mismatched balls and couplers

[22E6441]

I heard a guy saying that he pulled a trailer with a 2" coupler on a 1 7/8 ball.

Is that not just asking for trouble, or is it safe for light loads? It was just a 14' he was pulling too.

 

[nlain]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

Asking for trouble, even if he cannot lift the coupler off of the ball the bounce up and down, fore and aft, is eventually going to loosen the latch and away the boat goes.

 

[Rowroy]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

I have inadvertently pulled a 2" receiver trailer with a 1 7/8" ball in the past. While it was without incident, I would NEVER intentionally do something like that. In my case, it was totally my fault for taking someone else's word . .. "Sure, that's a 2" ball. Trust me!" . . . . yeah, right.

 

[204 Escape]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

Not very safe idea, in my book !!!!!!!

 

[boat1010]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

He may get away with it for a little while, but when he hits the right dip or bump he will understand why there are different sizes and they should not be mixed.

 

[Whoopbass]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

I have done it on accident and its easy to do if the trailer or ball isn't marked clearly.
There is no reason why two sizes should be manufactured that are so similar in size.

 

[bowman316]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

it is annoying that every other trailer is one size or the other. They should just pick one size.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

Most people have never looked "under" the coupler at the adjustment nut. That nut can be snugged up to allow a 2-inch couple to hang onto a 1-7/8 ball. Without adjusting the nut there is a possibility of a disconnect since that nut may not be adjusted correctly for a two-inch ball either. A properly adjusted 2-inch coupler is not likely to come off a 1-7/8 inch ball. The reason there are different ball sizes is because of load capacity. On a lightly loaded trailer (one that has a load less than the ball capacity) a two inch coupler will hang on. Recommended? Of course not. Would I take a wager? You becha!

 

[redone4x4]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

i have accumulated 3 draw bars now, one with 1 7/8, 2", and 2 5/16...its a pain, but now i have all three and can just swap em out when needed. I have accidentally pulled a 2 5/16" coupler w a 2" ball on accident to move down the street, and sure enough it popped off hitting the dip at the end of the driveway.

 

[reelfishin]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

I've been out and about and found the need to tow something home and only had my 1 7/8" ball with me, I simply tightened down the coupler adjustment till it fit snug and headed home. It wasn't right but it sure beat driving 20 miles back to the house to get my other hitch, or buying a new one on the road someplace. Besides, in more than one case, it was first come, first to get it with a free boat or trailer, leaving may have lost me the deal.

I do now carry several sizes in my truck, and car.
I have an old garden tractor I use around the yard just for moving trailers, its got an old rusty 1 7/8" ball on the back, I hang any size coupler on it, so long as there's tongue weight, they don't go anywhere. I wouldn't try that on the street though.

 

[boat1010]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

Class I trailers typically mate to a 1 7/8-inch trailer ball, while Class II and III trailers match up to a 2-inch ball. Class IV trailers usually require the even larger 2 5/16-inch size. Never mount a trailer to a vehicle with a smaller sized ball as this will both damage the coupler and cause a safety risk.

This was taken from an article from Summit trailers.

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

Also pulled a 2-5/16's trailer with a 2" ball one time unknowingly. Luckily it was a light load (new furniture) and all loaded at the front. I happended to be looking at the trailer the next day and saw the size stamped into the metal. I bought a new hitch ball the next time I used it, lol.

I think just using a 2 5/16's for everything would be just fine instead of having the different size ball/couplers. Leave the weight restriction to the type of hitch and make the rest universal.

 

[reelfishin]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

Standardizing things now would only make it a real mess when dealing with older trailers.
Quite often the size of the ball required was determined by what size tubing the tongue is made of and what size coupler could be had at the time it was last replaced. I've had trouble finding 2" ball size couplers to fit smaller trailers. Usually I have no choice but to use a 1 7/8" coupler on 2" wide tongues. I had to do it on my one tandem, I couldn't find a 2" coupler to fit the 2x6" tongue tubing.

The same thing went for my old tandem axle boat trailer, it used a 4x6" tongue, but was only a 4,000 lb rated trailer. All I could find to fit that was the larger 2 5/16" size coupler. I was told that most of those were built with surge brakes, which used the 2" sized ball. This one was built without brakes.

 

[Shizzy]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

I heard a guy saying that he pulled a trailer with a 2" coupler on a 1 7/8 ball.

Is that not just asking for trouble, or is it safe for light loads? It was just a 14' he was pulling too.

when I was 16 I used to drive my 25 year old car that I paid $500 for at speeds over 100MPH. I never crashed, but in all reality it wasnt a great idea.....

 

[22E6441]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

when I was 16 I used to drive my 25 year old car that I paid $500 for at speeds over 100MPH. I never crashed, but in all reality it wasnt a great idea.....

hahahahaha.....

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

Actually, standardizing things now would just make it better for the future. It has nothing to do with old trailers, it just mean that the aftermarket would cater to refurbishing older trailers, and all new trailers would use the same standard. It's not that difficult. If only everything were standardized: like bolts on car (either use all US or all metric, quit mixing them); or plumbing - that's a nightmare.

 

[bowman316]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

I have never had the bolt problem with metric and standard. I can use a standard socket set on any bolt, even metric. I never got that, they seem the same to me.

 

[redone4x4]

Re: mismatched balls and couplers

Also pulled a 2-5/16's trailer with a 2" ball one time unknowingly. Luckily it was a light load (new furniture) and all loaded at the front. I happended to be looking at the trailer the next day and saw the size stamped into the metal. I bought a new hitch ball the next time I used it, lol.

I think just using a 2 5/16's for everything would be just fine instead of having the different size ball/couplers. Leave the weight restriction to the type of hitch and make the rest universal.

I agree with this, the larger ball would cover the smaller AND larger trailers, all in one shot. Doubt it will happen anytime soon though.