Fifth Wheel Hitch Decision

jshupe wrote:
Their truck has a GCVWR of 31100#. They will be under that limit, which is the one to look at when it comes to safe braking. Trailer brakes fail, and I'm pulling these speculative stats out of thin air, but the rate of occurrence is probably far less than a tire blowing out, and no more often than a leaf breaking or suspension bolt shearing. Not something to be overly concerned with as long as you are under GCVWR, inspect your trailer regularly, and take care of your rig.

The truck's brakes are NOT designed to stop it's GCWR weight. They are designed to stop it's GVWR weight. Big difference.

Their truck has a GCVWR of 31100#. They will be under that limit, which is the one to look at when it comes to safe braking. Trailer brakes fail, and I'm pulling these speculative stats out of thin air, but the rate of occurrence is probably far less than a tire blowing out, and no more often than a leaf breaking or suspension bolt shearing. Not something to be overly concerned with as long as you are under GCVWR, inspect your trailer regularly, and take care of your rig.

Sometimes those brakes fail. Like we say on the motorcycle forums: Plan for the slide, not just the ride. :)

ken burke wrote:

tarheel2 wrote:
I have a new 2016 Chev CC Long Bed Duramax DRW 4WD. I am having trouble deciding which hitch to purchase. I am thinking of purchasing a DRV Mobile Suite 38RSSA with washer & dryer and generator. It has an allowable gross weight of 19,000lbs & maybe 5,000 lbs of pin weight. I was leaning towards the B&W Companion until I read about failures on another forum. It is rated for 20,000 gross weight and 5,000 pin weight. Even the trail saver TS3 is rated for 5,000 pin weight and pricey. I need a hitch that will give a good ride, preferably 25,000 lb. gross weight. Any suggestions?

Well, I would do the numbers very carefully!! We full-time in a Cedar Creek 37 foot 5th wheel. Our 5th wheel is 15,000 pounds. It is very close to being overweight. The pin weight is 3,000 pounds. Our 350 diesel Ford is not overweight, nor is the gross combined weight. Your 5th wheel will be 4,000 pounds heaver than our 5th wheel.
What will happen when you try to stop that load??
I would suggest looking at a 450 diesel.

I thought most trailers had brakes????

tarheel2 wrote:
I have a new 2016 Chev CC Long Bed Duramax DRW 4WD. I am having trouble deciding which hitch to purchase. I am thinking of purchasing a DRV Mobile Suite 38RSSA with washer & dryer and generator. It has an allowable gross weight of 19,000lbs & maybe 5,000 lbs of pin weight. I was leaning towards the B&W Companion until I read about failures on another forum. It is rated for 20,000 gross weight and 5,000 pin weight. Even the trail saver TS3 is rated for 5,000 pin weight and pricey. I need a hitch that will give a good ride, preferably 25,000 lb. gross weight. Any suggestions?

Well, I would do the numbers very carefully!! We full-time in a Cedar Creek 37 foot 5th wheel. Our 5th wheel is 15,000 pounds. It is very close to being overweight. The pin weight is 3,000 pounds. Our 350 diesel Ford is not overweight, nor is the gross combined weight. Your 5th wheel will be 4,000 pounds heaver than our 5th wheel.
What will happen when you try to stop that load??
I would suggest looking at a 450 diesel.

laknox wrote:

fj12ryder wrote:
The B&W is made in Kansas. I think we can consider that US made.

But that's where the gateway to Oz is, so you never know. :-)

Lyle

lol

"Why does he wish to have the B & W over the Curt?"

Because it has to be "just right" to get it to latch properly. I hitched it twice and he is right.

"You call those 4 bolts "questionable", so you don't know the grade, therefore how does that make a "HUGE" difference? Can't bolts be replaced fairly inexpensively? "

There is a definite marking on the head of a bolt that has a "8 grade". See pic below. CURT's don't look like that.

"How does one know that B & W didn't procure their bolts from the same factory in China that Curt did, just paid more for the head stamp?"

