Expert Answers about King Pin Locks

• Reese 5th Wheel Slider Hitch has Play and Banging Noise when Starting and Stopping
• With the Reese 5th Wheel Trailer Hitch, # RP30084, the play you are experiencing should all but be eliminated with the secure single latch jaw of the hitch. This is unless you have high hitched (king pin is too high in the hitch) or the jaw is not locked around the king pin. It can also occur if the king pin has been worn out. On an older models, if you have a different jaw system like a slide bar, it will allow movement of the king pin because it is not as tight to the king pin. With...
  view full answer...


• Reese 16K 5th Wheel Trailer Hitch Jaws Will Not Lock Around King Pin
• I am a little confused because a slider hitch would be in the truck bed not on the 5th wheel trailer. It sounds like maybe you have a telescoping pin box on the trailer. Regardless, when a 5th wheel hitch doesn't lock around the trailer king pin there are some things you can check on the hitch. First, make sure that the jaws of the hitch open and close freely. If they do not or it is difficult to open and close the jaws then the hitch may need to be lubricated. Also, following the hitching...
  view full answer...


• 5th Wheel Trailer with Sidewinder Pin Box Chucking in Curt E16 Hitch
• Yes, what you are describing is normal for 5th wheel hitches that use a slide bar style jaw. The slide bar allows for a lot of play between the pin box king pin and the hitch jaws. But to be sure, make sure the jaw is fully closing and locking into place. Check the king pin on the Sidewinder for excessive wear as well. There shouldn't be hardly any wear on the Sidewinder king pin though because it is locked out at the hitch by the wedge. It can still move back and forth though. Normally...
  view full answer...


• Troubleshooting Unlocking the Trimax King Pin Lock
• Sometimes keys won't fully seat into the lock core (from our experience with the various locks we carry) and so I recommend taking a rubber mallet and lightly tapping the inserted key to see if that helps seat everything properly so you can unlock your Trimax King Pin Lock # TMX56RR. You also might try some dry lock lube to help loosen up the core if it is seizing on you. When I reached out to my contact at Trimax they also asked if the keyhole is lining up to the left at 9 o'clock so...
  view full answer...


• 5th Wheel Hitch Will Not Close Around King Pin on Sidewinder Replacement Pin Box
• If the wedge on the Sidewinder is out of position or the wrong wedge is being used then that could cause the jaws to not close around the king pin all of the way and the handle would not be all the way in the locked position. You can try to reposition the wedge to see if that helps. If you could tell me which hitch you have and if you are using the universal or custom wedge for that hitch I can determine if there is any compatibility issue.
  view full answer...


• Curt Q20 5th Wheel Hitch Jaws Do Not Close and Lock Freely On First Try
• There are a couple of things that could be causing the hitch jaws not to close and or lock when they should. First make sure the handle is always fully extended and the jaws are open and ready to accept the king pin. The trailer skid plate should be 1/2 an inch lower that the hitch skid plate at its lowest point. If the jaws are out of sync or even if you suspect that they may not be lined up correctly here is what you can do. First make sure the flip lock is hanging freely in the clockwise,...
  view full answer...


• Reese # 30032 Hitch Jaws not Locking Onto Fifth Wheel King Pin
• A fifth wheel king pin is a standard size, there should be no need to adjust for the width of the pin. I spoke with my contact at Reese, and we agreed that you should check to make sure you are not high hitching the fifth wheel. As you are backing the truck toward the fifth wheel, make sure that the bottom plate of the fifth wheel pin box is about 1/2 to 1 inch LOWER than the skid plate of the fifth wheel hitch. As you ease the hitch back into the king pin, the skid plate will actually...
  view full answer...


• Troubleshooting Short King Pin on a 1972 5th Wheel Trailer
• It sounds like you have an older 5th wheel pin box and you need to either replace the king pin or replace the entire pin box. To replace the king pin you most likely would need a weld-on option like the Buyers # 337KP20038 which has a 3/8" bolster plate. If you would rather go with a bolt-on option then we do have part # 337BKPT809B but you need to make sure that you pin box is in excellent condition to ensure that this will hold up properly. We do carry replacement pin boxes as well...
  view full answer...


• Causes for Excess Play in 5th Wheel Hitch Jaws
• The reasons the jaw mechanism in a 5th wheel hitch might fail to completely close around the king pin could include a need for normal periodic lubrication, excessive wear in the jaws themselves or on the king pin, or that the jaw locking mechanism was not fully locked. 5th wheel hitches come with several types of jaw mechanisms and some simply do a better job than others when it comes to completely surrounding and gripping the notch on the king pin. An entry level hitch such as the Pro...
  view full answer...


• Curt A20 5th Wheel Trailer Hitch Jaws Will Not Open to Uncouple Trailer
• It sounds like there may be something mechanically wrong with the Curt hitch # C16541. If the trailer king pin ever rested on top of the jaws or it was locked and the king pin ran into them it could have damaged something and now it is behaving in this manner. Or if this is a new problem it could just be that the hitch needs to be lubricated. Follow the maintenance instructions for the areas that require lubrication. You do not want to just use any grease because some greases are not compatible...
  view full answer...


