Diamond Hitch gooseneck hitch

[jlasich]

Hi all. My new truck should be arriving soon and so, I've got things that I have to buy for it. I'm looking at the Diamond Hitch from Renegade Manufacturing based in Cody, WY. Here's their website:



http://www.diamondhitchinc.com



Does anyone have any experience with this hitch, particularly how the ball is locked into place and then unlocked for removal? Thanks.

 

[SRadke]

I have one of their units installed in my truck. I believe they call it an "invertaball". No complaints really. It is a better design then the fold over style in my opinion. A couple of things I have noticed having had it a year now. Many of the trailers I use have grease in the couplers (for obvious reasons) and it is thereby smeared all over the ball. You have to take a firm grip of the ball to get it out with the twist lock method so be prepared to use a paper towel or something unless you want a greasy hand. Also the spring detent the prevents the ball from turning in the pocket has begun to rust slightly and does not move as freely as it used to. Nothing a little oil wouldn't cure though. Overall a year of flawless service. Let me know if I can answer any specific questions.



-Scott

 

[Duluth Diesel]

I have this hitch. I've been real happy with it. The shaft on the ball has a approximately 1/2" wide channel that goes in a up and down path /\_/. Something like that. The shaft goes in the hitch hole and turns, allowing a pin to travel along that path, then locks in with the final turn. The ball is locked in and will not turn and will not move up and down until unlocked. I thought it was a real good design. Wish I could explain it better for you. If I had it to do over again, I would have the whole hitch assembly powdercoated before I install it. It only comes primed. I installed it and then shot it with undercoating stuff from NAPA.

 

[SRadke]

Originally posted by Duluth Diesel

If I had it to do over again, I would have the whole hitch assembly powdercoated before I install it. It only comes primed.

My thoughts exatly. I just installed it because I needed it in 2 days but I wish I had at least painted it. The wheel well liners protect it pretty well and you can't see it at all unless you go looking.



-Scott

 

[jlasich]

Thank you both for those write-ups. They explained it perfectly and it's pretty much how I thought it might work. Only a few other questions if you don't mind.



1) I will be working around a lot of dirt and hay this summer. Is it possible for dirt/hay to get into the passages and block them, thus not allowing the ball to come out?



2) Has the ball ever froze in either position?



I won't be using it that much, basically just for towing an equipment trailer once in a while. Thanks again.

 

[SRadke]

I don't see any way it will get stuck in place due to blockage from contaminants. There's no way for it to get in there. Froze in place? No. If you mean water freezing it in place I guess it's possible, anything is possible. It doesn't get that cold here.



-Scott

 

[Duluth Diesel]

I had mine ice over and had to chip it out. Not a big deal. If you're talking about rust freezing, just grease the shaft and ball with hitch grease and it should be fine. The ball will rust it turns out. All hitch balls do - these are not stainless. Grease should be used. If you do the install yourself, make darn sure you measure correctly before drilling that 4" hole in the bed. Mine turned out fine, but it was a little unnerving drilling a 4 inch hole in my bed floor. Actually, even though they instruct you to drill a 4" hole, I feel that a 3. 5" hole would work better. See, the outside diameter of the hitch hole is 4". The shaft on the hitch itself is more like 3" diameter. Cutting a 4" hole left some of my bed floor unsupported, at least not as supported as I would have liked. I think that a person installing the hitch should strongly consider cutting a 3. 5" hole and seeing if that would work. I am 99% sure the ball would easily fit in the hole, and I feel that the bed floor would not loose as much structural support. Just an idea.

 

[Wolffman]

If I were you I would consider getting the una-goose hitch. I have it and have not had one bit of trouble out of it. The ball removes so you can have a flat bed at any time. Also, I believe it to be the strongest hitch out there after I looked around. I regularly pull around 30,000lbs with it. the website is unagoose.com

 

[JPope]

"... Many of the trailers I use have grease in the couplers (for obvious reasons) and it is thereby smeared all over the ball. You have to take a firm grip of the ball to get it out with the twist lock method so be prepared to use a paper towel or something unless you want a greasy hand. ... "



I have a Cody hitch, which you have to invert the ball to store flat also. Because of the grease problem, I use one of the plastic ball covers (2-5/16") and cover the ball for storage and removal. The cover slips off easy for attaching the trailer, yet you are only gripping the plastic cover. I keep the ball greased for wear issues during trailering , and up here in the north it helps with corrosion during the salt season (my ball is not stainless, darn it).

Cover was less than $2, and minimizes mess and protects the ball during storage.

