Receiver hitch Question?
 

I purchased an 04 F250 and need to purchase the receiver hitch for the tow package that came from the factory. I know I need to measure the drop on both the truck and the boat, but I do not have access to the boat & Trailer at this time. Can anyone give me a general idea of what size drop I may need on the ball mount? The trailer is a South Florida 12,000 model that takes a 2 5/16 ball. Tralier carries a 31 Sonic.

Thanks in advance.

Fords are a bit higher than most,, I know my f-150 super-screw is... I use a 3 inch drop and it works fine for my boat and jet-ski trailer, a 6 inch drop is a bit too much.. Sounds like you have a triple axle trailer with smaller diameter probably 14's, so a 3-4 inch would do it..

A general rule of thumb for receiver ball heights is around 18-21 inches. Just measure up from the ground to the top of the ball. I would set it as clsoe to 19 or 20 as possible.

You might want to try one of these.Cushoined hitches .
I'm getting one for my F350. It should give you the drop you need.

The 750 RT looks like the way to go.

I'm not towing with a Ford, but an '01 Chevy dually and I have the very top of the ball height set at 28". I think you would need to look at the length of the trailer and the amount of "sag" the tongue weight puts on the truck to be exact. I use the old three ball adjustable height hitch so I can change to what ever I need to. The last time I saw them for sale was in Overton's for around $200 w/locking pins.
Robert

St31 there is also a set up called the quik hitch see if you can find it. it folds out and adjustable up and down , then folds back up and hides with the receiver will see if I can find a pic to post.

I have 2000 350, just go buy one of those 3 ball adjustable receivers, I have 4 trailers I tow and not one of them uses the same hitch. So I have a 5 gal. bucket with 5 of them in it ( one is just for a shackle for pulling stuff).

I use an adjustable hitch with 3 balls on it. I believe it has about 12" of vertical adjustment. I know the company that made it was called Roto-eze but I'm not sure they are still around anymore. Overton sells a similar one from Hitch-rite for $240

here

I had to turn my reciever with the 3" offset upside down for more height to get the trailer to set level.

'01 250SD, Eagle trailer, 32' boat.

Playn,
How'd you do that? I've been sitting here for 30 minutes trying to get that same link to post! Guess you can tell how computer literate I am!

st31,
That's the ball mount that I would get, it's the one that I use. I've been using it for years with no trouble.

Robert

Ditto....this will get you real close in most cases.

Buck

Call this number for a catalog.... Everything you need for trailering items for your truck... 70 page catalog of hitches, mounts and receivers and good prices

1 800 weaverd 932 8373.

I got the putnam adjustable ball mount for m f350

10 inch of drop or raise and 10,000lb capacity.

They have the any configuration you can think of.

Nobody has mentioned this, but I think the largest receiver you can get from Ford is a class III.(At least that's how it was when I bought my 2002 F350 duallie.) Pull it off and sell it to someone with a jet ski. Then go to a hitch shop and get a Titan (made by Reese I think). It's a class V.

My 2000 350 dually 4x4 has a class V and it came on it.

I have seen a few SuperDutys with a Class 5 hitch on them from the factory, but not many. Your truck may be one of the lucky ones.

Do me a favor and check something on your hitch. See what the WC rating is on it. If the WC rating is not at least 10k then you don't have a Class 5 hitch. Ford, Chevy, and Dodge all three do this and I don't know why. A lot of people see the words "Class V" on their hitch and automatically assume they have a 10k hitch. Not the case. All of the Class III hitches I sell and install say "Class V" on them, yet their WC rating is 5-6k.


The words "Class V" on a hitch does not determine the rating of it. Please everyone look at the WC rating on them.

Buck

My truck did come from Canada if that would make a difference. I think it says 12500 or 15000 on it. I will look tomorrow. I had a pretty close call pulling my 42 Sonic witch is about 16000# with trailer, boat was 14600 with half gas. the trailer got messed up but the hitch was fine.

Robert, I sent you a PM

Troutly....I stand corrected. You're right, they do say
V-5. My bad.

You would think I do this for a living or something wouldn't you? :rolleyes:

I just see A LOT of people think they have a Class 5 hitch just because they read that on their hitch. Not the case.

Buck

Ditto

Thanks everyone for all of the commments. I will have to check later this afternoon to make sure what the rating is on the hitch that came with the truck.