Ball won’t come off hitch

[PatLee]

Great thread.

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by Elizabeth28

Hoping someone is awake and can help. I am in my storage lot. I can’t get the ball to come up off the hitch.

Did you [the OP] get this sorted out?

Thanks,

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by kscherzi

I wonder if the OP got the trailer unhitched or instead spend the night in the storage yard?

I know the feeling. I had my electric jack fail with the coupler attached and raised with the truck. I couldn't uncouple. I could go up but not down, the crank went up but not down. No one answered their phones.

[OTRA15]

So what did you do to fix it?

Or maybe it is still coupled?

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by OTRA15

So what did you do to fix it?

Or maybe it is still coupled?

I found the dinky jack from the truck and all the wood I could find, stacked it under the A-frame to get the weight off the jack. Once the jack was unloaded, I could crank it down.....followed by a new Husky 5000

Funny side note is I was on my way to get warranty work done on the Airstream!

[OTRA15]

Thanks . . . ah, the lowly "dinky jack" . . .

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by OTRA15

Thanks . . . ah, the lowly "dinky jack" . . .

First, it's not easy to find. It's in a secret compartment under the back seat. Then it's got about ten pieces. It looks like it's made for a go cart, not a manly truck.
But it works.

[Elizabeth28]

Haha! That might have been a better idea. I was so frustrated. I do not weigh much so i don't have a lot of luck standing/jumping on hitch. The issue was the plastic coupler thing. I did not have this with the Bambi 16' I towed for 4 years before acquiring my new-to-me 27' 2020 Flying Clloud. I don't really get the coupler. I could not get it to raise up, but that's what needed to happen for the unhitch to be successful. I did have silicone spray, but nothing seemed to work to unstick the thing... until it unstuck. I have no idea how or why it did. Any tips appreciated.

[Elizabeth28]

I had already removed the sway bars.

[Elizabeth28]

Thanks. I had removed the sway bars. Issue was the plastic coupler thing, which I don't get.

[Elizabeth28]

Haha! Exactly where I was that night! I could not get the coupler to cooperate--then all of a sudden it did. I have no idea why. I definitely should have just gone to bed in the trailer, but instead got myself all frustrated, hungry, tired, etc. I would like to understand how those plastic couplers work, as I did not have one on the Bambi I used for four years before acquiring my 2020 27'.

[Elizabeth28]

Don, can you explain further about your tip for unlocking the Demco? A step-by-step for me on when to raise it. I was tired, hungry, frustrated, etc., but I could not raise/unlock the darn thing until all of a sudden I could. I had been raising, lowering, pulling forward a bit, etc., and I just don't recall the magic sequence that let me release the lock.

[AnnaBelle33]

I went through a similar situation. We were leaving a spot and the next SOB was waiting for me to pull out. I was hot, tired & hungry. I could not get the coupler down on the ball and lock. No matter what I tried, it wouldn’t do it. I’ve been hitching & camping my entire life and I looked like it was my first time. There was a slight downward angle to my truck which didn’t help. I pulled a little forward. I pushed a little back. Nothing.

My wife of 36 years who has been watching me hitch & unhitch travel trailers & 5th wheels since the beginning said “did you try just putting it in neutral”.

Put the truck in neutral and the truck moved a hair forward with the down angle and the coupler dropped right down on the ball and locked.

I guess my point is - slow down, go through the process in your head and the easy things will come to you.

Safe travels!!

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by Elizabeth28

Haha! Exactly where I was that night! I could not get the coupler to cooperate--then all of a sudden it did. I have no idea why.

Yep. I've been there.
I think it says, "I've had all the fun I can take for one day, I'll let her think she won."
Seriously, while it's off, grease the ball, then cover it with something so you don't get it on your clothes.

[eagletoo]

Liz28,
Give Josh Jaspers a call. Phone # is 1-800-543-3626. He is this forum’s Demco contact person. Very helpful when Demco issued a recall on their coupler back in 2020.

For your reading “enjoyment” - https://www.airforums.com/forums/f46...ch-201251.html

[GetawA-S]

Elizabeth28, I actually had the problem, very infrequently, on the older hitches. Tha Demco is the same concept, so I guess it’s possible for it to get jammed too.
The situation is that the internal part of the latch gets cocked against the ball somehow. You can pivot the external release all you want, but the inside part doesn’t move. When that’s the case, you can slide the release mechanism forward at its base toward the touch with the release lever down (locked) maybe half an inch, lift, and voila, you are free!
I’m sitting in a Walmart parking lot with the trailer hitched, so I can’t experiment to see how much play the Demco has. Like I said it’s a rare occurrence with a subtle fix.

[Elizabeth28]

Bruce, thanks for the Josh contact and the link. Watching the video was very helpful. Don, thanks for the step-by-step. I'm going to keep it handy in case this happens again. And thanks to all for the helpful comments. I learned a lot, as always.
Elizabeth

[GetawA-S]

Elizabeth, you are welcome. I just noticed that the ever helpful autocorrect made “truck” into “touch”. I hope this wasn’t too confusing.
Now that I finished driving and got in a bit of beach time, I had a chance to experiment with my uncoupled hitch. With the latch down, it has about 3/8” play above, with a similar amount of give inside the ball housing. Less than the older style hitches, but precise enough to avoid jams? IDK...
Anyway, I’m glad things worked out.

[Demco]

Hello everybody, Josh from Demco here. I just ran across this post and thought I would hopefully try to help clear up what is happening when the black handle will not flip up and allow you guys to unlatch. The Demco coupler works a bit different than the traditional, for lack of a better term think of it like a Chinese Finger trap (funny description for a coupler yes I know but it works!) When you get a scenario where the handle will not lift it typically means that there is some pressure pushing against the latch mechanism. There can also be upward pressure lifting the coupler (from the jack ) that can also lock the coupler up.
For the coupler to open you pull the handle up ( Green arrow ) this Slides a metal block up (ball keeper) and behind the the hitch ball (red arrow). The metal block rides against the angled back wall of the coupler. (Green Line). If there is pressure from the ball ( yellow arrow) pushing the hitch ball against ball keeper it locks it in place. The more pressure the harder it gets locked in place.
Typically speaking just pulling forward or putting the vehicle in neutral will do the trick. This brings the ball the furthest away from the keeper and allows it to slide freely. That being said things like slope and twist can make thing more challenging. Sometimes removing some of the tongue weight and then pulling the vehicle forward works too. Hopefully the picture helps make things clearer if I did not explain it very well .

Couple other things - #1 The black handle- Don't be afraid to break it! It is tougher than you think, don't be afraid to really get after it and pull it will flex a lot. If you do manage to break it its covered under warranty. Just call me up ( 1-800-543-3626) ask for Josh and i will get you a new one. Last piece of handle info, you do not need to the handle to use the coupler. It's sole purpose is to open the coupler. It does not make the coupler any less safe or useable if it is missing. If you break it, don't sweat it.

#2 Here is my email address.... joshua.jaspers@demco-products.com. I don't typically browse the air forums site at 9pm at home, but there would be a chance that I would see an email notification. If I see it and I am available I would be happy to respond and help if possible.

[GCinSC2]

Josh,

Well done good info.

Gary