Ball mount

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Jul 21, 2013
333
Searching for 1st sailing boat 27-28, 34-36 Channel Islands, Marina Del Rey
My first time looking into purchasing a ball mount for the hitch on my vehicle.

My hitch is rated for 6500lb, it has a 7 pole flat RV style vehicle end connector.

So, for the ball mount I am thinking of getting a Class III to gain the maximum towing capacity. Will this be an appropriate item, it will also work if I only have to tow 1000 lbs?

Where is a good local place to get the ball mount locally, auto store or Harbor Freight? What quality brand should I be looking at?
 

Johnb

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Jan 22, 2008
1,420
Hunter 37-cutter Richmond CA
I have found Haul to be a good source' and they have many outlets.
 
Sep 5, 2007
689
MacGregor 26X Rochester
Assuming it's a 2" receiver, ball mounts with the capacity you're looking for are very common. The problem you'll probably find is that a 1000 lb trailer usually has a 1-7/8" coupler, while anything remotely approaching the rated load of the hitch and ball mount will use a 2" ball.

If it were me, I'd have two different ball mounts, one for each trailer, which is what I do for my boat trailer and small utility trailer. You're also likely to have different required ball heights for each trailer, so you might as well set each one up for level towing by getting the rise or drop needed for each.

Rise and drop are measured from the top of the tube, by the way, so a ball mount with a 5/8" rise will also have a 2" drop when you flip it over, assuming 5/8" plate used for the actual mount (for instance).
Balls also come in different heights, so you need to consider the ball height also. Shank diameter is also not all the same, though 1" is probably the most common. Make sure the shank and ball mount hole sizes are the same.

As to who makes ball mounts, I haven't seen much difference between different brands, though I certainly haven't made a study of it. I know that most of the major hitch brands are all made by the same company these days, presumably fabbed in China, and I rather doubt there's much difference in ball mount quality between brands either.
 
Jul 21, 2013
333
Searching for 1st sailing boat 27-28, 34-36 Channel Islands, Marina Del Rey
Thank you for the details, the trailer has a 2" coupler.

I am getting the details squared away for a 600 mile round trip to see a boat on a trailer. I might bring it home, so I am thinking I will take different drop mounts and size it when I get there.
 

caguy

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Sep 22, 2006
4,004
Catalina, Luger C-27, Adventure 30 Marina del Rey
When I towed the C27 from PA to Ca I had took a flat, 3' drop and an 8' drop. The PO which just happened to be a trailer manufacturer turn the 3" one over and gave it a 3" rise. The surge brake unit sits on top of the fraime and it needed the extra height.
 

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Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
A type III hitch accepts a receiver. I have two receivers .... one with a 1 & 7/8 and another with a 2" ball. I just pull out the receiver and slide in the one I need.



 
Sep 5, 2007
689
MacGregor 26X Rochester
I might bring it home, so I am thinking I will take different drop mounts and size it when I get there.
I would wait until you buy it, then simply set the trailer up parallel with the ground and measure to the center of the ball socket. Then buy whatever rise/drop and ball you need when you know what you need.

Or get an adjustable height ball mount. I don't care for them because they rattle even more than a simple welded one, but they're sure going to be more versatile, especially if you need to tune the height when you're under way.
 
Nov 9, 2008
1,338
Pearson-O'Day 290 Portland Maine
WallyWorld sells all sorts of receivers and balls. See the boat, measure the height then head there and buy what you need. Home Repot, Lowes, Tractor Supply, Pep Boys, all have what you need. Another "problem" may be the lights. WallyWorld also sells a socket that takes 4 or 5 different types, 4-wire, 5-wire, round blade, round pin and the like. When I brought mine home, I hot wired everything thru the cigarette lighter. Things got interesting for my copilot when we got into traffic.
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
... Another "problem" may be the lights. ....
dscribner is right about that. Every trailer I've ever owned has required some work on the lights. Usually an entire rewire. It took me many years to feel comfortable working on trailer lights....

Here are a few things to know...

White is ground. You need a white lead to ground from the trailer wire harness to an eye screwed into the trailer. The trailer lights are also grounded but through the bolts used to attach them to the trailer so you don't have to do anything with that. The hitch is also grounded and the white line into your car is connected to that ground. You also have a ground connection through the ball receiver. It is a good idea to put some contact grease on the ball about once a season. It is a bit overkill but you it is a good idea to have some overkill. If you get a bad ground all kinds of weird things can happen. For instance I once had a trailer where the left flasher worked but when I tried the right flasher, I got them both left and right to flash. I traced it to a bad ground but only after pulling out a lot of hair.

