I am looking at Reese Hitch Adapter - RP45292 34" extension to pull my enclosed cargo trailer (7 x 14 dual axle). Max weight rating for the Reese hitch is 4,500 lbs. I will be pretty close to that weight when the trailer is loaded (4,200 lbs or so)My truck camper is about 3,200 lbs. The tongue weight for the trailer is about 325 lbs. I am driving a F-350 diesel dually, I should be fine with payload capacity.Here's my questions.1) I was looking at the Torklift hitch but those seem fairly pricy and might be overkill for what I need possibly? Do you think I can get by with the Reese hitch adapter? I want to feel and be safe when towing for sure. I'll be traveling all over the country pulling this trailer with the truck camper on it.2) Also I've been reading that it's nearly impossible to back the trailer up with a hitch extension on of 34". I am not foreign to backing up single axle trailers or dual axle but I've heard it's extremely difficult even for someone with experience backing up.Thanks for any advice and tips.DM

I have a 32-inch Torklift Supertruss Extension with SuperHitch on 2015 Sierra 3500 SB - Single axle. 2500# Northern Lite TC in the bed pulling a 4500# Barefoot Nautique. Few Comments: 1) The difference between the stock hitch and a Superhitch is night and day. There is no movement of the Supertruss and the trailer is rock solid at all times. (no weight distribution hitch)2) Double check your tongue weight - the rule of thumb is 10% trailer weight if loaded properly.3) Look up hitch extension carrying capacities online. You will see that increasing length DRASTICALLY decreases load carrying on a single receiver hitch.4) There is a SIGNIFICANT cost but you said "want to feel and be safe when towing" - The Superhitch and Supertruss are the tickets.5) It is fine backing a trailer with an extension. I launch and retrieve my Nautique on about any boat ramp. If there is light, I can get there (even without light at times).If you are going to traveling all over, don't fret about your hitch. You'll have trailer tires and hubs, low bridges, closed campgrounds, fuel stops and more to think about. Don't max out the hitch - it will keep you and your fellow motorists safer.

You should be fine. The key is de-rating your receiver hitch accordingly based on the length of the extension. As far as backing up, I think it depends more on the length of the trailer verses the length of the tow vehicle. The shorter the trailer with respect to the tow vehicle, the more difficult to back up. That is my experience at least.

I've researched this myself extensively. There doesn't seem to be an official de-rating guide for hitch extensions. I suspect that the receiver manufacturers don't want to chime in out of liability fears, "We never said it could be used with an extension, so you're on your own." Except of course Torklift...Some people will tell you that your extension is de-rated 50% no matter how long the extension is, but coming from an engineering background I know that's pure baloney. Most likely you are limited by the capacity of the extension itself rather than the de-rated receiver, but while my engineering concepts are still good, my finite element analysis skills are rusty as 20 year old truck.I personally run a homebuilt extension that IIRC gives me around 16" of extra length. It's just a 24" Curt "weldable receiver tube" with an extra cross hole drilled in it, and two 15000lb D-rings welded on to it for safety chains. Short safety chains secure the D-rings to the factory receiver, and then the trailer safety chains attach to the D-rings. I've always wondered what the rating/capacity on this extension would be.

Making the hitch extension as short as possible will give you move strength and less to hang up, through low spots, going up hill or down hill. How long is your TC? 34 seems longer than probably necessary since you say your TC is 3200. The TC has got to be pretty short.

^ This. I’d question the need for that long of an extension. Need to add more info. Presuming long bed truck, that length of extension may be needed for a 10.5-11’ camper but the weight sounds more like a shorter camper. Of course vertical overhang and trailer tongue length are part of the equation too. That said, 34” extension is a lot for just a straight tube receiver extension without stabilizing chains. I wouldn’t unilaterally reccomend it without knowing more information. I have used a straight bar extension 12-18” without issue with heavier trailers than you have on a 2” receiver. You have 2, 2.5 or 3” receiver?

Hitch Extension Questions for Pulling a 7 x 14 Cargo Trailer

31 Replies

Kayteg1
Explorer II
Apr 01, 2018
NautiqueFamily wrote:
ticki2 wrote:
As far as I know the lower bar on the Supertruss is a tube like the upper. IF it were solid I doubt it would be cast. Some ball mounts are cast.

