GD Momentum 395ms with Ram Megacab

[ndanecker]

I believe we have the RV narrowed down and its the Grand Design Momentum 395ms. Also have a new tow rig on order (1/8/2021) and its a 21 Ram 3500 Megacab DRW. I know its a short bed and will need some care in turns unless you go with a slider or other device to limit (or really increase) cab to trailer distance.

So - one option I would lean towards is the Reese Goosebox. I have the GN prep included because I want the holes clean and like the puck system. Was thinking about swapping out the GN hitch for a B&W one that has the square hole so I can use the 4" offset ball. Million dollar question is do you feel this will get me close to 90* or at least to a point where I don't need to pucker-up every time I make a wide turn or try backing into a spot.

Really don't want to do a slider.

Suggestions and comments welcomed. Thanks guys.

[danojeno]

There are many people who say, with the proper care, it's no problem. With that in mind I ended up bouncing off and damaging my cab more times than I care to admit. Slider, winder or long bed, just get something, because your day will come.

[ndanecker]

Lantley wrote:
I wasn't referencing anyone in general. These threads appear all the time.
It's not that complicated to get the right truck for the application.
We often make this a subjective topic but the towing parameters speak for them selves.
If your trailer weighs Y. Your truck needs to be able to carry Y. Except too often someone wants to use a truck that can only carry up to X, not quite Y.
They will list a host of reasons why X can be made equivalent to Y or why you really don't need to use a Y capable truck cause X is just as good.
This towing at the edge ideology can be found across all kinds of trucks 1/2 tons, 3/4 tons, 1 tons and duallys. Short beds vs. long beds are also part of edge towing.
Choosing a towing combo is a straight forward process if you use a calculator or in the case of a back window a tape measure, however often times we use everything except a calculator or a tape measure.
We make subjective choices based on questionable logic that often leads to getting it right the 2nd time or learning the hard way.
When I went from a TT to a fiver. I knew I wanted a big fiver so I bought a dually right off the bat.
It wasn't that I was in love with a dually, but the math told me if I want to avoid the upgrade game than a dually would allow me to shop for any trailer I wanted without being on the EDGE of my limits.

Why are you even bringing weight or size of truck into the conversation? Megecab short bed has near identical capacity of a crew cab long bed (which I've owned an 04, 13 and 14) which exceeds the requirements of the 395m. Again - weight was not the topic of discussion so leave it out please.

As for others who commented - thank you. I know a slider is an option but I prefer a GN setup. I like the articulation and simple setup, and ability to remove the ball easier then removing a heavy fifth wheel hitch. I also feel they offer a smoother ride with less chucking especially with features like an airbag or torsion spring to dampen the loads in the pin box. My fear is with cab to trailer clearance on sharp turns specific to the Ram MC and GD 395m. As someone posted above I agree you really don't want to get near 90* as this would put serious strain on triple axles if not in loose gravel or dirt. My last setup for a 44' Cyclone which was difficult in tight campgrounds, but I had an 8ft bed. With my kids pretty much full grown and +1 (80lb Lab) I need the extra cab space. Backup plan is to convert to an 8ft bed but I have huge concerns with cutting a brand new truck. LOL

[Grit_dog]

Lantley, time to turn off the internet for a bit, it’s getting your blood pressure up. OP is asking about a brand new dually and you go off on some rant about not buying enough truck for the job....
Give it a rest, bud.

[MFL]

While the terms manufacturers use, have changed, many still refer to short bed, long bed, when talking HD trucks. In reality, only the 1/2 ton trucks have short beds 5.5'. The 3/4 and 1 ton have standard and long beds. Since the Standard is by far the most popular currently, is the reason for the rounded fifth wheel caps, and usually a bit longer pin box, on the newer FWs. Imo, if you full time, you need the added space of a long bed. If you keep your truck at a residence, in a garage, a standard bed is best choice. If you think you need a sliding hitch for just in case, by all means get one!

Jerry

[cummins2014]

Lantley wrote:
I am always amused how many RV'ers want to be right at the edge.
Buy a SRW truck and the heaviest RV they can find.
Or they buy a large full size camper and get the shortest bed pick up available and prefer not using a slider hitch.
There needs to be a balance between truck and trailer.
For the most part a large heavy trailer requires a large heavy full size truck, so many times we deviate from these basics and choose to live on the edge with a combo that has obvious shortcomings.

