New to me 5er....hitch recs needed

[Baja_Man]

Hello All--

Well, finally made a decision and bought a small 5er. It is 1998 Jayco 243RKS. One owner and kept in xlnt. cond. Should work well for my family of four (Me, DW, DS10, DS16).

Trailer Specs:

GVWR: 9400
UVW: 6935
Water: 466 (56 gallons)
NCC: 2465

I would assume a hitch weight of 1800#

The hitch that came with the 5er is a Lil Rocker 15K (RBW) and the pin box is a Leland 7910. The hitch inclded the rails, L brackets and all hardware. It was mounted on late 80's Dodge Ram diesel truck. My truck is a 1992 Ford F350 SRW, long bed.

I don't know much about hitches and need some advice.

Is this older hitch still good and safe? What are pros and cons to this hitch?

Anything special about the Leland 7910 pin box?

Do I need a new hitch and what would I be gaining over the Lil Rocker?

Thanks!

[ralphnjoann]

Baja Man wrote:
I am now considering an Anderson due to its simplicity and weight.

if I install these Reese universal rails.....Reese RP 30035

will this Anderson Ultimate 5th Wheel Connection - Rail Version #3200 fit without issue or mods?

Is this the Hitch I should be looking at.....
Anderson #3200

What other benefits will I get, other than weight, VS the Lil Rocker?

Thanks

Those are the correct parts and the installation will be the same as the L'il Rocker. As for other benefits; no moving parts, no lubrication needed; no bumping into your grease covered kingpin; easy to raise and lower the ball for height corrections as opposed to the disassembly required to do same with L'il Rocker; the coupler on the kingpin can be rotated to move the trailer forward or backward depending on your requirements and the hitch itself can be rotated if the ball needs to be moved front to back or vice versa. Did I also mention it can easily be installed and removed by a 73 year old coot?

If I think of more, I'll add it.

[Baja_Man]

I am now considering an Anderson due to its simplicity and weight.

if I install these Reese universal rails.....Reese RP 30035

will this Anderson Ultimate 5th Wheel Connection - Rail Version #3200 fit without issue or mods?

Is this the Hitch I should be looking at.....
Anderson #3200

What other benefits will I get, other than weight, VS the Lil Rocker?

Thanks

[Baja_Man]

ralphnjoann wrote:

Baja Man wrote:

ralphnjoann wrote:
I bought a used F-250 PSD in which the previous owner had a fifth wheel hitch installed then removed before sale. I have no idea the brand or year of his hitch. I purchased a L'il Rocker, and when I went to install it, I found that his frame brackets were welded to the frame and that the L'il Rocker rails fit them perfectly.

I never had any problems with the L'il Rocker, but it gained weight every year until it became too difficult to remove for truck camping in the summer. I just replaced it with an Andersen Rail Mount hitch which weighs 41 pounds and is guaranteed not to gain weight. It fit the L'il Rocker rails perfectly, so I must assume there is some universal component to all this. BTW, I sold the L'il Rocker for $250 which is about what I paid for it several years back.

Ralph was this an analogy..... of hitch gaining weight annually meaning that as we get older the Lil Rocker became too heavy to handle/remove? What is meant by Anderson guaranteed to not gain weight?

Thanks!

It was my feeble attempt at humor...yes, the hitch isn't getting heavier, I'm getting older (73 come August). As far as the Andersen gaining weight, it was my way of saying, in keeping with the above mentioned humor, that the Andersen won't ever give me any problems with respect to my diminishing ability to lift heavy objects (pulmonary embolism, two heart attacks and a stroke), because of its comparatively light weight. Thanks for requesting clarification.

Ralph, thanks for the great humor! It was good!

[ralphnjoann]

Baja Man wrote:

ralphnjoann wrote:
I bought a used F-250 PSD in which the previous owner had a fifth wheel hitch installed then removed before sale. I have no idea the brand or year of his hitch. I purchased a L'il Rocker, and when I went to install it, I found that his frame brackets were welded to the frame and that the L'il Rocker rails fit them perfectly.

I never had any problems with the L'il Rocker, but it gained weight every year until it became too difficult to remove for truck camping in the summer. I just replaced it with an Andersen Rail Mount hitch which weighs 41 pounds and is guaranteed not to gain weight. It fit the L'il Rocker rails perfectly, so I must assume there is some universal component to all this. BTW, I sold the L'il Rocker for $250 which is about what I paid for it several years back.

