im currently in a commuity college trucking school.im in my 6th week of a 7 week course.my question is do you have to bang the king pin to couple a trailer ? my instrutor always get on me cause i never bang it when i couple you can just hear the safety latch click when i couple it.he says i need to bang it to make sure it couples correct.but i read banging the king pin can damage it in the long run any advice on this because i still refuse to bang it when backing.the only test i have left is the pretrip,i have passed the road test and backing.i always thought a soft couple means you do it pretty good as long as the safety latch goes into place.

Bang it enough and after you pick up everything in your cab that came out of its location you learn to back up enough to get the jaws to lock... then a simple pull test... then when you are outside the cab... take a flashlight and make sure your jaws did shut and the kingpin is not sitting on the flange above the jaws....44oz drinks are always fun to clean up after you bang it hard backing into the trailer...

How did you manage to pass the road test and backing test with out passing the pre trip?
The rules are you must first pass the pretrip, next pass the backing, then pass the road test and must be done in that order.
How ever once you pass them in the proper order you will not have to re take them.
The proper way to couple the trailer is back under it slowly untill you hear it latch then give it a little tug to make sure it is latched then before you raise the landing gear get under the trailer and make sure the jaws are locked around the pin.
As long as you can see the jaws around the pin it is safe to hook up the air lines and eletrical line then raise the landing gear.
You can also find the proper way in your cdl manual
Knowing how to couple and uncouple correctly is basic to safe operation of combination vehicles. Wrong coupling and uncoupling can be very dan-gerous. General coupling and uncoupling steps are listed below. There are differences between differ-ent rigs, so learn the details of coupling and un-coupling the truck(s) you will operate.
Step 1. Inspect Fifth Wheel

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Safety unlocking handle in the automatic lock position.

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If you have a sliding fifth wheel, make sure it is locked.

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Make sure the trailer kingpin is not bent or bro-ken.

Step 2. Inspect Area and Chock Wheels
•

Make sure area around the vehicle is clear.

• Be sure trailer wheels are chocked or spring brakes are on.

• Check that cargo (if any) is secured against move-ment due to tractor being coupled to the trailer.

Step 3. Position Tractor

•

Put the tractor directly in front of the trailer. (Never back under the trailer at an angle because you might push the trailer sideways and break the land-ing gear.)

• Check position, using outside mirrors, by looking down both sides of the trailer.

Step 4. Back Slowly

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Back until fifth wheel just touches the trailer.

• Don't hit the trailer.

Step 5. Secure Tractor

•

Put on the parking brake.

• Put transmission in neutral.

Step 6. Check Trailer Height

•

The trailer should be low enough that it is raised slightly by the tractor when the tractor is backed under it. Raise or lower the trailer as needed. (If the trailer is too low, the tractor may strike and damage the trailer nose; if the trailer is too high, it may not couple correctly.)

• Check that the kingpin and fifth wheel are aligned.

Step 7. Connect Air Lines to Trailer

•

Check glad hand seals and connect tractor emer-gency air line to trailer emergency glad hand.

• Check glad hand seals and connect tractor service

air line to trailer service glad hand.
• Make sure air lines are safely supported where they won't be crushed or caught while tractor is backing under the trailer.

Step 8. Supply Air to Trailer
•

From cab, push in "air supply" knob or move tractor protection valve control from the "emergency" to the "normal" position to supply air to the trailer brake system.

• Wait until the air pressure is normal.

• Check brake system for crossed air lines:

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Shut engine off so you can hear the brakes.

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Apply and release trailer brakes and listen for sound of trailer brakes being applied and re-leased. You should hear the brakes move when applied and air escape when the brakes are re-leased.

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Check air brake system pressure gauge for signs of major air loss.

• When you are sure trailer brakes are working, start engine.

• Make sure air pressure is up to normal.

Step 9. Lock Trailer Brakes Pull out the "air supply" knob or move the tractor pro-tection valve control from "normal" to "emergency".
Step 10. Back Under Trailer

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Use lowest reverse gear.

• Back tractor slowly under trailer to avoid hitting the kingpin too hard.

• Stop when the kingpin is locked into the fifth wheel.

Step 11. Check Connection for Security

•

Raise trailer landing gear slightly off ground.

• Pull tractor gently forward while the trailer brakes are still locked to check that the trailer is locked onto the tractor.

