I have a short bed on my truck and an extended king pin on my new trailer and also had one on my old trailer. Never had a sliding hitch and never had any problem
Dennis Carpenter
Decatur Alabama
2001 3/4 ton Dodge Diesel
2008 Cardinal 31 RK LE fifth wheel
dennis1949 wrote: I have a short bed on my truck and an extended king pin on my new trailer and also had one on my old trailer. Never had a sliding hitch and never had any problem
I see many have gotten away with a regular hitch. I guess it comes down to what is a reasonable MAX turning angle one is likely to use.
From very rough estimations (I haven't measured anything), and using these numbers:
width of trailer: 96"
truck cab width: 72"
distance from pin center to cab: 35" (taken from a Reese installation guide for Dodge pickups)
Pin extention: 15"
Without the extended pin box, one can manage around a 44 degree turn before havoc ensues. With the extended pin box, this increases to around 60 degrees. Does anyone use a turn sharper than 60 degrees?
I pulled a 5th with my Ford short bed without a problem. We traded for an upgraded trailer same floor plan. It has the Mor Ride extended hitch. I had the guy that works for me take the trailer to have a quick repair done. On the road back he turned sharp and got the rear window.. This winter we purchased a superglide, and got rid of the problems. I'm just glad it did not body damage to the truck or trailer. I was lucky
I am as close to your size trailer as we can get.
Mine is a Komfort 23' FS and I have a 1500 GMC with a short bed and an extended pin box from the factory.
We have pulled this trailer for 2 years going on 3 all over the good old USA.
No slider hitch and have never even came close to hitting the cab or the bed rails. I have 9-1/4" of clearance!
I believe the shape of the front makes a difference.
Good Luck & drive Safe!
Good feedback from others. My thought is that if you plan on this 5th wheel being the one and only you keep and never get another unit, and you don't need the slider hitch for the additional clearance, you're fine. On the otherhand, if you even remotely think you'll get into another rig in the near future, I'd get the manual slider hitch.
Its painless to have and its there when you need it. (if you ever trade trucks, take the hitch with you) I use mine when backing in my driveway from the street so I don't have to worry. A guy at the campground this past weekend showed us his cab and why he ended up with one of those automatic sliding hitches. That was enough to reaffirm my decision on the slider hitch.
Good luck!
Duane & Amanda, a teenager, A golden retriever named Jazz, a crazy pet rabbit named Stew, and now Optimus Prime the hamster.
2008 Cedar Creek Silverback 30LSA
2008 Ford F250 Lariat SC 4x4 PSD 6.4, Timbren SES, Husky 16k Slider
Our last two trucks have been Fords, a H.D. F-150, and a F-250 H.D. PSD. We have never used a Slider Hitch in all the 40+ years as Rv'ers. We also have never even come close to hitting our trucks cab, or any windows, or any corners of any RV that we have owned. Our 5er is only a 24ft 5er, but it has a 14 inch extended King Pin Box. I think a lot of any problems with hitting the truck, is do to just how much your extended King Pin Box is extended. We have had our 5er in very tight spots many many times and have taken no damage. Also a little common sence goes a very long ways. Pay attention to what you are doing, and you won't have any damage, no matter what type of a hitch you are using, and with any type of truck. We like the turning radius a lot better with a short-bed truck, as you can get into tighter sites with a short-bed truck over a long-bed truck. I was also an OTR Trucker for 15 years, so I can put a 5er into any place that I want it to go into with out any problems. Good Luck. Happy Camping, Dan & Jill
1997 Ford F-250, H.D. Extended-Cab, Short Bed, 7.3 PSD, K&N Air Filter, 5000 lbs air bags w/on board compressor w/guage, SuperChips Tuner/Programer. 1996 Nash 24fter 5er, 15K "Lil" Rocker Hitch w/BedSaver, Twin EU2000i Gen's W/Kit. Nam-Vet, 33 Months.
From very rough estimations (I haven't measured anything), and using these numbers:
width of trailer: 96"
truck cab width: 72"
distance from pin center to cab: 35" (taken from a Reese installation guide for Dodge pickups)
Pin extention: 15"
Without the extended pin box, one can manage around a 44 degree turn before havoc ensues. With the extended pin box, this increases to around 60 degrees. Does anyone use a turn sharper than 60 degrees?
-steve
The steerable wheels of your truck can only turn about 36 degrees. MDTs and motorhomes and the optional front axle on the new F450/550 allow 54 to 60 degree wheel cuts. But for your truck, backing up is the only way to get a 60 degree angle between truck and fiver, so pay attention and you can get by for yrs w/o a slider. BTW, TT owners don't have any kind of slider option and yet they typically can't turn any sharper than a short bed/extended pin setup.
Larry Day
Texas Baptist Men-Retiree Builders since '01
'03 GMC 2500HD D/A EC SB, Jordan controller, custom RKI bed/hitch, Putco boards, TF 45gal tank, grey Speedliner
'04 CrossRoads Cruiser CF29RK, Mor/ryde IS, Carefree Eclipse 12V awning Rig Photos
About it... I have a gmc shortbed.Extended Pin box.... have had it at the lake in uneven areas , boondocking..never a problem... Maybe the shape of the front has something to do with it, mine doesnt come close..
Quick trip wrote: I am as close to your size trailer as we can get.
Mine is a Komfort 23' FS and I have a 1500 GMC with a short bed and an extended pin box from the factory.
We have pulled this trailer for 2 years going on 3 all over the good old USA.
No slider hitch and have never even came close to hitting the cab or the bed rails. I have 9-1/4" of clearance!
I believe the shape of the front makes a difference.
Good Luck & drive Safe!
2007 GMC DURAMAX,LBZ,4 by Crew, Allison
Magnaflow Turbo Back Exhaust
Predator Tuner
18by9 Helo's on BFG's
5year old boy
3 year old baby girl
Sea ray boat
Wilderness 5th wheel
SandRail
HD WideGlide
FORD Expediton
honda Eu3000
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