Long Bed or Short Bed PU for towing a fifth wheel?

[Bill_I]

We are getting ready to purchase a 1 ton Dodge or GMC Denali PU to pull an overall length fifth wheel of 37 feet. Could we get some opinions on whether to go with a long bed PU (8 foot)or a short bed (6 1/2 foot). We are planning on being fulltime RVers for a couple of years.

[Me_Again]

45Ricochet wrote:
Not to mention the short wheel base trucks don't come with 6 wheels :W

???? You sure? Chris

[45Ricochet]

Full time = Big box :B
The longer wheel base will ride better, the non slider hitch will have less movement and you'll have more room for stuff. Not to mention the short wheel base trucks don't come with 6 wheels :W
Now if it was a DD or garage issue you'd have to decide, but full time means getting the right tool for living full time.

[therink]

2011+ GM HD short beds have 36 gal fuel tanks

[Learjet]

There is a difference between cabs also...Crew Cab and long bed makes for a LONG truck that is hard to park in a regular spot. Like trying to park on a city street between parking meters.

Now a long bed with a super cab is about the same length as a Crew Cab short bed (Ford).

People often leave out the CAB part of the equation. You need to look at overall length and wheel base. Especially if you park on a garage.

[Me_Again]

We had two long bed standard cab trucks. For our 2015 RAM crew cab we went with the short bed and B&W manual slider. Filled the rest of the bed with boxes from old truck. Had to modify the front box.

Happy with setup.







I installed the factory pucks and use the Demco Hijacker 6099 picture frame with RVK3270 hitch.

Chris

[Halmfamily]

Love our 8' bed. Have a 100 gallon aux diesel tank and still have room for firewood in front of the hitch. Also put our portable dump tank between the hitch and tailgate.

[rhagfo]

Going full time Long bed for capacity, the issues with long bed crew cabs are 90% perception, you learn to deal with with the size.
Long bed bigger fuel Tank, smoother ride more stable on the road.

Still personal choice.

One other thing, if you get a short bed, you need a slider hitch, or a very rounded noise.
One cost $$$, the other cost you closet space. We have a 5er with a full width hanging closet, and a full width flat floor.

Personally I would never buy a short bed, 26 gal tank, not 35 gal of a long bed 100 extra miles! After market tanks cost $1,000++.
Member just caught his cab, doing a forward tight turn with a SB, $2,500+ for repairs.

[azrving]

Short bed because it's also a daily driver. Super glide 18,000 hitch.

[korbe]

We chose a 6.5' bed for maneuverability both while hitched up and while working.

[therink]

It is simply a matter of preference, what suits you best. Pros and cons for both depending on how much towing, does it need to fit in a garage, is it a daily driver etc.
My short bed works great for me. I drive daily for work, and it fits nicely in my garage. Long bed wouldn't work for me. Plus you lose a couple hundred pounds of payload.
I have a slider hitch and have never (6 yrs) needed to use hitch in maneuver position.
If I was full time towing, I wouldn't need to worry abt garage and would have much more needed room in bed.
I also have a toolbox in front of bed and all fits no problem.

[2oldman]

duplicate post

[Tankcar]

Hi. long bed will give you load cap. Just don't over do it.

[DutchmenSport]

I don't have a 5er, but I've read a lot from the 5er forum. Seems one item to watch for with a short bed is the distance from the corner of the truck cab to the corner edge of the 5er so they do not hit. With a short bed, you may not be able to make a 90 degree.

However, there are those who successfully use a slider hitch with no problems with a short bed. So, I would think you should consider 2 options:

1: Long bed with a fixed 5er hitch
or
2: Short bed with a slider 5er hitch

Regardless of which set-up you get, you always have to watch the corner of your camper and the corner of your truck cab. With a TT, we always have to watch jack-knifing (regardless of long OR short bed), which can do a whole lot of ugly pain too.

[bfast54]

Same answer as the one from your other post, in a different part of RV net...

Long bed ......

[goducks10]

If you're going full time then absolutely the long bed. You get almost 4' of space between the cab and 5th hitch. A good place for a large aluminum box to store stuff in. Plus still have some extra room between it and the hitch. I have a LB and wouldn't want it any other way. No messing with sliders. Can't compare the ride between an SB and LB while towing but I did test drive an SB and LB before I bought my LB. Didn't notice any difference. You'll want a DRW anyway for that big of a 5th if you're full timing. I'm guessing you'll have it loaded to the gills and you'll need the payload capacity the DRW has.