Gooseneck fifth wheel adapter question

I wonder if the Andersen hitches that were damaged were the old style that have been damaged in the past, or one of the new ones that were supposed to be stronger.

Another vote for the Andersen. I have the same setup you are looking at. The B&W turnover ball is nice as it leaves the bed flat when not in use. The AU is light and easy to install. Other good points are when hitching it is easy to line up and ensure positive connection. Yes you do have to raise the front of camper higher but its never been an issue. I see from previous picture that chains are available. I may have to invest in those just for added piece of mind.

WTP-GC wrote:

94-D2 wrote:


That being said, I have had two experiences with the mentioned hitch system and both times was in the course of a collision investigation and both times the hitch failed at impact. Specifically, the pyramid structure did not hold up during the impact which resulted in the trailer striking the rear of pull vehicle cab. The last such case was an 8k TT/Ram 1500 hitting a Chevy S10 at 30 mph. The fist was a 12k Terry/Ford combination that hit a Miata rear end. Those two instances alone, would shy me away from this style of hitch and stick with the 5th wheel.

It is my underatanding that B&W makes a 5th wheel hitch that fits its center bed box. I would certainly look into that instead.

This should be interesting...
The entire internet can offer maybe 2-3 examples of supposed failure of the AUH, none of which involved a collision. Now a brand new forum member shows up and has 2 exclusive examples by himself. If the "pyramid structure" failed, that hardly means that the trailer would have come dislodged from the coupler or ball. In fact, no other report has shown an absolute failure of the frame...only deflection of the members.

Accident reports are public record. Please provide a link to the reports.

Yes would like to read these links.

94-D2 wrote:


That being said, I have had two experiences with the mentioned hitch system and both times was in the course of a collision investigation and both times the hitch failed at impact. Specifically, the pyramid structure did not hold up during the impact which resulted in the trailer striking the rear of pull vehicle cab. The last such case was an 8k TT/Ram 1500 hitting a Chevy S10 at 30 mph. The fist was a 12k Terry/Ford combination that hit a Miata rear end. Those two instances alone, would shy me away from this style of hitch and stick with the 5th wheel.

It is my underatanding that B&W makes a 5th wheel hitch that fits its center bed box. I would certainly look into that instead.

This should be interesting...
The entire internet can offer maybe 2-3 examples of supposed failure of the AUH, none of which involved a collision. Now a brand new forum member shows up and has 2 exclusive examples by himself. If the "pyramid structure" failed, that hardly means that the trailer would have come dislodged from the coupler or ball. In fact, no other report has shown an absolute failure of the frame...only deflection of the members.

Accident reports are public record. Please provide a link to the reports.

94-D2, any experience investigating accidents with standard 5th wheel hitches? What did those accident scenes look like?

Oh man, where's the popcorn. :)

There are frequent wars of words here between the adherents of the B&W hitch versus the proponents of the Aluminum Andersen hitch. No serious flame wars, but it can get contentious at times. :)

And welcome to the forum.

Greetings,

I am a new member here and in fact just read this post while deciding which forum to subscribe too. The topic interested me because I have some experience with this hitch system. It is a great solution to those with a center mounted ball hitch system and seems to pull rather nicely, as I understand from people I know that have them. My opinion on this hitch system is not going to be popular with anyone who has been using it. I am not an engineer but I am a law enforcement officer that investigates vehicle collisions and I am a trained commercial class A driver.

That being said, I have had two experiences with the mentioned hitch system and both times was in the course of a collision investigation and both times the hitch failed at impact. Specifically, the pyramid structure did not hold up during the impact which resulted in the trailer striking the rear of pull vehicle cab. The last such case was an 8k TT/Ram 1500 hitting a Chevy S10 at 30 mph. The fist was a 12k Terry/Ford combination that hit a Miata rear end. Those two instances alone, would shy me away from this style of hitch and stick with the 5th wheel.

It is my underatanding that B&W makes a 5th wheel hitch that fits its center bed box. I would certainly look into that instead.

BucknMindy wrote:
Thanks everyone. Guess my spell check is slipping and I apologize for the calling the AUH an adapter. Yes I do currently have a turnover B&W already installed and I am in Safford. I'm getting close to retiring so we plan on spending much more time traveling. For now I would want to remove the AUH often so I still have my truck bed. The idea of something much lighter is a selling factor also as well as the smooth ride. This is only my second 5th wheel, my current one is a little 22' prowler so if Im not up to speed on all the lingo again I apologize. Thanks again for all the info.

Personally, I'm a B&W fan and, since you've already got the TO Ball, you could look around for a used Companion, if you wanted to save some cash, or buy a new one. Yes, it's a lot heavier than the AUH, but it does come out fairly easily and leaves your clean bed. B&W is one helluva company to deal with and, if you're an original owner, they really take care of you if you need parts. (They're still sending me new u-bolts for my old-style companion every few years...for free.) I'm =not= dissing the AUH, since I have no experience with them. I've owned my Companion going on 15 years, and it's served me well and still works perfectly.

Lyle

I'v ben using the AUH for 4 years and love it. No issues at all. I'v never used a traditional 5th wheel hitch so I can't compare.

I’ve been using an AUH for over a year and really like it. I also use it with a B&W turnover ball. The AUH is very easy to move around by yourself, and is very easy to connect/disconnect.