Visit our Popular Forums

Wharf Rats · 09-17-2006, 02:06 PM

Ah yes magnetic balls, I use them too, I tow a fair amount of 25' to 33' boats around and they make life a lot easier on different trailers. As for the haha, does anyone have a good method for stowing the hitch bar? You know how the haha loves it's grease. I was thinking of makeing a rope sling or something to carry it with, maybe a plywood box to store it in. Any ideas? thanks, mark

lhorne · 09-17-2006, 02:22 PM

Wow, Thank you for all the informative details on the haha. Beth

hookedonclassic · 09-17-2006, 04:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by moosetags

We, too, are get the hang of the dreaded HAHA hookup. We have also learned the trick of HAHA angle adjustment using the tensioners. We the hitch helper also. The best aid that I have found are those magnetic line-up rods. With these I can usually back right in to the HAHA.

I agree with the others. The HAHA driving and handling experience is superb. Big trucks and crosswinds are meaningless.

The magnetic line-up rods have worked for me too. I've gone from a frustrating first time hook-up by myself of 1 1/4 hours to now doing it with 1-2 attempts. I haven't found a lot of good use with the Hensley Hitch Helper. Maybe it was just a bad first experience.

**moosetags** · 09-17-2006, 05:45 PM

I have been storing my hitch bar in the haha. I remove it from the truck receiver and slip it right back into the haha and lock it down. I put a pad lock in one of the retaining pin holes, and a locking pin through the truck end of the hitch bar for security. When Lucy is in storage, I cover the haha with a large gas grill cover.

2airishuman · 09-17-2006, 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by capt mark

As for the haha, does anyone have a good method for stowing the hitch bar? You know how the haha loves it's grease. I was thinking of makeing a rope sling or something to carry it with, maybe a plywood box to store it in. Any ideas? thanks, mark

hi mark and welcome hooked'

welcome beth too a new a/s and new haha user...

with so many airstreamers towing with that big orange lump o' iron,

i'm sure beth, you will find help here...mark this thread.

when you've got a question about your haha put it here!

capt mark...

a sling to carry the hitch bar is great idea.

storage is an issue...

usually when on the road, i leave mine in the receiver,
because the nk mudflaps are attached.
they are heavy and removing them adds time to setup.
also taking your hitch bar when leaving may be a security plus...
since towing without it is a challenge.

after busting shins a few times (slow learner) i opted to pad/cosy it...

here are pix.
i use an oversided 'pool noodle' and cut a section long enough for the stinger and wings...

these last several months and one noodle is good for 3-4 covers...

usually i buy the brightest color noodle walmart has...2-3$, less off season.

anyone else with ideas for dealing with the 50 lb hitch bar?

cheers
2air'

2airishuman · 09-17-2006, 06:59 PM

hi moose tags and thanks for joining us....

thats interesting about the grill cover as a hitch cover...
i've been thinking about this issue too...

visit the haha website...they now are selling a fitted cover...guess what color!

i don't like the orange color, obviously they do!
so the cover really stands out.
is the color is a link to the 'farm heritage' of the haha?

the one potential problem with a cover is retaining moisture inside the cover on metal surfaces

all of the important and lubricated haha parts are protected from water by design...

so a cover might retain moisture/humidity, just a speculation...

have you removed your cover ever to find moisture inside it?

you will have to report back how your hitch 'ages'
most of the 2-4 year old ones i've seen
are pretty beat up and faded unless they've been repainted.

cheers
2air'

**moosetags** · 09-17-2006, 07:06 PM

Our Lucy with her haha has been stored with the gas grill cover in the Florida panhandle where a dry day is 97 percent humidity and rain is an every day event. When I have removed the haha cover, I have not noticed any dampness at all.

2airishuman · 09-17-2006, 07:12 PM

well that makes sense moosetags...
with the baseline humidity at 90%+
how would you notice any dampness

actually with your long rainy season the cover seems very useful...
covered storage for me when not on the road....

err, i mean the airstream...
cheers
2air'

2airishuman · 10-16-2006, 09:29 PM

it is often reported that hitching up with a haha takes practice.

i agree.

some (new or non owners) suggest a limitation of the haha is difficult camping slots.

i disagree.

recently i had the opportunity to camp in a location that was very remote and the sites, while long were very uneven.

in many the drive way had a twisting slope with a small break between tv and trailer.

i used this opportunity to take some shots of using the neon hitchin rods to help while hooking up.

i tow solo and usually hook up solo...

unless neighbors get in the way!

first here are some shots of the spot...

nose of trailer slopes downward and rear of truck does too....

the twisted driveway is also seen...

cheers
2air'

click on ANY picture in this series for a larger view...

