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Old 07-15-2020, 01:24 PM   #1
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Default Ball - to grease or not to grease

I've been hearing from both sides, those that say to grease the ball and those that say do not grease the ball. One old timer told me do not grease as ball/hitch act as ground(?) to trailer and tow vehicle. So what's the best practise? Lightly grease or leave bare?
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Old 07-15-2020, 02:25 PM   #2
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Lube the hitch slightly to reduce wear and add to it's safety and working life.
Wire in a solid ground connection thru the electrical connector OR install a separate ground wire.

My2cents
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Old 07-15-2020, 04:12 PM   #3
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The hitch ball is a movable link between the TV and camper. Lightly grease to prevent wear as as greasing the movable parts in your vehicle. A light coat of grease will have zero impact on an electrical ground feature. Remember your tow chains, breakaway switch cable and EQ hitch bars/chains also provide a path for a ground.
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Old 09-07-2020, 06:53 AM   #4
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A light coating of grease on the ball is what I do also! Since the grease can collect road grime and become an abrasive paste, it might be prudent to occasionally wipe the old accumulated grease out of TT's socket and off the TV's ball before adding new grease. I prolly don't do this as often as I should ;-(.
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Old 09-07-2020, 08:21 AM   #5
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Mechanical items that pivot/move require a light coat of lubricant to prevent wear.

You or your mechanic applies grease to your wheel bearings ... ball joints ... king pins and they all must move.

Pretty simple to realize the hitch ball requires a light coat of lubricant.
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Old 09-08-2020, 08:58 PM   #6
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If you didn't grease the metal to metal joint it would gall the metal and not move freely which could be dangerous and lead to stress failure.
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Old 09-28-2020, 06:13 PM   #7
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What grease/lubricant do others recommend for this purpose?
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Old 09-29-2020, 05:57 AM   #8
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Any wheel bearing grease or general purpose grease will work fine.

If you have an Equalizer hitch, a little Equalizer lube from the tube of their hitch lube will work fine too. https://store.equalizerhitch.com/pro...ance-lubricant and you don't have to use very much!
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