First trip with Andersen Ultimate Hitch

[tgoranson]

ABSOLUTELY love it!

[BubbaChris]

Be sure and carry a long 1/4 inch Allen wrench. Preferably that attaches to a 3/8 inch ratchet wrench. The set screws can come loose.

Do you have experience with that happening?

I bought a 1/4" allen socket that works with my torque wrench just to be part of my permanent toolkit for the rig.

Best regards,
Chris

[Bruce1sp]

Yes mine moved a little..Also someone posted recently a pic from the side of the road .the hitch had rotated maybe 45 degrees ? Be sure to check the length of your Allen wrench. Two of the holes are a little deep. Would like to know the torque spec. Can not be much as a dealer tightened mine with a t handle wrench. Have never heard of anyone using thread lock.

[jkwilson]

Yes mine moved a little..Also someone posted recently a pic from the side of the road .the hitch had rotated maybe 45 degrees ? Be sure to check the length of your Allen wrench. Two of the holes are a little deep. Would like to know the torque spec. Can not be much as a dealer tightened mine with a t handle wrench. Have never heard of anyone using thread lock.

The torque spec is in the manual along with the rest of the numbers. Your service guy at the dealer is a moron if they didn’t use a torque wrench. Installation manual calls for 40 ft-lbs on the allens, 40 on the set bolts and 60 on the hold down bolt. 40 is a lot on a set screw and they didn’t do it with a T-handle.

[BubbaChris]

IIRC - the current torque spec for the adaptet is 40 ft-lbs

I've seen someone post an image of a kingpin plate with big divots from the adapter. No idea if that was from too much torque or another cause.

Best regards,
Chris

[John303]

IIRC - the current torque spec for the adaptet is 40 ft-lbs

I've seen someone post an image of a kingpin plate with big divots from the adapter. No idea if that was from too much torque or another cause.

Best regards,
Chris

Interesting, the picture was not from me, but I have noticed big divots in the plate from the screws. I always check mine with a torque wrench, so it is not from over-tightening. Over time, it seemed as though the screws would move just a little when I checked. I only noticed because I experimented with rotating the kingpin adapter block, and then saw the gouging. I have about a 1/4 in gap between the plate and adapter block, so I wonder if there is some slight rocking that causes the gouge. I emailed Andersen, but never heard back. I guess I will ping them again.

[Wicked ace]

IIRC - the current torque spec for the adaptet is 40 ft-lbs

I've seen someone post an image of a kingpin plate with big divots from the adapter. No idea if that was from too much torque or another cause.

Best regards,
Chris

It's a result of the setscrew being torqued and the weight of your FW bearing on only four small points of contact. My first trip out I did short hops to two campgrounds about 50 miles apart. After the first stop I was concerned how the set screws had loosened. After checking at the second stop I noticed the deflection in the rub plate of the pin box. This also had me concerned with the amount of thread showing and the possibility of the setscrews bending, making it difficult to back off and / or remove if needed. I found a 2" x 3/32" x 2' plate at a Home Depot that night and added shims under the screws.
I believe the rub plate on my Turning Point hitch is 12 gauge steel, less than 3/32", which is good enough if the entire surface is bearing on a FW hitch. When back home I went to a local weld shop and got a pre-cut 8" x 1/4" square plate to use as a shim and add thickness to the rub plate. Now the set screws stay tight!
In doing research after the fact, Andersen is aware of the problem and it seems at one time offered a plate shim if tech support was contacted. I did call and a very disinterested young man told me that there have been other inquiries about this and adding a shim as I did was a solution. I read somewhere it's an option to buy although it's not shown on the web site. I do believe that it should be pointed out beforehand as some unknowing or inexperienced users could damage the pin box, or worse. I don't know what or even if there is a standard for the rub plate thickness on pin boxes.
I still like the 3220 Ultimate hitch as better solution but these potential downfalls need to be addressed beforehand.

[minnow101]

Do you have experience with that happening?

I bought a 1/4" allen socket that works with my torque wrench just to be part of my permanent toolkit for the rig.

Best regards,
Chris

I have had to retighten those set screws periodically as well. I also have read about a shim plate being available to alleviate divots made in to kingpin from those screws. I’ll be looking into getting a set.
I’ve had my hitch for 3 years now and I do like the easy ability to install/remove it as well as how the design removes the chucking and bucking I used to experience with my old Reese. However, I have seen this hitch design go thru a few iterations in those few shorts years. From Andersen adding additional bracing to the original design, to the red funnel added to the adapter, to torque spec’s being changed a couple times now, to shim kits, it seems to me the hitch design is still a work in progress.

[Banshee94]

We have had our Anderson Hitch for two years now. 5000 miles and counting. love it. After some reading about the torquespecs I called Anderson and they said to increase to 45 and 65. In the installation instructions they call for 40 and 60. He said they found it worked better.

[minnow101]

We have had our Anderson Hitch for two years now. 5000 miles and counting. love it. After some reading about the torquespecs I called Anderson and they said to increase to 45 and 65. In the installation instructions they call for 40 and 60. He said they found it worked better.

Well there's another new spec. from Andersen.

The last I knew, the top bolt was torqued to 60 ft.lbs. Which was an increase from 55 ft. lbs. from just a year ago. It certainly makes me wonder if that outfit is playing fast and loose with this hitch.