There are millions of semi-trucks on the road and every one depends on a small piece of metal called a king pin to operate.
This is a pin which makes the connection when the trailer is hooked to the tractorl.
It's the pivot point and receives huge amounts of force and wear when the rig is in use.
All working semi-trucks will require eventual king pin repair or replacement.
Approximately 30% of the rigs on the road right now require king pin maintenance.
If inspected, they would not pass the standards set by the governing law.
These pins require immediate replacement or repair to make the vehicle roadworthy.
Any pin wear in excess of.
08 inches indicates that a 'fix' is necessary.
Repairing the pin at this point will make sure the rig can continue to operate safely.
It will also alleviate future damage on the fifth-wheel assembly, which would only add more expense and down time for the operator.
Repairing a worn king pin (compared to replacing it) is easy, inexpensive and quick to accomplish by someone experienced in this area.
It only takes a few hours (or less), minimizing the time the rig is out of service.
A replacement can take several days and costs quite a bit more to have done.
All semi-trucks on the road will need this maintenance operation sooner or later.
It's natural for this pivot point to wear because of the huge physical forces it's required to absorb.
If you elect replacement you'll have to spend one to three thousand dollars and will lose several days in productivity because the rig will be side-lined during this time.
Repairing the pin is less costly and faster to complete (hours rather than days).