Weight Police is in trouble now

[rsbabson]

[Irelands_child]

Legal or not, what I can see is added length being a problem here in the North East as well as many other areas in the US. A for instance, our 5er is 38 feet, the CCLB TV is 24 feet bumper to bumper (both measured). Now add another 6-8 feet between the TV back bumper and the king pin which on most newer 5ers is right at the max length. This is a total overall length of 68-70 feet vs 56-57 feet of the in-bed hookup with the TV I now have. Is it a good product for a farm or ranch goose neck in a wide open area ---- probably and would I consider it if that was my life - possibly. But NOT for highway hauling my long 5er

[The_Mad_Norsky]

fj12ryder wrote:

kakampers wrote:
This is a Safetyhitch...it has self contained, hydraulic disc brakes. It uses a three point attaching undermount hitch on the vehicle, so the only place it pivots is at the pin...meaning it is an extension of the TV, not a double tow...check out the website and the videos before jumping to conclusions. The owner says it's a 3/4 ton but I'm not sure if it's diesel. www.automatedsafetyhitch.com

It's an added trailer, not an extension of the truck. It's not permanently attached and is not a load bearing part of the truck, it's a trailer pulled behind the truck that you can hook a 5th wheel to.

Don't jump to the conclusion that just because it only pivots at the pin that it will be considered an extension of the TV. Please cite any statutes that will support that statement.

If one would watch the videos from the Safety hitch company, it becomes obvious that this is NOT a normal bumper hitch.

It actually attaches at three separate points to the tow vehicle.

So possibly an extension of the tow vehicle itself, or a very well attached trailer.

Whatever, from all reading I can find on it, it is a very highly regarded and well thought out product.

And, although some here seem to think its silly and unsafe, it does seem to be exactly the opposite.

[Rbertalotto]

Tandem trailer trucks have been doing this for years. Extra set of wheel brakes also.

[4x4FF]

FWIW,

As stated previously this is a picture of the automated safety hitch. At the risk of drawing the ire of many on here I think it is a pretty ingenious setup. I am considering getting one and have done a lot of research and spoken to several people who own them. Funny thing is you only hear negatives from people who have never used them. Everyone I have spoken to once they have used it swear by it. It is considered a 'drop axle' and is legal as such in all 50 states. The company apparently has 'endorsements' from all of the states DOT's or so I have been told. The axle is an F450 front axle and brake setup. I did have a lengthy conversation with the owner of the company and designer of the safety hitch and quite frankly he has his stuff together. One thing the designer touts is that when stopping 70% of your breaking is done by the front axle of your truck. Think about it...when you stop your truck, the nose drops down. What this does is allow that weight from the 5th wheel instead of dropping into the back of your truck it drops onto the axle (F450) under the hitch which has its own F450 brakes to assist with stopping. It actually decreases the stopping distance from just the truck and 5er. In talking with him he advised he actually came up with this idea a number of years ago when he was hauling a goose neck horse trailer and someone pulled in front of him and he had to do an emergency stop.

Let me state I have no interest in the company or owner whatsoever. I have just been doing considerable research on this for a while and may be looking at getting one next year. As part of that research I have cold called several people that own them and they ALL swear by it. One guy even transports 5er's from the manufacturer to dealers with it and loves it.

Don't hang me.....just offering my $.02

Steve

[drillking]

oldtrojan66 wrote:
If you've never watched Lucy and Desi in Long Long Trailer you should. It is just a fun take on 50's RVing. However, I bring it up here because they have some kind of similar dolly set up on their trailer. It is pulled with a Mercury convertible which probably weighed more than most current 3/4 ton pick-ups! Funny movie!

No matter how many times we've watched that show it cracks us up!

[fj12ryder]

kakampers wrote:
This is a Safetyhitch...it has self contained, hydraulic disc brakes. It uses a three point attaching undermount hitch on the vehicle, so the only place it pivots is at the pin...meaning it is an extension of the TV, not a double tow...check out the website and the videos before jumping to conclusions. The owner says it's a 3/4 ton but I'm not sure if it's diesel. www.automatedsafetyhitch.com

It's an added trailer, not an extension of the truck. It's not permanently attached and is not a load bearing part of the truck, it's a trailer pulled behind the truck that you can hook a 5th wheel to.

Don't jump to the conclusion that just because it only pivots at the pin that it will be considered an extension of the TV. Please cite any statutes that will support that statement.

[ChooChooMan74]

kakampers wrote:
This is a Safetyhitch...it has self contained, hydraulic disc brakes. It uses a three point attaching undermount hitch on the vehicle, so the only place it pivots is at the pin...meaning it is an extension of the TV, not a double tow...check out the website and the videos before jumping to conclusions. The owner says it's a 3/4 ton but I'm not sure if it's diesel. www.automatedsafetyhitch.com

This guy spent big bucks on the hitch. And, if it is a diesel, spent big bucks at a place like duraburb (Duramax conversions company). I would have just gotten a dually.

[3_dog_nights]

clicky

kakampers wrote:
This is a Safetyhitch...it has self contained, hydraulic disc brakes. It uses a three point attaching undermount hitch on the vehicle, so the only place it pivots is at the pin...meaning it is an extension of the TV, not a double tow...check out the website and the videos before jumping to conclusions. The owner says it's a 3/4 ton but I'm not sure if it's diesel. www.automatedsafetyhitch.com

[kakampers]

This is a Safetyhitch...it has self contained, hydraulic disc brakes. It uses a three point attaching undermount hitch on the vehicle, so the only place it pivots is at the pin...meaning it is an extension of the TV, not a double tow...check out the website and the videos before jumping to conclusions. The owner says it's a 3/4 ton but I'm not sure if it's diesel. www.automatedsafetyhitch.com

[oldtrojan66]

If you've never watched Lucy and Desi in Long Long Trailer you should. It is just a fun take on 50's RVing. However, I bring it up here because they have some kind of similar dolly set up on their trailer. It is pulled with a Mercury convertible which probably weighed more than most current 3/4 ton pick-ups! Funny movie!

[M_GO_BLUE1]

An accident waiting to happen, not if but when...I feel sorry for his family being put in that situation

[missourijan]

OMG, there's no way he can stop that thing. Wonder where this was taken, please tell me so we stay away!

[fj12ryder]

Looks like that could be considered a double tow.

Some things should be thought of as "Should I?", not "Can I?".

[Francesca_Knowl]

The ol' little-red-wagon hookup, eh?

[newman_fulltime]

itsmade by safety hitch look them up.They are 10,000.00