trailer hook up - where do you attach your breakaway cable?

[marta]

the ny state regs thread made me think of that.
i did a search on trailer hook up and every place consistently recommends hooking up the breakaway to the towing vehicle not to the hitch itself. but where exactly is there a spot that i can run the breakaway through? i looked last night (not v. closely i admit) and i didn't see any place that appeared suitable.

until now i've hooked up my breakaway to the hooks where the chains get hooked up but given that it's incorrect and that i often haul to ny state i will have to change that.

[Anselcat]

I attach the breakaway to the hitch receiver , which in my mind is part of the tow vehicle since it is attached to the frame of the tow vehicle much like other parts of the vehicle. I would NOT attach the breakaway to the hitch ball or the ball mount (the slidey-in thing).

I also attche the Safety chains to the hitch receiver. I'm interested to hear what others do -- I wouldn't know where else to attach the breakaway or the chains!

[Jaegermonster]

I have a gooseneck, so after I hook up the safety chains I run it through the links of the safety chains where it attaches to the u bolts on the truck and then back around.

[Twiliath]

On my BP, I put the breakaway cable through the receiver where I've attached the chains (only on one side, of course).

BTW, did you know that those connector links you can buy (the ones with the screw-tight thingy to connect it) are NOT rated for towing? So if you use those to connect your chains to your tow vehicle, you're not in compliance.

[mvp]

My old skool, brick-shit-house of a bumper comes with a couple of holes drilled in it. I run the breakaway cable through one of these and hook it back on itself.

I attach the tow chains, crossed beneath the tongue/hitch of my trailer, to the rings attached to the hitch on either side of the receiver.

Since the hitch is welded (and bolted?) to the frame of my truck and the bumper is attached elsewhere, I assume I'm safe and legal.

I'm plan to get to the DMV all bright and early Monday for the Bible on legal hauling in NY.

[carp]

My truck has spots on the frame for securing towing chains (if it was being towed instead of doing the towing; for instance, you needed to haul it out of the mud or secure it to a flatbed.) I hook the cable breakaway cable to one of those.

[otisrider]

I too have heard that you don't want the breakaway on anything related to the hitch - my bumper has a hole in it that I use -- truck came with it so can't say what the deal with it is.

[snbess]

I'm in learning mode...why shouldn't you connect the breakaway to anything related to the hitch?

[JoZ]

I have a question too. Right now, my breakaway cable has a loop on the end (small), and since I have owned it, it has had a larger loop made by putting the cable through the small loop. So I can only put it somewhere that the loop can, er, loop onto, if that makes sense. I put it through the same end piece/connector link that attaches my chain to the truck. I have never thought that was a particularly good idea.

So those of you that have clips on your breakaway cable -- what type of clip? Does it have to be of any particular type, to be strong enough to hold and not break before the cable engages the brake?

And a second question to the person who said this: BTW, did you know that those connector links you can buy (the ones with the screw-tight thingy to connect it) are NOT rated for towing? or anyone else who knows the answer -- if those things (which are what I have) are not rated for towing, what type of connector IS appropriate?

[Xanthoria]

I'm in learning mode...why shouldn't you connect the breakaway to anything related to the hitch?

Because if the hitch comes off the vehicle, with the breakaway cable attached to it, the breakaway won't pull the pin to engage the safety brake, and the trailer will keep on rolling!

[marta]

Because if the hitch comes off the vehicle, with the breakaway cable attached to it, the breakaway won't pull the pin to engage the safety brake, and the trailer will keep on rolling!

but in reality, what are the chances of that hitch coming off the truck? i don't think they're any higher than any other component of the truck suddenly detaching... but whatever, that's their reasoning. now i have to find some place on the truck to attach the breakaway to while hauling to ny state... pita!

[relocatedTXjumpr]

I connect mine to the brackets below the hitch that I attach the safety chains to.

[ThreeHorseNight]

There is space between my bumper and towing vehicle, so the breakaway cable goes through there. The cable has a loop on the end, and I use one of those clip things to clip the cable back on to itself. Should the trailer fall off the vehicle, the cable will be pulled tight and hopefully do its job. My bumper might be damaged, but I figured that if the trailer has fallen off the vehicle, I have worse problems than bumper damage. My chains are crossed under the hitch and hooked on to either side of the hitch -- it has a place for them to be hooked. I have a super-duper hitch, because I have weight-distributing bars, and there has to be a place for them to hook up to.

[DMK]

I'm in learning mode...why shouldn't you connect the breakaway to anything related to the hitch?

If you attach it to the vehicle bumper rather than the receiver then if the trailer becomes "unattached" to the vehicle in any way - your hitch falls off, the trailer becomes unhitched, whatever, the emergency brakes will activate. If you attach the emergency brake to your hitch then if your hitch falls off, no emergency brake will activate.

