Tightening hitch/lug nuts

[Cathi]

We have had RV places tighten bolts on the hitch after finding parts loose (not the hitch into the receiver but other parts). We still find that it tends to have parts that are not really tight. Do others have this?

We have had a shop loosen our spare since we could not get it out ourselves if necessary. Do you all use a torque wrench on your trailer wheels each time out? What if the lug nuts are too tight? is that good because your wheels are sure to stay on? Or bad?

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by Cathy

..... We still find that it tends to have parts that are not really tight. Do others have this?

It is good practice to make sure the ball is tight in the adapter. You can buy a large wrench it fit it relatively cheaply. Turn the adapter 90 degrees so you can use your body weight.

We have had a shop loosen our spare since we could not get it out ourselves if necessary. Do you all use a torque wrench on your trailer wheels each time out? What if the lug nuts are too tight? is that good because your wheels are sure to stay on? Or bad?

I don't use a torque wrench, but I'm an experienced mechanic. A torque wrench is a good idea.

Too tight is bad;

• You can't get the lug nuts loose when you need to
• It damages the threads
• It can warp the brake drum

[rabbit]

Lots of things in life are governed by a customary and accepted but unmeasured standard. All wrenches are torque wrenches in the sense that the length or lever arm of the wrench limits the application of exertion which can be applied to force one inclined plane against another (the threads of threaded fasteners). An automotive T-wrench with four arms and four lug-nut sizes is one of these. I have no idea how many foot pounds a small gorilla can get out of one but certainly enuf to get a stud to snap every once in a while. Considering it's sized for use by an average human being on a very specific job, it's the right tool for the job. When you hear the nut squeak you're on the edge of thread galling or deformation. Threads can be overtightened by air wrenches on a high setting; threads can be seized by oxidation welding. Knowing precisely how much force should be applied will not put the tune in your head but if you want to invest in a torque wrench to assure precision, that's OK.

The usual cures for the problem of vibration loosening in threaded fasteners are lock washers, serrated washers, jam or nylok nuts, liquid threadlocker preparations, safety wiring in extremely critical equipment. Most of the stuff I see loosen on trailers (and automobiles) are self tapping blind fasteners (screws) or small machine bolts retained by nuts of minimal bearing such as Tinnerman nuts.

jack

[Bob Miller]

I suggest stopping by a well known local tire shop and ask them to tighten your lug nuts to the proper torque. Properly torqued lug nuts seldom come loose. Can't say I have ever had it happen in over 50 years of driving...

[Cathi]

Thanks, guys. We do have a torque wrench and I was wondering if people always used theirs every time they go out. And if a shop had put on the lug nuts so tightly that the owner could not budge them, then should they be loosened. The shops seem to have a bad habit of tightening them so that the owners cannot get them off.

If someone were to put a torque wrench on a lug nut that cannot be budged, I guess he can tell if there is the minimum torque such as 90 ft./lbs. but I also guess that the torque could be past the max. No way to tell.

I take it from what you are saying, Tom and Bob, that it is better to have any lug nuts that won't budge loosened, and torque them ourselves, than to wonder what the torque number is and whether it might exceed the max. If your properly torqued lug nuts have not come off in 50 years, well, that must be the way to go!

Jack, we will have to have a look at the washers. We thought of buying one of those great big wrenches for those bolts but it didn't seem worth it.

[rabbit]

I missed or overlooked your reference to the ball/stinger connection in you first post, Cathy. I agree that big honkin box end (what Walmart peddles with their Reese stuff) is OK. Except for one Reese stinger which has a hex depression which locks the base of the ball on the upper side of the plate, you actually need two wrenches--one on the wrench flats above the plate and one on the hex nut below. And I personally haven't seen many 2" balls which don't have a 1" lock washer on the threaded shank. U-Haul usually installs a ball on their rental stingers which has a shank pierced for a cotter key below the hex nut, so I assume they think a ball COULD get loose. I've found that a pair of large pipe wrenches works just fine for installing balls on stingers unless you're a little worried about denting the pretty chrome plating. I think Tom gives you good advice to put the stinger in the receiver sideways and then install and tighten the ball as there's a bit less wrench juggling against gravity that way.

[Raz]

Hi Cathy, I carry a breaker bar ( $15 sears) and socket(s) for those overtightened lug nuts. Even when properly torqued, lug nuts can freeze up. Add a piece of pipe and there shouldn't be much you can't undo. Raz

[Francesca Knowles]

Originally Posted by Cathy

We have had RV places tighten bolts on the hitch after finding parts loose (not the hitch into the receiver but other parts). We still find that it tends to have parts that are not really tight. Do others have this?

If you're talking about the coupler itself being "loose" on the ball:

Couplers do occasionally need tightening, and I recommend that you learn to do so yourself...also, it should be kept greased, not only for the preservation of its own parts but for that of the ball.
And by the way- both the ball and the coupler can wear out and may eventually need to be replaced (or rebuilt, for some couplers).

Francesca

[Cathi]

Raz, thank you and we will look for that. Expect to get it.

Francesca, I should have put up a photo. We have an adjustable hitch with plates and bolts that seem to become loose. I will keep your comments in mind though on the coupler. No, thank goodness, it's not loose.

[gmw photos]

Originally Posted by Cathy

Raz, thank you and we will look for that. Expect to get it.

Francesca, I should have put up a photo. We have an adjustable hitch with plates and bolts that seem to become loose. I will keep your comments in mind though on the coupler. No, thank goodness, it's not loose.

Cathy,
A photo of the hitch and bolts that are coming loose would help us make some solid recommendations to cure that problem. Done correctly, with the right fasteners, torqued to the proper specs, they should remain tight in normal use. In other words, if they are coming loose, something is incorrect and needs to be addressed for obvious safety reasons.

