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Old 03-02-2011, 12:57 PM   #1
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HELP: Chucking/Slipping with my 5th Whl?

I'm not sure exactly what everyone means by the term 'chucking,' but most of last season I experienced a small amount of slipping between the fiver king pin and the 5th wheel hitch. When coming to a stop, or starting up from a stop, the hitch and king pin seemed to slip fore and aft a bit and bang into the opposing side of the king pin. We experienced none of this the first season we owned the trailer (new trailer, new hitch). The second season (last year) is when it started. What would cause this? I use the 12" plastic lube plates, no grease. Am I getting wear around the king pin or should I be greasing this? Or do I need to re-adjust my brake controller? Please advise as I fear this situation will get worse this season.

FYI - I have a Reese 15K manual slider hitch, factory kin pin and box on the Ultra Lite Rockwood.
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Old 03-02-2011, 01:37 PM   #2
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First thing is first. Don't use till you find out what is happened. It could be your pin is not in the hitch correctly or the latch holding the pin in is not tight enough.
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Old 03-02-2011, 01:49 PM   #3
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Was your hitch purchased new by you, and how old of hitch is it?? Sounds like you might be expierencing some wear in the area of the hitch secures around the king pin maybe. I would assume if there is a lot of play in this area the king pin would be moving as such and wear would be indicated on the pin like you said...
I would have the hitch checked out also along with making sure the pin is tight like another poster stated...
Keep us updated,
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Old 03-02-2011, 02:06 PM   #4
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The hitch was purchased brand new from my RV dealer at the same time we bought the trailer brand new in 2009. So they have been used for only 2 seasons of towing so far. And, over the 2 seasons we used them, they probably have seen no more than 2,000 miles.

If it is wearing of the pin, is this normal?...Does anyone grease their king pin while using a lube plate?

Sounds like I might have to take it back to the dealer for inspection.
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Old 03-02-2011, 02:17 PM   #5
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There is no way the pin or hitch would wear that fast. I would check for something loose.
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Old 03-02-2011, 08:34 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by crocus View Post
There is no way the pin or hitch would wear that fast. I would check for something loose.
X2
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Old 03-02-2011, 09:12 PM   #7
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Check your adjustment first, its easy to do with a Good wrench, Mine wore down after a Long hall on our first year, New Hitch 07 5th wheel,
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Old 03-02-2011, 09:23 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by E.S.P. View Post
FYI - I have a Reese 15K manual slider hitch, factory kin pin and box on the Ultra Lite Rockwood.
We have a Reese 15K hitch (not a slider) and pushing 6000 miles pulling or 5er with no problem at all. I also use the 12" plate, but I do grease where the pin fits into the hitch.
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Old 03-02-2011, 09:39 PM   #9
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I'm by no means an experienced 5ver owner (only had one for a year now) but isn't some of this caused by weight distribution? I know when I first brought my trailer home (550 miles) empty, it felt really jerky and loose with alot of chucking...fast forward to vacation time and with the 5th loaded, it felt more solid. Hitch a is Reese 16k slider...double jaw / double pivot
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Old 03-02-2011, 10:43 PM   #10
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Is your the sliding bar type? If so these are known for the symtoms you discribe. I don't know if there is an adjustment or not.
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Old 03-03-2011, 01:16 AM   #11
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Originally Posted by HookMeUp View Post
Is your the sliding bar type? If so these are known for the symtoms you discribe. I don't know if there is an adjustment or not.
"Is this the sliding bar type". HookMeUp are you refering to the hitch slider or something else??
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Old 03-03-2011, 06:59 AM   #12
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As for greasing the king pin!! I have the 5th Airboune king pin with the curt 20k hitch. The curt would really grab the king pin and cause kinda what you are talking about. Both the 5th ab and curt people told me to put a very very small amount of grease on the king pin. This did help, it has since become one of my pre hook up items to cover. I also have the disk but thats for a different movement.
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Old 03-03-2011, 07:05 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bobsquarepants View Post
I'm by no means an experienced 5ver owner (only had one for a year now) but isn't some of this caused by weight distribution? I know when I first brought my trailer home (550 miles) empty, it felt really jerky and loose with alot of chucking...fast forward to vacation time and with the 5th loaded, it felt more solid. Hitch a is Reese 16k slider...double jaw / double pivot
Bob, I was thinking the very same thing. After the hitch assembly is inspected; my next stop would be the scales.

15-25% of the camper's weight must rest on the hitch. Overly light and overly heavy pin weights will cause all kinds of ride problems.
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Old 03-03-2011, 07:42 AM   #14
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Thanks for the advice folks. I think I'm going to have to get the trailer back out of storage this spring and do a bit more closer inspection on the king pin and hitch, and possibly take it in to the dealer. Hopefully its a minor adjustment as some have mentioned.

My hitch has the manual slider bars. I could see how any loose play might cause this jerking problem if the upper hitch assembly is not held securely when locked in the tow position. This will also be on my list of things to inspect.

As for the weight distribution...what I recall from last year is that I experienced this both loaded and unloaded. That's not to say my loaded weight is all right. I'll have to get to the scales this spring as well.

I did plan to start greasing the king pin a little this year. Each pivot you make with the trailer and TV puts a lot of wear and friction on the circumference of the pin and hitch jaw. Does anyone have any grease recommendations to use?

I will update everyone when I find out more details. Thanks!
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