AL-KO 1300 Stabiliser

[Smith21]

When hooking up to the tow ball do you turn the knob until it wratchets then push down the red lever or push down the red lever then turn the knob till it ratchets.

I have had two versions of this above which on is correct. Will have to see about getting some instructions as none came with the van.

 

[earlyriser]

hi
have look here http://www.al-ko.co.uk/edit/files/handbooks/aks-1300-triple-pack-handbook.pdf
might be helpful.

 

[Sproket]

Have a look here you can save the link or print off the instructions

 

[Smith21]

Great stuff will print the details off for future reference.

 

[Royston]

Resistance is the word, I had the same alco, if you just push the lever down and then turn the wheel you will feel no resistance, turn the wheel untill you get resistance then press the lever you will feel the difference.

Kevin reading your various questions ,I take that you do not have the van at home, What is the make and weight of your van , I have like others owned several vans, each van that i have towed has had a different towing experence.
My first van had a boatshaped roof, 2 berth with a rear kitchen, first trip from the dealers empty van was okay, second trip out fully loaded was a different beast.
When towing I go in to lorry driving mode, no sudden twists with the stearing wheel, thats then quickest way to get the van unsettled, Today I tow at 95% passing lorries with no sway this has only come about with very carefull load s within the van, that help maintain a steady trip.When its raining or their are gusty strong side winds slowdown
Its a bit like what Eric Morcombe once explained I am playing the right notes but not nessary in the right order.
I made our first trip amere 12 miles,You can load the van in what you think is correct,but if when you are towing you can feel if the van is unhappy, Since my first trip,I have never ever loaded heavy weights behind the axle to counter balance the nose weights , always over the axle.
Looking forward to many more questions

 

[Smith21]

Hi Royston the van is in storage so unable to play with it, it is a Bailey Ranger 460 / 2 it's a 2 birth with end bathroom. Hopefully going to bring it home for the bank holiday weekend to have a little play as we will be going away the following weekend to test it out at White Water Caravan Park. It's only a couple of miles up the road.

 

[colin-yorkshire1]

hi Kevin,
a similar topic came up a while ago, if your van is fitted with the AKS 1300 there are a few things you should be aware of .
rather than write them all out again I have copied and pasted my answer you may find it of help.
hi Fatboy,
nice handle you have there welcome to the forum,
In principal the operation is simple, in practice it is a little more complex, the Alko1300 is different from the 3004 in so much as it has a adjustment wheel on the lefthand side as you look at it and a red handle on the right, in the middle is the normal hitch handle same as normal,
before hitching up to car, lift handle righthand side and turn adjustment wheel anticlockwise as far as it will go.lift middle hitch handle untill it locks open. then place on towball. as the hitch goes on the centre handle drops down and should lock showing the green section in the little window when the hitch is locked in place.
then turn the adjustment wheel clockwise untill is clicks two or three times the hitch is now set, finally press down the righthand red handle to the horizontal position the hitch is now ready to use,
to uncouple it is a reversal of the above, however this is where the complex bit comes in, you must lift the red handle first and unwind the adjustment wheel fully before trying to lift the middle handle, otherwise the hitch will stick and the ball will NOT release. furthermore you must also make sure before attempting to unhitch that the coupling head is in the rest position or it will not release.
so if you have just reversed say you must pull forwards so it is not under tension. one tip I would give you is to slightly wind down the jockey wheel so it takes the pressure off the coupling head, before attempting to uncouple.
sounds difficult it is not really with practice it becomes second nature however these hitches do stick if you don't do it right,
yes I have one, it's been on the van since we got it and no I'm not a great fan but it does do the job it' supposed to do,
if in use it does stick and mine has quite a few times and all else fails they can be released by using a socket of the right size to fit the recess in the middle of the adjustment wheel and tapping with a hammer "ps, I allways carry one in the front box" just in case.

 

[Smith21]

Thanks a lot for the info Colin, no need to call me FatBoy. LOL