Hitch -- leave on or take off?

[ROBERT CROSS]

snip....." I guess I never have a problem hitting my shins but I do wipe off the grease off the ball as my daughter has rubbed her pant leg against it and left a nice grease spot."

I cover the Boat ball...

Bob
🇺🇸

[Loden]

In the Sate of Texas it is illegal to leave the hitch mounted. If you are rear ended with your hitch mounted you will be at fault. You can also be ticketed.

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by Life is a Highway

A great idea I just returned from Lowes with the pipe to make up two.

Thanks!

Great! I glued a regular cap on one end and glued a threaded cap fitting on the other. So I can screw on one end cap. A little acetone on a rag takes the printing off.
After I lived with them for a while, I added a handle in the middle attached with large cable ties. It makes them easier to hook and move around. The bars slide out easily.

[Silverpuller]

Originally Posted by ROBERT CROSS

...it is secured with a locking pin.

HaHa is much too heavy to screw around with with..🥴



Bob

[emoji631]

Use of the safety cone is a simple, and terrific idea!

[Riggs1963]

Labalope, Can you tell me what mudflaps you got? I had a set on my 2500 gasser and the muffler about melted/burned it up. I now have a Duramax and am curious what you use.
Thanks,
Bill

[Countryboy59]

I got rear ended in my Silverado with the hitch ball on long ago. Not only was I Not at fault and Not ticketed, it prevented the other driver from leaving the scene as he could not pull free of my pickup no matter how he tried.

I leave it off, however. It’s technically not legal and I just know I will walk into it.

[JCWDCW]

Some add a receiver as in GMFLs post or some like myself just lift the.ball into the trailer hitch and snap the locking lever down to hold it in place
This can be easily done right after you lift the hitch off the ball and pull forward just enough to be able to slide the shank out of the TV receiver. You already have to lift the receiver so just stow it in the trailer hitch
This way the grease on the ball is protected and not exposed to your pant legs
JCW

[Bbelk]

Originally Posted by Loden

In the Sate of Texas it is illegal to leave the hitch mounted. If you are rear ended with your hitch mounted you will be at fault. You can also be ticketed.

This is just wrong.

https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/ne...lling-anything

[Bbelk]

If I am staying less than a week, I just leave that hernia inducing chunk of steel on the truck. The blood from peoples shins washes off easily. If I am somewhere where it is more likely to be hit (ie backed in over a sidewalk) I have covered it with orange leveling legos.

[r carl]

Originally Posted by stevejones

Hi all,

When you are On The Road, as you stop here and there, do you remove your hitch and store it until it is time to go? We have an equalizer hitch which is a lot of steel. Some guys at the dealership when we picked up the trailer cautioned us to remove the hitch when not traveling as it was a target for scrap metal hunters. Another reason to remove it is to save your knees from bumping into it...

If you remove it, how do you store it?

Thanks,

Steve

If it blocks any part of your license plate I would take it off.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Originally Posted by Loden

In the Sate of Texas it is illegal to leave the hitch mounted. If you are rear ended with your hitch mounted you will be at fault. You can also be ticketed.

Lone Star myth...

Show the DMV reg for any State...I thought Florida had one but was proven rong. 🤔
How many commercial vehicles do you see with their pintle's hanging out.😂

Bob
🇺🇸

[ThomasHoward]

I am aware of people being ticketed in BC and Alberta when not trailering and leaving their hitch assembly attached or having a bumper mounted trailer ball attached. But the actual infraction was for having a clear view of the license plate impeded.
In many cases our hitch assemblies do not block the view of the license plate therefore no real issue.

[StreaminGeo]

Off ASAP and stored in the TV.

[Colossus]

Originally Posted by Countryboy59

I got rear ended in my Silverado with the hitch ball on long ago. Not only was I Not at fault and Not ticketed, it prevented the other driver from leaving the scene as he could not pull free of my pickup no matter how he tried.

I leave it off, however. It’s technically not legal and I just know I will walk into it.

Same thing happened in my Silverado, no frame damage, not at fault, and no ticket. Therefore, I continue to leave my hitch in.

Also, it’s helps in close quarters like drive thru’s and school lines. Twice this year I’ve had someone bump me only to find out it caused them minor scratches and absolutely no damage to my vehicle or ox.

[az-streamer]

At home the hitch is stored in the garage with other gear. When camping and the AS is unhooked I give it the boot.

[Bill M.]

I generally leave mine on for the summer. In MA the caravan leader told us to take it off because of a law so we did. I keep a rubber cover on the ball.

[sparkymark]

I leave mine in and cover ball with a drink kooky! Can’t legally cover your license plate-including plastic clear lenses )

[Steamy1]

I remove the hitch from the receiver, then position the bars on the L brackets on the trailer, lift up the hitch and secure the ball into the trailer hitch. I lock the hasp and place a safety cone at the end of the hitch.

Not only is it now off of the vehicle, but it is off the ground and locked onto the trailer without purchasing and welding another receiver on the frame.

[rucos]

I re attach mine to the trailer ....spin it underneath ...double lock it .
Works great ...its out of the way and off the ground and you'd need cutting wheel to remove and steal everything

[pteck]

I'll generally leave my hitch on while on trips. Including the WD bars on and just pushing them parallel to the rear bumper. I'll even leave them on if going on off-road side trips too, unless it's going to be a really dusty excursion.




The Equilizer hitch is pretty easy to manage. No backbreaking weight here. I added a "handle" available from Home Depot that I always leave on. It comes off super easy too, but I never take it off.