Fifth Wheel Hitches

[Matt400]

Looking into a 5th wheel so next question is the hitch. .



The RV Dealer recommends Valley for our shortbed and is a slider. Supposedly due to the trailers short bed friendly design the slider would only be used in un-even terrain while turning and many of his customers never have to use it. I would need to stop and slide it before I smash the cab.



Being a QC seems it would not be so easy to see if I would need to move it.

Shouldn't I think about an auto sliding hitch? The dealer says they are troublesome but would install it if I want one. Any thoughts?

 

[231jasonS]

Dont trust the RV dealer, they'll sell you what ever they have in stock and usally dont know much about any of the other dozens of brands out there. The same guy will tell you a 1/2 will pull a 5th just fine.



A short bed needs a slider!!!!!! you will have to slide it back during most parking, gas stations, a lot of u trurns and way more than you think. I had a husky (which is now valley) and it worked OK, but it would often bind and not allways lock in to place. Becarfull if your on a grade and need to slide it back as it will slam into place. This could be dangerous. not to mention I would get sick and tired of climbing in and out of the bed to pull the slider handle. (Stock height 4x4 2500 and im 6'1" and could not allways reach the lever))



I learned my lesson and went to a pull right super glide. WAY BETTER... . auto slide is the only way to go. And with the removeable rails i dont have the lame rails stuck in the bed all the time.



As far as troublesome... ... . id say the pullright is head and sholders better than the manuel slide. The locking pin set up is way more secure and there is almost no movement between the pin and the locking jaws. The valley pin lock left a gap which would slam back and forth everytime the truck started or stopped. And in a sudden stop the last thing you want id slop in teh connection between the trailer and truck.



The pull right is worth every penny and i would not go without it, even if the other hitch was 1/4 the $... .

 

[ScottLewis]

I pulled my 5th wheel for 7 years with my '98 club cab swb and a Valley manual slider. I used the slider perhaps a dozen times during that period. I moved the hitch to my '06 and have used it for 2 years now. I have used the slider more often than with the '98 but still not that frequently. You do need to watch the corner of the cab in tight turns.



That said, when you need to use it, you really need it and it would be hard to do without. If money isn't a problem, get the automatic slider. Manually making the change can be a nuisance at times.



Do some searches on them before deciding. The more you know before buying, the better your choice will fit your needs.



Dan

 

[Thunderbolt]

Dont trust the RV dealer, they'll sell you what ever they have in stock and usally dont know much about any of the other dozens of brands out there. The same guy will tell you a 1/2 will pull a 5th just fine.



A short bed needs a slider!!!!!! you will have to slide it back during most parking, gas stations, a lot of u trurns and way more than you think. I learned my lesson and went to a pull right super glide. WAY BETTER... . auto slide is the only way to go. And with the removeable rails i dont have the lame rails stuck in the bed all the time.



As far as troublesome... ... . id say the pullright is head and sholders better than the manuel slide. The locking pin set up is way more secure and there is almost no movement between the pin and the locking jaws.

The pull right is worth every penny and i would not go without it, even if the other hitch was 1/4 the $... .

I also have the Pullright SUPERGLIDE. I'll Agree. It is nice to know that you don't need to worry about it when swinging into a fuel island or making a quick stop for a bite to eat let alone a tight campsite.

Worth the difference in price to me. Also build quality is excellent.

Good Luck!

 

[TMRoper1669]

Has Anyone Pulled with a B&W Companion with Mega cab

I recently purchased a 08' Mega Cab Dually And I would really like to use my companion hitch although it make me really nervous. I have herd of people using it but I don't want to be one of those guys that forget and smash my truck. So what would be the best for me to use? I stil need a goosneck hitch any ideas I would appericate it .

 

[231jasonS]

I think Pull right has a a gooseneck that uses te four pin set up... check this PullRite has a SAFER, STRONGER, BETTER designed hitch for you

 

[Matt400]

Thanks for the in-site everyone, my instinct was telling me auto slider. Traveling should be fun and fairly stress free... after-all its why we get away from things to relax.

 

[Grizzly]

I like my PullRite with the Super Bracket. When you remove the hitch and rails, you have a clean bed with 4 holes on the floor of the bed, which I cover with a thick rubber mat. They also make a auto slider for a short bed.

 

[HAkers]

If I had to do it over again, I would spend the $ on a 5th airborne sidewinder. I have short bed with manual slider... my camping buddy has the sidewinder combo... and I'm green with envy.

___________________________
hakers . 2004 QC HO
05 starwood 32' 5ver.

 

[MMerlino]

Lots of good advice above. I also would recommend the Pullrite super glide. The first time you forget a manual slider and bang the corners of your truck and trailer it will cost you more than the hitch. For most of us the above is not if you would bang it in a tight corner but when. With that said please look at the thread on the DANGEROUS flaw in the pullrite slider hitch. It is easily fixed with a little welding but could cause the complete loss of your trailer and worse yet the possibility of hurting someone. Below is the link to the thread. Please reply on this thread to get it brought to more TDR reader's attention...

https://www.turbodieselregister.com...1465-super-glide-5th-wheel-hitch-concern.html

 

[Matt400]

The dealer tells me the auto slider still has to be manually unlocked & un-locked. That doesn't sound very automatic to me.



edit maybe they just don't know, I called about this one:

PullRite has a SAFER, STRONGER, BETTER designed hitch for you and its fully automatic.

