5th wheel care & wisdom

To be fair on the jost i like putting a line of grease along the outside edge of the "pit". It helps trap a lot of that dirt before it gets into the jaws. Then again i spend as much time on dirt as blacktop

 

[Every time you drop a trailer, spray the heck out of the jaws and mechanism with the diesel fuel. Guaranteed to not solidify in the cold...]


Yeah…cause diesel doesn’t gel in the winter…lol

 

Actually, we do this in the North regularly. Loosens and liquifies the grease. Gelling is irrelevant because it’s not in your tank.

 

Well, when you fill up with TREATED fuel, or a 60/40, 50/50/ 40/60 mix it doesn't. Heck, even if it IS the consistency of Jello, that's a hell of a lot better than the thick grease that solidifies as hard as rubber.

Keep learning, newbie, someday YOU will have to drive into the sub-artic and you won't scoff at those who have more experience in the severe cold than you do...

 

I tried a bottle and wouldn’t bother with it again. It works fine in warm dry weather but not very well at all in cold and wet. It’s got a strange chemical property that won’t allow it to adhere to a wet steel surface at all. Just kind of smears around like silly putty and won’t stick to anything but itself. And getting it out of the bottle is a joke once the bottle is down to around half empty.

 

Yea. I’ve noticed all that. I drop and hook and noticed when I drop, the plate is dry on certain spots. I basically have to lube b4 hooking up to another trailer each time. I think the lube stays on the trailer, not the fifth wheel. I’m also on the Southern West Coast, gets chilly but it’s still doable to squeeze it out. And buying it by the case, is a lot less expensive than purchasing individually. Overall, it has its Pros and Cons.

 

Now a great product for this they unfortunately discontinued is Amsoil’s 5th wheel grease. It came in what looked like a giant white tube of toothpaste and was just as convenient and mess-free to use, so it could easily be stored in the cab to keep it at room temperate. Top quality GLI #2 synthetic oil based HD grease (5% moly). Better than typical red-n-tacky for heavy duty pivot points. It was metallic grey colored. There might still be some old stock of it still around on eBay or Amazon.

 

I'll put a whole tube on my Fontaine 6000, and it just stays on Schneider's trailer. I learned real quick just to do the lower half of the plate. Red an' Tacky is $9 a tube.

I'm more worried about my jaws. I just rebuilt (new springs and jaws from Fleetpride ($330)...last year. Did it in a parking lot down in Dallas, and, even tho I lubed all the jaws up, it's still not enough.

A little garden spray bottle with diesel, sprayed on the jaws, is what makes the difference in cold weather. Then the jaws couple without me having to beat them home.