Hiis it ok/safe to use a 50mm coupling on a 1 7/8 tow ball!Cheers.
morrisman1,
Jan 22, 9:11am
No, Just buy another towball and swap them as required.
rsr72,
Jan 22, 10:09am
With fast-increasing use of 50mm it's about time use of 1 7/8" was phased out.
40wav,
Jan 22, 10:42am
No, it will be loose and could come off. A 50mm tow ball should cost less than $20 (even from repco etc) so it's easy and cheap to do it properly.
tmenz,
Jan 22, 11:54am
But it costs lots more than that for the spanners to do it up properly!
daryl14,
Jan 22, 12:03pm
You're going to make everyone buy 50 mm couplings for their trailers, are you! Good luck with that.
bashfulbro,
Jan 22, 12:19pm
If you do this.make sure you buy one with the right sized shaft ( that the nut screws on to ), there are a few different sizes
fryan1962,
Jan 22, 12:37pm
one day nz will catch up with the rest of the world
whqqsh,
Jan 22, 1:40pm
until then everyone else can bugger off. Im tired of the 'we have to everything like the rest of the world' BS Start a 'Stick with 1 7/8" campaign' & to hell with everyone else.
twinroses,
Jan 23, 4:51pm
I Would be more concerned about the safety chains purchased from Micheal Hilland or Bunnings .
icemans1,
Jan 23, 11:51pm
PMSL, they introduced the 50mm ball about 20 years ago - i've yet to find a trailer with a 50mm coupling
electromic,
Jan 24, 10:04am
Not safe to combine, seen it before and it was BAD. I have a 50mm in the boot in case its needed, easy to change over. I tow often so change the towball at each major service.
rsr72,
Jan 24, 10:32am
Not at all, but I see no reason why it shouldn't be legislated for all new equipment to be standardised at the modern 50mm, and as much of the world uses.
morrisman1,
Jan 24, 10:52am
It seems like some genius's attempt at fixing something that doesn't need fixed, and as a result has created a mess, an unsafe one at that.
Well done, hopefully a trailer with incompatible parts doesn't hit your family's car.
I couldn't care less what the rest of the world uses, its four bolts holding the coupling to the mostly nz made trailers, so no issue there, and the ball is piece of cake to change. They should legislate 50mm out of existence, only allowing sizes which are significantly different to avoid confusion.
rsr72,
Jan 24, 11:34am
European cars, new and used, are increasingly imported into NZ with factory -fitted, forged, demountable, and folding 50 mm towballs/bars built in as part of the car's structure. They cannot be changed, and they bear no relationship to the primitive, clumsy, blacksmithy towbar types made in NZ which can be unbolted. Time we looked at standardising equipment and moved away from the horse-and-cart 1 7/8in balls.
bill-robinson,
Jan 24, 11:37am
^ like banning trailers and caravans!
rsr72,
Jan 24, 11:39am
#18- Well, I grant you, caravan owners aren't likely to be driving European cars of course.
Totally agree. The legislation allowing 50mm balls was another moment of insanity by the legislators. As others have said, potentialy lethal situation when someone in ignorance puts a 50mm coupling on a 1 7/8 ball. The 3mm difference could allow it to detach and take out an oncoming vehicle.
And don't say the safety chain will prevent that, the coupling failing will initiate the most vicous tank-slapper you have ever seen. In 20 years I have seen one 50mm coupling on an imported horse float. Ban the 50mm balls while they are still quiet rare.
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