Short Box + 5'VR = Disaster????

I had a short bed and 5er for years without trouble. From our travels, I would say that short beds may be more popular for towing 5ers, at least for the weekend crowd.

My truck is a dedicated tow vehicle. If it had to be a DD as well, I would go back to a short bed.

I've had short bed crew cab Fords for over 12 years and 4 5th wheels and they did great! Originally we had a slider and kept it for 10 years, and our last "new style" nose on the trailer eliminated the need for the slider.

We had to go to a dually because of weight on the last 5th wheel, but if weight wasn't an issue, I would go back to the short bed crew cab in a second!

Maybe you should ask a few questions of yourself. What is the intent of the trailer? Do you plan to fulltime or just a weekender? When not hauling the trailer, do you intend to haul a lot of stuff with the truck? Can you afford, weight wise, putting a lot in the truck bed while you're towing?

I have a short bed with a B&W Companion set as far back as it will go. My trailer also has the rounded corners. I've had it jacked to near 90 degrees with room left over. For me personally, we intend to fulltime once I retire in a couple years. The kids will all be grown, so no need for a lot of stuff in the truck bed. I don't foresee us needing to haul a bunch of stuff once we're unhooked. The shorter truck means we will have an easier time getting to places where a long bed truck might be a hindrance. Like parking on a street at a Triple D joint. (Love that show). Also, in my current job (US Army), I don't need a big long truck.

So I guess it all comes down to, do you really need that much truck bed space? Just my two cents worth.

I have a short bed with a slider. I've never to use the slider but I'm going to practice with it this year. Because there has been a few times that the 5th wheel has been to close.

Yamaki wrote:
I'm a little confused. Well, more than normal I should say. ;)

I have a short box truck and am considering a 5'VR purchase but I've seen some disastrous results of this pairing, specifically the the front of the trailer smacking the pickup cab.

I've also read that slider hitches are the way to go but you can't really tow the trailer down the road with the slider set towards the rear. And it appears that you can use the slider with it set towards the rear for short distance maneuvering, such as backing into your parking spot.

Am I wrong in coming to the conclusion that short box trucks and fifth wheels really don't do well together?

Or do they work as long as a slider is installed and used only for backing?

If this is the case, what happens when you have to make a tight turn? Is the cab still at risk?

ughhh...maybe it is easier to consider a standard box truck, eh?

With the front end design on the new trailers short beds work fine. It's extremely hard to hit the cab when going forward, I guess if you cranked the wheel hard to one way and kept going in circles sooner or later it would hit because of the trailer tracking inside the truck.

The main problem is when backing and it's easy to get the trailer at over a 45 deg angle to the truck. It's when you approach the 80 deg mark you will maybe need a slider but you will need to watch carefully.

If the trailer you are looking at has a flat nose, get a slider. If sculpted, maybe. The other thing is some trucks now have a short short bed.

I have a slider and a short bed and never needed it for parking.

Don't you just love answers that start with "It depends"?
Most newer (say 2000 and up) fivers have what's called an extended pin box and slanted rounded fronts that go with "short box" actually they call them standard beds now or 6 1/2 foot beds, and the broken window problems are all but alleviated. Now if you also add a slider hitch, you're really OK. I have a slider and for the past five years have used it twice, maybe three times. I'll guesstimate that 98% of the time you'll never need it, but that once or twice, it saves a whole bunch of maneuvering.

You can get an auto slider....it will reposition while maneuvering

Or you can get a manual slider that you have to 'unlock' for maneuvering

Traveling forward is usually not a concern until you try to make a 'U' turn or a very sharp turn.

Course this also depends on 5vr front cap design....flat or scooped
Flat is more prone to whacking truck cab during tight maneuvering

And also pin box.......short box or extended box
Extended places front cap of 5vr farther away from truck cab
Short box more likely to cause issues

Short bed truck/short pin box/flat front cap on 5vr........slider

Any other combinations.......maybe :B

Auto slider......hookup and forget it cause slider will reposition when needed
Manual slider......you have to remember before you hear that crunch

We have a short bed and a 2013 Cougar with the rounded corners and haven't come close to hitting the cab. We've probably jacked the trailer to about 70 degrees, I'm guessing. However, I would like the extra room in a long bed.

My logic is why loose all the bed space and limit your self to what a STANDARD/LONG bed truck can do.

I am sure I will get the "I can do anything with my SHORT bed truck as a STANDARD bed truck" comments.

Regular 5er hitches are easy to install and remove. Sliders are much heavier.

I hade ONE SHORT bed truck and it will be the last. I like using my truck as a truck too much. No hitch problems.

We have a short bed and have never had to activate our slider hitch.