Brown is your running lights and goes down both sides of the trailer. If you want side running lights or a rear bar of red running lights, you tap into the brown wires. You only have to connect the one line because the post that screws the light to the trailer is your ground "wire".

Green is Right flasher/brake

Yellow is Left flasher/brake

 
Nov 9, 2008
1,338
Pearson-O'Day 290 Portland Maine
For wiring I bought a 100 foot 3 wire extension cord. White is ground, black is marker, green is turn/brake. The jacket makes it very durable.
 
Feb 5, 2009
255
Gloucester 20 Kanawha River, Winfield, WV
You only have to connect the one line because the post that screws the light to the trailer is your ground "wire".
When I rewired my trailer I ran an additional wire to all of my lights instead of using the frame as the common conductor. Haven't had a problem since.
 
Dec 26, 2012
359
MacGregor 25 San Diego
For wiring I bought a 100 foot 3 wire extension cord. White is ground, black is marker, green is turn/brake. The jacket makes it very durable.
So how do you make all 4 functions work if you only have 3 wires? For proper function you need a ground, running light, and a turn/brake wire for each side.
 
Sep 15, 2009
6,243
S2 9.2a Fairhope Al
A type III hitch accepts a receiver. I have two receivers .... one with a 1 & 7/8 and another with a 2" ball. I just pull out the receiver and slide in the one I need.



having sold several thousands of theses back in the 70's out of my shop ...the one pic on the top is a ball mount (male) ...and the pic on the bottom is the receiver(female)...not trying to be a smartazz here just clearing up the info.......

regards

woody
 
Jun 3, 2004
71
Hunter 290 Tampa, FL
So how do you make all 4 functions work if you only have 3 wires? For proper function you need a ground, running light, and a turn/brake wire for each side.

You answered your own question; there are only three wires on each side.

(In a typical 4-wire setup, there are different colors going down the left and right sides of the trailer; in this case, he just used the same color on both sides.)
 
Sep 15, 2009
6,243
S2 9.2a Fairhope Al
So how do you make all 4 functions work if you only have 3 wires? For proper function you need a ground, running light, and a turn/brake wire for each side.
you run a length of the cord down each side of the trailer frame and connect the black wire of each together to provide the running lights with power and use the green of each side for the turn and break lights for there prospective sides...then you can also tie the 2 whites together for the ground wire....

the factory color code is for the late model harness is ...yellow left turn and break lights..... green right turn and break......brown for tail and marker lights ....

the old color code is red left turn and break...brown right turn and break light......green is tail and marker lights....

hope this helps

regards

woody
 
Nov 9, 2008
1,338
Pearson-O'Day 290 Portland Maine
A+ to the class. I have a length of 14-5 attached to the plug. It's about 1/2 diameter with a very heavy uv protected jacket. This goes thru a hole in the side of the tongue and is spliced to the xt cords inside the frame about a foot back. I fished the xt cords the length of the frame and pulled them out of 3/8" holes right in front of the lights. I have about 4" of exposed wire, that's it. The other thing I did was run my brake line inside a length of conduit screwed to the frame. Keeps things protected.
 
Jul 13, 2010
1,097
Precision 23 Perry Hall,Baltimore County
So..Wires run to the back to the lights, no side marker lights involved, rear lights only?
 
Sep 15, 2009
6,243
S2 9.2a Fairhope Al
So..Wires run to the back to the lights, no side marker lights involved, rear lights only?
if the trailer is under 80" wide over all no marker lights are required .......

but i personally like having them no matter the width as it make visibility a lot better at night.....

regards

woody
 
Sep 5, 2007
689
MacGregor 26X Rochester
I think you mean ID lights, the three red lights centered on the rear, spaced evenly from 6" to 12", and front and rear clearance lights, at the widest part (rear clearance lights are part of the 'over 80' stop/turn/tail lights, but you don't have to use those if rear clearance lights are separate). Side markers are required, amber front and red rear, regardless of length or width, and trailers over 30' long require mid-point amber side markers on each side, too. At least that's what the US and Canadian DOTs (or NHTSA) say.

As an aside, marker lights that are PC rated can be mounted at a 45 degree angle, and serve as both clearance and side marker lamps, since they have a 180 degree arc. Lotta new trailers do this, as it eliminates a couple of lights on each side, which of course is cheaper for the manufacturer, and takes less wiring and labor.
 
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