Slider hitch - How to Question
After several years of bumper pull, we bought a fifth wheel about a year and a half ago. I have learned how to tow and back a 5th. I have a short bed truck and up until about 2 months ago, I had no ...
Forum Discussion
I have a B/W and have been through this exact situation numerous times. All I can say is it's sometimes pretty rough. Depending on how quickly/firmly the trailer brakes grab, I find myself applying quite a bit of throttle and when the hitch starts to slide I panic and hit the truck brakes just before it latches which screws up the whole thing. So, I start over and it usually goes somewhat better the second time. I find there is kind of a sweet spot of getting it to release and change positions just right. I often find the handle doesn't fully snap back into the locked position and I have to either force it a bit or just "redo" the slide attempt. I don't know if my hitch has some problem (doubtful) or if it just takes a bit of luck/skill to get it just right.
Definitely NEVER put down the landing gear as others have advised.
Oh yeah, and I lube the hell out of the slide on the hitch with lithium grease and it makes everything move much easier (and quieter). I think the folks designing this hitch are living in some fantasy land where metal parts don't bind with one another. I do clean it an re-lube to keep from getting excess but I think they are crazy to say don't ever lube it.
Something that has happened to me on more than one occasion that I can warn you about is that the jaws don't release when unhooking. It's happened to me 4-5X out of probably 100X unhooking so it's not a huge deal but does kind of piss me off considering how much this whole thing cost. Anyway, the first thing to try is to just take the pressure off the hitch jaws by rolling the truck back with the wheels chocked or trailer brake engaged. If that doesn't do it, chock the trailer wheels from moving forward and back, landing gear down, use a bungee cord to hold the release handle open and pull the truck forward - the jaws will release but it sometimes takes a bit. Again this kind of pisses me off considering how much this thing cost but that's life. Once I've learned these "quirks" I've been fine.
Lastly, I totally agree with Thomas above - I slide mine back a lot even when I don't need the clearance just to help with the reaction and pivot - I have a SUPER tight parking situation at my house and the change in pivot helps.
Definitely NEVER put down the landing gear as others have advised.
Oh yeah, and I lube the hell out of the slide on the hitch with lithium grease and it makes everything move much easier (and quieter). I think the folks designing this hitch are living in some fantasy land where metal parts don't bind with one another. I do clean it an re-lube to keep from getting excess but I think they are crazy to say don't ever lube it.
Something that has happened to me on more than one occasion that I can warn you about is that the jaws don't release when unhooking. It's happened to me 4-5X out of probably 100X unhooking so it's not a huge deal but does kind of piss me off considering how much this whole thing cost. Anyway, the first thing to try is to just take the pressure off the hitch jaws by rolling the truck back with the wheels chocked or trailer brake engaged. If that doesn't do it, chock the trailer wheels from moving forward and back, landing gear down, use a bungee cord to hold the release handle open and pull the truck forward - the jaws will release but it sometimes takes a bit. Again this kind of pisses me off considering how much this thing cost but that's life. Once I've learned these "quirks" I've been fine.
Lastly, I totally agree with Thomas above - I slide mine back a lot even when I don't need the clearance just to help with the reaction and pivot - I have a SUPER tight parking situation at my house and the change in pivot helps.
