Hitch Thoughts?

[pbuck]

I am looking for some input on a 5er hitch. I have recently bought a 38' 2011 High Country 343RL with a dry weight of around 9800 and a hitch weight around 1800. I have a 2009 Duramax Diesel 2500HD. It is a crew cab 4X4 with a 6.5' bed. A friend of mine brought the 5er home for me and I put it directly under the polebarn for the winter. My wife and I are not planning any trips till summer so I have some time. Any thoughts on a hitch? The king pin is forward. Should I look at single jaw, double jaw, auto slider, manual slider, or skip the slider all together? I am also looking to avoid the "clunking" I here so much about.

[Jim W]

You are going to get several replies as to what you should buy.
To me this depends on budget, do you want to manually activate the slider or have this done for you. If you have an un-limited budget than by all means buy the pullrite hitch. These are around $1600 to $1700 + capture plate.
For me this was too much money and I am not opposed to getting out of the truck and manually putting the hitch into the maneuver position.
Do you need a slider hitch, will it is like the man has said in the past pay me now or pay me later. I am a firm believer in them. You may never need it but if you do than it is there for use.
I would also buy the two jaw type of hitch as opposed to a single bar or single jaw.
Chucking is going to happen the best way I have eliminate most of it was to upgrade to a TRAILAIR pin box. This helps to decouple the trailer motion from the truck and trailer as you drive down the road.
Jim W.

[pbuck]

I am not sure that my supply of $ is unlimited, however I am committed to getting things done right the first time and not having to change them around in the future. There may be some drawbacks with the superglide that I have seen. Weight might be an issue, I am not a spring chicken and taking the hitch from the bed could be an issue, also I am concerned about having a capture plate which means if I break down the 5er can only be towed by someone with a superglide. Guess I am talking myself out of it

[SteveC7010]

Originally Posted by pbuck

I am not sure that my supply of $ is unlimited, however I am committed to getting things done right the first time and not having to change them around in the future. There may be some drawbacks with the superglide that I have seen. Weight might be an issue, I am not a spring chicken and taking the hitch from the bed could be an issue, also I am concerned about having a capture plate which means if I break down the 5er can only be towed by someone with a superglide. Guess I am talking myself out of it

I have an older, simple Reese fifth wheel. No slider as I have a long bed truck. This hitch is actually two pieces and each is light enough that I should be able to get it in and out of the truck for many years to come (I'm 63 now.)

Looking at the Reese website, I can't tell for sure if the current hitches are single assemblies or can be easily broken down into two or more pieces. Perhaps someone with a new hitch can chime in here.

If you have a short bed truck, the slider is pretty much an essential. Without it, maneuvering is quite limited.

[Festus2]

I have a short bed truck with a Reese manual slider and so far I have not had any difficulty maneuvering into sites - some of which have been reasonably difficult to access. Thus far, I have not had to get out and manually move the hitch back to the maneuvering position. It is comforting to know however that it can be slid back if necessary.
The recessed and rounded front cap of our Cougar 5th certainly helps and I would not have been able to make as tight as turns if the front were square and straight across.

[msp2jxr]

I am of the thought to get the slider. I damaged my new trailer right away because of uneven ground. The trailers recessed front gives an 88 degree turning radius on level ground. When was the last time you backed a trailer on perfectly level ground? I recommend a slider because it gives more room between the trailer and the back of the bed when manuvering. If you are tight between the cab and the trailer in a turn and the trailer sinks on that side there's a new dent in the back of the cab or worse the window shatters. The only thing I don't like about my manual slider is if the trailer is not on a fairly level surface I can't get the handle to move until I take the pressure off the hitch. Jay.. If I had to do it again I would still by a slider

[Outbackmel]

I have a CURT with manual slider. At age 68, fairly good physical condition, ride the big HD every day the good lord allows me to, pulling the slide bar is NO problem. With a short bed vehicle, when approaching a tight back in situation, it takes out the tension. Having a tail gate with a 5er V Notch is another plus, BUT, I opted to go a different route. I have a Roll n Lock cover and vented, light weight gate. I run with no gate when pulling and once at my destination and parked, simply snap in the gate and all can be locked and secured. Great for golfers who wish to leave clubs in the tow vehicle.

As far as removing the fifth wheel, 4 pins (sounds EZ), dexterity of a monkey, strength of an elephant required. Did it once. No more.

When I drive around town at home, I like my polished normal Dodge tailgate.

To each his own. Good luck in your choices.

[forest376]

Does one need a slider with a standard bed - 6.7"?

[RCrawler]

Auto slider, all the way. Someday, you will get into a position where you need to get out in traffic, or while blocking an access road to get it to stretch out. I like the idea of just drive it and forget it. They can be expensive, but well worth the money if you ever forget the manual and smack into the cab.

I've heard of them making noise as well. But, if the hitch is adjusted properly, there should be no clunking. My Pullrite was quiet.

There are some that claim that no slider is needed at all with the recessed caps on these newer trailers. That may be true on perfectly flat ground, but there is no way if you're on any type of incline. Even with the slider extended, my trailer was pretty close to the cab.

An easy way to get the hitch in and out is with a chain hoist. I ran a 4x4x16' post between trusses in my shop. Wrapped a chain around it and hung the hoist from that. I had an old kingpin with a loop welded on it. Undo the pins, engage the pin into the hitch and lift. I have a 4 caster flat furniture dolly that I can put the hitch on and roll it into a corner.

Jason

[SteveC7010]

Originally Posted by forest376

Does one need a slider with a standard bed - 6.7"?

Not so terribly long ago, that was called a "short bed" and the 8' long box was called a standard bed.

The answer is that the geometry of the nose of a fifth wheel trailer is directly related to the length of the bed. The trailer is 96" wide. If it pivots on a point in the exact center of an 8' (96") bed, you could (theoretically) swing it a full 90 degrees and the 8' width of the trailer would be directly centered above the 8' width of the bed of the truck.

There are a number of things that affect and alter that, but just keep the basic dimensions in mind.

If the king pin is on a fifth wheel in the center of a 6'7" bed and we swing left or right, there is no possible way to get to 90 degrees without displacing (read crunching!) nearly 1 1/2 feet of trailer and/or pickup cab.

Now, most trailers have an extended nose pin box these days, and the fifth wheel, if centered over the axle of the truck, is usually a bit closer to the tailgate than to the cab. And the Keystones have this nice shaped corner now on the nose cap that they call Max Swing or such.

So even with all the refinements, the basic length of the box and the width of the trailer still dictate how far you can swing left or right.

Enter the slider. For low speed maneuvering (like parking), there is no need for the fifth wheel to be more or less centered over the axle. So the slider moves to the back of the trailer far enough to allow up to a 90 degree swing (or thereabouts.)

So, to answer your question, without a slider on a 6'7" bed, there are some limitations regarding how much you can swing left or right when parking. Several of the regular contributors here have short beds and 5'ers without sliders. They know the limitations and capabilities of their respective rigs and do very well at parking, etc. without a slider.

Others have them and swear by them.

Now, I admit that I left a lot out of this because it complicates the basic description of things to the point of confusion, but I hope this helps.

I am blessed with having a long bed truck before we bought the Cougar. But if our truck had been a short bed, I would gone for a slider because I am the one guy in the crowd who will always end up needing it at the worst possible times.