I saw this article titled What to know before you tow a fifth wheel from autoguide.com. As a relative newbie to the 5er world, I thought it would be helpful to newbies considering the move to a 5er. If I had to change one thing it would be to tell people to hook the emergency breakaway cable to the truck bed instead of the hitch.

I've hooked my emergency brake cable to my hitch since...forever.Nothing stated about king pin plate height vs hitch plate.King pin should be about 1" lower so it slides up hitch plate when hooking up (prevents high hitching)Nothing about 'pull test'Article is just so-so IMHO

Old-Biscuit wrote:I've hooked my emergency brake cable to my hitch since...forever.Nothing stated about king pin plate height vs hitch plate.King pin should be about 1" lower so it slides up hitch plate when hooking up (prevents high hitching)Nothing about 'pull test'Article is just so-so IMHOHooking the emergency cable to the hitch since... forever does not necessarily make it the correct way to attach, some hitch manufacturers recommend otherwise. Something to consider if the hitch comes loose and remains attached to the king pin ,well the emergency cable remains attached. IMHO towing a 10K plus fifth wheel that the hitch comes loose will go whistling dixie thru a tailgate, especially a louvered fifth wheel tailgate. Many other places to attach the cable, bed rails, truck bed, tailgate etc etc.

Wished that they would not of started out by saying you could tow a fifth wheel with a F-150 or Ram 1500. Credibility of article declines from that point.

oweninthekeys wrote:Wished that they would not of started out by saying you could tow a fifth wheel with a F-150 or Ram 1500. Credibility of article declines from that point.Well some do. And are maxed out. But what's worse a maxed out 1/2 ton and 5'er or a maxed out 3/4 ton and TT? They're both at their limits but a 5'er is more stable than a TT.

First photo at the top of the article shows a big old DRV Mobile Suites being towed with a single rear wheel truck. I don't think they make anything within SRW truck ratings.The article did not even mention how to determine how to what you can tow within the trucks rating. It looks like a lot of fluff written by a self-proclaimed expert to me.Ken

good article for 5er newbies | Good Sam Community

oweninthekeys
Explorer
Jul 30, 2014
Wished that they would not of started out by saying you could tow a fifth wheel with a F-150 or Ram 1500. Credibility of article declines from that point.
cummins2014
Explorer
Jul 30, 2014
Old-Biscuit wrote:
I've hooked my emergency brake cable to my hitch since...forever.

Nothing stated about king pin plate height vs hitch plate.
King pin should be about 1" lower so it slides up hitch plate when hooking up (prevents high hitching)
Nothing about 'pull test'

Article is just so-so IMHO

Hooking the emergency cable to the hitch since... forever does not necessarily make it the correct way to attach, some hitch manufacturers recommend otherwise. Something to consider if the hitch comes loose and remains attached to the king pin ,well the emergency cable remains attached. IMHO towing a 10K plus fifth wheel that the hitch comes loose will go whistling dixie thru a tailgate, especially a louvered fifth wheel tailgate. Many other places to attach the cable, bed rails, truck bed, tailgate etc etc.
Old-Biscuit
Explorer III
Jul 30, 2014
I've hooked my emergency brake cable to my hitch since...forever.

Nothing stated about king pin plate height vs hitch plate.
King pin should be about 1" lower so it slides up hitch plate when hooking up (prevents high hitching)
Nothing about 'pull test'

Article is just so-so IMHO

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good article for 5er newbies

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