5th wheel hitch maintenance question

by BayouDude on 2/25/2010, 3:26 am

I have a Reese 16K slider in my truck and my trailer pin box has a Nylon wear plate. Should I still grease the contact area of the Reese hitch even though they have a nylon plate on the pin box? This wasn't mentioned when I did my walk through at the dealership and this is the first 5th wheel I have owned. I have only towed 3 times but would hate to mess something up for lack of a simple thing like grease.

by kwf904 on 2/25/2010, 3:42 am

I found that I was getting a lot of creaking and other sounds when I first started pulling. (I have a nylon plate as well) I asked here and was told to grease the pin and spray the nylon plate with silicon spray. that seemed to quiet it down a lot.
Jim

by oldelmer1 on 2/25/2010, 5:11 am

If you have the nylon plate, you don't need to use any grease on it. But you can use some CRC spray lube on the rest of the hitch. I've seen where some folks put some white lithium grease on the pin itself, but I've never done that. But I do spray CRC on all the moving parts of the hitch.

You dont want to use grease on the hitch cause it will attract dirt and cause more problems.

by Frank on 2/26/2010, 8:59 am

I use 5th wheel grease on the grove of the King Pin and

I use lithium grease spray on the hitch moving parts of the hitch. I also use a Plastic Lube Plate.

The following is from the Reese Web Site:

What kind of maintenance needs to be done to the 5th Wheel Hitch?

Lubricate skid plate surface of the hitch with automotive type chassis grease or use a plastic lube plate to provide a lubricated surface. Use white lithium spray lube or engine oil to lubricate pivot points of moving parts within the hitch.
Plastic lube plates can be used to avoid messy grease. The plastic lube plate must not exceed 3/16 of an inch in thickness to ensure hitch will operate properly. Lube plates must be 10 inches in diameter or larger to properly distribute king pin weight.
Before each trip or maneuver, operate the handle and check that the jaws open and close freely.
See that all hitch pull pins are in place and the spring retaining pins are installed.
Recheck tightness of all hardware every 1000 miles of use.
Lubrication to the hitch is essential to provide for a good long service life. Any pivoting point inside the head should be lubricated with a white lithium spray lube. The pivoting points outside the head need to be lubricated with a high pressure lube, such as 80/90 gear lube or grease. Reese offers the high pressure lube. This will allow for easier operation of the hitch. The skid plate can use either grease or a minimum of a 10" lube plate. When lubricating you should always remove the old lubricant to remove any road grim that has collected to prevent excessive wearing of components. All hardware should be inspected and torqued periodically per the recommended torque specification in the instruction manual.

What is a lube plate or a slip disk?

Plastic lube plates can be used to avoid messy grease. The plastic lube plate must not exceed 3/16 of an inch in thickness to ensure hitch will operate properly. Lube plates must be 10 inches in diameter or larger to properly distribute king pin weight.

Lube plate, provides a greaseless lubricant between the skid plates of the fifth wheel hitch and the pin box. When using a lube plate it should be a minimum of a ten inch diameter to prevent any damage from occurring to the hitch.

What kind of lubricant should I use?

Use white lithium spray lube or engine oil to lubricate pivot points of moving parts within the hitch. The pivoting points inside the hitch head should be lubricated with a white lithium spray lube. You will also want to lubricate the length of the interior handle and the coils of the springs. This will allow for easier operation of hitch. The pivoting points outside should be lubricated with a high pressure lubricant such as a 80/90 gear lube or a grease. Which ever lubricant you use, you will want to remove and clean the old lubricant before applying new. These steps will help to provide many years of service to your hitch.

by Admin on 2/26/2010, 2:27 pm

I use 5th wheel grease on the grove of the King Pin and

That there would be what I do. I use the Blue , bell ray waterproof grease. It seems to stay on there longer. Don't use the thin black cheap grease it will drip off .

The spray stuff on other moving parts.

The king pin takes a lot of wear riding on the jaws when your pulling. So yes it needs some love , I mean a good coat of grease. Don't forget its there when your walking around the front of the trailer at the camp ground,,,, it'll stick to ya.

by Mopar_Earl on 2/26/2010, 5:34 pm

I clean and grease my pin before each trip. The hitch I lube a couple times a season and before any long trips. I use a plastic lube plate as well. I also clean the jaw before each trip. Dirt will build up pretty quick on exposed grease and dirt in grease is just as bad as no grease if not worse. I also follow my hitch owners manual. I use a full synthetic grease made for high moisture areas. It's by Castrol and it's purple.

Earl

Wildcat Owners from around the world. 5th wheels and TT's. A place to share your Thoughts, Mod's and Idea's.

5th wheel hitch maintenance question

5th wheel hitch maintenance question

Re: 5th wheel hitch maintenance question

Re: 5th wheel hitch maintenance question

Re: 5th wheel hitch maintenance question

Re: 5th wheel hitch maintenance question

Re: 5th wheel hitch maintenance question