitt deliveries hitching and unhitching well above one hundred times a year . It works very well . Surely there are many out there who do the same .

There are a FEW things that don't compute.
But I am open minded. There has got to be a video of this somewhere. UTube seems to have one on everything.

Seeing is believing. Show me a video, and I will believe it.

I’m trying to picture this too but I think it can work. If you consider from when the hitch just drops onto ball to the final resting point the hitch and the ball will travel down the same amount. Meanwhile the ends of the bars will drop more than that amount and the chain mounts on the trailer drop less, thus tightening the chains. It seems the starting with the hitch above the ball results in more slack but perhaps that’s the amount needed. I would have to try this to see it work.

There are several issues..

But the main one is this: On a properly tensioned WD, it is impossible for the hitch to come off of the ball. Even if it is unlatched.

Try it and see. Hitch up normally. Then release the latch. then try to raise the tongue off the ball with the PJ. It cannot be done.

Bob states just the opposite.

This can only work if the bars are wayyyy too loose. Which means they are not doing anything, so it is not working.

[wnjj]

Huntindog wrote:

wanderingbob wrote:
Here is what ya do . Picture how much you raise the back of the truck when ya lift on the bars , lets say three inches .So you place the trailer hitch about three inches above the ball , put on the bars just hand snug . Then as you lower trailer the bars will tension up and take the load , if it does not feel right ya can still use the pipe. I have owned more than ten TTs and I still do Jack Rabbitt deliveries hitching and unhitching well above one hundred times a year . It works very well . Surely there are many out there who do the same .

There are a FEW things that don't compute.
But I am open minded. There has got to be a video of this somewhere. UTube seems to have one on everything.

Seeing is believing. Show me a video, and I will believe it.

I’m trying to picture this too but I think it can work. If you consider from when the hitch just drops onto ball to the final resting point the hitch and the ball will travel down the same amount. Meanwhile the ends of the bars will drop more than that amount and the chain mounts on the trailer drop less, thus tightening the chains. It seems the starting with the hitch above the ball results in more slack but perhaps that’s the amount needed. I would have to try this to see it work.