• Troubleshooting Fifth Wheel Hitch Jaws Locked Around King Pin
• If your fifth wheel hitch will not release from the king pin then there may be too much tension on your king pin from the truck and trailer not being on a level surface. This is the most common reason why fifth wheel jaws won't unlock; the best thing to do is raise or lower your landing gear just a bit to try and release some of the tension on the hitch but not so much that it can cause binding. You can also try moving back and forth very slightly to try and see if that releases some...
  view full answer...


• Troubleshooting Hard Connect and Disconnect of Sidewinder on 2004 Montana 5th Wheel Trailer
• There are several reasons why the trailer might be hard to connect and disconnect from the 5th wheel hitch. First, check the pin weight of your trailer. If the trailer has the truck suspension compressed a great deal then the pressure between the hitch and pin box can cause disconnect to be hard. Hooking up and unhooking on level ground is also a big factor in ease of hook up. Next, check the lubrication of the fifth-wheel hitch. Make sure all of the recommended locations are lubed correctly...
  view full answer...


• How to Alleviate Clicking Noise When Towing With Reese 18k Fifth Wheel Trailer Hitch 30081
• I spoke with my contact at Reese about the clicking noise you have been experiencing while towing, and they did confirm that the locking jaw is made to have some slack or play to allow for the pin to rotate, so it should not fit too tightly around the king pin. To alleviate the clicking sound, the best approach would be to adjust your brake controller to ensure that the braking on your 2007 GMC Sierra and the braking on your trailer are as closely synced up as they can be. When you press...
  view full answer...


• Excessive Movement Between the Curt A20 5th Wheel Hitch and 5th Wheel Trailer King Pin
• First, make sure that the jaws are fully closing around the king pin and that they are locked into place. If not then that would be why you are experiencing so much movement. If they are fully closing and locking then it is possible that the movement is actually coming from somewhere else such as at the connection between the head and the center section or the feet and the OEM Ford mounts. There are some things you can look at on the hitch to determine if the jaws are not fully closing....
  view full answer...


• Troubleshooting A 5th Wheel Hitch And Trailer King Pin That Wont Release
• Without knowing the actual hitch you are using, I can only give you general info. Sometimes with this issue it is because you are taking too much weight off the hitch. The hitch needs a certain amount of weight on it to function correctly and release the lower portion of the king pin. You may want to try a little more weight on the hitch and a bit less on the jacks. Another solution is the exact opposite, to take more weight off the hitch especially if you are using a lube plate disc....
  view full answer...


• Unlocking The Jaws On The Curt Q25 Fifth Wheel Hitch
• It sounds to me like the jaws on your Curt Q25 5th Wheel Trailer Hitch - Dual Jaw - 25,000lbs Item # C16265 need to be greased or that you may have backed into the king pin with the jaws not locked in the coupling position and could have damaged the jaws. If you did damage the jaws you'll need to replace the head of the hitch with the Replacement Head Unit for Curt Q25 5th Wheel Trailer Hitch - 25,000lbs # C16565. If that's not the case make sure your landing gears are down enough to...
  view full answer...


• Troubleshooting Demco Hijacker Autoslide Locking Bar on 2017 Ford F-250
• Would you be able to tell me who the manufacturer and the model number of your pin box is? I do not know if that is an issue or not but it may help to determine if there is an issue.
  view full answer...


• How to Fix Chucking and Jarring With 5th Wheel Hitch
• What you were experience is what is known as chucking. This is not something unusual and it can be caused by your 5th wheel jaw(s) not being very snug around the king pin, and/or the head of your 5th wheel does not move or pivot very much. When you hit a bump in the road, there is just enough wiggle room for the king pin to move since the trailer is moving differently than the truck for those few seconds. Another possibility that you will want to check is the Tongue Weight. The Tongue Weight...
  view full answer...


• 5th Wheel Trailer Jaws Will Not Close Around King Pin on Sidewinder Easily
• I wonder if you were to remove the wedge from your # RP61412 and try to hook up if it would still do the same thing. I would give that a try to see. If you are not using the universal wedge, # 201100, it might work better than a custom wedge. You may also be high-hitching which would mean the jaws are trying to close around a wider part of the king pin or are not closing around it at all in some cases. When you hook up make sure that the bottom of the pin box is 1/2 inch to 1 inch lower...
  view full answer...


• Metal to Metal Noise While Towing a 5th Wheel Trailer Coming from the Jaws of the 5th Wheel Hitch
• If this noise occurs during starts and stops or any time there may be back and forth movement of the trailer then it is normal to get some metal to metal contact as the trailer king pin bumps around in the jaws of the hitch. The double jaw design of the Reese 5th wheel hitch, # RP30051, is secure but it is not so tight that it will eliminate all movement. You also want to make sure the trailer is not high hitched. This means that the king pin is not fully seated in the hitch. When hooking...
  view full answer...