 

[JPope]

"... Many of the trailers I use have grease in the couplers (for obvious reasons) and it is thereby smeared all over the ball. You have to take a firm grip of the ball to get it out with the twist lock method so be prepared to use a paper towel or something unless you want a greasy hand. ... "



I have a Cody hitch, which you have to invert the ball to store flat also. Because of the grease problem, I use one of the plastic ball covers (2-5/16") and cover the ball for storage and removal. The cover slips off easy for attaching the trailer, yet you are only gripping the plastic cover. I keep the ball greased for wear issues during trailering , and up here in the north it helps with corrosion during the salt season (my ball is not stainless, darn it).

Cover was less than $2, and minimizes mess and protects the ball during storage (inverted or verticle).

 

[JPope]

"... Many of the trailers I use have grease in the couplers (for obvious reasons) and it is thereby smeared all over the ball. You have to take a firm grip of the ball to get it out with the twist lock method so be prepared to use a paper towel or something unless you want a greasy hand. ... "



I have a Cody hitch, which you have to invert the ball to store flat also. Because of the grease problem, I use one of the plastic ball covers (2-5/16") and cover the ball for storage and removal. The cover slips off easy for attaching the trailer, yet you are only gripping the plastic cover. I keep the ball greased for wear issues during trailering , and up here in the north it helps with corrosion during the salt season (my ball is not stainless, darn it).

Cover was less than $2, and minimizes mess and protects the ball during storage (inverted or verticle).

 

[JPope]

"... Many of the trailers I use have grease in the couplers (for obvious reasons) and it is thereby smeared all over the ball. You have to take a firm grip of the ball to get it out with the twist lock method so be prepared to use a paper towel or something unless you want a greasy hand. ... "



I have a Cody hitch, which you have to invert the ball to store flat also. Because of the grease problem, I use one of the plastic ball covers (2-5/16") and cover the ball for storage and removal. The cover slips off easy for attaching the trailer, yet you are only gripping the plastic cover. I keep the ball greased for wear issues during trailering , and up here in the north it helps with corrosion during the salt season (my ball is not stainless, darn it).

Cover was less than $2, and minimizes mess and protects the ball during storage (inverted or verticle).

 

[SRadke]

Now darnit Jim if you got something to say just say it! Happens to all of us once.



As for the 3. 5" hole I don't agree. I drilled a 4" hole and have less than 1/8" clearance around the hitch. I'm wondering if the round sleve the ball slips into does not extend through your bed floor? On mine it sticks through the bed floor approx 3/16", enough a bedliner will make it level according to the mfg. If just the ball stuck through your bed for some reason then yes, a 3. 5" hole would probably work. I lined my bed floor with 1/2" plywood and drilled the 4" hole in that as well so the ball is slightly below flush when is in the inverted position.



-Scott

 

[Duluth Diesel]

Yeah, for some reason on mine the round sleeve the ball slips into does not extend through the bed floor. I wonder why. I just assumed this was normal. I'll look at it tonight. Hmm.

 

[ntillm01]

Thanks for starting this thread and for all the excellent replies. The renegade hitch caught my eye and it looked like a slick installation. After reading these posts, I am more convinced a hide-a-ball set-up is the way to go. I have the thick rubber mat on my bed floor, and it would be great to cover the whole thing up when not in use.



I may have to start another thread, but I am also looking into the 5th wheel to gooseneck adapter they make. I want to pull a camper trailer but don't want a full-blown 5th wheel hitch.

 

[jlasich]

Thanks everyone for the helpful replies. I'll also look into the Unagoose hitch and the B&W.



ntillm01, I'm also going to be buying a 5'er-to-gooseneck adapter for my trailer. I had a fifth-wheel hitch installed in my last truck and even though it was nice, it took up too much space and was pretty darn heavy to have to remove. This time I'm going gooseneck, especially considering I'll also be pulling equipment trailers this summer.

 

[SRadke]

Check with the trailer manufacturer before you put one of those adapters on. The longer neck of a goosneck introduces a bending moment into the frame of the fiver trailers that they are not designed to withstand and you could get into trouble.



-Scott

 

[Duluth Diesel]

The main reason that I went with the Diamond Hitch is that the ball releases without any hardware or levers to pull in the wheel well. With the road salt that Minnesota sees, I've seen many of those wheel well mounted mechanisms sieze up in less than 3 years. If your truck sees any amount of road salt in the winter, you should be aware of this problem before you buy.

 

[SRadke]

Originally posted by Duluth Diesel

The main reason that I went with the Diamond Hitch is that the ball releases without any hardware or levers to pull in the wheel well.

That and I was planning an airbag install and didn't want to deal with rerouting the release lever to clear them.



-Scott