[Raz]

Originally Posted by gmw photos

Cathy,
A photo of the hitch and bolts that are coming loose would help us make some solid recommendations to cure that problem. Done correctly, with the right fasteners, torqued to the proper specs, they should remain tight in normal use. In other words, if they are coming loose, something is incorrect and needs to be addressed for obvious safety reasons.

Very true. They should not be coming loose. Also a drop or two of this stuff can't hurt.

[honda03842]

The first time we purchased tires for our motorhome, the installer asked us to bring the motorhome back after driving 25 miles so he could re-tighten the tire's lug nuts.

As a result of this little lesson, we re-check our bolts. As well we regularly (monthly) check the tightness of the bolts holding our hitch and ball.

[gmw photos]

Not to overstate all this, but for safety sake, proper torque values for bolts is critical. Under torque obviously can and likely will result in parts coming loose. Over torque can stretch a fastener in a way that can stress it to the point of failing.
Regarding some specifics, consider these torque values on my BlueOx swaypro. The cross bolls that holds the hitch head to the stinger are 3/4" grade 8 bolts. BlueOx specs these to be tightened to 300 lb-ft.
Now consider the ball itself. The ball I use has a 1 and 1/4" shaft. 450 lb-ft is the specified torque. You read that right....and THAT is a lot of torque. Most folks don't have a torque wrench that goes that high, so you should take it to a shop that can tighten these to the correct value. I'm lucky that my son's best friend is a heavy truck mechanic, so he has "big tools". If you don't know someone with the tools, swing by a truck repair shop. Many times these guys will do this for you for free....or you can toss them a $20 bill, and everyone is happy.

Raz's point about using loctite is a good one. Specifically he shows us "242" which is what you would want to use.

And for sure, Norm's point about regularly checking nuts and bolts for proper torque certainly falls under the category of routine maint. I crawl around under our trucks periodically and check things like the bolts that hold the hitches to the frame, etc.

[rgrugg]

So the lesson here is get your nuts tight and keep them tight. Right?

[gmw photos]

Originally Posted by rgrugg

So the lesson here is get your nuts tight and keep them tight. Right?

Tight nuts are happy nuts. Or something like that. I think.

[Cathi]

We will have another look at it at the storage place next week. It could be that there is some play in a plate, not any nuts or bolts. We had an RV guy seemingly putting all of his weight on a couple of wrenches last time to get it tight. We will try to see better exactly what is loose and how. I thought that maybe a plate could be loose due to the way they are made and their function but maybe not. We will get back on it. Thank you! We will get some of that loctite, too.

[Francesca Knowles]

"Plates"?

I'm really unclear as to what kind of hitch we're talking about here, or even if it's the part on the tow vehicle or the part on the trailer!

Is this about a weight-distributing hitch? And if so, are the " loose parts/plates" on the tow vehicle, on the trailer, or part of the hitch that goes into the receiver????

Francesca

[Jared J]

FYI, you can get plastic pointers that go over your lugnuts after they're torqued. You point them at the next nut. If it's not pointing at the next nut, you know it moved.

[Cathi]

Originally Posted by gmw photos

Not to overstate all this, but for safety sake, proper torque values for bolts is critical. Under torque obviously can and likely will result in parts coming loose. Over torque can stretch a fastener in a way that can stress it to the point of failing.
Regarding some specifics, consider these torque values on my BlueOx swaypro. The cross bolls that holds the hitch head to the stinger are 3/4" grade 8 bolts. BlueOx specs these to be tightened to 300 lb-ft.
Now consider the ball itself. The ball I use has a 1 and 1/4" shaft. 450 lb-ft is the specified torque. You read that right....and THAT is a lot of torque. Most folks don't have a torque wrench that goes that high, so you should take it to a shop that can tighten these to the correct value. I'm lucky that my son's best friend is a heavy truck mechanic, so he has "big tools". If you don't know someone with the tools, swing by a truck repair shop. Many times these guys will do this for you for free....or you can toss them a $20 bill, and everyone is happy.

Raz's point about using loctite is a good one. Specifically he shows us "242" which is what you would want to use.

And for sure, Norm's point about regularly checking nuts and bolts for proper torque certainly falls under the category of routine maint. I crawl around under our trucks periodically and check things like the bolts that hold the hitches to the frame, etc.

George, thank you for this information as I believe the cross bolts you refer to are the possible problem, the bolts on the vertical shank. Our number is also 300 ft./lbs. The torque for our hitch ball is 450 ft./lbs. if a 1 1/2" washer (250 ft./lbs. if 1" washer).

Our instructions say that for the 300, if the torque wrench does not go to that, then torque to 150 ft./lbs. and turn an additional 1/4 turn. So we can probably do that. Then we will see ourselves if there is any loosening after that. Hope not but if there is we can go to Plan B, whatever that is. So we do not have to rely on what they might do at a shop for now and will check it ourselves.

The "plates" I referred to are under those bolts (between the bolts and the shank) and there is no labelling on any diagrams I have seen to know the correct term.

Thanks for pointing out those numbers as that was what we need to address.

Francesca, it is possible that there is a WDH component that is also a problem but we are looking at the adjustable hitch bolts first because that is what the shops were tightening and what we had thought was the problem.

Thanks all. We will work on it.

[Jared J]

I'm not entirely understanding, so I might be off on this. I had something similar occurring on my car trailer, I think. They couldn't be properly tightened, as the metal would give before the bolts were torqued. It ended up wearing out the holes on the tongue and the coupler.

I welded steel sleeves across the bolt holes on the hitch side:



Then I welded small sleeves to each side of the tongue, due to the worn holes:





I've had many miles on it since then, no issues.