goosenesck question

[BIG HAULERS]

I ended up with a B&W that I bought off this website. I was wondering the instructions say to sit the ball at 47 7/8 for my long bed I read on my last post of people sitting them at 44 to keep the trailer away from the box. I also have a tool box that sets on the bed rails will I have to take it off? what do yall have them installed at. Any information is appreciated As I dont want to cut the whole until I have good info.

 

[Apence]

I put my B&W in my 3500 dually and you need to put it exactly where the instructions tell you because it wont work if you dont. good luck... Adam

 

[wyosteve]

APence is correct. Put it exactly where the instrs. say and measure twice to be sure you only have to cut once. I installed mine myself and would recommend it to anyone. Took me about 3 hrs. , but I went slow and careful as I had never done one before. The next one I think I could do in 1. 5 hrs. No, you do not have to remove your tool box. One tip someone else gave is to drill the 4" hole in a 2x8 or 2x10 to use as a guide and keep the hole saw from jumping around.

 

[BIG HAULERS]

thanks for the information

 

[GOTSOOT]

gooseneck install

Use the 2x10 and start the hole with the drill running backwards, get it scribed pretty well, then go forwards

 

[SRadke]

I've got a Pro tech box on the rails and it clears most trailers. The only one I've had a problem with was a stock trailer that was totally square in the front, no taper. Even it would clear over the top as long as I didn't go through a ditch while turned.



-Scott

 

[dawall]

So on a 4x4 what kind of clearance do you typically end up with a GN hitch ? People say you need 6" of clearance (bedrail to trailer). With that clearance how rough would the terrain be before damaging the tailgate or bedrails? I mean would you have to be in some real rough stuff that you'd be crazy to be trying to drag a trailer around in or could you just hit a somewhat small dip and rip up your bedrails and tailgate??



Dan

(About to install B/W GN hitch on a 4x4)

 

[SRadke]

Most trailers will give you about 6". I generally pull flatbeds and they usually have 8-14". With those you'd have to be in a really bad spot to hit your bedrail.



-Scott

 

[TCDiesel]

It is the off road use that 48" will have a problem, yesterday seen a guy hit is tool box leaving the bank,Made a hair pin and jump the curb and crunch.

 

[SRadke]

The worst spot for me is backing the stock trailer at an angle off the road into a ditch or field entrance to let a load of cattle out. As it twists and drops it can come mighty close to the back corner of the bed. Still way better than any 5er I've seen though.



-Scott

 

[CJEliassen]

I had about 8 inches with my truck and horse trailer. I consistantly smacked the bed rails going down certain trails. I had bed rail protectors that were torn off. I wish they would make horse trailers with a raised front end like 5th wheels have for the sleeping area.

 

[BIG HAULERS]

the trailer I will be pulling is actually a 34' fithwheel converted to a goose neck setup. Went with the gooseneck hitch because can pull my farm trailers with it. do yall think this will be a problem with the toolbox. I really dont want to find out the hard way. I do pull to some remote campsites that require me to go down some rough roads.

 

[SRadke]

Really tough to say in an individual situation. My suggestion would be to hook the trailer up and turn it sharp in a parking lot or something to see how much clearance you have. If the trailer does not extend over the toolbox whrn cramped it won't be an issue. The bed rail clearnce could be experimented with in a similar manner.



-Scott

 

[bmoeller]

Originally posted by SRadke

If the trailer does not extend over the toolbox whrn cramped it won't be an issue.

Assuming it is relatively flat anyways. Drop in a hole that you didn't see, who knows.



I know one guy that has a Wilson gooseneck livestock trailer that he pulls with a '01 3500 4x4. There is about 6" clearance between the trailer and the truck box. He has dents from the trailer on the rear corners of his box. Not sure on the particular situation that caused it.

 

[dawall]

Went to a dealer and dropped an empty three horse trails west (steel) gooseneck trailer into the bed and found it did not drop the truck much at all.

Now the problem is I have a bed cover that folds out of the way (Peragon) but it has rails that mount on the bedrails. It increases the bedrail height by about 3/4 of an inch. Then I have a tracrac that have rails that mount over the peragon bed cover rails. So the total height over the rails is maybe 2 inches. leaving me with about 4-5" of clearance to the trailer. It isnt a real big deal to remove the rails to tow but... . Jeez,I sure hope this works out, I like the cover and the rack. I work out of the truck and need a secure cover and really liked the movable racks. Just diidn't occur to me that the bedrail height was going to be such an issue. That 4x4 sure has the ground height.



I have a long bed so trailer to cab shouldn't be an issue.



Dan

 

[RustyJC]

Originally posted by BIG HAULERS

the trailer I will be pulling is actually a 34' fithwheel converted to a goose neck setup. I really dont want to find out the hard way. I do pull to some remote campsites that require me to go down some rough roads.

Personally, I think bedrail clearance will be the least of your concerns. The gooseneck adapter, in combination with the rough roads/terrain, would concern me much more. These gooseneck adapters do not have a good history with 5th wheel RVs - they significantly increase the torques applied to the 5th wheel pinbox & frame (think "cheater pipe"), and a number of individuals have had the welds holding the pinbox to the frame tear away. Fifth wheel frames are not built to take the forces inherent in a gooseneck design - compare the frame gusseting, material thickness and cross-sectional areas between fifth wheel and gooseneck trailers of the same GVWR.



Rusty