No! The McHitch Uniglide trailer coupling was developed to be the safest all purpose coupling for all types of towing situations. Through strength comes reliability and safety and through these pillars this coupling has proven to be far ahead of any other coupling for off road use. Its articulation is over 105 degrees with a total angle available of 210 degrees in all situations. This compares to current poly-block couplings which have an articulation angle of no more than 36 degrees and a total angle of 72 degrees. McHitch also has a 6 tonne model available with identical articulation angles as its smaller brother and is ideal for those who tow loads exceeding 3.5 tonne.

The fundamental difference between the McHitch system and all othercouplings on the market is McHitch has the point of attachment separate to the point of movement and the resultant wear. With a ball and coupling the wear can reach a point where the trailer can come adrift from the tow vehicle. With the McHitch coupling there is a multiple locking system which makes it impossible for the coupling to detach from the tow vehicle. This is vitally important for those who may be towing one or more horses in a horse float, a lovingly restored priceless car on a car trailer, or that new bayliner being taken for it's first wet run. on a boat trailer. Even more important is the safety of others on the road, a detached trailer coming adrift turns into a missile that can and HAS killed people when colliding with incoming traffic.

This is a question asked many times over and shows a great misconception about the strength of universal joints. ADR testing of the McHitch Uniglide coupling placed around 5-6 tonnes load in tension and compression with no sign of stress in the universal. Universal joints are used in a variety of commercial situations both in a cyclic and tension dependant situations. Sawmills use universal joints to hold and machine large logs with the loading similar to our couplings.The universal joint is made up simply of a set of 4 arms, with 4 caps on each arm which contain a row of roller bearings in a circular fashion set on inside the cap. These allow the caps to rotate when needed while eliminating any play between the cap and the arm.Any forces applied on the cap are transferred through the roller bearings and onto the arm directly, regardless of whether or not the force is applied in a traditional 'cyclic' fashion or back and forth. When under load, a universal joint fitted in a driveshaft spreads the load to all 4 arms, and this same philosophy is applied when fitted to the McHitch Uniglide; all 4 arms share the load of towing.

Due to the high quality internal grease seals fitted to McHitch universals, under normal circumstances the universal joint requires only minimal greasing annually. Though, if the joint is submerged under water and moisture is present in the joints then greasing would be recommended after each such time, as a grease nipple is provided on the universal joint.

We recommend a good quality molybdenum (black moly) grease. On our 2 tonne models the rear bodies are fitted with grease nipplesand require annual greasing The 3.5, 4.5 and 6 tonne models are fitted with special heavy duty graphite impregnated polyurethane bushes developed for earthmoving machinery and are sealed for life.

McHitch has decided that safety comes ahead of cost when designing the Uniglide system. One side of the universal joint is held in place by a 'register'. This register is a blind hole that holds one end of the universal joint and carries the weight in the vertical plane and prevents the universal from moving under load. This system is also employed in the horizontal plane to take care of side loads.

Threaded plugs provide a positive location of the universal and are capable of withstanding loads of several tonnes.

The McHitch 2 tonne over ride versions are compatible with all current braking systems whether they be hydraulic or mechanical.

Yes. The McHitch has been built from the ground up to be fully compatible with all popular towbar configurations. For non-standard situations, such as the aforementioned late model Prado's with their proprietary narrow towbar tongue, adaptors are available.

The Automatic Coupler receiver can be fitted to all WDH systems. The receiver bolts straight onto the H/R WDH with the round bars. H/R models with the square straight bars are also easily fitted with the receiver. McHitch can supply adaptor plates to fit the Drop On models to the Hayman Reese and EAS LIFT weight distribution bars. The new QUIK LIFT WDH with the special offset head especially designed for the McHitch Auto Coupler provides a easy bolt on feature to mount the auto receiver.

Because the McHitch coupling does not rely on huge draw bar weights to hold the coupling on to the pin unlike most ball and coupling systems, McHitch can operate with a much lower draw bar weight. In some situations it may be possible to redistribute the weight of the trailer to achieve a lower drawbar weight.

No! There is no need to grease the pin because there is no movement between the body and the point of attachment. One huge advantage of the McHitch is that all grease required is contained in the universal and the rear body, not on the pin . Because the pin is stainless steel there is no need to cover it up when not in use either, it will not rust when exposed to the elements. We recommend CRC Dry Glide to lubricate McHitch because it dries and does not attract sand and grit

McHitch has put safety ahead of cost. The grade 8, 9/16 UNC bolt has a breaking strain of 12 tonnes, far in excess of what is required. Even if this mechanism were to fail due to overloading or was not secured properly by the user, the coupling is still secured by the 5/8 hitch pin inserted through the body, this is the same pin you now use in your square hitch pin receiver.

Most couplings only use one locking system, the McHitch uniglide use two separate systems, the hand wheel removes all play from the attached coupling body and the hitch pin provides the ultimate safety feature to prevent the trailer separating from the tow vehicle.

A Landcruiser universal joint, such as the one fitted to the McHitch Uniglide, can have a life expectancy of up to 500,000 km under normal automotive use. We would expect that the McHitch will have even greater life expectancy due to significantly less force being applied to it when in a towing situation. This is many hundreds time greater then that of a ball and coupling which, under certain conditions, can have alarming rates of wear, particularly in sandy terrain and if they are greased.

All Auto Couplers are fitted with a stainless steel locking hitchpin secured tom the receiver with a lanyard. The 3.5, 4.5 and 6 tonne Drop On models are supplied with a locking cross pin. For the 2 tonne drop on models we can supply an optional hitch pin with a key lock attached. These are also available from all good spare parts outlets. On the Drop On models this can function in two ways, first it can be inserted through the coupling when attached to the tow vehicle to prevent uncoupling and re-coupling to another vehicle, and it can also be inserted though the coupling when not attached to prevent someone hooking your trailer up to their tow vehicle as the tow pin can not be inserted with the hitch pin blocking access.

No. A typical quick release ball coupling is 210mm high and the all of the McHitch Automatic models are only 125mm at its highest point. The 3.5 Drop On coupling is 145mm high and the 2 tonne models are 155 mm high. We now supply a low profile handbrake on all Auto models and on all 3,5, 4.5 and 6 tonne Drop On models. Pajero and Prado fitments enable the rear doors to be opened with the Auto Coupler and 3.5 tonne Drop On models fitted.(Check available height above surface towball normally mounts)