2 ball trailers

Now I am afraid to pull the trailer. I don't know how or what or who to get to check it. I bought the trailer new 4 years ago. It has the heavy duty(8,000 lb I believe) forged hitch. I have pulled this trailer with this ball probably 3,000-4,000 miles.

It was a lucky crash I guess. It only messed up the caster wheel on the jack and straightened(sp?) out the hooks on the safety chains before they came loose. I had 1 horse on and he wasn't hurt.

I tried to call the manufacturer to see if they had had any problems but they are out of business. Just my luck.

Any suggestions or advice?

Thanks, Greg

The response of the others was correct for the stamped type connectors like most utility and boat trailers have, but most livestock trailers I have seen use the forged connectors such as the Bulldog/Hammerblow units. These units use a hinged lip that swings in and is locked by a spring loaded pipe collar sometimes with a little lever with linkage to pull it back. If the trailer is stored outside the hinge mechanism will rust and act very stiff. When the unit is closed it will continue to squeeze in tighter as the collar is pushed further up on the mechanism. One possibility for your situation is that the hinged portion may have closed just enough for the collar to start over the end of the mechanism. There could have been just enough rust that the unit never completely closed down under the spring pressure on the collar. Later models often have a hole for a locking pin that can only be inserted if the collar is fully forward. It is most likely that you coupler appeared closed, but was not as tight as it could be. You might also check to see if your ball is worn. Many people never grease the inside of their couplers or the outside of their balls if either one is used long enough wear can occur. After verifying that your coupler is not defective it would not be a bad idea to purchase a new ball with a weight capacity to match your trailers rating (most 2� balls are rated for #5000). It would make your insurance agent very unhappy if you had another mishap and damage occurred and it was determined that the ball and or ballmount were not properly matched to the trailer rating. It would make someone else�s lawyer ecstatic to discover a mismatch as he prepared the lawsuit. Hope this Helps

JWC described my hitch quite well. I am now thinking that my ball is worn. I have had it for-well I don't really know-probably 20 years. I talked to 3 trailer places and my vehicle mechanic yesterday and that seems to be the consensus. It is the correct ball-or was before it got worn. No I have never greased the ball or coupler but I will start. I had the safety pin inserted but there is app 1/2" from the back of the collar to the pin when the collar is as far forward as possible. I stopped and looked at some new trailers and they are the same.

I did hit a pretty good hump at app. 50 mph in a 4 lane x 4 lane intersection when it came loose. But heck, I have had the trailer in some rough places.
I had already pulled it app. 8 miles before it came loose.

I am going to jack it up like IH suggested. Thanks
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I called the dealer that sold it to me and he said he had never heard of one having a problem. I have known him a good while and believe him.

I am going to pull it to the trailer dealership and measure, with calipers, anything I can and compare it to a new one. I hate to replace the hitch(unless it is the problem) because it is welded on and I worry that it may not get replaced exactly and make the trailer pull weird. I has the same style hitch(actually I believe it was the same brand of hitch-Bulldog) on my last 2 horse trailer and it was 20 years old with maybe 20,000 miles on it.

Again thanks and if you have any other ideas please let me know.

Greg