Forum Discussion

JeffroMax's avatar
JeffroMax
Explorer
Jun 21, 2013

Flip the Axles or lower the truck?

Thanks for all your help so far. So my fifth wheel is almost 7 inches over the bed rails but it also sloped back a bit but not to bad because of my truck lift. Tonight i was turning around in my dads driveway to park my fifth wheel and there is a good sized dip so my truck sloped down so the back end came up and i noticed in time that my king pin box was about to hit the inside of the pick up bed... I was only turned about 65 degrees. I have the Anderson ultimate hitch adapter on my flip over ball. So my next decision is to flip the axles or lower my truck back down to stock height. It has a 4 inch body lift on it right now. Its a 06 Dodge Mega Cab Cummins. I'm sure it is cheaper to flip the axles but then my RV has a high center of gravity which might not be a big deal but I would like to hear your experiences in flipping the axles. Appreciate the input!
  • deleted-2's avatar
    deleted-2
    Explorer
    Jun 21, 2013
    I say thumbs down on the axle flip.
    Wasn't going to post anything because flipping evidently is popular.

    For me the height of the 5ver was a problem.
    We didn't off road or boondock with a 29 footer so the clearance deal wasn't there for us.

    Our new fiver isn't flipped and I am really enjoying being close to the ground.
    So there ya have it!
    :C
  • donn0128's avatar
    donn0128
    Explorer II
    Jun 21, 2013
    Take the truck back to stock. Youll be much happier in the end.
  • BobsYourUncle's avatar
    BobsYourUncle
    Nomad
    Jun 21, 2013
    I personally like flipped axles.

    Though I do off road fishing trips where the extra clearance is very helpful, even some simple things will benefit from the flipped axles.

    I have been over some brutal entrances to gas stations, shopping malls and more, where the entrance has a really nasty dip on the way in or out.

    Even with my axles flipped I have dragged anchor a few times going in and out of awkward places.

    But I suppose if you never leave the pavement, never go into gas stations with other than a level entrance, stay away from any humps and bumps, then OK, leave it on the ground as perhaps you will never need the extra clearance.

    I don't care about having to grab the handle when I climb in to my TT. The extra few inches step is well worth the benefits of flipped axles.
  • SteveB's avatar
    SteveB
    Explorer
    Jun 21, 2013
    My Jayco had to be raised and my truck is stock height. What will the overall height of your camper be after an axle flip? If it makes it too high then the the truck would need to be lowered.
  • motorcycle_jack's avatar
    motorcycle_jack
    Explorer II
    Jun 21, 2013
    I didn't flip my axles for my unit to sit level on my 19.5" rimmed F-450 (higher than any stock trucks except those with a 4" body lift). What I did was put a 2" channel under my frame lowering my suspension - axles, springs and shocks. So my unit sits about 6" above the truck rails and level. You have to adjust the pin box up or down on the 5'er.
  • Hamops's avatar
    Hamops
    Explorer
    Jun 21, 2013
    donn0128 wrote:
    Take the truck back to stock. Youll be much happier in the end.


    I would second this comment. You'll have a far more stable rig because the C of G on both the truck and trailer will be lower. If after you lower your truck and you still have your trailer tilted high, raise the pin box up to the next set of mounting holes. By doing that you will lower the front of the trailer and have more clearance over the truck box rails. This will allow you to make tighter turns, but be careful that you don't bang the trailer into the truck cab. Replacement window glasses can be expensive.
  • mpfireman's avatar
    mpfireman
    Explorer
    Jun 21, 2013
    With your truck sitting level, measure to the top of the bed rails. Fiver sitting level, measure to the bottom or the trailers snout. if the truck sits at 45 inches, and your fiver sits at 42 inches, you have a problem.NO AMOUNT OF ADJUSTING the pin box or trailers hitch will change these numbers.
    Thus I would return the truck to stock height, if this procedure would solve your problem.
  • Me_Again's avatar
    Me_Again
    Explorer III
    Jun 21, 2013
    I took the sawsall to the back corner of the pin box mount, like many of us have done. It is not the pin box the hits the side rail of the truck, it is mount that hands down out of the front over hang. Trim it off at an angle. I lost one hole on the bottom back corners of the two mount plates.

    In this picture you can see the angle is the same as the pin box and square corner is gone.




    Chris
  • bpounds's avatar
    bpounds
    Nomad
    Jun 21, 2013
    Lifted trucks don't play nice with fifthwheels. And body lifts on trucks are a bad idea anyway, always. So I would lower the truck to stock height.

    I'm curious how you got a fifthwheel hitch to mount properly to the frame with a body lift. You must have some kind of spacers equal to the 4" lift between the frame and the rails. I know it's a ball mount, but same issue. Just a really bad idea IMO.

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