Step 12. Secure Vehicle

•

Put transmission in neutral.

• Put parking brakes on.

• Shut off engine and take key with you so someone else won't move truck while you are under
8 2005 Commercial Driver’s License Manual

Step 13. Inspect Coupling
•

Use a flashlight, if necessary.

• Make sure there is no space between upper and lower fifth wheel. If there is space, something is wrong (kingpin may be on top of the closed fifth wheel jaws, and trailer would come loose very easily).

• Go under trailer and look into the back of the fifth wheel. Make sure the fifth wheel jaws have closed around the shank of the kingpin.

• Check that the locking lever is in the "lock" position.

• Check that the safety latch is in position over lock-ing lever. (On some fifth wheels the catch must be put in place by hand.)

• If the coupling isn't right, don't drive the coupled unit; get it fixed.

Step 14. Connect the Electrical Cord and Check Air Lines

•

Plug the electrical cord into the trailer and fasten the safety catch.

• Check both air lines and electrical line for signs of damage.

• Make sure air and electrical lines will not hit any moving parts of vehicle.

Step 15. Raise Front Trailer Supports (Landing Gear)

•

Use low gear range (if so equipped) to begin raising the landing gear. Once free of weight, switch to the high gear range.

• Raise the landing gear all the way up. (Never drive with landing gear only part way up as it may catch on railroad tracks or other things.)

• After raising landing gear, secure the crank handle safely.

• When full weight of trailer is resting on tractor:

Check for enough clearance between rear of tractor frame and landing gear. (When tractor turns sharply, it must not hit landing gear.) Check that there is enough clearance between the top of the tractor tires and the nose of the trailer.
Step 16. Remove Trailer Wheel Chocks

•

Remove and store wheel chocks in a safe place.

sorry for the long post just copied and pasted from the colorado manual

my instuctor is a 3rd party examiner and he runs the school.so he felt if we got the road test and backing out the way we could concentrate on the pretrip...we always pretriped before we took the trucks out on the road ,but was never tested on it...

im very aware of the coupling procedure,my question was about banging it..as far as the pretrip test and backing...theres no order you can go in because at my school if you dont pass backing you will never need to pretrip because you wont be driving a truck

Who does the equipment belong to? If it is not yours, do as he says. Pass your tests, then do it as you wish. I'm sure if your don't drop any trailers, then it must be locked on properly.
But, cc194217 is correct. Best to verify that jaws are locked around that kingpin.
It is best to do as your instructor or tester wants you to do, so you can pass.
I know of one driving school, where six different trainers do things their own way. And depending on which one is testing you, you better do it his way, or he will not pass you. If one trainer says steer tires need to be at 100 psi, but another trainer said 105 psi, you best remember which one said what. Because, whichever one just happens to be testing you and asks you a question, you best give him the answer he wants.

Yea banging (in this case) is not good, if they do it hard enough and long enough they will find their kingpins are bent or the plate is cracked and they will not notice the cracks because of the grease under there. Not only that it is hard on all the components of the fifth wheel and everything that its attached to. Lol but if they say bang it then I guess thats what you should do while there.

They are suppose to be following the rules and not skipping parts just to help students out.
I was always told the 3rd party testers are required to make you pass the pre trip then you must pass the manuvers backing etc. only when you pass both you can take the driving test.

Here is what all 3rd party testers are suppose to go by or they can loose their license for testing.

(15) The organization is responsible for monitoring the testing activities of their examiners. The CDL drive test is a three part progressive test in which the pre-drive must be passed to move on to the vehicle control test, then on to the road test. Only one test failure is allowed per day. The number of failures of either the pre-drive or vehicle control tests are not limited. Applicants who have failed the CDL driving skill road test four times cannot continue to be tested by a third party CDL examiner. These Applicants must be referred to the local driver's license CDL testing office for any additional testing or training requirements.

Your instructor is full of it. BUT he holds your future in his hands, so it he wants it banged then bang the Hell out of it. As long as you know that it is a bad practice and stop it after you're done with him. Just because you rammed it doesn't mean it latched. Still got to take a look. Sounds like you know enough to take care of your equipment. Too bad they hired a guy like this to run a school. Hang in there, get your ticket and do it the right way.

the topic is coupling.geesh