B&W Companion setup help..

[Wingate]

My Companion 3000 was set up for my SWB 06 model with the upright arms set to the furthest point back for cab clearance.
I have moved it to the 14 model LWB truck and thinking that I can safely move the arms to the full forward position?? I do not have the luxury of having the camper here at home to measure the hitch pin to furthest point on the camper....
The camper is a 13 model Jayco Eagle and is the same camper I was pulling with the hitch in the 06 model...

Thanks for any advice...

 

[Powder Extreme]

Absolutely. Move it as far forward as it will go and you probably will still be quite a ways back. Notice the gooseneck ball on the new truck is actually quite a bit further back than it's ever been on any other truck. Probably be safe going to the lowest setting as well.

 

[Cummins12V98]

Full forward. The angled side should go towards the back of the truck. This will get you max full forward.

 

[Wingate]

k thanks!... Really didnt want to go pick my camper up only to find I had it too far forward.

 

[Newt]

An alternate opinion.

Our old 5th wheel had an extended pin box. The new one doesn't. I didn't realize the room it gave to climb into the bed over the rear wheels. I have reversed the "horns" on the Companion to as far back as they will go. It certainly makes it easier to climb into the bed now. There is absolutely no difference in towing the 5th wheel.

Newt

 

[Cummins12V98]

Newt

Weigh your front axle loaded and unloaded. With my B&W full forward and 4,500# pin weight I only add 120# to the front axle. I would be curious how much you are removing?

 

[Newt]

The front axle weight rating is 5,200#. No trailer, it weighs 4,800#. With the 5th wheel, pin weight is 3,090#, front axle weight is 4,610#.

Not enough to argue about.

Newt

 

[Cummins12V98]

Interesting numbers, thanks.

I always run full forward or if I am setting up a hitch from scratch with no factory prep I set centerline kingpin 2" forward of center line of rear axle.

 

[Wingate]

Absolutely. Move it as far forward as it will go and you probably will still be quite a ways back. Notice the gooseneck ball on the new truck is actually quite a bit further back than it's ever been on any other truck. Probably be safe going to the lowest setting as well.

Got it full forward, but did not make a height adjustment. Good thing I didnt, when I connected it to the camper, ive only got about 4-5 inches between the bed rail and bottom of the camper.
I had more than that with the old truck.... So begins the process I guess of lifting/leveling until I get it right... Hope I dont have to raise the camper as well when its all said and done??

 

[Powder Extreme]

Mine is a Jayco Eagle Premier so it does have heavier rated wheels, tires, axles... I run with the hitch in the truck set to the lowest, most forward position, the kingpin on the trailer is in the highest position, and the springs on the trailer are in the highest position (closest to the frame). I changed the pin box to be a straight up and down style which moves the trailer even closer to the truck.

All in all the trailer is as close to the truck as possible in all aspects with about 6" of clearance at the bed rails. Trailer and pickup both sit perfectly level.

To the poster who said having it further back makes no difference; I respectfully disagree, having the trailer as close to the truck makes a pretty big difference in wind resistance. I also noticed a difference in ride quality. I pulled my brand new trailer home from Indiana with the factory extended pin box and was getting right at 10mpg /65mph for the 1,500 miles. I switched to the new pin box and loaded up the family and headed to San Diego. I'm sure I was at least 2,000lbs heavier with all our gear loaded up and 3 more people in the cab, yet I achieved 11.5mpg/65mph. Pretty substantial in my opinion. Here is a few pictures with the new pin box.

 

[Wingate]

beauttiful rig!
Onyl thing I would not like about your setup is the idea that it appears that when backing under the trailer, you dont have enough space to get completely hooked up to the camper before having to stop, get out and close the tailgate?? Im moving the hitch up higher today and gonna look at the extended pinbox to see if its got any adjustments?

 

[Powder Extreme]

Thanks! You are correct, I have to do the tailgate in two steps, but I figure it's a small price to pay for the ride and fuel mileage.

Any pinbox I've seen usually has 4-6" of up and down movement. All of 3 my Jayco's have had the ability to lower the springs in the hangers which will raise the trailer a couple inches if you need to without doing the "axle flip" which is usually 4-5" lift.

 

[Wingate]

just gonna tow it like it is for this 1500 mile trip. Hope I dont end up regretting it!
Went to adjust my B&W up, but its already in the highest set of holes! Only option is to lower the hitch on the camper, but I need to get a different pinbox that has a shorter extension.