Newby to towing Fifth Wheel

[sstephen]

We go pick up our new fifth wheel today and we are a bit nervous. Our RV days have always been with a travel trailer, and we are not sure how complicated living with a fifth wheel is going to be versus the trailer. But we sold the old one in the fall and decide to buy a brand new Wildcat Fifth.

Basic questions we have are around unhooking and leveling and what is best practice. Hope this doesn't sound like we are idiots... but don't want to make an expensive mistake either.

Anyone have a link in this forum that maybe walks through this, it would be most appreciated.

[Allworth]

Wheel Chocks:

Down first.

Up last.



Every time. Always. No matter what else is going on. Always.

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

Everyone's given you terrific advice - so all I'll add is that last January, the first time we had ever pulled our 5er, was as we set off for Florida. We're not newbies to RVing, but going from a Class C to a 5er was a big learning event.

We just did everything s l ow l y. And double-checked each other. And we discovered that it's actually very easy to hook up, pull, and unhook!

Happy travels with your new 5er!!!

[Fred_n_Jo]

One thing to remember is that when you hitch up you need to have the pin plate of the trailer low enough so that it rides up on the ramp of the fifth wheel hitch plate. This will depress the springs of the truck as you back under and ensure that you don't high hitch.

[ependydad]

bobcouch wrote:
One other thing to consider.
The 5er will act different from your old trailer when cornering. Always pull a little further into the intersection and turn sharper than you did with your bumper pull - especially on right-hand turns. Otherwise you may find yourself jumping a curb.
You'll get used to this very quickly, but it is something you will have to learn.

The tip that I got was- watch the trailer wheels on the inside of the turn. When they pass the obstruction (sign, curb, car, etc) - that's when you can turn as sharply as you need to in order to complete the turn.

[proptwister]

bobcouch wrote:
One other thing to consider.
The 5er will act different from your old trailer when cornering. Always pull a little further into the intersection and turn sharper than you did with your bumper pull - especially on right-hand turns. Otherwise you may find yourself jumping a curb.
You'll get used to this very quickly, but it is something you will have to learn.

That is one of the bigger thing you will notice right away. Your 5th wheel will track much shorter on the inside of the turns. Where a bumper pull will follow the track of your truck fairly close, the 5th wheel trailer will have you jumping curbs, or worse. Swing considerably further into the turn to keep this from happening.

Its sounds worse than it really is. You'll get the hang of it fairly quick.

Matt

[bobcouch]

One other thing to consider.
The 5er will act different from your old trailer when cornering. Always pull a little further into the intersection and turn sharper than you did with your bumper pull - especially on right-hand turns. Otherwise you may find yourself jumping a curb.
You'll get used to this very quickly, but it is something you will have to learn.

[Sturgeon-Phish]

Remember to lower the tailgate when hitching up. Remember to let the landing gear down and set the lock pin when unhitching. Remember with the tailgate down not to drive the tailgate into the camper. Always chock the wheels when hitching up or unhitching. Remeber to take your time.
Jim

[n7bsn]

Our current 5er is our fourth, but when we picked it up I drove to a vacant semi-yard that was about 1/4 mile from the dealer and spent quite some time backing, maneuvering, etc. All to get the feel for how this rig handled.

BTW, one change from the above suggestions. Read the Manual for your rig and hitch. SOME hitches specify to unhitch before you jack the weight off the hitch.

Generally the manuals are going to be more right then some generic advise.

[ependydad]

Leveling:
Leveling is Quick and Easy

Hitching & Unhitching:
My steps for hitching and unhitching

The single best thing my dealer did was sent one of his techs to ride shotgun with me for a 30-45 minute drive. He gave me tips as I drove and cautioned me for what to watch out for with driving something like that (I came from a 20' pop-up and nothing before that).

Backing up, I keep my hands at the bottom of the wheel and have to force myself to make smaller corrections than I think are needed. The fifth wheel takes longer to turn than you'd think because it connects to the truck over the middle of your bed- until that point moves side to side, the tail end of the camper won't either.

