Short bed or long bed?

We have an 8 foot bed bought solely for the point of towing a 5th wheel TH.

I wanted a long bed but it wouldn't fit in my garage. Bought the short box and will get a slider if we go 5ver.

I have a 2014 Ram 3500 diesel dully crew cab long bed and pull a Montana 3900FB, its easy to pull and easy to park the fiver. Its nice having the long bed for lots of hauling capacity

I look at it from a different perspective. I own a fifth-wheel trailer and a long bed truck. The reason is what I carry in the truck. I have a large tool box, and a ladder and sometimes I carry my generator(s). That is in addition to the chairs, the blocks of wood, the misc things.

I had a Ram2500 Shortbed Crew Cab to tow my Elkridge 29BHCK. I had bought a sliding hitch but had never used it, even when backing into my driveway, which at times means an almost 90 degree angle. NEVER NEEDED the SLIDER as my front of my 5th wheel camper boasted an 88 degree turning angle. Well, they were right. I never hit the cab.

Now I am driving a Ram 3500 SRW Crew Cab longbed 4x4. Same hitch just moved it to a new truck. Never need to worry about the cab again.

I will say that it seems a whole lot easier to bcak the 5th wheel with the longer truck. You have more time to correct if you over steer, which after you tow a few times will all but disappear.

Get the truck that fits your needs, as another poste noted. Just make sure that the truck is in the correct weight range for the tow vehicle. Don't cut it too close with the weights though. While a 34/4 ton may tow the amper, it also needs to be able to stop the camper!

Good Luck!

Draw back to the pullrite superglide is that you must be with in 16° dead center when hitching and unhitching. Anything more and you must pull the pins of hitch plate and lift or lower trailer into position

I bought my truck before having any intentions to own a 5th wheel. Yes if I were to buy a truck now I may have went long bed. But it is entirely safe towing with short beds if you have an auto slider like pullrites.

I have a question for those advocating an automatic type sliding hitch. I ask this not to make a point, but because I REALLY want to know. It's the reason I considered, but elected not to put one in my last truck which was a short bed. I ask this now because it may be useful information for the OP's original question.

Question:
I understand the way a auto-slider works, but what happens if you have to hook up your camper at a 45 degree angle? If the hitch is forward in it's "normal" position, isn't there the danger of contact between the rear corner of the truck and the center of the camper? Is there a way to "over ride" the slider position while hooking up? When I had my short bed and a manual slider, there's no way I could have hooked up with the slide forward., and there were many times over the years where I had to do this because of short campsites, etc.

I have a long bed now, and love it for lots of reasons over a short bed, but have always wondered about this.

Short bed trucks are fine for short trips unless you like to stop for fuel.Long bed trucks were designed to haul extra fuel in the bed to extend the driving range so you didn't have to worry about fuel. :B Not to mention they ride a lot smoother on some of these roads,just sayin. :)

I have towed with a short bed for ten years with no problem. I pull a fith wheel that has the front end designed to clear the cab of the truck in all but the most extreme case. Just watch the clearance when making extream turns. I guess mine will make an 89 degree turn, or close to it. I have several buddies that bought sliders and have never used them.

I also know of someone that had a standard front fifth wheel that popped out his rear window twice on a two week trip.

If your trailer is designed correctly for a short bed, you will be fine.

I have had both and love my long bed dually ... So much more room for hauling stuff when needed ... Never had a problem parking it. Compared to my 39' 5er it feels small.