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Chaplain Kent · 08-12-2009, 07:56 AM

I have just returned to the trailer side of Airstream and remembered why I left it for a motorhome. I cannot pull up the pry bar to hitch my Reese stabilizers. I had my Reese installed and adjusted at Jackson Center on my E350 Ford to a 30' Excella. I need to use the third link of the chain and due to a physical disability it is almost impossible for me to pull it up. We just completed a 6500 mile trip with this hitch and experienced no sway or any problems other than the pry bar. I have investigated the Hensley before and am back to it again. Next problem is the cost. A retired chaplain does not have that kind of money so I would be buying used which is still expensive. There are several listed in our classifieds now.
What problems would I be looking at if I buy a used Hensley?

HowieE · 08-12-2009, 08:09 AM

Hi Kent

Send me a PM with your e mail or phone # I think I can solve your problem without buying a Hensley

Boondocker · 08-12-2009, 08:23 AM

Have you considered using a longer pipe for the lever? A longer bar would reduce the amount of energy needed to latch the hitch.

Chaplain Kent · 08-12-2009, 09:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gen Disarray

Have you considered using a longer pipe for the lever? A longer bar would reduce the amount of energy needed to latch the hitch.

Yes, this was an idea I thought about but quite often the shorter bar just clears the ground after getting the chain hooked on.

HowieE · 08-12-2009, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chaplain Kent

Yes, this was an idea I thought about but quite often the shorter bar just clears the ground after getting the chain hooked on.

If you have an electric jack you are not using it to it's fullest. If your hitch is adjusted correctly, and I question the 3 links, and the jack used to lift the combination the bar should be just about horizontal when you hook the chains then your lift is only the last 90 degrees. An 18 in. bar would work just fine.

CanoeStream · 08-12-2009, 09:16 AM

It takes progressively less force to use the pry bar the more you have the tongue jack extended.

Some folks have had their tongue jack jam at the extreme extension position - don't recall those details...

crispyboy · 08-12-2009, 09:28 AM

Chaplain,
I rebuilt a used Hensley myself and rebuilt it about 2 years ago.
I fully disassemble the unit, cleaned, sandblasted and painted the hitch.
If I recall there were some seals (just like regular wheel bearing seals available at your local auto parts house) that I had replaced. Washed out and greased the tapered roller bearings - there was a lot of moisture in the old grease and bearings.
There are two wear items to watch for: spring bar bushing - will become egg shaped and the special grease fitting that holds the spring bars in place can wear out/break. These items are not too expensive. Call Jerod at Hensley and he can answer your questions. He was helpful to me.
I picked my hitch on flea bay for about $650 if I recall but was close enough I could pick it up in my car. Shipping can be expensive. My other expense for the hitch was I decided to purchase some steel and make an adjustable stinger. I believe Propride sells the adjustable stingers made to fit a Hensley now. I believe most hitches have the 1000 lb spring bar set-up.

TinShack · 08-12-2009, 09:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chaplain Kent

What problems would I be looking at if I buy a used Hensley?

Probably no problems, but you may need to replace parts. I doubt if the head would be damaged, but you can check the strut bars to make sure they are not bent. Also, the grease fittings that hold the WD bars in place can wear, as can the brackets where the WD bars attach to the adjusters. All these parts are available through Hensley for a price. Another option, if you were to purchase a used one for a good price, you can also purchase a lifetime warranty for it from Hensley for about $500, which is kind of steep IMHO but good for piece of mind. Also you need to make sure you have the proper drop on the hitch bar. Hensley will swap it out for the cost of shipping, but you should contact them for details before. Check out 2Airs thread about Hensleys here:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f464...ide-26279.html

crispyboy · 08-12-2009, 10:02 AM

If you don't mind working on something and can replace a few wear parts there really isn't a reason for the warranty. This hitch is one heck of a hunk of steel. Don't take this the wrong way but I can buy one heck of a lot of parts/strut bars/paint for the $500 warranty cost.

