Kingpin Repairs for Commercial Trailers
Kingpins wear and get damaged and that gets passed on to the fifth wheel, and then to other kingpins.
We stop that from happening and save our customers tens of thousands of dollars.
Avoid Fleetwide Connection Issues
When a kingpin has excessive wear or gets damaged it can spread across the entire fleet. The wear and damage are passed from the kingpin to the fifth wheel, and then from the fifth wheel to the next kingpin. If ignored the problem can literally become a fleetwide issue that costs tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. We solve this problem for commercial fleets.
Repairs are 100% Guaranteed
When Kingpin Specialists finishes with a kingpin, you can have complete confidence in your trailer connection. We back all our work with an industry leading warranty.
We are a BBB accredited company and as members of the Technology and Maintenance Council, the Colorado Motor Carriers Association, the Georgia Motor Trucking Association, and the Florida Trucking Association we work hard to support the trucking industry and promote safety and connection management best practices.
We are the Kingpin Specialists
- Free Fleet Evaluations
- Repairs Are Done Onsite
- Minimal Impact on Operations
- 100% Guaranteed Repairs
Our process
We train & certify our welders to national welding standards. Our technicians use a patented, portable lathe to ensure refurbished kingpins comply with the manufacturer’s operational specifications.
step 1 INSPECTION
Before a Kingpin can be refurbished it must pass a general inspection. The Upper Coupler/Grid assembly inspection is performed to ensure that there is no apparent structural damage. The pin is checked for squareness and proper height. The bolster plate thickness is measured ultrasonically and visually inspected for cracks and deformations. If the upper coupler does not meet the inspection criteria, then refurbishment is not recommended. When evaluating fleets our technicians will inspect multiple trailers on a single visit. The wear levels and structural assessment is noted on an inspection report that is provided to the fleet service manager.
step 2 CLEANING
Once the kingpin has been inspected and approved for repair, the trailer will get staged out of the way of daily operations on a level area. The technician will clean the pin removing any dirt and grease in preparation for the refurbishment process. This minimizes any foreign compounds from integrating with the weld and allows the technician to evaluate the wear pattern and customize the weld overlay to build up the needed material to compensate for the wear. As the technician cleans the pin a second assessment of the upper coupler is completed to ensure no cracks or anomalies are present on the bolster plate.
step 3 PRE-HEAT
After cleaning the kingpin our certified technician’s setup, a specialized seat to begin the repair. Before the technician can apply the spiral weld wrap a preheat process is needed. Heat is applied evenly to the Kingpin to bring it up to the target temperature. Preheat and interpass heat must be maintained to ensure consistent hardness in the remanufactured kingpin. If there is too much variance in temperature, hardness becomes inconsistent, and will be difficult to machine. Wearable components need to be comprised of consistent material so that they wear evenly.
step 4 WELD
Our technicians follow an engineered process applying spiral weld wrap to the pin. Once they begin the process the technician must continue the work until it is completed. Just as with the preheat process you want to keep the temperature within your target zone to maximize the consistency within the metal applied. Throughout the process the technician uses a spiral overlay incorporated with tempered welds to ensure strength and consistency of the weld over the kingpin. This non-invasive process does not alter the structural composition of the upper coupler assembly. The weld is only applied to the wearable sections of the Kingpin.
step 5 MACHINE
After the kingpin has been built back up our technician’s setup our patented “POVOL” (Portable Orbital, Vertical Operating Lathe 2.0). This custom tool allows us to machine the kingpin onsite while still attached to the trailer. As the extra material is removed the consistent solid core is revealed. The result is a remanufactured kingpin that has the similar metalogical properties and dimensions that coincide with the manufacturer’s operational specifications. All Kingpins are dimensioned to the J700 and J2228 hardness and dimensional specifications. The extra material that was removed is cleaned up with a magnet and the kingpin is double checked to ensure it meets the quality checks.
step 6 FINISH
After the kingpin machining is completed, the pin must then pass a post-production test ensuring that it complies to our internal quality control standards. If the pin does not meet our established standards, then the complete refurbishment process starts again. Once the kingpin has passed the quality control checks the pin is stamped with a unique ID# and a certified refurbishment sticker is applied to the trailer. This unique tracking number tracks all aspects of the refurbishment for start to finish. Our Kingpin rebuilds are 100% guaranteed to operate and function just as a new pin would.
Don’t Ignore the Kingpin
Anytime you have metal in contact with metal you get wear and damage. The truck’s fifth wheel and the trailer’s kingpin are both composed of high strength steel. The more the connection between the truck and trailer is stressed the higher the wear rate. Most shops don’t have welders that are certified to complete a structural repair on a trailer therefore they ignore the kingpin and focus on the fifth wheel. This solves 50% of the problem, which is like solving 0% of the problem. If the KINGPIN is damaged or worn excessively it will not function properly and cause damage to the new or repaired fifth wheel when connected.
By tracking kingpin wear rates and proactively repairing equipment you can:
- Keep wear rates manageable
- Predict future repair needs
- Reduce equipment downtimes
- Save huge sums of money
Kingpin Specialists provides an engineered solution that will restore your kingpins to their original equipment specifications and prevent the wear and damage from spreading to other units.
Do You Manage Commercial Truck and Trailers in North America?
We pioneered the kingpin repair industry by creating an engineered solution, using certified welders, and proprietary equipment which is why we are the kingpin specialists.