[the_bear_II]

I'm sure there are YouTube videos showing the process.

If you are picking up at a dealer or private party have them show you the steps.

Then go to a large empty parking lot and practice with the 5th wheel to get a feel for it. There's not much difference between towing and backing a 5th wheel or TT. The 5th wheel will not react as quickly as the TT when backing up.

A couple of hitching tips...
Use the between the tire type wheel chocks. Put them in place before unhitching and leave them in place until hiched.
Never stand between the truck and the 5th wheel when hitching or unhitching.
Also don't rest your hand on the bed rail in case the trailer drops off of the hitch.



Congratulations and enjoy the new 5th wheel.

[Dennis_M_M]

Unhitching and leveling is not much different that a TT: level side to side, then lift weight off hitch with front jacks and disconnect, then level front to rear with the front jacks and finally put down the rear stabilizers.

One tip on hitching, after you are hitched and the hitch is locked in place, do a visual check of the hitch from behind to make sure it is properly closed around the king pin - THEN: retract the front jacks until they are a couple of inches off the ground and the weight is on the truck; get in and hold the trailer brake controller manually, put the truck in gear and give it a tug, just to make sure the hitch is firmly closed; then retract the front jacks the rest of way.

Backing will be the biggest difference between a TT and a fiver since the pivot point is above the back axle of the truck as opposed to several feet behind it. A fiver will not react to steering input as quickly.

Cannot take credit for the following as I found it on the web years ago. Sounds complicated, but it will become second nature pretty quickly.

Backing a 5er
There are a few tips that make it easier.

Tip 1: Do everything possible to insure that you will be turning on the driver side. Even if it means driving around the campground and up/down a few roads to get yourself turned around. Passenger is your blind side and should be last resort.

Tip 2: You have to learn how long the reaction time is for your trailer to react. Go to a parking lot and practice. Always use your trailers rear axle as the reference point. The reaction time is the time it takes from the time you turn the tow vehicle steering wheel until the time the trailer starts turning.

Tip 3: There are two terms you need to know. Neutral, Jack and Chase. Neutral position is when the tow vehicle steering wheel is at the position where the truck is going in a straight line. When you Jack the trailer you are causing it to turn the opposite direction that the truck is turning. Such as in jack-knife. Chase is when you are trying to straighten out the truck and trailer, thus the term chasing the trailer.

Tip 4: Get out and survey the parking area (with your spotter) for obstructions. Determine where you want the trailer to end up and pick a reference point, which will act as the "edge of the parking area".

Tip 5: Start with the truck and trailer traveling straight. You want the side you are turning into to be about 4' off the curb or edge of the road. When the tow vehicles rear axle is at the far edge of the parking space, cut your truck wheel hard away from the curb. When the truck is about a 45-degree angle to the curb (or as close as you can get given the space you have to use) straighten the wheel back to the neutral position. As soon as the truck has begun going straight, cut the wheel hard in the opposite direction until the truck is again parallel to the curb. STOP. Your trailer is now at a good angle to start backing up.

Tip 6: Jack the trailer until it get to about 15-20 degree angle of the space you are going to park it then start chasing it.

Tip 7: If your running out of space to get the truck & trailer running straight, don't be afraid to pull forward to help straighten it out.

Tip 8: PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE and never backup with out a spotter.

I always have my wife (spotter) standing right next to the truck (rather than at the back) In the angle of the turn. We've already surveyed the area so we know what is where. We've picked our reference point as the point we want to miss. This point is far enough away from the opposite side of the parking area such that I will miss any obstruction. She watches to rear trailer axle and tells me whether to JACK IT or CHASE IT. That is the only thing I need to hear (other than STOP). With those terms I know exactly which way to turn. She is not standing at the back of the trailer flailing her arms yelling LEFT, NO MY LEFT, STRAIGHT, TURN IT THE OTHER WAY…... Nobody can react to those terms.