Back in 2008 bought a new Montana Fifth wheel, had the somewhat rounded front corners. With the advice being given by many on here at the time , and having a Ford Superduty 350 Short bed , I went with a sliding hitch . Soon to find out after a few trips the slider was NOT needed . Here we are nearly 14 years later ,towing a newer fifth wheel with a different truck, still a short bed 2014 Ram 3500. Now I am towing with a non sliding hitch . My point , to ease your concerns , there is no need for a slider with my setup .

As with many of the newer fifth wheels, with the sculptured rounded front corners ,and pin box placement there is no need for sliders towing with a short bed truck.

[Lantley]

I am always amused by people judging other people without knowing why they make certain choices all because they feel their way is the only way, and best way. Makes it difficult for forum members to get honest help or advice when they have to weed through all the BS commentary opinions from Statler and Waldorf.

So what color truck do you have? Hope its not different than mine.



My point is if it is determined that red trucks deliver the premier towing performance. Someone will buy a trailer that requires a red truck.
But then they will buy a yellow truck and want to tow with a yellow truck. They will try to make it perform just as well as red vs. just getting a red truck.
At the end of the day, it's the physics not the aesthetics that dictate that the yellow truck will never perform as well as the red.
I'm all for freedom of choice but make good decisions. Don't choose a combo the requires a slider and then choose not to get a sliding hitch. Pretending that you can avoid contact if your careful.
Don't choose a trailer that requires a 3/4 ton and buy a 1/2 ton pretending you'll be OK if you travel with a light load.
These questionably matched combos appear all the time.
Porsche "There is no substitute" was the sports car makers slogan. There is also no substitute for a properly/correctly matched combo.
If you need the slider get the slider, if you need the dually get the dually again We try to make it subjective and opinionated a create lot of discussion related to what if a I do this or that when it's not that complicated to get the right truck, hitch or trailer right out the gate.

[cummins2014]

ndanecker wrote:

Lantley wrote:
I am always amused how many RV'ers want to be right at the edge.
Buy a SRW truck and the heaviest RV they can find.
Or they buy a large full size camper and get the shortest bed pick up available and prefer not using a slider hitch.
There needs to be a balance between truck and trailer.
For the most part a large heavy trailer requires a large heavy full size truck, so many times we deviate from these basics and choose to live on the edge with a combo that has obvious shortcomings.

I am always amused by people judging other people without knowing why they make certain choices all because they feel their way is the only way, and best way. Makes it difficult for forum members to get honest help or advice when they have to weed through all the BS commentary opinions from Statler and Waldorf.

So what color truck do you have? Hope its not different than mine.

:R

You certainly got that right as far as they feel there way is the right way. You will always get the long bed crowd involved on any discussion when it come to towing a fifth wheel with a short bed
. PM sent .

[cummins2014]

MFL wrote:
Whatever hitch setup you decide on, if you can be close to 40"s from back of cab, to hitch pin center, it should work. Length of pinbox, amount of curve to front of trailer, width of trailer front, all things to consider.

One thing to keep in mind...no sense to turn/back to 90 degrees. The closer you get to 90, the more you are twisting/pushing sideways, but not backing. It is always best to pull ahead a little, straighten, then back again at a lesser angle.

Jerry

Jerry ,we more or less covered this on another thread , 40 inches is rear of axle center on a Megacab. Yes it may work, but the biggest thing to consider on a 6'-4" bed is getting too far back off axle center , yes lots to consider

I can speak from experience no slider is needed on the right setup with a Megacab.

[spoon059]

OP, have you considered anything like the Anderson Ultimate hitch? I know that style of hitch gives you a little extra leeway in the distance between truck and front cap.

When we go 5th wheel for our next trailer, I'm leaning heavily towards the Anderson hitch. Its light, its a clean install (no picture frame or pucks, just the gooseneck ball) and it gives you a smidge more offset.

Nice looking trailer too, by the way!

[Lantley]

I wasn't referencing anyone in general. These threads appear all the time.
It's not that complicated to get the right truck for the application.
We often make this a subjective topic but the towing parameters speak for them selves.
If your trailer weighs Y. Your truck needs to be able to carry Y. Except too often someone wants to use a truck that can only carry up to X, not quite Y.
They will list a host of reasons why X can be made equivalent to Y or why you really don't need to use a Y capable truck cause X is just as good.
This towing at the edge ideology can be found across all kinds of trucks 1/2 tons, 3/4 tons, 1 tons and duallys. Short beds vs. long beds are also part of edge towing.
Choosing a towing combo is a straight forward process if you use a calculator or in the case of a back window a tape measure, however often times we use everything except a calculator or a tape measure.
We make subjective choices based on questionable logic that often leads to getting it right the 2nd time or learning the hard way.
When I went from a TT to a fiver. I knew I wanted a big fiver so I bought a dually right off the bat.
It wasn't that I was in love with a dually, but the math told me if I want to avoid the upgrade game than a dually would allow me to shop for any trailer I wanted without being on the EDGE of my limits.

