Maximum Jack Knife Angle

The only time mine has ever been at 90° was when I was testing it in a parking lot. But it gets to 45° frequently. I think it is pretty rare that I have ever been past 45°, and I think figuring 67.5° would be a pretty good compromise.

Having said that, don't forget that the front cap of your fiver angles back a lot and I would think you should have a lot more clearance than your drawing shows, at a height 6" above the cab where the kayak would be riding. The higher the rack, the greater the clearance.

Well, maybe strike that last thought, because the sidewall is vertical. Would still apply to a single kayak on center, but not outward from center.

You could consider going with a slider hitch, even though you have a long bed.

fred42 wrote:
I was building a kayak rack and because I only have a super cab, not a crew cab, I am trying to squeeze a little more room into the bed area.

Here are my clearances at different trailer angles:



My question is do I really have to allow for 90 degrees? What number are you comfortable with staying under?

thanks for any advice,
fred

Fred, backing up is where you'll get in trouble. A good portion of trucks, especially 4x4's, simply won't turn tight enough to hit, going forward. Some =will=; ALL will when backing up.

Lyle

I reach, or pass, 90 degrees every time I park at home.

Some of us used short bed trucks for towing a fiver before the advent of slider hitches and with just an extended pin box the maximum angle was therefore limited to around 63 degrees. For me, this worked fine for 14 years. Then I added a slider for another 11 years that I never used. Recently I found the old fixed legs and reinstalled them.

With a steering wheel cut of 35-37 degrees, a 90 degree turn at full lock will result in a fiver to cab angle of around 45 degrees. A 180 degree U-turn at full lock will cause cab to fiver contact, but few situations ever require full lock for the entire maneuver. Same is true when backing up, a little extra jockeying back and forth will change a tight situation into a more manageable one.

So, you should be able to live with something in the range of 67 degrees if you are careful.

I have the same trailer as you, with the Revolution hitch and short bed truck. I spent two months on the road and after about the first two nights, I took off the wedge and used the hitch the conventional way, because of hitching and unhitching issues. I don't think I ever went past 45 deg, but a couple of times, I wished I had more.

I hit 90 degrees backing into my driveway everytime as well.

I'm gone past 90* parking & turning around.....many a time

In mounting a kayak to a rack, does the 3.75" shift really make a difference?

Old-Biscuit wrote:
I'm gone past 90* parking & turning around.....many a time

I would never do this. Just think of the stress that is put on your suspension. There are other ways to get your desired result.

I would like to see a video of someone jack knifing their rig past 90°.