Coachmen Chaparral 355. It has a Lipert 1621 pinbox.
The trailer was stolen, and the pin box got damaged in the process. We recovered it. I bought a Triglide with some of the insurance money. I'm trying to install it.
First thing, the Tri Glide is about 6" longer than the old hitch and about 4 inches higher, from pin plate to mounting bolts.
The trailer rides perfect with the 1621 pin box as it is set right now. When I install the TriGlide, am I going to have to drop my hitch in the truck ? If so, how will I tow a trailer with a regular height pin box ?
I'm hoping that someone has run into this issue and can tell me how they handled things.
Second problem is that I have a hard bed cover on the box of my truck. When I pull the trailer, its folded up at the front of the box. There is about 3 inches of clearance between the edge of the folded lid and the front of the 1621 pin box when hooked to the truck.
The Tri Glide pin box has a much longer pin plate. It extends a few inches further past the pin than does the 1621 plate. Its wider too. On top of that, the shock in the front of the pin box extends even further.
I presently have the hitch in my truck set so that the trailer pin is about 2 inches in front of the rear axle. I could get around the box lid clearance problems if I moved the hitch back a few inches.
How far can one move the hitch back relative to the axle before the truck starts acting squirelly ?
I'm pulling with an F350 SRW LB, CC. 11,500 GVWR, about 8,200 empty. Pin weight is about 2200 lbs.
One thing that is bothering me is that the length of my unit is growing daily. And sometimes I pull doubles.
My old truck was a short box. New truck is a long box. Gained 18 inches there.
The TriGlide hitch is about 6 inches longer. We are now up to 24 inches gained.
I probably need to move the hitch back 3 inches. My unit is now 27 inches longer. I can handle the 18 inches going from a short box to a long box, but a 9 inch gain for hitch issues ?
I am very worried about manuverability in tight campgrounds.
The Triglide instructions say to mount it in the same holes as the old hitch. I wish there was a way to mount it 6 inches further back on the trailer. There would be no issue with clearance to do so. But there aren't any bolt holes to allow that to be done.
I agree, it should be a minimum of 2" forward. You should have another set of holes to move another 2"forward. My B&W is full forward ( 4" forward ) and I only add 100# to the front axle with 27,000# combined wt.
2011 Ram Laramie Longhorn 3500 Dually Long Bed, Cummins 350/800 HO, Towin Machine
B&W Companion Hitch, Maghytec Trans and Rear Dif Covers, AMZ/OIL Top To Bottom
2007 1/2 Mobile Suites 36 SB3 27,000# Combined
me2 wrote: Coachmen Chaparral 355. It has a Lipert 1621 pinbox.
The trailer was stolen, and the pin box got damaged in the process. We recovered it. I bought a Triglide with some of the insurance money. I'm trying to install it.
First thing, the Tri Glide is about 6" longer than the old hitch and about 4 inches higher, from pin plate to mounting bolts.
The trailer rides perfect with the 1621 pin box as it is set right now. When I install the TriGlide, am I going to have to drop my hitch in the truck ? If so, how will I tow a trailer with a regular height pin box ?
I'm hoping that someone has run into this issue and can tell me how they handled things.
Second problem is that I have a hard bed cover on the box of my truck. When I pull the trailer, its folded up at the front of the box. There is about 3 inches of clearance between the edge of the folded lid and the front of the 1621 pin box when hooked to the truck.
The Tri Glide pin box has a much longer pin plate. It extends a few inches further past the pin than does the 1621 plate. Its wider too. On top of that, the shock in the front of the pin box extends even further.
I presently have the hitch in my truck set so that the trailer pin is about 2 inches in front of the rear axle. I could get around the box lid clearance problems if I moved the hitch back a few inches.
How far can one move the hitch back relative to the axle before the truck starts acting squirelly ?
I'm pulling with an F350 SRW LB, CC. 11,500 GVWR, about 8,200 empty. Pin weight is about 2200 lbs.
Thanks
IMO, you don't want to have the king pin behind the axle at all. My B&W puts the centerline of my king pin about 1.5" ahead of the axle, and I wouldn't mind another 1", whatsoever. If you're dead-set on that pin box, I think you'll need to lose the bed cover while towing.
Lyle
2002 GMC Sierra 2500 HD Duramax Crew Cab 4x4
Banks Bullet Tuner and Monster Exhaust
B&W Turnover Ball with 5th Wheel Companion
2004 Komfort 25FSG Fifth Wheel
1936 John Deere Model A
International Flying Farmers 55 Year Member
There are different length Tri-Glides. Call the manufacturer (Lippert) and explain your problem. They can give you the part number for the correct one...Problem solved.
B.O.
2011 Big Country 3250TS...2010 Ram CC Laramie 4wd Cummins
15k Super Glide, Firestone Ride Rite, TrailAir Tri-Glide
Michelin XPS Ribs. Just say no to Chinese tires.
Twin Cities Mn.
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