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rvnutts's avatar
rvnutts
Explorer II
Jul 09, 2018

Short bed towing g

Well, our 05 Dodge just didn't make the cut with dh pulling our new (2013) Big Country. Sold it today! Now has his eye on a 2017 Dodge Ram. Only thing it is short bed (6 1/2 ft.) Does anyone out there tow with short bed and what do you use, slider hitch, pin box extender, or do you just watch and be careful with turns. Thanks!

7 Replies

  • I hit the back of my truck this last weekend maneuvering around our storage yard. The corner of the unit bumped the corner of the back of the cab. This new trailer is 102” wide so now it looks like it’s time to start using the slider. Never had a problem with our old 96”wide trailers. Oh, our truck has the 6.5’ bed too.
  • 2012 ram crew cab with 6.5ft bed and have yet to use my reese slider. I attribute this to the very rounded front cap of my coachman 5er. With my previous Colorado I did nick my cab during a backing maneuver when I neglected to use the slider!

    Daryll
  • RobWNY gives a good example, using same truck. Just know that ALL fixed hitches are not the same. Some are more adjustable ahead/back, and can allow more clearance.

    Jerry
  • I would think there would be a gazilion hits when searching this subject.

    I been towing 20 some years with short boxes and no slider and nary a problem yet.

    yeah yeah, my day is coming. :B
  • I use a rail mount Andersen Ultimage flipped to the rear with my short bed Ram and it works great. No contact at full lock going forward. Great setup that tows really well.
  • Thanks. That makes me feel a little better. Our Big Country has clipped or slanted sides on the nose so i hope that will help. We also have a curt hitch that dh likes and it's not a slider.
  • I have a 2017 Ram 3500 gasser that has the 6'4" bed. My 2019 Forest River Salem Hemisphere GLX 5th wheel has a rounded nose and its no problem at all. I use a B&W Pariot 16K standard 5th wheel hitch. Never have come close to hitting the cab of my truck. Not with tight forward turns or backing into a camp site. I would guess the closest the nose of my 5th wheel has been is maybe a foot away.