SteveH · 08-12-2009, 11:51 AM

Chaplain Kent,

I also have the Reese hitch, and physical limitations (a bad back), and cannot lift much weight.

To handle the hitching weight, I do two things: First I attach the trailer to the ball, and using the electric tongue jack, jack the trailer and the truck up a ways. This makes the chains have less stress and the bracket and bar at a much higher starting position. Second, I don't lift the bar with my hands, but with my leg, which does not put any weight on my back.

With just a little experimenting I'm sure you can duplicate the procedure.

InsideOut · 08-12-2009, 12:04 PM

Yep...use the tongue jack to lift the attached hitch & back of your truck slightly when you attach the stabilizing bars - it makes it soooo much easier, not nearly the tension in the chains - they can actually be loose and done without any leverage bars at all. Then lower it and everything gets tighten up like it should be.

This is one of the tips we give in our "Women & Towing" seminar at the RMVAC Rally...although the guys like it too!

Shari

wkerfoot · 08-12-2009, 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by InsideOut

Yep...use the tongue jack to lift the attached hitch & back of your truck slightly when you attach the stabilizing bars - it makes it soooo much easier, not nearly the tension in the chains - they can actually be loose and done without any leverage bars at all. Then lower it and everything gets tighten up like it should be.

This is one of the tips we give in our "Women & Towing" seminar at the RMVAC Rally...although the guys like it too!

Shari

That is the way I do it, why work any harder than you need to? Now one of these days, I need to replace the manual tongue jack on the Liner with an electric one.

Bill

Chaplain Kent · 08-12-2009, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteveH

Chaplain Kent,

I also have the Reese hitch, and physical limitations (a bad back), and cannot lift much weight.

To handle the hitching weight, I do two things: First I attach the trailer to the ball, and using the electric tongue jack, jack the trailer and the truck up a ways. This makes the chains have less stress and the bracket and bar at a much higher starting position. Second, I don't lift the bar with my hands, but with my leg, which does not put any weight on my back.

With just a little experimenting I'm sure you can duplicate the procedure.

Yes, this has been tried, today. I jacked up the van and trailer until the jack tripped the bresker. I had to manually lower it a few inches before it would work electrically again. There was still too much weight to pull or push up whether I used my knees, back, arms or head. I believe the E350 just has too tight a suspension to allow the jack to raise the assembly high enough for easy hitching.

SteveH · 08-12-2009, 03:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chaplain Kent

Yes, this has been tried, today. I jacked up the van and trailer until the jack tripped the bresker. I had to manually lower it a few inches before it would work electrically again. There was still too much weight to pull or push up whether I used my knees, back, arms or head. I believe the E350 just has too tight a suspension to allow the jack to raise the assembly high enough for easy hitching.

Just a thought, but maybe you are putting too much weight on the bars?

This doesn't sound normal.

Beginner · 08-12-2009, 03:29 PM

Why don't you go by a CAT scale and see what your wpring bars are doing. I too think maybe you are setting them too tight. Remember, a perfectly set up hitch will have the same weight on every axle (all four that is two on the truck and two on the trailer). It will cost you less than 15 bucks.
Beginner

HowieE · 08-12-2009, 03:44 PM

Kent

You have another variable in the equation. Jacks have a built in limit switch at the top and bottom. If you had to manually lower the jack to keep it from blowing the breaker sound like the jack jammed mechanically before it reached the limit switch. That would blow a fuse. If you reach the limit switch in either direction you will hear a clicking sound as the motor continues to turn but no addition lift or lowering.

slowmover · 08-12-2009, 03:47 PM

I agree that the current hitch rigging may need adjustment (and that the TV has a stiff rear suspension). I, too, have a bad back and have always used the method above of being hitched and raising the tongue thusly. I don't recall it being any different on my father's Suburban, or any more difficult. My 3/4T Dodge diesel will no more "compress" with 1,000-lb hitch bars than yours, I would guess.

