Like the title says, what are the negatives and positives of towing with a pintle hitch? It would be on a utility trailer towing moderate weight. Would it be better to use a regular ball?

 

Lotsa clanging and banging with a pintle hitch. How far are you going to be towing that ute trailer? Unless it's just around a farmyard, I'd use a ball.

Steve

 

Look at transfer rigs & tractor trailers (other than the 5th wheel type), they all use hooks and tow for endless miles. All of our trailers at work are hooks (reel trailers, water trailers, generators) and we tow them all day, everyday. They are inherently stronger and usually rated for more weight than your average ball. Not to mention they have a better range of motion and rotation than a ball. I'd go for the pintle, based on my past experiences. But that is just my opinion, having used both. Unless you get a stubborn hitch, ***** are easy to use, as are the pintles. I guess it all depends on how much weight you'll be pulling. Less than 5k, a 2" ball wil be fine. 5-10K a 2 5/16" ball will be much better. With a hook you pretty much can tow what your truck can handle.

All of our pintle hitches also have a 2 5/16" ball on them... And they are a big bulky shin killer!

It's really your call. You won't go wrong either way.

 

Pintle hooks on the semis hauling double trailers usually have an anti-slack shoe either in the lunette eye or the pintle hook to eliminate the banging.

Having used both on my pickup here is my list:

Pro:

Pintle hook is easier to hook up.

Pintle hook can carry a LOT more tongue weight (but don't exceed vehicle ratings!)

Con:
The banging/clanging mentioned - it also comes with a rougher ride when loaded heavy and with not a lot of tongue weight.

Cannot use weight distribution.

Other than that I really don't see much difference. If the pintle hook hitch is loaded heavy on the tongue most of the bang/clang is gone.

Dave / Believer45

 

A pintle is good if you are dealing with dirty conditions like construction sites where the hitch on the trailer is dropped and dragged through the mud. If the lunette eye on the trailer is the proper size hole for the pintle hook you are using the clanging and banging isn't too bad.

The main advantage of the pintle hitch is the flexability and movement the trailer has a greater range of motion so if your going over rough terrian the hitch doesn't break off

 

The noise factor doesn't bother but I think I'll need the range of motion that a pintle will give me since I'm sure I'll be in some off-camber situations.

CGL How did yo like that hitch that had the pintle and the ball all in one?

Thanks for the input guys.

 

I have had the combination pintle hitch and ball it worked just like a regular pintle and when I wanted to pull a ball hitch trailer I could. Mine was perminatly mounted to a apron on the back of my truck but if you have a receiver hitch you can mount a regular pintle on a drawbar and a ball on another drawbar.

I found the pintle a good spot to hook ropes and chains etc too when I needed to drag something etc or a place for a tow rope to pull me back out of a deceivingly deep mud hole someone calls a driveway

 

A regular ball hitch will give you a surprising amount of off camber movement - look at the motorcycles that are using 1 7/8" hitch ***** for their trailers and the lean involved in cornering one. The trailer stays flat.

CLICK HERE to go to a picture of my bumper. I agree a pintle hook is a great place for attaching chains, pull straps and any manner of other things.

Dave / Believer45

 

so you have found those too. i thought i was the only one.

 

Believer45, what a nice rear bumper!

I went with a regular pintle hook because I do not trust the combo ball setup for yanking with a strap or chain. I have broken 5/16 transport chain with mine pulling trees with no ill effect on the custom bumper or pintle. I think I posted pictures of that in the 4x4 forum earlier.

If you need a swivel, I suggest using a swivel lunette and not a swivel pintle for good on road manners. Some of the swivel lunettes can be locked for on road use. The only bad thing about swivel lunettes is they are not height adjustable.

After people here told me that backing up and towing was not much different then a ball I went for it and I am happy with it. I have a receiver on my truck too. I custom made mine so it is offset from the pintle so they do not interfer with each other because of the drop below the bumper line of the pintle. Best of both worlds.