Recommendations on 5th Wheel Hitch

[lisa101004]

We are in the process of purchasing our first fifth wheel. Its a 2018 Cougar 369BHS. We will be towing it with a 2019 Ford F250 diesel FX4 short bed. We would like some recommendations for a fifth wheel hitch. Is it better to go with a slider hitch or something like a goose neck hitch? Should we add air bags or anything else to help the suspension? Thanks

[sourdough]

Lots of schools of thoughts on this.

Just bought my 1st 5th wheel. Not my first RV, just my 1st 5th wheel. Before making that decision I read, researched, talked to owners/users for a year. I bought an Andersen 5th wheel hitch. Worried and fretted, analyzed etc. Finally the weight, ease of use and dependability won me over. I have now used it for about 3000 miles and love it. I know others have doubts.

In our park I drive by a dually every day with a bed cover. Drove by the other day and they were in the bed working....they had an Andersen in it so I stopped to visit. How did he like it? How long had he had it? His thoughts? He advised that he had run a B&W and Pullrite previously. Angles hitching/unhitching, chucking, noise.....so he decided to try the Andersen. His assessment was that it was so much better than the others. His opinion echoed the same as every person I've talked to that actually uses one. As in everything, each person has his opinion.....

[Canonman]

While our Cougar is nowhere as big as yours, I have to completely agree with Danny about the Anderson hitch. Our son has a regular hitch set up and was always complaining of the hassle to take it out when he needed to use the truck bed. He claims it as one of the reasons he sold his 5er.
I have put 30k miles on our rig and have had no issues with the Anderson whatsoever.
Also, our TV is a short bed Ram and have not needed a "slider".

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by lisa101004

We are in the process of purchasing our first fifth wheel. Its a 2018 Cougar 369BHS. We will be towing it with a 2019 Ford F250 diesel FX4 short bed. We would like some recommendations for a fifth wheel hitch. Is it better to go with a slider hitch or something like a goose neck hitch? Should we add air bags or anything else to help the suspension? Thanks

You're looking at a 14,000 pound trailer with a empty pin weight of 2100 pounds. It's a "bunkhouse model" so I'd suppose there are more than just 2 people in your family. A Ford F250 diesel Crew cab Short bed FX4 is going to have a payload of around 1900-2100 pounds. That truck is just not rated high enough to carry the pin weight of the empty trailer, when you add batteries, propane, a hitch to the truck and "kids to fill the back seat" you're going to be "grossly overloaded". That trailer with a 5 member family, 3 of which are adolescents, is in the upper end of the one ton truck requirement, and if your family travels with toys like bikes, motorcycles, a generator or other "heavy accessories", then you're in the one ton dually weight range.

I don't want to "bust your bubble" but you might want to take some long, serious looks at truck/trailer weight ratings before signing on the dotted line ...

[CedarCreekWoody]

I, too, run an Andersen and am pleased. But I suggest you search this forum for other ideas as well, including other pin boxes that swivel (such as sidewinder.) What is your truck setup? Gooseneck ball? Pucks? Nothing in bed? Study your options.

[xrated]

Originally Posted by lisa101004

We are in the process of purchasing our first fifth wheel. Its a 2018 Cougar 369BHS. We will be towing it with a 2019 Ford F250 diesel FX4 short bed. We would like some recommendations for a fifth wheel hitch. Is it better to go with a slider hitch or something like a goose neck hitch? Should we add air bags or anything else to help the suspension? Thanks

I am going to echo JRTJH's thoughts 100% on your truck being way too small for that camper! How do I know this? My previous truck was an F250 Ford Diesel with a payload capacity of 2148 lb. The trailer you are looking at has an EMPTY pin weight of 2100 lbs or so. That is at or close to the payload of your truck before even adding battery(s) and propane. That leaves you ZERO payload capacity for a hitch, passengers, anything and everything that you will need to put in your truck...PLUS....all the stuff that will go in the trailer. You WILL be seriously overloaded, and I'm sure you don't want that experience for yourself and your family. And again, I know this because I lived this.

[TxPilot2185]

I have a 2020 Cougar 368MBI and a Reese Goose Box that I’ve been very happy with. I tow with a 2015 F-250 short bed and have a small 37 gallon aux tank in the back. Using the Goose Box and turnover ball really makes it easy for me to keep my limited bed space free when not towing. Lippert claims this hitch doesn’t void the frame warranty as well. And yes , you’ll be overloaded just like I am as far as your payload capacity is concerned. The rear axle on 250’s and SRW 350’s is identical for my year aside from the leafs and tires (may have changed in 2017). Ford de-rates the sterling 10.5 for the weakest link. So I installed a heavier leaf pack along with heavier rated tires. I acknowledge the fact that this doesn’t make a 3/4 ton into a 1 ton, but.... it pulls and stops just like my co-workers 1 ton SRW hooked to my trailer.
By the way, I almost purchased your model 5th wheel. I liked the layout, but my kids liked the loft and middle room in the 368 so that’s what I wound up with.

