Just for some perspective on the hitch coming out, we have a 36' box trailer at work that is being pulled by a 2011 3500 dually with a B&W Turnover ball gooseneck. We had been using the truck without the trailer so the ball was out. When the driver was putting the ball back in he pulled the lever out and lock it in the open position, and after setting the ball into place something happened to distract him. The lever never got released, so the pin was never in the ball.
He ended up pulling that trailer around for half the day without any problems. Only after going through a intersection fast and the trailer lifting up (but the ball not coming out of the hole) did he realize what happened. He pulled over and released the pin to engage the ball. Other than possibly needing to change his under shorts there were no ill effects.
The companion is a lot harder to get in and out than the ball, so long story short if the hitch becomes a little loose because of the mat compressing there is no way it will come out!
AZ T&T
2012 Jayco Eagle Super Lite 29.5RKS
2011 Chevy 2500 HD 4x4 Duramax
B&W Companion Hitch - Firestone Ride-Rite Air Bags
Honda EU2000i Generator
As long as the pin is engaged, I don't see how the Companion could come out, even with some clearance between the Companion base and the truck bed surface, unless the draw down bolt was also loose...
AZ T&T wrote: Just for some perspective on the hitch coming out, we have a 36' box trailer at work that is being pulled by a 2011 3500 dually with a B&W Turnover ball gooseneck. We had been using the truck without the trailer so the ball was out. When the driver was putting the ball back in he pulled the lever out and lock it in the open position, and after setting the ball into place something happened to distract him. The lever never got released, so the pin was never in the ball.
He ended up pulling that trailer around for half the day without any problems. Only after going through a intersection fast and the trailer lifting up (but the ball not coming out of the hole) did he realize what happened. He pulled over and released the pin to engage the ball. Other than possibly needing to change his under shorts there were no ill effects.
The companion is a lot harder to get in and out than the ball, so long story short if the hitch becomes a little loose because of the mat compressing there is no way it will come out!
Funny you should send that story.
On our last trip, I forgot to release the handle on MY turn-over ball with our 5th wheel attached (using my gooseneck adapter).
When I realized, I pulled over several miles down the road, and sure enough, it was not locked.
I released the pin into the ball and breathed a sigh of relief.
No hint that anything was loose, and the 1800 pounds held it down fine.
As for nothing between the hitch and the bed, if you have a Ford, B&W says you actually SHOULD have rubber padding between the hitch and the bed, and provides the materials free as a retrofit kit.
In reality it is a hard plastic piece, not rubber, and there is no compression to it. It's there for scuff protection to the bed so there is no rust issue caused by the mating of the B&W weight support plates sitting on the bed.
John
"Motorcycle Jack"
Life time Good Sam Member
Blog: My RV
5th Wheel Blog
Full timing isn't "always camping". It's a different life style living in an RV.
bobinyelm wrote: I just picked up a used-once Companion hitch for my '03 Dually Quad-Cab Dodge, and was wondering, aside from the height to keep my 5er level w/ the ground and 6" min above my bed rails, what the IDEAL fore/aft position for the king pin is.
There are 3 positions available for the brackets (tilted forward or aft to move the pivot point).
My B&W Turn-over ball is fixed a few inches forward of the rear axle, and since I have a long bed, there is no clearance problem, so the position that provides the best balance ride, and handling would be the one I'd choose.
I'm just not sure whether adjusting the pivot forward of the ball, or behind it, would provide the best ride and handling (or the easiest handling when backing up*).
The 5er is a light (7000# dry weight) 25ft Wildcat single slide unit, so is not a challenge pin or overall weight for the truck.
Also, B&W says that a drop-in bedliner requires removal, or a full cutout so the Companion rails contact the steel bed is necessary, yet I've heard that mounting on a bedliner, or a bedliner with a heavy rubber mat (as I use) is fine as long as the mounting is properly torqued down to 40ft-lbs prior to tightening the "U" bolts to the hitch frame. Anyone tried towing w/ a bedliner, and/or heavy rubber mat in place?
Suggestions?
Thanks,
Bob
*With a long WB truck, and a short king-pin-to-trailer wheelbase, backing has to be done carefully as beyond a very moderate angle, it's easy to run out of steering to where one cannot straighten the rig, and jack-knifing in reverse is all-too-easy,
On my SWB D'max, the GN ball is about 4" forward of axle centerline, IIRC, but the Companion, in furthest forward position, only puts the kinpin about 1.5 or 1.75" forward of centerline. Personally, I like having a bit more forward transfer, so I'd run as far forward as possible. My personal preference is to also run just a tad nose high (~1-2") for more bed clearance, as I do boondock and I need the extra room. Were I only camping in improved areas, I'd drop 1 hole from my current setup.
Lyle
2002 GMC Sierra 2500 HD Duramax Crew Cab 4x4
Banks Bullet Tuner and Monster Exhaust
B&W Turnover Ball with 5th Wheel Companion
2004 Komfort 25FSG Fifth Wheel
1936 John Deere Model A
International Flying Farmers 55 Year Member
As for nothing between the hitch and the bed, if you have a Ford, B&W says you actually SHOULD have rubber padding between the hitch and the bed, and provides the materials free as a retrofit kit.
In reality it is a hard plastic piece, not rubber, and there is no compression to it. It's there for scuff protection to the bed so there is no rust issue caused by the mating of the B&W weight support plates sitting on the bed.
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