lowering ball hitch?

[Pete Masterson]

My hitch is also too high. In part, it depends on your tow vehicle.
The [Blue Ox] base plate for my Toyota Camry is rather low as
compared to some of the other base plate's I've seen on other vehicles.

The hitch receiver on the BB is, perhaps, higher than some other
coaches. (I don't know for sure as I haven't gone around measuring
them...)

A drop receiver worked for me... I first got an 8" inch drop (based
on what I measured when the coach was aired up with the toad in
position to get a level tow bar). Once the drop receiver (I have the
Aventa LX tow bar) was in place, I realized that it was _way_ too low
to allow for sufficient up-down movement of the rear of the coach
(and the 42' model has something like 10-11 feet of rear overhang).
So I ordered a 6" drop receiver and a (Blue Ox BX88198) roller hitch
protector.

In use, this seemed to work fairly well. The roller protector
"protected" the hitch on a couple of minor dips (at low speed). I
thought I was satisfied.

Then, while in Texas (where there is a _lot_ of drainage issues), I
was exiting a shop that had done some work on my car. I encountered a
particularly deep 'dip' in the driveway. (It was not the same one I
used to enter the property). I had dumped the tag axle to assist with
some tight maneuvers earlier in the property and I'd forgotten to air
it up again. (Can you guess where I'm going with this?) As I
accelerated to get across the busy road, the rear slammed against the
pavement quite forcefully. It gouged the pavement, completely
destroyed the roller protector, and bent the drop receiver beyond
use. Fortunately, we had decided we'd hook-up the car on a side
street clear of the shop, so the toad wasn't attached.

In the aftermath, the drop receiver wasn't usable, so I put the
Aventa directly into the coach receiver (that didn't appear to be
damaged by the incident). I've since towed the car 3000 miles in this
configuration without incident.

So, my observation is that a drop receiver (or drop ball hitch) may
be a problem, especially if you have a lot of rear overhang. Even
though the towing geometry isn't ideal, the system works reasonably
well without the drop hitch. (I will get a 4" drop receiver before
our next trip, however. This will bring the towing geometry to be
more inline with the level +/- 2 inches specification -- even though
it will be perhaps 4" high instead of 2"...). I don't think I'll
bother with the roller in the future. The weight of the BB is so much
that any serious strike will overwhelm it anyway (and it just reduces
the clearance).

I have an 8" drop receiver available if anyone wants it... Say $50
+shipping (that's about 1/2 price), or make an offer. Let me know....

By the way ... I've seen some set-ups installed at the local
CampingWorld that seem to be _way_ out of level (and spec). I'd
expect that CW would try to sell a drop hitch, if they could get
(scare) the customer into it...

I would observe that a ball-hitch may be (much) less forgiving to
poor hitch geometry than the direct-receiver type tow bar I have.

I can't comment on the type of factory hitch you may have on your
'82. On my coach, it's welded onto a cross member that runs between
the main frame rails. It appears to be quite robust. My end caps are
fiberglass, so the receiver just sticks through the "bumper" and is
not connected to it in any way.

Pete Masterson
'95 Blue Bird Wanderlodge WBDA 42
El Sobrante CA
aeonix1@...



On Aug 25, 2007, at 8:51 AM, Rose Mary wrote:
> <snip> Problem, the bird's hitch is too high and the
> ball is also about 2" extra high. <snip>
> There is about a foot rise, blue ox recommends only 7" max. How can I
> get a drop hitch type setup.....I have a welder but my skills with it
> are minimal and physically not up to it right now.
>
> Have to head to Bend tomorrow for a 2 week job then was supposed to go
> to Washington for another. Bend is about a 4 hour drive and they told
> me it would be okay.....don't want to damage anything....#@!#
> I get so tired of incompetency, anyway with all you folks towing,
> didn't think it was such a problem with the bird. Is this hitch a
> factory setup? Heavy channel iron welded to the frame and bolted to
> the bumper?
>
> Rose Mary
> 82 FC 35



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