Because they have a 100 percent Made In USA product, call and ask them.

"I have a hard time seeing which one is stronger. They are both engineered the same, but someone is supposed to make the decision based upon visual appearance?"

You don't think 8 blots are stronger than two? You don't think the BV&W base is a MUCH stronger design?

"The crush test is valid. Anyone with an understanding of how physics are applied to such equipment with angular supports knows the legitimacy of such a test. In fact, the crush test exerts more pressure on the supports than any 5er on the market."

The Crush test they tout did not show the weakness from hard braking.

"The entire internet world is aware of one Andersen UH hitch that failed with bent tubes. A more limited viewing audience (this forum) is now aware of one B & W Companion that failed. Score is tied. Move along."

I can guarantee you no one re designs a product from one issue. The world is larger than RV.NET.

"US made vs. China made? Please clarify which is which. The Andersen is US Made."

As said Kansas, USA. The people that did not lay off their employees when the big downturn in the rV industry hit. The owner paid his employees to do community projects.

Cummins12V98 wrote:
Inlaws RAM/CURT hitch in his LongHorn dually. He wishes he had the B&W but his came with the truck.

4 bolts of questionable grade holding the head to the base with the Curt and B&W has 8 grade 8. That right there is a HUGE difference.

Both hitches rated to 6,250# pin and 25K towing.

Not too hard to see what system is stronger.

Test? You mean like Andersen's "crush test video" ? That really proved a lot.....same hitch under hard braking alone caused the tubes to bend.

Also US Made VS China Made.

You don't need to convince me the B&W's appear to be a quality product. I already agreed with you on that point.

I believe you missed my point. Appearance of quality (or lack thereof), to include the use or non-use of grade 8 bolts, in itself says nothing about a hitch's ACTUAL ability to safely carry a given amount of weight. For all we know, a mechanical engineer might tell us a grade 8 bolt is overkill for this particular application. On the flipside, the marketing department may have recommended a grade 8 bolt---just to give the added appearance of quality and strength---even though their ME said it's overkill . . . again, who knows.

Again, the only way to prove or disprove the superiority of any given hitch is to test it to see if it safely carries/supports it's rated weight. Ideally, take it a step farther, and stress the hitch to the point of failure to see how conservatively (or not) a given hitch is rated.

Bottom line, I believe B&W are well-made hitches with clean lines, good welds, grade 8 bolts(?) . . . that exude a massive, strong look . . . plus, they are, Made in the USA. However, can anyone use the previous sentence to prove it will out-carry a competitor's hitch. Nope. Can a good marketing department use this same sentence as part of an effective marketing campaign? Absolutely! Would I consider purchasing a B&W? Yes . . . if they made one that would adjust lower than 16" :)

SoCalDesertRider wrote:
All of B&W's products are US made, that I'm aware of.

So far, everything I've bought from Curt has been US made too.

I prefer to do business with both Curt and B&W, rather than Reese, Draw-Tite, Hidden Hitch, Fulton, Tow Power, and all the other companies that operate under that corporate umbrella, since most of their stuff is made in China, and doesn't cost any less than the American made products of Curt and B&W.

I too will buy CURT but NOT there 5er hitches as they are ALL Made in China.

SoCalDesertRider wrote:
All of B&W's products are US made, that I'm aware of.

So far, everything I've bought from Curt has been US made too.

I prefer to do business with both Curt and B&W, rather than Reese, Draw-Tite, Hidden Hitch, Fulton, Tow Power, and all the other companies that operate under that corporate umbrella, since most of their stuff is made in China, and doesn't cost any less than the American made products of Curt and B&W.

Only Curt's receiver hitches are still made in the USA. The 5th wheel hitches are all made in china. Call them like I did and they are confirm it to you like they did for me. Our son is a Curt wholesaler and I could have gotten a really good price on one. However I got down to Hijacker and B&W. Went with B&W on a Demco picture frame.

Chris