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Old 02-17-2016, 01:33 PM   #1
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Name: Linda
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hitch height

can anyone tell me what the measurement should be from the ground to the top of the hitch ball for a 17' casita with 15" tires? i find that i need to replace my hitch due to damage, but i can't get an accurate measurement where the trailer is sitting now.
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Old 02-17-2016, 03:17 PM   #2
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Originally Posted by lrb945 View Post
can anyone tell me what the measurement should be from the ground to the top of the hitch ball for a 17' casita with 15" tires? i find that i need to replace my hitch due to damage, but i can't get an accurate measurement where the trailer is sitting now.
A few variables come into play with this like what's the tug, it's tire size and the hitch you want to replace. I'm not sure what you mean by hitch. Are you talking the tug mounted receiver or just the stinger bar? What kind of damage was done?
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Old 02-17-2016, 03:37 PM   #3
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just the bar. the old one was for a different vehicle, and i need to know what to aim for so it will sit level.
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Old 02-17-2016, 05:35 PM   #4
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Dumb question on my part, but did you tow the Casita with that stinger bar? If so, how did the trailer sit hooked up on a level surface? Tongue up, down or level? You can use that info to determine if you need to change the ball level. Stingers come in all different drop/rise combos and you can also get a ball with a 1" extra lift to the shank. My Casita 17 has 14" tires & a 3" lift so I can't measure mine to help you. I use a 4" rise to match up with the Ranger. I borrowed a couple different bars from friends to get the correct height..........saved $ from buying the wrong one .
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Old 02-17-2016, 06:05 PM   #5
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Can you not at least level the trailer front to back where it is parked now and measure to the top of the coupler? Keeping in mind the back of the vehicle may drop an inch or so when connected. That would be our best bet as tires size, age etc of the trailer will all impact the height of the tongue level.
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Old 02-17-2016, 07:00 PM   #6
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thanks tall! i am thankful to have found so many really nice people who are willing to take time out of their lives to answer my (many!) questions. i miss my dad. he was always the one who knew everything. guess it's time for me to get busy and learn all the stuff i wish he'd taught me!
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Old 02-18-2016, 05:32 AM   #7
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I'd put a level on the floor in the trailer, running the level fore and aft and then level the trailer to that, then measure to the top of the coupler. Some people put a small level on the fridge floor and level to that.

The tow vehicle will probably settle an inch or so in the back after hooking up so maybe add an inch to the tongue height as a target for the undeflected hitch ball height on the tow. Tongue weight for 17s are around 300 pounds. Find a couple or 150 pound people to sit on the rear bumper to see where your vehicle's ball height will end up when towing. It doesn't have to be leveled to fractions of an inch.

My first thought was I wonder if you have the high lift option. Best to measure your own situation and eliminate the guesswork. Different tow vehicles will settle different amounts so using other's measurement might not help much.

But you said you can't get an accurate measurement where the trailer is now so my response is probably more useful to other new owners.

My picture (I don't have the high lift axle, wish I did) should have the yardstick an inch or two forward but I couldn't get it to stand upright on it's own. But it gives you the idea. Mostly I was checking clearances before installing a "one-arm" WDH (The one arm swings under the jack post during turns to the right and I wanted to be sure it didn't catch on anything. That's why I used a scissors jack to hold up the tongue and raised the jack post to its top-most position. Just using the tongue jack is sufficient otherwise.)
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Old 02-18-2016, 08:25 AM   #8
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thank you!! i did call casita yesterday, and they said to go with 19.5". i think that they must be considering loaded weight, as you mentioned, that would drop the rear of the tow vehicle.
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Old 02-18-2016, 10:32 AM   #9
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Originally Posted by Borrego Dave View Post
Dumb question on my part, but did you tow the Casita with that stinger bar? If so, how did the trailer sit hooked up on a level surface? Tongue up, down or level? You can use that info to determine if you need to change the ball level. Stingers come in all different drop/rise combos and you can also get a ball with a 1" extra lift to the shank. My Casita 17 has 14" tires & a 3" lift so I can't measure mine to help you. I use a 4" rise to match up with the Ranger. I borrowed a couple different bars from friends to get the correct height..........saved $ from buying the wrong one .
Great advice - as the old saying goes ' Measure twice , cut once '
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