Price with all the hardware is $1854. 00

 

[231jasonS]

The dealer tells me the auto slider still has to be manually unlocked & un-locked. That doesn't sound very automatic to me.



edit maybe they just don't know, I called about this one:

PullRite has a SAFER, STRONGER, BETTER designed hitch for you and its fully automatic.

Price with all the hardware is $1854. 00

Id say they dont know, after dealing with many different trailer sales persons Ive yet to find one who knew about anything other than the product they sell. Most of them did not know half as much about their product as i did after a little time on line to find out about different products. They are worst then used car sales man for the most part. I have found a couple of knowledgable guys, but mostly not so much.



You can find a better price if you look around,,, I ordereed mine in 02-07 for 1399. 00 (superglide 16K and rail kit) the capture plate was about 150. 00. . that included tax amnd shipping..... Big discount RV

 

[surfbeetle]

With my sleeper cab in the bed, my longbed became just under 6 feet. Most shortbeds are 6. 5 feet. I lost 29 inches at the front of my longbed. I went from a standard reese 15k hitch and added the manual slider. With my old trailer, I had to use the slider all of the time. It is a pain to have to stop and release it and then lock it. I would have rather had the auto slider, but $$ was an issue. Pullrite makes them with up to a 24 inch slide depending on the model you are looking at.



I got a new trailer last year and the trailer was even closer to the back of the cab then the previous one. I ended up getting the RV5 10 inch extension on the trailer kingpin. I very rarely if ever have to use my slider now. Granted I can't jack-knife into a full 90 degrees, but I cant do that no matter what position the slider is in.

 

[Matt400]

You can find a better price if you look around,,, I ordereed mine in 02-07 for 1399. 00 (superglide 16K and rail kit) the capture plate was about 150. 00. . that included tax amnd shipping..... Big discount RV

Thanks for the tip, price looks pretty good there.

 

[231jasonS]

Thanks for the tip, price looks pretty good there.

i cant remember where i ordered the capture plate, but it was somewhere else... . about $30 cheaper. Wierd how some things were cheaper and others were more. I think the 16K is discontiued in favor of the 18K or 14K hitchs. . FYI

 

[klenger]

Whenever I go to a truck or RV dealer, I try to find someone who knows more about the product than I do. Not an easy task, and not because I'm all that smart.

 

[Grizzly]

Whenever I go to a truck or RV dealer, I try to find someone who knows more about the product than I do. Not an easy task, and not because I'm all that smart.

Your smarter than the average bear.

 

[Matt400]

Whenever I go to a truck or RV dealer, I try to find someone who knows more about the product than I do. Not an easy task, and not because I'm all that smart.

In my case the dealer is small, been in business a long time and installed all brands of hitches. He says (owner/salesman) he will sell me whatever I want however since the manufacture has moved the pin forward and cut back the cap an auto slider is not needed. They only recommend a manual slider for times when you would need to go past 90 deg or at a 90 in very uneven terrain otherwise a non slider would do just fine.



Maybe Pullrite has improved but he claimes you have to be more dead center to hook up, the lever to lock & unlock is weak, has more moving parts to wear out with the sliding cams and the capture point is not as solid as the Valley. This is not the same dealer that said the auto sliders had to be locked & unlocked.



I posted here to learn from others too.

 

[231jasonS]

Although its true you have to be more straight to hook up, you have about 10-15 degrees to play with and it has never been a problem.



Unlocking lever is the same is very strong however the locking jaws are totally different in the pullrite compared to the valley. At times i would have to beat the unlocking level on the valley with a hammer to get it to disengague (on a slightly un level surface). The last thing you want is to be in the bed of your truck hitting your hitch with a wood block.



The trailer he's selling probally does have improvements in the front end cap design that allow for more clearance and an extended king pin will help. But it will still contact in a very tight turn? i wouldnt want to worry about that when pulling into a tight parking lot in the middle of the night when its raining. With my babies in the back seat crying and the little lady nagging from the passenger seat the last thing i need to stress about is if my $45K truck is going to hit my $45K trailer.



Ive had both hitches (only two ive ever had) and IMO the pullrite is worth the $ and then some. I will not go to another brand.



The auto slider is key, but the build quality is very good, better than Valley. Thicker, more heavy duty materials. The locking jaws are a better design in the superglide, it holds the king pin tighter eliminating forward and back movement inside the locking jaws. The lack of the jarring slamming every time i accelerate or brake from the slop in the king pin locking jaws is reason enough to get the pullrite.



I did not like the way the valley hitch rolled on thier ralls and the under side of the metal that wraps around the rail has a set screw with a locking nut to hold it tight, this eventually wore a grove in the underside of the rail and broke off, causing the hitch to not lock in the rear position. Because i couldnt lock it I had to try and back in to a tight camping sapce avoid several trees at dusk. Even with two people spotting the clearence i still dented the cab.



The rail kit is outstanding. I used to hate the rails bolted to my bed, now i have 4, 2" holes in my bed, which is very clean looking. The only draw back to the pullrite is its heavy to load and unload (but its heavy duty) and you can not hook up to a standard king pin with out an adapter plate. (say you wanted to help a friend move his trailer)



When my last truck and trailer combo was totaled in a roll over accident the valley hitch held the king pin no problem, but the rail ripped from the bed and was hanging on by one bolt. I think the pull rite system is a better design and think it would have held up better.



All this means nothing, its up to you. Your doing the right thing, which i did not do and learning about the options.

 

[Matt400]

One thing is for sure, I can't find anyone online who wished they didn't opt for a pullrite.