Hitch ball mounts or drop hitch receivers allow you to mount a trailer to your truck or SUV. However, not all ball hitch mounts are the same. Finding a hitch drop receiver that fits your vehicle’s specifications is a must to transport your trailer safely.
Depending on your trailer, you might need a ball hitch mount with a specific drop or rise measurement, which is the distance between your vehicle’s tow hitch receiver and trailer coupler.
You need to get a drop hitch mount with the correct amount of drop or rise. Otherwise, your drop hitch tongue and the trailer’s couple won’t be aligned. This can cause a trailer to tilt up or down, which can be unsafe because it stresses the vehicle’s towing system and makes the vehicle unstable.
If your vehicle’s drop hitch tongue is much lower or higher than the trailer’s coupler, then you won’t be able to mount your trailer at all.
The receiver tube is the part of your vehicle where you insert a drop hitch receiver. Generally, the larger a vehicle’s receiver tube size is, the more weight it can carry.
Cars tend to have 1 and 1/4” receiver tubes. Meanwhile, SUVs and half-ton trucks have 2” receivers. The latest 3/4 ton trucks have a 2 and 1/2″ receiver.
Tow hitch receivers are categorized based on their maximum gross trailer weight (GTW). GTW is determined by combining the weight of your trailer and its contents.
These Weigh Safe Hitches have adjustable mounts that allow your truck to carry a range of trailers with different rise and drop measurements. Mounting different trailers with varying rise and drop measurements is easy since you don’t need to change to a different hitch ball mount for each trailer.
Some ball hitch mounts have a dual ball attachment with a large and smaller hitch ball designed to carry different loads. This makes the mount even more versatile, allowing you to load trailers with different hitch ball sizes. Weigh Safe hitches are also quite capable. Most of their offerings have a maximum GTW of 14,500 lbs.
Curt hitch ball mounts are designed to meet everyday towing needs. The brand’s Class 3 Series offers fixed ball hitch mounts, which are ideal if you’re getting a hitch ball mount for a specific trailer and don’t need to adjust the rise and drop.
Curt’s Class 3 Series comes in several variants that can fit a variety of receiver tubes and rise heights. These hitch ball mounts also have a maximum GTW of around 7,000 lbs, which is sufficient to carry small campers, trailers, and vehicle dollies.
The Curt Multi-Ball series features two or three standard-sized hitch balls on one mount. If you need to change the hitch ball size, you simply need to rotate the ball mount and reinsert it in the receiver. This is perfect for those who have several trailers that have different hitch ball sizes.
The Multi-Ball series also has variants that have adjustable rise and drop measurements, giving you even more versatility.
Each hitch ball size has its own maximum GTW. The 1 7/8″ ball can carry 6,000 lbs, the 2” ball can support 7,500 lbs, and the 2 5/16” hitch ball can do 10,000 lbs.
Always consider factors such as the drop or rise measurement, receiver tube size, and the trailer’s weight before purchasing a hitch ball mount. This way, you’ll ensure that you get the right drop hitch receiver to safely tow your trailer.
Any information provided on this Website is for informational purposes only and is not intended to replace consultation with a professional mechanic. The accuracy and timeliness of the information may change from the time of publication.