In the few days prior to installing a Hensley (these days I believe I would opt for the Pro Pride) I don't recall taking up the five links (or six, can't remember) as being onerous.

The problems of a too-stiff rear suspension are common enough that the OEM's now seem to accept 75% of the TW on the rear of the TV versus 2/3 forward onto the TV and 1/3 back onto the trailer axles. Lighter bars may be an answer. Certainly, cheaper than another hitch (which has the advantage of jack screws).

Pictures, too.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

One way of reading First Isaiah is, of course, "is man the sovereign author of his thoughts and actions?"; or, "are thought and action determined by external factors beyond man's comprehension and control?" That reading can say "yes" to both propositions.

Forgive me, but, so can the problem of hitch rigging. This "lion" shall lay down (disappear?) once . . . .

HowieE · 08-12-2009, 03:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beginner

Why don't you go by a CAT scale and see what your wpring bars are doing. I too think maybe you are setting them too tight. Remember, a perfectly set up hitch will have the same weight on every axle (all four that is two on the truck and two on the trailer). It will cost you less than 15 bucks.
Beginner

Sorry on this one but there is no equal relationship for the weight of the axles when the hitch is set up right. Yes you will see an increase in all axles when hitched but the amount per axle is a function of the length of the truck, the trailer, and the suspension system of both.

ROBERT CROSS · 08-12-2009, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beginner

Why don't you go by a CAT scale and see what your wpring bars are doing. I too think maybe you are setting them too tight. Remember, a perfectly set up hitch will have the same weight on every axle (all four that is two on the truck and two on the trailer). It will cost you less than 15 bucks.
Beginner

As equal as possible on both trailer axles....Not so much for the TV, front carries 140 to 400#s more with 1000# bars, depending on load.

no bars
str axle..3140#
drive......5280#
trlr.........7580#

bars set for loaded trlr.

str axle...3540#
drive axle....4900#
trlr.........7680#

Foiled Again · 09-26-2009, 10:44 AM

I lost my little brass bar somewhere. Probably drove off with it sitting on the bumper... sigh.

So I was looking around for something to use to snap my chains up with and noticed the BIG wrench I bought to tighten the ball with. One end is close ended and set at an angle. I used it and it's longer, at a better angle, and easier to lift than the bar ever was. It's really more like pushing it toward the center of the trailer rather than lifting. The wrench is a Wal-Mart cheapo, about $15, so I'm not worried about damaging it.

I'm imagining a gizmo for you Chaplain. Isn't it all a question of leverage - and using gravity to your advantage rather than fighting it? Imagine for a moment a longer bent pipe - shaped like a standard pry bar. Put the short bent end over the snap up point - with the long end going across the battery box to the opposite side. To snap the chain up lean forward and down on the bar, or put your knee on it or sit on it. (Gravity is our friend - and I've got a lot of gravity in my behind!)

Other Alternatives:

Tell MRS. Chaplain that if Paula can do it so can she. Have her snap up the bars.
Lighter bars or a different power jack could also help... And of course how high your power jack lifts could also be determined by what's under it too. (I'm either very creative or just nuts... and I don't examine that too closely!) I once got my trailer stuck in the mud and could not raise the jack because the big orange Lego I had under the jack sank rather than the tongue going up. In a moment of Divine inspiration (or just plain crazy) I grabbed a drywall bucket I keep in the bed of my truck for "stuff" and shoved it under one side of the tongue. Then I cranked UP my jack, leaving the whole front end of the trailer being supported by the bucket. IT WORKED and no one was more surprised than I was! I was then able to find a big six by six block of wood, cram it under the jack and lift the trailer enough to get it on the ball. If you set up your trailer so that your jack is almost bottomed out to get it level - via 8 or 10 inches of wood blocks, then you can lift it higher and lower the tension on the bar.

Good luck - you'll figure this out!

Paula