Gooseneck Hitch

For most owners of large vehicles (trucks or SUV's), a basic ball hitch is enough to accomplish any towing they'll ever do. Most of these vehicles come with hitches already attached, so people who do the most common types of towing might never worry about the weight capacity of their hitch in their lifetimes. But for people who want to tow larger things than the everyday UHAUL trailer, the basic hitch might not be enough. If you're one of the people who are going to be towing extra –large trailers, you have a variety of options. And if you own a sturdy truck, the best option for you will probably be a gooseneck hitch.

Most regular hitches have a weight capacity ranging between two to seven thousand pounds. This might sound like a lot of weight to most people, but gooseneck hitches actually allow a truck to tow a trailer that weighs over 25,000 pounds. Most trailers in that weight range are campers. They're designed so that if you have a big enough truck, you can have a trailer to sleep in while making long road trips, but you don't have to pay the huge expense of actually buying an full-sized vehicle model. There are a lot of other things you might tow with this – boats, horses, cars, etc, but the general principle is that they'll usually weight a lot more than your vehicle.

If you're considering a gooseneck hitch, the first concern is probably where to buy one, what to look for, and how much to pay. The easiest place to find gooseneck hitches is definitely online, where you not only have the greatest selection, but you'll also be able to find used models that are much cheaper, and probably still safe. You should even be able to find customer reviews on the specific model you're buying.  If you prefer buying them offline, however, you might have a harder time – not all cities are going to have a shop that sells them. Catalogues are another option for easy shopping.

As for what to look for, it all depends on what you're towing and what you're towing with. It's very important to know all of the specs of both your vehicle and trailer before you make any purchases. If you don't know exactly what you'll be towing, just know the typical size and weight of that vehicle, and give yourself some leeway when buying your hitch. You’ll want to also know the towing capacity of your truck, how much weight your brakes can stop, and how much weight he bed of your truck can carry (must be half the weight needed to tow the trailer).

And lastly, how much you should pay for the hitch. As with selecting a gooseneck hitch, this depends on what you need. For lighter, smaller trailers, you'll be able to get by with a gooseneck hitch that weighs less than $200, especially if you buy it used. These less expensive hitches have a weight capacity starting at about 16,000 pounds, and usually won't come with any extra features like rails. But the best hitches, which can both carry much more weight and have more features, can cost over a thousand dollars.

Installing a gooseneck hitch is a relatively easy process; there shouldn't be any reason to have somebody else install it for you. If you have a truck that isn't mainstream, nor a bed that is an unusual size, you can order a hitch to be custom made specifically for your truck. That's another aspect of buying a hitch that is important to watch out for – it has to fit into the bed of your truck.

Comments are closed.