Looking for ideas with bedrail clearence on 2013 Ram 2500

[kc81c]

I traded my 2011 F250 Short Box CrewCab for a 2013 Ram 2500 Crew Cab. We have a 2011 Heartland Sundance XLT 285BH fifthwheel and a B&W Companion Hitch. On the Ford I had plenty of both cab clearance turning and bed clearance. Now with the Ram I have a bit less clearance in the back of the bed then I would like but plenty of room in the front of the box. Also when hooked up I don't think the pickup is squating hardly at all. To fix the cab clearance I have a B&W slider on order. Currently its setup with the pinbox almost as close to the trailer as it goes there are several positions that would allow it to drop lower away from the trailer. My companion hitch is set in its highest position. Our trailer came with the axles already below the springs which is the only thing the dealers have told me as an option. What I can't find out from any of the local dealers I've called is how nose high do you dare have a fifth wheel. Looking for any ideas.

[kc81c]

Yeah your correct I thought i was on level ground when I took the picture but after looking it the back of the pickup is just past the crown of the driveway. The measurements I took again were on level ground. My inlaws lake spot were going to next weekend is about the tightest spot with some bad inclines I've been to if I can make that I should be good.

[John_I_Haggerty]

Photograph is deceiving. Truck and trailer not on level ground. If you project a line from the two truck tires thru the trailer, you'll see that you're probably on less level ground than you thought.

With that distance between the cab and nose, I shove a wide Weathertite cross box in there!:B

[JIMNLIN]

The neat thing about a short bed truck is we don't need 6" of clearance at the rear of the trucks bed. Look at the pic. The aft end of the trucks bed will never dig into the bottom of the 5ers over hang unlike the long bed.

I would be more concerned with more weight on the trailers rear axles if it is nose high. A trip to the local feed store/scrap steel yard or any platform scales and get the trailer front axle and rear axle weights

[kc81c]

The B&W slider ended up being on an extended delay 2-3 weeks so I canceled it for now and we'll see how it goes first. I tried backing up in the yard and its not as bad as I thought at first. Thanks for the help.

[mike2wheels]

I have the 3500 and didn't like the raised rear so I took a couple of the spacers out of the rear suspension. It lowered the rear bumper about an inch. I want to address your comment about the slider hitch. Although we have a slider hitch, we don't need it because the nose of the trailer is sculpted much like the nose of your trailer. Sharp turns are no problem other than watching the pin box to make sure it clears the bed rails.

[kc81c]

I did a simple reverse level after reading that many other Ram owners on several websites were doing the same. I took 2 of the 3 1/2 blocks from between the axle and springs and moved them to the top side of the springs. It gave me roughly a 1 3/4" drop at the reciever hitch from before to after. The pickup unhooked still sits 3 1/2"s higher in the back then the front from what I can tell. Now when I hooked up and got on level ground I have 7 1/2"s at the back of the box and 9" in the front. I'm hoping when I feel the tanks it will make the pickup squat a little to so I should be good now. If I decide I need to level it more in the future I think I'll go the Correct Track route. Thanks for the thoughts I really want to make this work we looked at some travel trailers the other day and it would be tough to go back to one. Thanks for the compliments to I'm really enjoying the Ram it was a big change for me I've owned 3 Superduties, and 3 F150s over the years.

[JeffroMax]

Flip the Axles. Your setup looks nice!

[Beaker]

There are ways to raise the trailer which looks like what you need to do. One is to get a equalized, which goes between the springs, which is taller. A more expensive alternative is to install "Correct Tract" which will raise the trailer about 2 inches

A good trailer dealer(not RV dealer) can do the same thing for you. Had to have mine done and put in a wet bolt kit with it.

[45Ricochet]

Well it's not perfect but I've seen a lot worse. For what its worth I ran around for 2 years with only 4" of clearance and never made contact. Just had to watch some of the driveways closely. I finally made some hitch and pin box adjustments to get me to 6".
I agree in that those rear tires are going to be the 1st ones to go south.
You have a photo of just the hitch setting in the bed?

[Cummins12V98]

The slider hitch is a waste of money for your rig. You can raise the front of your RV but that is going to add even more weight to the rear tires on the rig. Bottom line you need to raise the trailer at the axles or live with it and be prepared to have problems with rear trailer tires.

[dbbls]

There are ways to raise the trailer which looks like what you need to do. One is to get a equalized, which goes between the springs, which is taller. A more expensive alternative is to install "Correct Tract" which will raise the trailer about 2 inches. This may seem like overkill but it allows you to align the trailer axles which may be a benefit. If you had been to the Heartland Rally last month you could have bought a Correct Tract system at a bargain. The new Heartland trailers have this system factory installed.

[kc81c]

Sitting level I have about 4"s in the rear of the bed and probably over 8"s in the front. I need to hook up again tomorrow and remeasure. If I can get the pickup to level out some I would have plenty of clearance. I do have the companion hitch setup so the head is in the furthest back and up position in the picture.

[B_O__Plenty]

You only need about 6 inches between bed side and trailer. I bet if you pull that pin box cover off you will find you can adjust the pinbox higher and level the trailer out some.

B.O.

[Cummins12V98]

Is your B&W side supports all the way forward with the angled edges towards the back? If not re adjust before buying a slider.

BTW, nice truck!