[ewbldavis]

Another Andersen owner here. No previous experience with 5th wheels, but I loved how light it was when I removed it.

Towed like a dream. No noise, easy to hook/unhook on unlevel ground, plus you know it's hooked so no need to "test" like the standard jaws.

My TV is a gas Sierra 2500 shortbed. Seems to work well for shortbed.

[jsb5717]

Ditto the Andersen Hitch. There are many viable options that will work for you and you really can't go wrong with most of them. The decision is personal preference. The Andersen works great...period.

Also ditto the concern of truck limits. Far too many are towing with underrated trucks. If you're just getting set up do yourself a favor and start out on the side of caution and safety for your family. Bigger truck or much smaller trailer. Run the numbers on loaded (not empty) trailer/hitch weights...The loaded hitch weight matters the most. Check the payload rating of your truck. Make a good decision.

PS...welcome to the forum. There's a lot of experienced advise here.

[Dennis852]

I have a short bed truck also and went with the pullrite super glide. I did not want to have to deal with worrying about hitting the cab and the auto slide feature makes it effortless. It is a little heavier than I would have wanted but I use an engine hoist to load it in and out of the truck with no issues.

[Kzneft]

B&W Companion. You will never regret it. It's HD and works great. Yes, its heavy, and isn't that what you want? For me I would never get one of those "light weight" hitches.

[KPonroad]

Another Anderson fan here. Ran Curt Q16 for couple years with no complaints then switched when I got a new truck. Love the ease of hooking, unhooking smooth ride, etc. over 10K miles so far. Will keep it.

[61Hawks]

I have done a lot of research lately as I want to get rid of my heavy Hyjacker hitch. I have ordered an Andersen because of it light weight and ease of use. I tow with a 2010 ram 3500 diesel regular box which is 6'5 long. The truck is also deleted.... best thing I ever did to this truck.

[Budman911]

Going against the grain here.
I have a 2019 F350 SRW short bed and I use a https://amzn.to/2P7UQTg 24k PullRite automatic slider. It only takes one trailer meets the back of your cab boo boo to erase any cost difference. Since your TV is a short bed, definitely go with an auto slider. Then install air bags to help you remove the hitch to regain the use of your bed. Raise it all the way up, then drop your landing gear and remove all the pressure out of your airbags. I leave my hitch attached to my rig and locked up when not in use. The air bags also help level any rear end sag and improve the ride while towing. Good luck!

[Brazo]

I have a 2015 cougar X-Lite towing with a 2019 Dodge Ram 2500-no air bags sits fine.I use a B&W patriot 18k slider and love it.I can put tailgate down and back in anywhere without hitting trailer.Love the fact you can adjust hitch for hieght and front to back placement.

[brodad]

I had F250 long bed, used a standard 5th wheel set up. Had Timbrens installed in the rear and all was fine. My buddy had pretty much the same equipment BUT had the short bed. Pulling into a gas station once on a weird ascent somehow his trailer touched against the truck roof and blew out his rear truck window. He needed the sliding hitch for a short bed. He learned a lesson on having the right hitch for the length of the truck bed.

[Jcholt7379]

We have a 2015 F250 6.7 Diesel Shortbed
We fell in love with the Cougar 315RLS. We.went with the Anderson. We haven't been able to travel as much since I am waiting on hip surgery. The couple of short trips and still getting use to a 5th & not TT

THOUGHTS anyone?

[Frosty46]

Slider hitch certainly and the best one you can afford. Short beds call for a slider. Air Lifts are also highly recommended--will save your drive train. I bought mine on Amazon for very little and installed myself--easy fix. You will love pulling a 5th wheel!

[Jcholt7379]

I don't think the Anderson hitch will be replaced. Will look at the air lifts...Do you know which one in Amazon? It's a 4x4 Ford too.
Thanks!

[Larrystegall]

I use Husky 25KW (like the wrap around the pin design), mounted with the weight directly over the rear axle on a 2016 2500HD 6.0 Gasser double cab LB 4:10, pulling a 2017 359MBI. It is a 14K gross trailer. Tows very smoothly, but I am near the limits on the truck as I use it, and if I fully loaded either the Truck or trailer I would overloaded. I travel with two people max for this reason. I have about 900 lbs more Cargo capacity on the truck than your diesel (Gasser, long bed, 4:10 gears, etc.). The weight experts on this forum are giving you great advice.