[ndanecker]

Lantley wrote:
I am always amused how many RV'ers want to be right at the edge.
Buy a SRW truck and the heaviest RV they can find.
Or they buy a large full size camper and get the shortest bed pick up available and prefer not using a slider hitch.
There needs to be a balance between truck and trailer.
For the most part a large heavy trailer requires a large heavy full size truck, so many times we deviate from these basics and choose to live on the edge with a combo that has obvious shortcomings.

I am always amused by people judging other people without knowing why they make certain choices all because they feel their way is the only way, and best way. Makes it difficult for forum members to get honest help or advice when they have to weed through all the BS commentary opinions from Statler and Waldorf.

So what color truck do you have? Hope its not different than mine.

:R

[otrfun]

Lantley wrote:
I am always amused how many RV'ers want to be right at the edge.
Buy a SRW truck and the heaviest RV they can find.
Or they buy a large full size camper and get the shortest bed pick up available and prefer not using a slider hitch.
There needs to be a balance between truck and trailer.
For the most part a large heavy trailer requires a large heavy full size truck, so many times we deviate from these basics and choose to live on the edge with a combo that has obvious shortcomings.

Since no one mentioned SRW except me, I can only assume you're referencing our Ram 3500 SRW towing our 5th wheel toy hauler. If so, you're assumption that we 'bought a SRW truck and the heaviest RV we could find' is totally inaccurate. Quite the opposite, we looked for one of the *lightest* 5th wheel toy haulers we could find. Loaded pin weight was 2.7k. Toy hauler weight loaded was 12.5k. Our truck has 4k of payload and is rated to tow almost 17k. Nothing close to the edge here. I assure you most DRW's pulling triple axle 5th wheel toy haulers are much, much closer to the edge, proportionally, than we were.

As for the OP choosing a short bed DRW, I see nothing wrong with somone giving up some turning radius with a trailer in return for the huge seating and storage space offered by that Megacab DRW rear seat. Nowadays, with manufacturers scalloping the front cap of their 5th wheels, it's very common for folks to use SB trucks to tow 5th wheels without a slider. Back-in-the-day, sliders were almost mandatory---not anymore.

There's nothing here that even remotely defines "living on the edge".

[Lantley]

I am always amused how many RV'ers want to be right at the edge.
Buy a SRW truck and the heaviest RV they can find.
Or they buy a large full size camper and get the shortest bed pick up available and prefer not using a slider hitch.
There needs to be a balance between truck and trailer.
For the most part a large heavy trailer requires a large heavy full size truck, so many times we deviate from these basics and choose to live on the edge with a combo that has obvious shortcomings.

[otrfun]

The front cap on the 395MS has a deeply scalloped front cap. With a reasonable amount of care, practice, and planning, rather doubt you're going to have any problems.

We towed a 5th wheel toy hauler with our Ram 3500 SB (same 6'4" bed as the Mega) SRW using a standard hitch. Before hittin' the road the first time we seriously considered purchasing a slider hitch based on some of the horror stories (ref truck cab damage). So glad we didn't. Turns out we had plenty of cab clearance for every parking situation we encountered using a standard 5th wheel hitch (our truck had the OEM 5th wheel/gooseneck adapter). Yes, a slider hitch will potentially give you 90 deg in a turn. However, we've found anything more than ~65 deg seriously twists, stresses the trailer's axles--not good.

If you do go with a slider hitch, make absolutely sure the rear of the 5th wheel pin box is high enough that it clears the bed rails and tailgate when it's activated. Doubly important if you're not on level ground. On two occasions, I've seen folks with slider hitches do some serious damage to their truck with the rear of the pin box.

[rhagfo]

Well you have people that have towed 5er's with Mega/SB for years without issues, and those that dent the cab or bust a rear window the first trip out. I think a big part of it is how tight a space you try to back into, or how sharp you try to turn. A large part is ones awareness level!