Ralph was this an analogy..... of hitch gaining weight annually meaning that as we get older the Lil Rocker became too heavy to handle/remove? What is meant by Anderson guaranteed to not gain weight?

Thanks!

It was my feeble attempt at humor...yes, the hitch isn't getting heavier, I'm getting older (73 come August). As far as the Andersen gaining weight, it was my way of saying, in keeping with the above mentioned humor, that the Andersen won't ever give me any problems with respect to my diminishing ability to lift heavy objects (pulmonary embolism, two heart attacks and a stroke), because of its comparatively light weight. Thanks for requesting clarification.

[Baja_Man]

ralphnjoann wrote:
I bought a used F-250 PSD in which the previous owner had a fifth wheel hitch installed then removed before sale. I have no idea the brand or year of his hitch. I purchased a L'il Rocker, and when I went to install it, I found that his frame brackets were welded to the frame and that the L'il Rocker rails fit them perfectly.

I never had any problems with the L'il Rocker, but it gained weight every year until it became too difficult to remove for truck camping in the summer. I just replaced it with an Andersen Rail Mount hitch which weighs 41 pounds and is guaranteed not to gain weight. It fit the L'il Rocker rails perfectly, so I must assume there is some universal component to all this. BTW, I sold the L'il Rocker for $250 which is about what I paid for it several years back.

Ralph was this an analogy..... of hitch gaining weight annually meaning that as we get older the Lil Rocker became too heavy to handle/remove? What is meant by Anderson guaranteed to not gain weight?

Thanks!

[ralphnjoann]

I bought a used F-250 PSD in which the previous owner had a fifth wheel hitch installed then removed before sale. I have no idea the brand or year of his hitch. I purchased a L'il Rocker, and when I went to install it, I found that his frame brackets were welded to the frame and that the L'il Rocker rails fit them perfectly.

I never had any problems with the L'il Rocker, but it gained weight every year until it became too difficult to remove for truck camping in the summer. I just replaced it with an Andersen Rail Mount hitch which weighs 41 pounds and is guaranteed not to gain weight. It fit the L'il Rocker rails perfectly, so I must assume there is some universal component to all this. BTW, I sold the L'il Rocker for $250 which is about what I paid for it several years back.

[Baja_Man]

My rails appear to only have 4 holes per rail; two at each end. This would equate to 8 in total.

Aren't they supposed to have 5 bolts per rail.....two at each end and one in center, equaling 10 in total?

[Old-Biscuit]

Grade 8

[twodownzero]

Baja Man wrote:
I found the original RBW owners manual. It does have directions for various truck applications; much like in the one Old Biscuit posted.

So, if rails are universal, are too, the L brackets? The bolts I can replace with new grade 5 or 8.

Yes, it should all fit on your truck just as it did on the other. Install L brackets, drill holes, install bolts, bolt rails to L brackets, drop hitch in, hook up trailer, and enjoy camping.

[Baja_Man]

I found the original RBW owners manual. It does have directions for various truck applications; much like in the one Old Biscuit posted.

So, if rails are universal, are too, the L brackets? The bolts I can replace with new grade 5 or 8.

[phillyg]

Those rails look like what I call standard Reese rails. The mounting parts that are truck-specific are attached to the truck frame under the bed and the rails attach to them. The hitch is probably fine for continued use, but since it's old and for your peace of mind, it might be best to have a hitch installer check it over for worn parts.

[Baja_Man]

Unfortunately, I do not know who made the rails. There are no markings on rails. I also see that on the instructions posted by Old Biscuit, the part numbers on the RBW install sheet (page 3) are different from the sticker on my hitch (see hitch pics).

Would these RBW instructions apply without knowing the manufacturer of my rails and also having different part numbers?

Thanks

[jerem0621]

They are universal rails...

Basically they are adapted to work with different truck frames.... All the little square holes in the base rails are possible locations for bolts for the various types of frames. Do you happen to know who made your rails?

If so we can probably find the instructions for them. They typically come with instructions on how to install on any truck.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

[Baja_Man]

I just looked up rails for a 1986-93 Dodge RAM 2500 and for my 1992 Ford F350 (with overload springs) and they call for the same part number. How can this be if they are for different trucks and different frames?