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Old 05-02-2007, 12:52 PM   #1
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Trailer: Scamp
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Scamp trailer fell off ball-hitch (wasn't properly engaged - duh) and now the trailer hitch is damaged – the trailer actually skidded a bit and hit the curb. lucky the trailer and towvehicle were unscathed. I don’t have a picture of the trailer hitch (yet) but it isn’t pretty. The hitch is totally crushed. It looks as though it may be possible to “bang out” the metal and have it close to normal without cracking it, etc. As luck would have it, I was on my way to maaco to get the scamp painted. I figured, being an automotive repair shop, they might have some expertise in this area, but the best I could get was “we’ll see what we can do.”

Anybody else mash up their trailer hitch? What is worse case scenario for a scamp – is it possible to have a new one welded on?

bad way to start off the season - on the other hand, I'm seriously glad this happened on a low traffic side road.
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Old 05-02-2007, 02:19 PM   #2
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Any decent trailer guy should be able to weld a new one on.

Look for an outfit that builds /repairs commercial trailers.
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Old 05-02-2007, 03:33 PM   #3
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Well I gotta tell you - I had my trailer for about a week when I was headed into town to have new tires put on. I went over the slightest bump and wham, the ball came out of the coupling. Scared the daylights out of me, fortunately the chains kept it attached. I was only going about 40km. an hour. A good smaritan helped me. He hooked it up again, jacked the trailer up along with the truck at the same time. He jumped on the truck bumper and wham it came loose of the coupling.

He felt inside of the coupling and said the mechanism inside was hooped. I carefully towed it to the tire store who welded a whole new coupling piece on. Sure thankful that I wasn't on my 6000mi trip to the Yukon a week later, and it happened close to home.
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Old 05-02-2007, 03:47 PM   #4
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As Bonnie's comment suggested, the socket-and-latch part on the trailer is usually called a coupler (rather than "hitch"), which might help when looking for someone to replace it.

A-frame couplers like those on most of our trailers are usually welded on, but they are routinely replaced if necessary. Fortunately, they're cheap - I would guess that the installation will cost more than the coupler.

I agree with Pete: I would look for trailer shops, rather than RV shops or any general automotive business.

I definitely wouldn't put any effort into salvaging the damaged coupler, and wouldn't want to use it anyway. Think of this as an opportunity to upgrade to a premium coupler, with a latch design you like, and even a different ball size if desired.
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Old 05-02-2007, 04:04 PM   #5
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Places that sell or repair horse trailers will be able to fix it easily and usually for less money.

Paul
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Old 05-03-2007, 08:59 AM   #6
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thanks for the info - I'll be looking to upgrade the "coupler" just to be safe.
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Old 05-03-2007, 01:15 PM   #7
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DON'T be in a real panic about upgrading that hitch!! BEFORE you go slicing off the old one, have someone that knows about hitches check yours out. It might just be that you didn't have it properly on the ball. Its happened to me, LOL.

But on the other hand, upgrading for safety's sake is NEVER a bad thing.
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