I welded a 2" to the front of my trailers got 4, and slide it out then in to the trailer and lock it so I will not need to look for or trip over it.
locks are 8-10$ and the hitchs are not bad so I never need to rotate or move a ball.
I do have three others that have all three ***** that I use in them if I use someone elses trailer or lone one out.
Also that will keep you from grabing the wrong ball and having the trailer come off as I have seen people do in the past.
Jon

 

That is a really good idea.

Anyone that has any business pulling the trailer will have the draw-bar they need, right there on the trailer.

At the last two farms that I have worked for, I bought enough hitch-pins for all the farm-wagons and miscellaneous equipment that uses a hitch-pin.

Then, I welded a foot, or so, of chain to each piece of equipment, with a new pin welded to the chain.

I also welded a chain and pin to every tractor draw-bar and truck bumper.

You would have thought that I never would have needed look for a pin, again.

WRONG...GRRR.

The embiciles, that also worked there, would need a pin, and being embiciles, they would never know where anything was, or put anything where it went; so, they would take a hack-saw, or torch, or bolt-cutters, and "borrow" a pin from one of the pieces of equipment that I had equipped with a permanent pin.

It wasn't long before there wasn't a pin left to "borrow".

I just can't abide idiots, even though I have had years of training and exposure to them, they still get on my nerves.

 

extra bumper, extra step, good shin knocker for folks too close to truck

 

I had a fellow run in to the back of my truck when I was doing about 35mph. He was drunk and said he fell asleep. It was a real pretty little Camaro that needed about $2500.00 worth of body work after the contact. Didn't even leave a scratch on my drawbar

I vote for leaving it in if you can learn to avoid the Aztec Shin dance.

 

Something for people to look at if they leave them on is if you take a hit check things out, it is very easy to shear a bolt and have things come loose.
I took a hit on the 96 and after checking it out and putting a wrench to them had one of the bolts fall off in my hand and another break off with little pressure. They will take a load but the bolts don't like the hit they take in shear. Just something to look at.
I thought about putting one of the steps on or just making on 2"x2" T with the step being about 12"-15" long.

Jon

 

I pull the trailer once every month for a 3-5 day trip. And pull the trailer to the house to work on from storage min. twice a month.
As soon as I park the trailer for the week.... The bar comes off, go's into the storage bin tell the next time.
I don't want the greasey tennis ball falling off , and I / wife don't want to keep knocking our knees on it.

Yep, i'm one of the one's with the cutesy hitch cover. (SKULL with Red eyes)

 

By the time I add up all the parts, I have about $200 into mine, so no, I don't leave it sitting there to donate to somebody without a job.

 

The hitch stays in the 1500,People look at you weird and askk what you ar epulling that needs a pintle hook. That Chevy 1500 with the V6 pulls the trailer(2500) with a 2600 lb car on it mighty fine. Yes the pintle hitch save your bumper if some one hits it,except for when you back into it yourself with your other car. \

Jeff

 

I keep my 10" AlumaStinger locked in all the time as a tail-gating deterrent and handy "curb feeler" for loading docks, walls and shrubberies...

... not a shin-barker for me, since I've been conditioned to them for 8 years (my '98), and the custom gooseneck I designed & built has a 6'6" high arch and 12" longer reach to the coupler

 

A buddy of mine used to live in the nicer section of a not so nice trailer park, and one morning his stinger was gone.

He stopped by the local used/scrap guy to see if he could pick up a cheap one, and there was his hitch... I guess they didn't argue when he left with his hitch, but they didn't have much else to say, either...

Someone else had a boat/trailer stolen off the back of the truck while he was in the camper at a local rest area. As I understand it there was a lock on the coupler, but not the draw bar .

Mine now has a locking pin, in all the time. A bit of lithium spray is a good idea, on the lock and receiver, to keep it from rusting.

 

I leave one of the drawbars in all the time!
#1 - 2" ball
#2 - 2-5/16" Ball on a WD hitch

W/ #1)
I had a high school student hit the drawbar on my ranger (~10yr ago), while she was going to finals....I made her stay for a little while, to drive the point about being attentive at ALL times. Mean, maybe; point made, yes!

W/ #2)
More recently ('02) I was rear ended at a stop sign in my F150. I Just moved my foot from the brake when he hit me. Best I could figure, he was late for work & tried to make a big sweeping turn & thought I was going to move faster. In the end, he was driving an '02 impala from the rental company he worked for. That car made SUCH a mess! He hit my truck hard enough to bend the receiver, but not the frame! I tend to sit a little forward in the seat (short legs), so the seat track got pushed all the way back!

I'll never drive my truck without a drawbar in it again!

Let 'em hit the stinger - they get stung & I keep going!

Tony

 

I always pull mine out, but I do not put in a gay light. Around here the hitches seem to "grow legs"

 

Usually leave mine in; it's like a little "fist" for a radiator that wanders a little too close. Take it out in the winter though, so it dosen't rust in.

 

Leave it in gets my vote. Other then whacking my shin on it a couple of times I too would rather it was in when the ricer tries to bruise my pumpkin.
8" solid steel drop with 2 5/16 for towing the horse trailer in the lower receiver tube.
Plasma cut hitch plug of a horse packing out an elk in the upper tube.

 

Nope, my hitches come out now for two reasons....one, to keep them from rusting, and two because my bro-in-law got me a cool and useful hitch plug for x-mas last year....see gallery