School me on 5th wheel hitches please

[exit_295]

Hi all. We have been travel trailer campers for several years and have worked ourselves up to our current trailer which is a triple slide, 36ft long very comfortable mobile suite. However, we have decided that the time has come to downsize a bit because the kids have their own rig now and we are too long to get into some of the campgrounds that they can.

When looking for shorter trailers, we discovered that 5th wheels were roomier and some of the shorter ones look like they would suit us. We haven't settled on one to buy yet but while looking, a salesman wanted to make a deal on selling us a hitch with the trailer which by the way was an adapter that converted the attachment on the trailer into a ball mount which then would drop onto a ball mounted on a frame in the bed of the truck. The whole thing just didn't look right to me. Being new to 5th wheels, I have no idea on what features to look for or brands/types. It does seem that units we have looked at all have a swivel feature that allows the trailer to be used with short box PU's which I have. Does that mean that feature is better then a slider hitch?

I would appreciate learning about different types of hitches and what features to consider when buying one. I will be towing with an F250 short bed with a V-10. Thanks in advance.

[Durb]

If the 5er you are considering is relatively new it will most likely have a rounded nose cap which could open up your options with a short bed truck. If your intended trailer is older and has a square front then you will most likely need a sliding hitch which most manufacturers have in their line. The swiveling feature you mentioned might be a Reese Sidewinder which moves the pivot point from your hitch to the kingpin.

If you want to get versed on the majority of opinions that you will see on this forum, search the websites of the following.
- Pullrite Superglide (auto slider)
- B&W hitches
- Andersen Ultimate hitch
- Reese Sidewinder
- Goosebox ( if this is the adapter the salesman was talking about then it isn't a bad option given the right trailer frame)

[Goostoff]

I will secont the B&W Patriot. It is the hitch that I switched to from the POS Curt that came in my truck.

[MFL]

Having the V-10 tells me your truck does not have the fifth wheel prep. So you are likely looking for a rail mounted hitch. A good quality hitch for rail mount, is the B&W Patriot 16K. IMO, it is the best hitch you can get for the dollars spent. Look at it at e-trailer. They have a good price, and free shipping.

Jerry

[KD4UPL]

A ball in the bed of the truck is called a goose neck hitch (Maybe you already know that) not a fifth wheel hitch. There are adapters but they are not necessarily a good idea. Like adding a pipe to the handle of a wrench the goose neck adapter adds leverage to the frame of the FW trailer that it likely was never designed to take.
Personally, when looking at a used FW, if it has a GN adapter I immediately discount it from consideration. I don't need hidden frame cracks.

[Isaac-1]

I am not sure I understand your situation, are you saying that your F250 already has a gooseneck ball hitch installed in the bed, and the salesman is trying to sell you on getting a goseneck adapter for the 5th wheel trailer?

[ScottG]

Just like travel trailer hitches, it pays do get a good one first rather than buy something cheap, live with its lousy performance and then have to replace it.
I would go with something with air suspension.