Warped stabilizer "pins"

[Barretta2]

Writing this on an iPhone is not my idea of fun, pls bear with me. I just noticed that both of my solid steel holding pins that keep my stabilizer bars in place have been warped pretty dramatically due to over stressing. Also the Couplings that hold my bars and attaches to the trailer hitch frame (both sides) have been torqued about 1/2 inch out of position. The coupling on the left side of my hitch was torqued toward the rear of the trailer while the coupler on the right side of the trailer was torqued toward the TV.
I suspect this stressing of steel (see photo) was caused by my trying to back into a space too sharply, i.e., jacknifing. A bit of female ego there: See? I can swoop right in!
I have now tightened the nuts that hold the couplings to the frame (they were alarmingly loose) and straightened those couplings.
Two questions:
--do the experts among you (I treasure you all) agree with my thinking on what caused the metal warping of the "pins"?
--do these L-shaped "pins" need to be replaced for safety since they are so obviously stressed?
Thank you, merci, gracias, grazie

[featherbedder]

Originally Posted by Barretta2

Writing this on an iPhone is not my idea of fun, pls bear with me. I just noticed that both of my solid steel holding pins that keep my stabilizer bars in place have been warped pretty dramatically due to over stressing. Also the Couplings that hold my bars and attaches to the trailer hitch frame (both sides) have been torqued about 1/2 inch out of position. The coupling on the left side of my hitch was torqued toward the rear of the trailer while the coupler on the right side of the trailer was torqued toward the TV.
I suspect this stressing of steel (see photo) was caused by my trying to back into a space too sharply, i.e., jacknifing. A bit of female ego there: See? I can swoop right in!
I have now tightened the nuts that hold the couplings to the frame (they were alarmingly loose) and straightened those couplings.
Two questions:
--do the experts among you (I treasure you all) agree with my thinking on what caused the metal warping of the "pins"?
--do these L-shaped "pins" need to be replaced for safety since they are so obviously stressed?
Thank you, merci, gracias, grazie

I don't no what caused bending of pins but IMO I Would replace for safety as I don't trust stressing of metal, as had to many failures of parts being stressed. I use Reese dual cam so don't understand any other hitch.

[dsrtgrls]

i too will be interested on thoughts shared about this stress happening from backing up at too sharp/tight angle. will follow.

[GCinSC2]

Looks like equalizer L bar locks. I have same.

Sorry don't have manual at finger tips right now but I suggest to check the distance from hitch to bar brackets. Measure and compare to manual.

I'm suspecting they are too far forward but specs and measurements will trump my hunch.

Good luck.

[m.hony]

My original ones look like that.
I bought the newer ones with the flip-over bail to hold it in place.
The new ones have less slop/play and have not bent after 3 years.
Someone on the forum has drilled small holes into the L-pins and inserted a small roll pin to reduce slop/play.

[TomKirk]

Inferior Chinese steel; made from recycled Mazdas - and god knows what else.

I've seen this before. Quality control is a serious issue. Original stock is not uniform in grade or quality.

Replace the pins.

Tom

[GCinSC2]

Originally Posted by TomKirk

Inferior Chinese steel; made from recycled Mazdas - and god knows what else.



I've seen this before. Quality control is a serious issue. Original stock is not uniform in grade or quality.



Replace the pins.



Tom

Tom do you own an equalizer hitch?

Ok what caused the strain on the pins to bend them in the first place?

Equalizer website has Made in USA right on the homepage.

[m.hony]

The pins bend due to play/slop.
There is a "new and improved" pin available.


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[FCStreamer]

https://www.amazon.com/Equal-i-zer-9...equalizer+pins

[GCinSC2]

Baretta2,

I suggest the best answer is for you to call equalizer tech support at 800 478 5578 and they can answer for their product.

Gary

[m.hony]

Get the new style pins with the flip-over bail and Sway Bracket Jackets and all will be good.


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[Jacob D]

Originally Posted by dsrtgrls

i too will be interested on thoughts shared about this stress happening from backing up at too sharp/tight angle. will follow.

I pull our 50 yr. old Overlander with a standard 50 yr. old Reese WD hitch and a Chevy 1500 which has optional heavy duty suspension in the rear. My ball hitch is several inches longer than standard to allow for lowering the tailgate on the TV while hitched. We store our old honey at home which requires backing it into a narrow drive between two curbs from a narrow street. I do so by removing the WD bars and placing the over/under latches in the up position which allows me to nearly jack-knife the rig to make the turn otherwise the WD bars, latches and/or chains would be broken. I am not familiar with your hitch but if my method would work for you it might save you the expense of replacing those bent parts.

BTW that tight turn backing is why I run GYM's. Been doing it for 25 years and both the hitch and tires have held up well.

[m.hony]

With the Equal-I-zer Original 4-point sway control there are no chains-
No need to remove the weight bars-
No need to do anything to the hitch-
Just back up-


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[kscherzi]

Those are Equal-i-zer L brackets. While bent it's not destroyed. You could (1) hammer them back into shape, or (2) buy two new ones. They're not expensive. I agree that talking to someone at the company might help and give you peace. In my 3 years with my Equal-i-zer hitch I've not had any serious problems.

You do need to clean and grease your head unit on a regular basis for smooth and quiet operation. If that maintenance has been overlooked it could be the source of your troubles.

[wulfraat]

Spend $15 to replace them. Call equalizer to understand why they bent on the first place. Adjust your hitch accordingly. Done.

[Rich W]

Parts wear out, those pins have a lot of stress from those loaded spring arms. I keep a couple of extra sets and I got the new spring loaded ones too. With the nylon L bracket pads, you don't need grease on the spring arms and it's much quieter. I would replace them, available on Amazon, and not worry about it.

[TomKirk]

Originally Posted by GCinSC2

.....what caused the strain on the pins to bend them in the first place? Equalizer website has Made in USA right on the homepage.

Yeah, but.....where do they get their steel??

As for those pins, they're mass produced by some vendor.....who knows where?? Made in the USA or not, they're obviously the weakest link in the chain.

As for strain on the pins?? Unless you were running off-road in Baja, you did nothing wrong. A soft steel pin is akin to using a hardware-grade (Grade-2) bolt in an automotive application where Grade-8 is required. You might get by temporarily. But eventually, that hardware-grade bolt will fail.

Tom

[Howard L.]

Originally Posted by FCStreamer

https://www.amazon.com/Equal-i-zer-9...equalizer+pins

Buy the above Snap L brackets and get the plastic pads also. The snap brackets are harder steel and set upright so as not to bend. The pads really do not cause a noticeable loss of friction, and they do quiet down the noise when doing tight turns. Equalizer system does not need to be unhooked to back up or anything else.

[m.hony]

What he said^
That's all it takes.
Get the Sway Jacket Brackets and pins with flip-over bail for the hitch head end, too.


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[16595]

I had this hitch provided by the dealer when we purchased our '05 31' Classic.

Had the pins bend far enough to fall out of the hitch on the road.

Manufacturer sent a replacement set. They too bent severely.

Happiest day was when I traded it for a Blue Ox and haven't looked back. I am very pleased with the Blue Ox.

Dwight