2airishuman · 10-16-2006, 09:37 PM

looking at the hitchin' rods in the rear view mirror,

it is pretty clear the truck and trailer are sloping opposite directions...

you can just see the neon rods in the mirror right?

the 2nd pic is taken with camera LEVEL to the tail gate....

pretty obvious the 2 vehicles slop away from each other yes?

the truck positon is represented by the rightmost rod,

while the trailer is the left most rod....

click on the mirror pic to see more clearly....

cheers
2air'

2airishuman · 10-16-2006, 09:42 PM

from the side view here is the position of truck 2 trailer...

again the rods make seeing the angled position much clearer....

IF one were to back the stinger into the box with this orientation....

problems would appear....

nerves would fray...

hitching not happenin'

cheers
2air'

AZstreamin · 10-16-2006, 09:47 PM

2air I don't have a HA HA but your pics have given me some useful hitch tips... the protective noodle knee knocker, and the hitch up poles... good stuff. Great looking pics of your rig also.. man even though your AS is only 4 feet longer I don't know why, but a 34 footer just looks huge.

2airishuman · 10-16-2006, 09:47 PM

if the rods were not used in the last photo,

the stinger and haha look pretty well oriented...

go back and look again don't they really look pretty level?

but they are not!

now, in this photo the screw jacks that control the w/d bars have been adjusted.

by rotating the jacks, which raise or lower the w/d bars...

the hitch box repositions....

following 30-60 seconds of adjustment....

the rods look more parallel...

note the power drill on top of the jack, used to make this swiftly happen.

cheers
2air'

2airishuman · 10-16-2006, 09:51 PM

now looking at the orientation from the front....

pretty good!

again note the position of the trailer

this pic is taken LEVEL relative to the truck again...

so it is obvious just how much the site twists!

cheers
2air'

2airishuman · 10-16-2006, 09:56 PM

ok,

so now i'm ready to dock!

the stinger goes into the hitch box....

the two are well oriented and the insertion is easy....

as the stinger slides in the neon hitchin rod will move subtly...

so from the rear view mirror that's the clue....to success!

ok,

that is it..

any questions?

cheers
2air'

2airishuman · 10-16-2006, 10:15 PM

hi AZ'

yea i'm stubborn and a slow learner...

so i busted both shins 5-6 times,

and lost a pint o'blood...

b4 realizing i could not remember to step over or around that knob...

and that the stinger was hard....real hard.

the 34s look longer primarily because of the triple axles....wheels everywhere!

from bambi to brutus...they are all the same size in the rear view mirror.

sort of...

cheers
2air'

vajeep · 10-17-2006, 08:45 AM

2 Air.

I have two nasty scars on my shins that might match yours...

Because I am also a slow learner I never leave the "stinger" in the Burb. I also have the Enkay mud flaps, so as soon as I get the wheels chocked, I lock the stinger with attached Enkays to the Hensley. I use a the 2 part master lock set to secure the ball latch and the draw bar.

Thanks for the Hensley thread!

Abe

hookedonclassic · 10-17-2006, 11:37 AM

2Air. Good posts. Thanks. Practice has made a world of difference for me too. I no longer have to think twice about unhooking. Have you modified your TV suspension yet? I'm still thinking about it. See you next spring at Midwest Rally, I hope.

rebfa · 10-17-2006, 01:24 PM

I'm happy to see this thread took off finally. For awhile there, I thought 2airishuman created a thread so he could have a conversation with himself!

10-18-2006, 05:11 PM

I had the dealer install a Hensley on my 2007 25' Classic that I picked up last Thursday.We've had one day of heavy rain and this thing is showing rust everywhere. When the tech was showing me how to adjust the jacks the paint was just chipping off the jacks as he tightened them. This may be the greatest hitch since the invention, but for 3 grand the paint job STINKS big time. As the paint continues to chip off you can tell that it wasn't primed. I guess quality only goes so far.Maybe they should offer a paint job that would hold up to the elements as an optional upgrade then they could charge a few hundred more. They now offer a cover for $80.00. This will help keep the moisture in so the rust can really do it's job.