It's sort of the Uber Careful All Contingencies Approach to trailering. God willing none of it will happen, but if none of it ever happened we wouldn't need the breakaway wire at all. ;)

That said, it's pretty obvious I attach mine to the vehicle bumper. I have seen bumpers that make it damn near impossible to attach the breakaway wire though.

[Beverley]

I have a 2h bp, class III hitch. I run the breakaway through the hole where the chain goes on the left side, loop it around, and hook it to the cotter pin that holds the insert. For my rig, that removes enough slack that the breakaway won't catch on say, sagebrush I'm running over (ah, yes, offroading with trailers) but still will engage if the ball or trailer hitch fail.

However, my approach is flawed if what happened to a friend a couple of weeks ago happens to me. His receiver fell off the truck- fortunately, as he was coming to a stop in a gas station parking lot. So, good reminder to me to keep the condition of the insert regularly checked along with everything else. You wouldn't think a properly welded receiver could separate from the towing vehicle, but there you are.

[trubandloki]

I have a gooseneck trailer. The safety cable is connected to a separate eye bolt that was welded to the truck frame.

[kookicat]

I have a ring welded to the frame where I hook mine. Truck came with it.

[Pat]

but in reality, what are the chances of that hitch coming off the truck? i don't think they're any higher than any other component of the truck suddenly detaching... but whatever, that's their reasoning. now i have to find some place on the truck to attach the breakaway to while hauling to ny state... pita!

Um, actually, I've had that happen to an employer with a 2 horse bp.

In theory, it *was* her fault as there was a safety recall on her hitch (the pin, I think) AND she knew about it AND she had an appointment to have the recall rectified. AND she went on ahead and hauled with it anyway. The good news was that the trailer was empty and it happened ten inches from our driveway, going slightly down hill. The poor bumper and tail gate caught most of the heck and the trailer only had minor damage to the tack room door. When the dust settled, we had a trailer resting on the ground on the hitch, since the hitch slid out of the reciever. We enlisted the 'recycling dudes' who *just* happened to be picking up our bottles and cans when it all happened. Beats me what she used for a replacement pin... Yup, once we got it all back together she just went on down the road ANYWAY instead of heading back down the drive way and switching out to the GN. sigh.

As far as what can/can't/may/ break when towing, let's look at the components. The hitch reciever is welded to your vehicle's frame. I suppose the weld *can* break, but that's going to need a pretty impressive amount of force to happen. (I'd say so much that the break way is the least of your worries) Next there are the pins that hold the actual hitch in the reciever. You have one thick pin that holds the hitch and a smaller pin that keeps the big hitch pin in place. Loose that small pin or the thick one breaks and bu-bye trailer, better hope the chains and/or emergency brake are hooked up right and functioning.

So yes, you don't connect the breakaway to the hitch. DOn't confuse the hitch with the reciever. You can connect it to THE RECIEVER, it will stay attached to the vehicle if your hitch fails. That is also where most folks will have a ring or square thingy you can snap your chains to. If it's good enough to snap the chains to, it's fine for the breakaway. If you have a heavy duty bumper you can drill a hole in it for the breakaway, or you should find another strong location, preferably the frame of the truck.

[oldenmare]

Recently I was helping a friend hook-up her BP trailer - and fortunately, I noticed (after she had lowered trailer onto ball - I was in charge of backing up truck - so didn't notice until I walked around to back of truck) that the Pin was NOT in the hitch - had she pulled off, the hitch would have most certainly pulled out (has to pull up slight incline).

Stuff happens. This is a good example of why the cable is not attached to the hitch.

[DMK]

As far as what can/can't/may/ break when towing, let's look at the components. The hitch reciever is welded to your vehicle's frame. I suppose the weld *can* break, but that's going to need a pretty impressive amount of force to happen...

...If it's good enough to snap the chains to, it's fine for the breakaway. If you have a heavy duty bumper you can drill a hole in it for the breakaway, or you should find another strong location, preferably the frame of the truck.

Are you sure the receiver is welded to the frame? I ask because I had a recall on my receiver, and the given reason was an inappropriate "bolt" was used and could weaken and break. I won't profess to be an expert in the underside of my vehicle but that kind of sounds like it isn't welded and as fast as I have had after market hitches put on in the distant past, I got the feeling they were bolted in.

But after watching enough Discovery Channel programs about failures in bridges and planes, it does seem like the appropriate bolts OR welds are strong things that do not fail even when under greater than expected stress ... unless there was something essentially wrong with the bolt or the weld that was not known when it was installed/created/whatever. But that is the point. It doesn't happen often, but we do know it does happen. I think that is the primary reason to put that wire on something other than the hitch or the receiver. Then all you have to worry about is if the emergency brake still works... oops, there goes another 43 posts on that topic... ;)