Towball life?

[Peri_5109318]

Have just collected my new and first caravan from a dealership 200 miles away. The dealers supplied and fitted a new towball suitable for use with an Alko stabiliser. The towball is an 'anodised' colour all over. It is not black, neither is it covered in paint. The dealer assisted in hitching me up and off I went.

The towball has been used solely for the 200 mile journey home, yet I notice that the 'ball' is pitted in places and has a gouge approx. 6mm x 1mm x 1mm on it. Is this normal 'wear and tear' for so few miles? Are towballs therefore a consumable item to be replaced every season?

Views/advice/observations greatly appreciated.

 

[Lutz]

If there's a 1mm deep gouge in the towball, it certainly sounds as though there's a grain of sand in there somewhere. Maybe one of the pads on the AlKo coupling is contaminated and needs cleaning (perhaps someone at the dealer's dropped the front end down on to the ground without using the jockey wheel). Otherwise, a towball should last the life of the vehicle.

 

[rob_jax]

Peri.

I think Lutz is spot on - a piece of grit has got caught inside the ALKO coupling head.

Before you travel it's a good idea to clean the tow-ball (a piece of cotton cloth is fine) and also inside the ALKO coupling (same piece of cloth). This is in addition to any rust or other crude you need to remove from the tow-ball.

Note: The plating on the new tow-ball needs to be removed, otherwise it will contaminate the ALKO stabiliser pads.

Some fine 400 grade sand paper (or finer) will remove the soft plating quite easily.

Robert