Safety chains...you probably already knew this...

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richg99 said:
https://www.wired2fish.com/boats-trucks-electronics/how-to-hook-up-safety-chains-trailering-know-how/

Good post.
And the same rule applies if you have safety cables like me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYZLCrETRDQ
 
i always thought safety chains were there to stop your trailer from being disengaged from the tow vehicle and becoming an uncontrolled missile and killing other motorists.
 
bcbouy said:
i always thought safety chains were there to stop your trailer from being disengaged from the tow vehicle and becoming an uncontrolled missile and killing other motorists.
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And they do do that. But as long as you have them there, one might as well do something with them that would prevent damage as well. Crossing them, as demonstrated in the video, catches the tongue and coupler before it gets damaged, or worse, caught by a road surface imperfection, thus possibly breaking the chains that are the last failure point.

Roger
 
I have had a trailer pop off the ball before, I sure was glad I had crossed those chains. It helps minimize or eliminate damage to the trailer and tow vehicle. If I had not crossed the chains there would have been too much slack and the trailer tongue would have hit the truck causing who knows what kind of damage. As it was, the event was not more than pulling over and hooking it back onto the ball. And cleaning my shorts :oops:
 
Don't youse guys lock your trailer couplers down? I do ... and I see no way that a ball could ever pop out ... as the 'cup' or locking part that rotates up underneath the ball won't allow it to pass by.
 
DaleH said:
Don't youse guys lock your trailer couplers down? I do ... and I see no way that a ball could ever pop out ... as the 'cup' or locking part that rotates up underneath the ball won't allow it to pass by.
The only way I see it coming apart is that the coupler is not adjusted properly or an external excessive force acts upon the trailer... but it does happen

Sent from my SM-G903W using Tapatalk
 
DaleH said:
Don't youse guys lock your trailer couplers down? I do ... and I see no way that a ball could ever pop out ... as the 'cup' or locking part that rotates up underneath the ball won't allow it to pass by.

I pad lock mine.
 
Back when I had my "pop-off" I had one of those old-fashioned Screw-Crank-Down couplers. Even that wouldn't have come off, except that I was dealing with having both wrists re-built by surgery.

The surgery hadn't happened yet. I simply didn't have the wrist strength to crank the coupler down hard enough. My Bad!

The Flip-lever type can be adjusted, correctly or incorrectly. I've had them come almost too tight to fit, and also too loose to do their job. The big nut underneath has to be set right.

rich
 
DaleH said:
Don't youse guys lock your trailer couplers down? I do ... and I see no way that a ball could ever pop out ... as the 'cup' or locking part that rotates up underneath the ball won't allow it to pass by.
If the part that actually couples, the part that cams over breaks, locking or not it will pop off. I do quite a bit of welding and I have had several come in my shop wanting that particular piece welded. I always refuse to weld them. I tell them it would be better and not that much more expensive to replace the whole coupler.
 
I did already know about crossing the chains below the hitch. But after watching the video I realized my safety chains have too much slop. I need to shorten them some.

Thanks for posting.
 
Out West they look for chains dragging on the ground. They start forest fires and you will get a ticket for it.
 
Stumpalump said:
Out West they look for chains dragging on the ground. They start forest fires and you will get a ticket for it.
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I think I'm going to remain skeptical about this.
A) How is anybody going to prove this happens?
B) It seems to me that a spark from a dragging chain is much too short-lived to make it to anything combustible, let alone actually heat it up enough to ignite.

But then, there's many government types that don't want me to confuse them with common sense or facts.

Roger
 
GTS225 said:
Stumpalump said:
Out West they look for chains dragging on the ground. They start forest fires and you will get a ticket for it.
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I think I'm going to remain skeptical about this.
A) How is anybody going to prove this happens?
B) It seems to me that a spark from a dragging chain is much too short-lived to make it to anything combustible, let alone actually heat it up enough to ignite.

But then, there's many government types that don't want me to confuse them with common sense or facts.

Roger

Are you kidding me? Campers, boats, construction trailers and especially horse trailers with hay on the floor get set on fire from sparking chains all the time. The rangers out here watch every boat that leaves the park looking for dragging chains. Your boat or camper burning is no big deal but when you pull over and it sets the woods on fire you have a problem. Do not let chains drag. I like the twist method to shorten them as shown in the vid or Ill just criss cross them a few times.
 
GTS225 said:
Stumpalump said:
Out West they look for chains dragging on the ground. They start forest fires and you will get a ticket for it.
*****************************************************************************************

I think I'm going to remain skeptical about this.
A) How is anybody going to prove this happens?
B) It seems to me that a spark from a dragging chain is much too short-lived to make it to anything combustible, let alone actually heat it up enough to ignite.

But then, there's many government types that don't want me to confuse them with common sense or facts.

Roger


Its true. There are thousands of citable offenses in the California Vehicle Code. Most of the time it would be an opportunity to educate rather than cite. It would fall under CVC 29004(c) with a side of the catch all CVC 22350.

Will
 
DaleH said:
Don't youse guys lock your trailer couplers down? I do ... and I see no way that a ball could ever pop out ... as the 'cup' or locking part that rotates up underneath the ball won't allow it to pass by.

There are more than one type of ball hitch. Some are adjustable and some are not. Adjustable hitches can be so far out of adjustment they can come loose. Parts can break also. You can also have a ball/coupler that is rated too low for the load it is pulling. There are many ways for the ball/coupler to fail.
 

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