How to Select a Trailer Hitch
Hitch class and receiver basics so you know what size opening the mount must match before you shop drop or rise.
Watch on YouTube →Drawbar versus Ball Mount (Canada)
At the parts counter, shoppers ask for a drawbar, a ball mount, a shank, or a drop hitch and often mean the same family of parts. In plain English, the hitch receiver is the square tube bolted to the vehicle. The piece that slides into that tube and holds the trailer ball is usually called a ball mount in CURT shopping language, and many older manuals still call that same part a drawbar. This page translates the wording so you can buy the right mount in Canada without a jargon wall.
Built for Canadian hitch shoppers who want clear mount language. Free shipping on CURT towing gear from Lots of Parts when the SKU is live on this store.
Deep dive next:
ball mount trailer hitch guide,
how to measure ball mount drop,
receiver size guide, and
trailer ball size guide.
Prefer the full index?
Open the towing guides hub.
Watch these CURT videos first
All four videos are from the official CURT YouTube channel (@curtmfg). Use them for hitch class, install habits, wiring basics, and ball-mount height before you argue about drawbar versus ball-mount labels.
If an embed does not load, use the YouTube link under the card.
Trailer Hitch Installation Techniques
CURT · Install habits
Install habits that keep the receiver solid on the vehicle so measuring drop later is not a moving target.
Watch on YouTube →How to Connect a Trailer Wiring Harness
CURT · Wiring basics
Wiring is separate from the mount. Lights do not live inside a drawbar or ball mount carton.
Watch on YouTube →How to Choose a Ball Mount and Trailer Ball
CURT · Ball-mount height
How CURT talks about choosing a ball mount and trailer ball — the same shopping conversation many people still call drawbar selection.
Watch on YouTube →Drawbar and ball mount are usually the same family
When a customer says drawbar, they usually want the bar that slides into the receiver and holds the trailer ball. When another customer says ball mount, they want that same kind of part. CURT product pages and our Canada guides lean on ball mount as the everyday shopping label. Older farm and fleet paperwork still says drawbar. Both labels point at the insert that carries the ball, not at the hitch welded or bolted to the vehicle.
A shank is the square bar portion that actually enters the receiver tube. People say shank when they care about length, rise, drop, or whether a bike-rack arm fits the opening. A drop hitch usually means a ball mount with the ball platform lower than the shank so a taller truck can tow a lower trailer level. Rise is the opposite layout for a low vehicle and a higher coupler.
Words you will hear, without the jargon wall
| Word people say | What they usually mean |
|---|---|
| Receiver or hitch | The tube fixed to the vehicle. Class and opening size live here. |
| Drawbar | Often the insert that holds the ball. Same shopping family as a ball mount in most counter conversations. |
| Ball mount | CURT-style name for that insert. Start with the ball mount guide. |
| Shank | The square bar that slides into the receiver. Length and drop start here. |
| Drop hitch | Usually a ball mount with drop so the ball sits lower than the receiver. |
| Trailer ball | The ball that screws or bolts to the mount. Size must match the coupler. See the trailer ball size guide. |
| Pin or hitch lock | Keeps the mount from sliding out of the receiver. Not the same as a ball. |
Measure before you guess at drop
Level towing starts with two heights: the top of the receiver opening and the bottom of the loaded trailer coupler. The difference points you toward drop or rise. Guessing from a photo of a truck in a parking lot is how people buy the wrong mount twice. Use a tape, a helper, and how to measure ball mount drop before you click buy.
Receiver size matters just as much as drop. One and one quarter inch mounts do not fit two inch receivers without a purpose-built conversation, and the reverse is the same story. Confirm the opening on your hitch card, then match the shank. The receiver size guide walks through that check in plain English.
Ball size is a separate decision
The mount holds the ball. The ball must match the trailer coupler. Common trailer balls are one and seven eighths inch, two inch, and two and five sixteenths inch. Buying a beautiful drop mount with the wrong ball still leaves you sitting in the driveway. Open the trailer ball size guide after you know drop and receiver size.
Shopping label
Ball mount guide
Everyday CURT shopping language for the insert that holds the ball. Start here after the hitch is on the vehicle.
Height
Measure drop
Tape-measure workflow so drop versus rise is a number, not a guess from a neighbor’s truck.
Tube size
Receiver size
One and one quarter inch versus two inch openings decide which shanks and racks fit.
Coupler
Ball size
Match the ball to the trailer coupler after the mount height is settled.
A simple Canada shopping order
Step 1Know the receiver
Confirm hitch class and opening size on the vehicle hitch card before you shop any mount.
Step 2Measure drop or rise
Use the measure-drop guide with a loaded or typical trailer height when you can.
Step 3Pick the mount
Call it drawbar or ball mount at the counter — buy the insert that matches tube size and height.
Step 4Match the ball and pin
Coupler size for the ball, then a pin or lock so the mount stays in the receiver.
What this page is not
This is not a fake review roundup and not a place we invent CURT SKUs. Weight-distribution bars, sway controls, and gooseneck gear are different conversations. If you only need a bike rack, you may not need a trailer ball at all — read hitch for bike rack only. If you are still choosing the hitch on the vehicle, start with how to choose a hitch and what hitch class do I need.
When the hitch carton arrives, remember the mount is usually an extra. What is in the hitch box explains kit versus extras in the same plain voice.
Related guides we do publish
Ball mount guideDrop, rise, and class
Measure dropTape-measure workflow
Receiver sizeOne and one quarter versus two inch
Trailer ball sizeMatch the coupler
What is in the boxKit versus extras
Towing guides hubAll vehicle and topic guides
Open the ball mount guide
Practical Canada help for choosing the insert people also call a drawbar — receiver size, drop versus rise, and class matching without brochure fluff.
Open ball mount guide →Next: measure drop, receiver size, and ball size.
Lots of Parts · Canada drawbar versus ball mount glossary-style shopping help with verified CURT embeds only. No fake reviews, no invented SKUs.
