Greetings from Camp hautauqua

[whitegs]

Well, we finally are on our maiden voyage with our 2720, and a few questions and observations.

First, the trailer hitch is very hard to put on and off the car. It seems to want to hang onto the trailer ball without coming off easily.
Second, we hear a loud buzzing when first starting up at the rear of the TV, front of the trailer. Is this some kind of alarm? It goes off after about 2 minutes.
Third, I see very little activity on the brake controller module under my dashboard. Usually, it reads 0.0 even when braking. Occasionally, when braking it may go up to 0.1. Is there something wrong with my brake hookup and is that related to the buzzing (alarm)?

I also noted that things don't fit together very precisely. For example, in setting up the bathroom, I had to juggle the walls several times to get the button pressed that allowed the lights to turn on.

We did have a very restful night - Our two white german shepherds slept well and quietly. They are the main reason we got a trailer instead of our usual tenting.

Richard

[Bill]

Regarding the hitch being hard to get on and off the ball. This is a common experience among people who are new to trailer towing. It happened to me, and over the course of a summer, I spent hours wrangling with the manufacturer of the hitch and hitch ball, and the manufacturer of the coupler. It runs out to be quite simple. It almost always means that when you stop your rig and shift the tow vehicle into PARK, either the tow vehicle drifts back a half inch, or the TM drifts forward a half inch. In either case, the ball is forced backward into the latch (the part of the coupler that moves up and down to either grip or release the ball), and jams it. If you move the tow vehicle forward just a smidge, it will come right off. By the way, you do grease the hitch ball, don't you? That will make the latch much easier to move, in addition to minimizing wear on the ball and the coupler.

The latch is not visible from above. I suggest that you unhitch the TM, make sure the front is solidly supported by the jack(s), then lie down on your back and look up into the coupler while you work the latch lever up and down. You will immediately see the moving parts, and undertand why they bind, and what to do when it happens. It is not at all complicated, but it helps to see it.

I have no idea what the buzzing is. Your vehicle doesn't have a backup (obstruction) alarm, does it?

As for the brake controller, please tell us the make and model, and we will be able to help much more effectively. However, you're right - the lack of a reading and the lack of activity suggests something is wrong. I'm trying to think how it could be connected to the buzzing, but not coming up with anything yet.

Jiggling the bathroom wall to get the switch to operate? A few people have reported that - it means the switch was mounted too far down in its recess, so the wall doesn't push the button all the way. The "right" solution is to raise the switch, and it can be done without too much trouble. An easier solution, and just as effective, is to tape a couple thicknesses of shirt cardboard to the underside of the wall, just at the point where it pushes on the switch.

Bill

[whitegs]

Mea culpa. I didn't grease the hitch. I've never done that with boat and utility trailers. I guess I'd better find some grease.

Richard

[ib4classics]

Richard, regarding your controller, you may have two adjustments on the controller. One you could operate as a manual over-ride or assist in an urgent situation, the second may allow you to preset the controllers initial amount of braking response.
That is how my Draw-Tite controller is.
Mine starts at about 2 when I apply the brakes, from there the internals control the amount of braking for the trailer.
I second Bill's suggestion on greasing the ball and the underside of the coupler. I use white lithium grease on the ball the coupler and the spring bars.
I wonder if the buzzing may be comming from the 7 pin connector on your tv, something not just right with the wiring?

[whitegs]

I had assumed that the people who installed the brake controller would have adjusted it properly. I downloaded the procedure to synch the brakes from the manufacturer's web site and will try to set it up properly when I hook up tomorrow.

I stopped at a marina and got some marine grease which seems to be appropriate. I'll apply it tomorrow as well as I'm hooking up.

Thanks.

Richard