44' Vintage tripple axle vs Short-Box Cummins...Which Hitch?

[Cummins4WD]

I'm thinking of buying a 44' Vintage trailer out in Ohio... It was designed to be a gooseneck but it has a king pin adaptor on it so it can be hooked up as a 5th Wheel.



I have the short-box 2500 4wd and do not have a hitch yet. I will be driving from Denver to Chicago to pick this up and bring it back.



I've been looking at the Reese signature series 18k or 24k as well as just a B&W turnover ball with the 4" extended gooseneck ball hitch. I can't really spend more than $1500 on a hitch including installation as I've got to get the hitch this week. If I had more time I'd install myself but I need to pick this trailer up this weekend.



It looks like a slider hitch is a very good idea, especially someone new to towing a trailer of this size.



I've attached some photos of the current hitch and trailer. Any advice.

 

[ndurbin]

If you went with the B&W hitch w/ 5th wheel companion adaptor you'd have the ability to pull both types of trailers and have a flat bed floor when ya don't need the hitch. I believe the Reese hitches leave the rails in the bed when the hitch is not needed.



Nathan

 

[WMorgan]

I think you would want a slider of some sort with the short bed. There is no kingpin extension on that trailer and tight turns will make contact with the cab. Might only be a problem for backing up, however.



I have a Reese hitch with a manual slider and it works when I occasionally need it. The slider I have uses the rails that are mounted in the bed, but other manufacturer's have some that don't use the rails.



Chip

 

[puebla]

I'm also looking for a 5er hitch. I have an 05 CTD 3500 4x4 NV5600 Laramie. I'm looking for a hitch that can go either way, 5er or gooseneck, and can be fully removed from the bed when not in use.



I have been studying the different ratings and options of the different 5er hitches. What is too much for everyday use? I've seen 22k hitches for our trucks... .



Also, I'd like some feedback on ease of use and installation of different models of hitches. Please post any info on POS hitches that I should avoid like the plague. My budget is @ $1800 US bucks.



Thanks.

 

[KBalzuweit]

Putnam Firehawk combo hitch=POS!!



hazw8st Go B&W supposed to be great and well within your budget.



Cummins4WD Thats alot of trailer for a 2500, and believe me I am usually the guy that says go for it. As far as the hitch, Reese has been good to me in the past, but a buddy just replaced his with a Husky slider and says its a ton better than the reese. I am going try the Husky in my 06 I just bought. Also well below your budget.



Karl

 

[puebla]

KBalzuweit: Thanks for the heads up on the Putnam. Any other hitches out there that are POS hitches? I'm also looking at the Husky slider.

 

[lawdog]

Without a slider you will not turn that trailer. I had the same issue when I was looking for a trailer. I ended up buying a featherlite because of it's tapered nose. The nose tapers from 8. 5 ft down to 6 ft at the front. I have a B&W hitch with the extenda ball and can turn pretty sharp, but my Quad cab S/B WILL turn sharp enough going forward to dent cab and blow out rear window..... Don't ask how I know... ..... My trailer is called a 32', due to 32' of floor, but I call it a 40' as it is 40' overall... ... . More pics in readers gallery

 

[Bertram65]

Reese 18K signature series is a real nice hitch, I put one in my truck a while ago, I have not had any problems with it. The install is not too bad just time consuming, this is the thread I wrote after I installed it,

https://www.turbodieselregistry.com/forums/showthread.php?t=110068&highlight=signature

 

[DHorton]

I have the Reese Signature Gooseneck 30K. Installation was not to bad, just takes patience. Just swing the locking bars out, remove hitch, install 5th wheel hitch or pop in the rubber covers and your bed is back to being flat with no obstructions. I purchased it with the Gooseneck, since that is what I had, but it also gives me the option of swapping between Goose and 5th Wheel. However, I am with the other SB owners, get a slider. I have been totally happy with my Reese, BUT this is my first gooseneck hitch. I would go to all of the manufacturers website and check out their installation guides. Then I would go to a dealer nearby and check build quality. Just my . 02

 

[DaveK98]

I love my B&W goosneck and Companion 5th wheel hitch almost 5k miles and not a lick of trouble.



Probably wouldn't recommend it in your situation due to short bed and the shortness of you kingpin length. I've got a longbed truck and a extended kingpin on my 5th wheel trailer. I can put a large smoker in the bed near the cab and still not have any issues. I've got my B&W hitch set all the way forward. Think you can adjust it 2 inchs or so back and forward... .

 

[KBalzuweit]

Friend of mine has one and loves it.

 

[lawdog]

When I checked into buying a trailer, if I would not have gotten the Featherlite tapered nose, (Or equvilent tapered nose or short nose) I would have needed the HEaviest Pullrite Superglide hitch. The 16k was not enough slide to turn full, confirmed by pullrite themselves

 

[GaryCarter]

Spend the money up front and get the Pullrite. Better that than spending it at the body shop later...

That's going to be a very unforgiving combo otherwise.



Gary

 

[Cummins4WD]

I made it back and yes there would have been no way in hell I could have turned this thing without the slider setup. I would have liked to have gotten the Pull-Rite setup as it totally makes sense to me but the $3000 price was too much.



Photos: www.cummins4wd.com



The 18K Reese Signature series is pretty nice... I only wish the slider handle was a little stronger as it seems kind of wimpy to me and I've had a few situations where it kind of stuck on me.



Once it moves forward or back is the handle suppost to swing forward/back to the lock position? I probably need to grease the rails up as anytime I pulled off the highway I moved the whole damn thing back.



10,000 dry weight on this thing... hopped on a CAT scale in Iowa and came out to 17,400 lbs w/ truck and trailer.

 

[Bertram65]

I made it back and yes there would have been no way in hell I could have turned this thing without the slider setup. I would have liked to have gotten the Pull-Rite setup as it totally makes sense to me but the $3000 price was too much.



Photos: www.cummins4wd.com



The 18K Reese Signature series is pretty nice... I only wish the slider handle was a little stronger as it seems kind of wimpy to me and I've had a few situations where it kind of stuck on me.



Once it moves forward or back is the handle suppost to swing forward/back to the lock position? I probably need to grease the rails up as anytime I pulled off the highway I moved the whole damn thing back.



10,000 dry weight on this thing... hopped on a CAT scale in Iowa and came out to 17,400 lbs w/ truck and trailer.

Nice looking setup, with mine when I unlock it to slide it forward or back, I put the lever in the 12 o'clock position and then once the hitch slides forward or back the lever moved automatically to the locked position. Yours might just need to some lube on the pivot points of the locking mechanism.

 

[DaveK98]

Looks like it was already starting to squat you a little. How much is that going to weigh once you get some stuff in there.



But don't get me wrong, I'm not the weight police just curious...

 

[Cummins4WD]

Looks like it was already starting to squat you a little. How much is that going to weigh once you get some stuff in there.



But don't get me wrong, I'm not the weight police just curious...

Oh yeah, since I'm only a 2500 she squat a little but I expected that. I actually picked up a set of Firestone air bags for the Dodge setup on my way out of town. I wasn't sure how heavy it would be and at 10,000 lbs it seems pretty damn heavy empty but the tripple axles mounted so far forward take a lot of the pin weight off.



I'm going to install the Air bags this weekend which will square up my rig and take a load of the rear springs.

 

[lawdog]

Looks Nice... I like the truck coloring..... My 3500 squats too,but my axles are WAY back on the trailer, so I am bordering the limit when loaded with about 3000 on the pin...