Quote:
Originally Posted by Dennis852
Agreed it is possible but what about those situations where you need to get in or out of a tight space. I am not willing to risk that.
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When you consider that there are probably 10 times the travel trailers being towed as fifth wheels, AND that NO travel trailer connected to a bumper hitch can reach the same angles backing into a site as a short bed truck with a "curved front trailer", your statement becomes significantly less "impactful"...
Any short bed truck with a conventional fifth wheel hitch (non slider) can achieve angles greater than a bumper hitch trailer in the same situation....
So, the "risk" you face is less than probably 10 times the "bumper pull folks" endure every time they tow their trailer....
A sliding hitch is "nice to have" for some people and probably a "must have" for a few, but it's not a "got to have or else" for anyone who pays attention to where they are and what they're doing....
I've towed fifth wheels over 100,000 miles in the past 10 years and NEVER been in a situation where I needed a sliding hitch. Why? Because I know my rig's limitations and "just don't get there".
It's better to stop, get out and look rather than "crank her back, make that turn, push the axle hangers to their limit and make that turn in one "fell swoop"....
Anyone who has "grown up towing travel trailers with equalizer hitches", moving to a short bed truck with a conventional fifth wheel hitch will realize that they can "cut much sharper angles" than they ever could with a travel trailer... So, the question becomes, "With the significantly increased angles a fifth wheel can turn over a travel trailer, is pushing even greater angles necessary?" If you can put a travel trailer in the spot, you can put a fifth wheel/short bed truck in the same spot with a conventional fifth wheel hitch...
So, is a sliding hitch "necessary"??? IMHO, nope, not for someone who knows their rig and pays attention to what they're doing..... YMMV