 |
|
| THE LOBBY A gathering place. Introductions, sports, showin' off your ride, birthday-anniversary-milestone, achievements, family oriented humor. |
| Reply |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
|
#1
03-16-2014, 08:25 PM
|
||||
|
||||
ANYONE EVER HAVE A BALL MOUNT BREAK
this makes 3 of them I have had break in the last few years. china made steel maybe???? luckily this time I was driving my Kodiak 5500 and only pulling an 18' flatbead with heavy chains and it was empty. I couldn't even feel it but my eye caught it swaying in the mirror. this mount was pretty new also.
|
|
#2
03-16-2014, 08:29 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
I'd be sending a picture of that to Reese. That kind of stuff can be deadly.
|
|
#3
03-16-2014, 08:32 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
I don"t go for dropped ball mounts for heavy chit.
They can flex and break... I would call the manufacture and get his take....JMO I would be upgrading the whole hitch to a class 5 and a load distribution deal.. 
__________________
 ECM member. 2008 Outlaw Pontiac Drag Series Champion MANDRA Do it now fool! Life is short. 69 Grand Prix/3163lbs / IAII 535 w/ Tiger heads by Gaydosh....9.35@ 144 so far..  through mufflers. 1.26 60'. Going back to track with pump gas engine.... My 60 Ventura retired to street/strip duty.. |
|
#4
03-16-2014, 08:35 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
Uh-oh, that looks like the same one I've got right now.
__________________
1966 GTO 1969 Lemans Convertible- F.A.S.T. legal family cruiser. 12.59 on G70-14 Polyglas tires. 1.78 60' 1969 Bonneville Safari- cross country family cruiser. . 1979 Trans Am 400, 4-speed, 4 wheel disc. View from the drivers seat racing down Atco Raceway- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhYDMdOEC7A Ride along in the other lane-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIzgpLtF_uw |
|
#5
03-16-2014, 08:36 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Whoa, that's scary to think about.
|
|
#6
03-16-2014, 08:45 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
Reese is moving most production to Mexico.
__________________
be a simple...kinda man. |
|
#7
03-16-2014, 09:08 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Get a B&W hitch made 5 miles down the road in Humboldt KS. Owned and made in the USA.
http://www.turnoverball.com/products...ableballmounts
__________________
GoatDr |
|
#8
03-16-2014, 09:18 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
SCAAAAARRRRRYYYYY And people always tell me I worry too much
|
|
#9
03-16-2014, 09:37 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
Like Troy said, straight is safer (no angle welds)...my 10K 2 5/16 bar/ball weighs about 18lbs or so.....they are straight piece of steel stock.
I'd stick to USA made if they are breaking. |
|
#10
03-16-2014, 10:42 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
on my 2 5/16 mounts, I use a 20000lb mount and a 30000lb ball. but this is just a 2" one and because of the height of the truck I have to use a drop mount to get the tongue down a bit. but one of the others I had break was the straight 20k / 30k combo forged steel. ( I was using it on my f450 pulling a 42' trailer )
I guess I have been very lucky that nothing tragic has happened. thank god for this. |
|
#11
03-16-2014, 10:48 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
One Memorial Day around noon I saw a boat sitting on top of it's own tow vehicle in the ditch.
Bad way to start a summer. |
|
#12
03-16-2014, 11:31 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
I know of 2 that have broken, and 1 was a Reece.
__________________
DragStarLeMans |
|
#13
03-17-2014, 12:48 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Never seen that type of carnage.
Hard to tell by the picture - but possibly you were using a large bore mount, with a small shank ball ? Or small bore mount and small shank ball. You probably already know - but in case not - you want the large bore mount and the large shanked ball for highest capacity. They make 2 sizes of bores and shanks. Some places might limit your selection. Glad you didn't have any damages or consequences. |
|
#14
03-17-2014, 01:12 AM
|
||||
|
||||
|
It's the new (lazy) design. They have taken metal off the top and bottom in the shape of a six point nut so the ball can act like a second wrench to tighten and loosen without two wrenches. Thin spot in the metal will break every time.
__________________
Why is he not suspended? |
|
#15
03-17-2014, 01:17 AM
|
||||
|
||||
|
2 motorcyclists (in 2 separate accidents a few years apart) were killed by runaway trailers on the highways. Scary stuff, indeed.
__________________
 1965 Pontiac LeMans. M21, 3.73 in a 12 bolt, Kauffman 461.
|
|
#16
03-17-2014, 06:24 AM
|
||||
|
||||
|
Yes - except mine was one of the big cast weight distributing ball mounts (for the load leveling bars).
I had just towed from Detroit to Atlanta and parked in my pit spot. I was visiting with my buddies when we heard a loud "bang", like something had fallen over in the trailer. We looked around and didn't see anything - until I started to unhook the trailer. One side of the casting had fractured all the way through. So - instead of making test passes on Friday - I spent the day chasing a ball mount so that I could get home on Sunday night. K
__________________
'63 LeMans Convertible '63 Grand Prix '65 GTO - original, unrestored, Dad was original owner, 5000 original mile Royal Pontiac factory racer '74 Chevelle - original owner, 9.56 @ 139 mph besthttp://www.superchevy.com/features/s...hevy-chevelle/ My Pontiac Story: http://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/...d.php?t=560524 "Intro from an old Assembly Plant Guy":http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=342926 |
|
#17
03-17-2014, 07:25 AM
|
||||
|
||||
|
With all the hauling you do Gary I'm amazed you haven't switched to a 5th wheel.
That's scary!
__________________
Some guys they just give up living And start dying little by little, piece by piece, Some guys come home from work and wash up, And go racin' in the street. Bruce Springsteen - Racing In The Street - 1978 |
|
#18
03-17-2014, 12:25 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
Concur
Quote:
__________________
“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan Press On! has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.” ― Calvin Coolidge |
|
#19
03-17-2014, 12:34 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
Being the 3rd one, I'd be looking at possibly over torquing of the ball hitch on installation. Though admittedly I'd expect the threads to snap before the hitch, but compression then twisting do strange things.
__________________
__________________________________________ "How I learned to stop worrying and love the OHC Pontiac L6"  The Silver Buick- '77 Skylark coupe w/455, SPX, MegaSquirt 3 & TKO-600 (Drag Week 2011, 2012 & 2015!) 1969 Firebird with a turbo'd Pontiac L6 controlled by a MegaSquirt 3 and backed with a microsquirt controlled 4L60e and 4.56 gears! (Drag Week 2018!) |
|
#20
03-17-2014, 01:17 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
For heavy hauling a gooseneck or fifth wheel are the only things I use. Bumper mounts get a ton of strain with a heavy haul, and 20 feet between the ball and the trailer axles is a bunch of leverage. If the 2 are on different planes and the swivel of the ball gets into the point of a bind there's going to be a tons of force on that hitch. The part of the hitch with the hole in it is the weakest link of the chain and where it will break first.
Beside that a fifth wheel,or a gooseneck tow much better on the interstate at speed, no sway or wiggle like a bumper hitch has, no need for an equalizing hitch either.
__________________
Brad Yost 1973 T/A (SOLD) 2005 GTO 1984 Grand Prix 100% Pontiacs in my driveway!!! What's in your driveway? If you don't take some of the RACETRACK home with you, Ya got cheated    
|
| Reply |
|
|
The PY Online Forums is the largest online gathering of Pontiac enthusiasts anywhere in the world. Founded in 1991, it was also the first online forum for people to gather and talk about their Pontiacs. Since then, it has become the mecca of Pontiac technical data and knowledge that no other place can surpass.
Linear Mode