Here is a video of the Supertruss installation. In the vid, you see that the compression tube is solid. Honest, it really is solid. :W

Torklift Supertruss Install

This is 36" supertruss, so maybe solid bar comes only with longer units?

Click For Full-Size Image.
burningman
Explorer II
Mar 30, 2018
I moved my tongue jack back.
Remember how you adjusted how far back on a seesaw you sat as a kid to put more or less weight on your side? That’s exactly what’s going on with those hitch extensions.

I’ve driven tow trucks. You can extend and retract the wheel lift holding the car as you drive.
When you do that, the difference is dramatic. You always want it as tight to the back of the truck as possible.

Same with a trailer unless it’s a really light one.
Bedlam
Moderator
Mar 30, 2018
The center mounted tongue jack gets in the way of landing without a longer SuperTruss. That’s why I skipped the landing and was able to use a 28” extension.
jimh406
Explorer III
Mar 30, 2018
GeoBoy wrote:
I have an AF990 and use a 36” SuperTruss, because of the rear bumper and Fox Landing on the back of the camper. I remember that the Cirrus 920 also has a landing, so you may well need a 34” extension.

I thought the point of the Fox Landing was to go over the hitch. What am I missing?
GeoBoy
Explorer
Mar 29, 2018
I have an AF990 and use a 36” SuperTruss, because of the rear bumper and Fox Landing on the back of the camper. I remember that the Cirrus 920 also has a landing, so you may well need a 34” extension.
mkirsch
Nomad II
Mar 29, 2018
My camper is a 9-1/2' floor, and overhangs by about 20". My extension puts the ball right at the rear of the camper, which is fine. It doesn't have to be past the bumper unless you have a weird trailer.

For a couple years I didn't use an extension at all. It was tight but it worked well, and only hit when the trailer swung over too far while I was backing up.

You should not need anywhere near a 34" extension with only a 10' floor camper.

With a 3" receiver, though, I would make a extension from 3" 1/4" wall square tubing, and use a 2-1/2" shank for the trailer. No reducer sleeves, less slop. That's basically how I did mine; 2-1/2" square tubing, 2" shank, no reducer, no slop.
3_tons
Explorer III
Mar 29, 2018
Mooredb wrote:
Thanks for the info everyone! The truck that I have is a 2018 F-350 Super duty 8' dually diesel. It has a 3" hitch receiver with reducers on it. The truck camper is Cirrus 920 NuCamp, it weighs in around 3,200#. I took it to a shop where they put hitches on and they said that I would need a 34" extension which just puts it just a couple of inches past the truck camper bumper.

I want to make sure this is SAFE for everyone.

thanks.

Your’re smart to inquire... with my 2016 Ram dually, I tow a 7’x16’ double axle enclosed trailer with a 2.5” Curt extension, 43” total length pin to ball without any problems... Ball is 2 - 5/16” and breaks out just clearing camper’s rear bumper.My tongue weight is closer to 375#, backing up is well like backing up... I have confidence that you’ll be fine...
burningman
Explorer II
Mar 29, 2018
I stretched my trailer tongue instead of my hitch.
Way, way better physics.
And no zillion pound thing to attach and remove whenever I put the camper on.
Doesn’t matter how strong it is. You’re still amplifying the leverage the trailer has when you use a hitch extension.
That’s undesirable no matter how you slice it.
NautiqueFamily
Explorer
Mar 29, 2018
ticki2 wrote:
As far as I know the lower bar on the Supertruss is a tube like the upper. IF it were solid I doubt it would be cast. Some ball mounts are cast.

Here is a video of the Supertruss installation. In the vid, you see that the compression tube is solid. Honest, it really is solid. :W

Torklift Supertruss Install
mkisamore
Explorer
Mar 29, 2018
i have a reese 2.5 inch diameter hitch extension that was 48inches at 4000 lbs and at 41 inches it was 5000 lbs i shortened it to the 41 inch length and pulled my 7x18 enclosed trailer behind my truck camper with no problems but you definetly need to pay attention to tongue weight balancing your load in the trailer is a must