Quote:
Originally Posted by Beau388
All hitches are rated for STRAIGHT LINE pull. Using a drop or riser will SERIOUSLY degrade the hitch capability. What rips the hitch mounting apart is the twisting torque on the hitch caused by drop. To my knowledge there are no hitch ratings when a drop is used. My suggestion is you should consider the hitch rating degradation by 30% with a 4" drop and 50% using a 6" drop. I would recommend relocating the hitch rather than using any drop over 6". I am no longer a licensed professional engineer, so take these as recommendations only.
MorRyde's engineers probably do not consider what happens to the hitch and coach's frame if a drop is used instead of a straight bar. The hitch's max tongue rating is a hint of hitch's capability to adsorb the twisting force of the drop.
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The straight-line pull would be part of the reason for the rating. A panic stop and the force applied by an unbraked tow vehicle would be the major consideration. If the towed vehicle had a properly operating brake system a drop hitch should not matter even in a panic stop but even a 2000 lb unbraked vehicle will provide massive torque on a receiver using a dropped hitch.
Even a towed vehicle using a properly operating inertia-style braking system will provide a large torque on the receiver on initial braking until the towed vehicle braking system kicks in. Now add a poorly operating braking system on the towed vehicle and you can easily get into trouble with a drop hitch.