Good Afternoon! I have a driver that moved two trailers the other day, no issues on the first one but when he attached to second one he called me saying the 5th wheel is sliding back and forth and claims he didn't release it from inside the truck to adjust it. I looked at it and you can see that the hydraulic unit did retract the locks and stayed that way(no broken springs or anything I can see from up top). When turn the switch inside the truck on and off you can hear the air releasing but doesn't appear to be doing anything. Its all the way forward so I tried to move it back a little to see if I could get it to lock in place again but will need a hand to do that. Is it really possible for a 5th wheel to unlock like that? seems like I am missing part of the story. Its a 2015 T680, thanks for your help!
5th wheel not locking in place.
Discussion in 'Heavy Duty Diesel Truck Mechanics Forum' started by Proxy, Feb 25, 2019.
-
-
Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds
Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.
-
You say the 5th wheel is all the way forward. Wonder if he released it when hooking the first trailer and jammed it up front.
-
He definitely bumped the switch. The air cylinder pulls the pins, spring pressure holds them locked in place.
If you're in a cold climate the grease gets very stiff and makes it hard to move, us a little spray lube on the moving parts, than tap with a hammer. If there is ice in the air line not allowing the air to release, you may have to disconnect the line to allow the cylinder to retract. -
Thanks for the reply's!!!! I will definitely lube it up and see if I can move it back and get it to lock in, I will keep you guys posted!
-
So I moved the 5th wheel back to the middle, I turned the switch off inside and the locks aren't coming out on there own which is odd because the springs that are pushing on them are beefy. I sprayed all the pivots on the locking mechanism with PB blast and took a 3' pry bar and gently pried against the air cylinder and it went back into position with minimal effort, I tried the switch again it unlocks perfectly fine then gets stuck open after turning switch off. Is it possible it may be slowly unlocking over time? if so what do you think may be wrong with it? thanks!
-
Try removing the air line after you put the switch back to lock. If the springs push the air cylinder back in and the locks engage, you have a problem in the dash switch, or air line. There may be a kink or other restriction, not allowing the air pressure to bleed off. If not, then the release linkage is binding up, and you just may have to work it a few times to loosen it up.
Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds
Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.