High hooking?

Good advice of course. Instead of airbags you could also crank the trailer up a bit (very difficult if the trailer is loaded however).

I once had a shipper telling me "You're OK, you're OK" as I was backing under a trailer. I stopped, pulled the brakes, and was fixing to exit and visually check so it didn't high hook when he said that. I still got out, checked, then looked at him and told him "I don't let anyone drive my truck but me, thanks anyway for your help." He didn't say a word, just looked at me like "Wow." That's the way I operate and I'm not afraid of offending others. Because it's my job, my CDL not theirs.

 

Hey easy now. I agree with truckon when you hook up you line up and stop before hitting the trailer pull your brakes get off your lazy ### and look. I have never high hooked a trailer, I've had numerous problems getting under a few of them but never high hooked one. If you check and look you don't high hook trailers. That is the bottom line period the end.

 

I can't believe after all these posts no one has said... That is not a "high hook".

At least not in the true sense of the term. You rode the kingpin up on the surface of the fifth wheel.
A high hook is when you have the trailer a bit too high, back in (centered), and enuf to trip the jaws, but the kingpin head (larger diameter bottom portion) is sitting on top of the jaws, rather than the shank of the kingpin clasped inside the jaws.

If the kingpin sits on top of the jaws, this will leave an approx 1/2" to 1" gap between the bottom of the trailer and the fifth wheel surface. If undetected (no excuse), one good "bump" and "there goes the trailer".

 

high mis-hook

 

"Miss High Hook"....goes better with the title

 

That's why I participate on this forum every chance I get. To learn (and get amused at times). Thanks for clearing that up.

 

Missed kingpin sounds better IMO. Although it makes the driver sound a lot worse. If you can't fricken line up a trailer and the trailer rides up like that wtf is the matter with you. There's like 8, 10 maybe even 12"+ for that kingpin to fall into and be guided into the locking jaws. What are you doing that far off center? Means there's no way in hell he got out. Also means he wasn't checking his mirrors and they were way the hell off.

 

Here is pic of a High Hook.
I was asked to go out to the yard and dock a trailer, that was told to me "It's already hooked on a tractor (not mine), so just pull it around and dock it". They were in a hurry and needed it docked... fast.
I dunno if this was a setup, but I always check what needs to be checked before pulling anything. This is what I saw when I looked under, at the fifth wheel, before I even got in the truck... (pic is a lil' blurry, but you can see)

Note: The kingpin was not sitting on the fifth wheel surface, it was sitting directly on top of the locked jaws. The fifth wheel to bottom trailer plate gap looks bigger in the pic than it actually looked in person. Click on pic top banner for larger better view.

 

Foolproof hooking procedure:

1. Back up until your rear tractor tandems are under the trailer. Set the brake. Get out and look.... to make sure the height of the trailer is about 1/2 way up the tilted 5th wheel.

2. Dump the air bags.

3. Back up until the front tractor tandem wheels have just gotten under the trailer. Stop. Fill the air bags. Get out and look to make sure the 5th wheel is in front of the locking jaws and the apron of the trailer is flush to the 5th wheel.

4. Back into the trailer.

5. Tug test.

6. Get out and look to make sure the locking jaws are in place correctly around the kingpin. Use a flashlight.

Now finishing with glad hand and pigtail connections, raising landing gear, and doing your trailer pretrip inspection.

Get out and looking twice during the backup procedure is a very small time price to pay to make sure you are coupling to the trailer correctly. I know my trainer was all, "Go! Go! Go!" during drop and hooks, and we nearly dumped a trailer when he forgot to tug test. Drop and hooks are the LAST place you should be trying to rush.

Take your time. Look as often as you need to feel absolutely comfortable with the situation. Make sure you get everything right.

 

a little experience, super duper trucker that always will help out a pee-wee. next time i would text someone, or google it, or get out, look at it, scratch your head , get back in the truck, see if someone text you back yet, then get out again, look under, scratch your head again, pull forward, park and wait for further instructions.