Getting a new f250. On my past two trucks, I have had a 7 pin connector inside the pick up truck box. The 5th wheel trailer I now have has the Reese Revolution hitch (similar to the Sidewinder). I plan to use it in the revolving mode, so the pin box will be stationary at the fifth wheel hitch and revolve under the trailer. My question is, can I plug my trailer in at the receptacle in the bumper, or is it still a good idea to have a receptacle mounted in the box of the truck? Advice appreciated.

If the umbilical is long enough, it's your choice. Even with conventional 5th wheel hitches, some people plug into the hitch receiver (bumper) receptacle. I prefer to use a 7-pin Pollak receptacle in the bed with my B&W Companion hitch simply because I don't want the umbilical dragging back and forth across the top of the tailgate.Rusty

harry and thea wrote:Getting a new f250. On my past two trucks, I have had a 7 pin connector inside the pick up truck box. The 5th wheel trailer I now have has the Reese Revolution hitch (similar to the Sidewinder). I plan to use it in the revolving mode, so the pin box will be stationary at the fifth wheel hitch and revolve under the trailer. My question is, can I plug my trailer in at the receptacle in the bumper, or is it still a good idea to have a receptacle mounted in the box of the truck? Advice appreciated.I don't have an in-bed connector, but wish to hell I did. I've broken 2 connectors by having the cord hang up on the bed corner in a tight turn. Once was with my FW and the other time was with our GN trailer. With the FW, I do have a 6' extension cord that I run around my Companion, then over the tailgate. Bought it before knowing about in-bed connectors. It works...Lyle

I plug my connector into the bumper plug. But that's the only one I have. My cord is plenty long.Mark

etrailer.com has 7-way extension kits you can install in the bed of the truck and plug the extension cord into the 7-way connector on the back of the truck.GOOGLE IMAGERoy Ken

I use the bumper receptacle because it's easier to reach than one in the box. It's worked great for 13 years.

Does trailer connector need to be in pick up box

austinjenna
Explorer
Feb 15, 2016
I put one in the bed and have been using that.
richfaa
Explorer
Feb 15, 2016
No.
fj12ryder
Explorer III
Feb 15, 2016
murphy38 wrote:
We use the connector on our hitch and have never had a problem. Was thinking about added one in the bed but never did.
Yeah, me too. But after I thought about it for a while I realized it would be awkward to reach the plug without lowering the tailgate, and reaching over the top is also awkward for short folks like me. A slight bend at the waist and my plug is in place with the bumper mount.
murphy38
Explorer
Feb 14, 2016
We use the connector on our hitch and have never had a problem. Was thinking about added one in the bed but never did.
rhagfo
Explorer III
Feb 14, 2016
SledHedEd wrote:
I put an in bed connector in once I read a story of guy that ran something over on the highway and didn't realize it had knocked his plug off his bumper connector until he tried to slow down in traffic and hit a car in front of him because his truck brakes weren't enough to slow the camper down. For the $50 it's worth it for my peace of mind.

Do you carry anything in the bed???
My receiver connector is parallel to the bumper and tucks over the receiver, never droops.

Most likely didn't hit anything, the guy just didn't check to make sure it was locked in and it came loose. :h
Cummins12V98
Explorer III
Feb 14, 2016
dfb wrote:
Now the Rams give you a choice from the factory.. In bed or bumper...sweet...

5th wheel puck/gooseneck prep gets the plug in the bed. I believe all HD RAMS get a plug at the bumper that is a 7 and 4 pin combo.
SledHedEd
Explorer
Feb 14, 2016
I put an in bed connector in once I read a story of guy that ran something over on the highway and didn't realize it had knocked his plug off his bumper connector until he tried to slow down in traffic and hit a car in front of him because his truck brakes weren't enough to slow the camper down. For the $50 it's worth it for my peace of mind.
dfb
Explorer
Feb 14, 2016
Now the Rams give you a choice from the factory.. In bed or bumper...sweet...
heaterswa
Explorer
Feb 13, 2016
I have the option for an in bed but have only used the bumper connection. I do have a loop in my cable to shorten the length due to the extended pin. Never had any problem with it.

-Bryan
Tango__AE7UI
Explorer
Feb 13, 2016
My truck has a service body instead of a p/u bed.
I used to have a truck camper and about 1/2" clearance between the camper and the box so no room for the connector.
I mounted on the top front of the bed.
So now there are 3 sockets; Lance connector (unique), back-up camera for the fifth and the fifth wheel 7 way connector.
Regular 7 way connector at the hitch for other trailers.