It sounds like I should make a decision on the trailer first. Found a Newmar Kountry Star I really liked and then this toy hauler caught my attention! Been going back and forth on them.

Since this will be my first 5th wheel, I am really nervous about the clearance. Okay, really paranoid. I can see myself in that driver seat from the YouTube video.

 

Thanks Scott. Good to hear it is holding up. I can't believe the price of these units!

 

If I missed the model of toyhauler I apologize for a dumb question. What toyhauler are you considering? The Newmar choice is a good one as well. I have a Heartland Big Horn. They have become a top selling and highly rated unit in the less than ten years they have been built. Visit their owners forum for some great information. Here is a link:

Heartland Owners Forum

As to the sliding hitch, if your paranoia is that strong, you need a slider regardless of the type of nosecone the trailer has installed. Otherwise, a scalloped nose coned trailer will work fine with a non-slider.

Regards

 

I have the super-glyde and it works great. Have had it, the same one, now on 3 different Fords and is easy to move from the old truck to the new ones. It slides back automatically and all you need to do is lube it regularly. It does weight a ton so I remove it by leaving it attached to the fiver when I want to and driving out from under it. That way I don't have to ruin my back. It also is mounted on the truck where it is suppose to be at right over the axle. You do not have to stop, get out and move the trailer back when turning which is inconvenient when in traffic and trying to pull into a fuel station.

And I agree, if half the trailer width is more than the distance between the hitch pin point and the cab, no matter what the normal shape of the trailer nose, you WILL HIT the cab at a full 90 degrees and the damage will be more than the slider cost. Have had it now for 9 years.


Costy animal but worth it. Spud.

 

"As to the sliding hitch, if your paranoia is that strong, you need a slider regardless of the type of nosecone the trailer has installed. Otherwise, a scalloped nose coned trailer will work fine with a non-slider."

I have a friend whose trailer has a scalloped nose and it would have cleared only if the outer edge of the nose is back from the pin point more than half the width of the truck cab. In otherwords, for example, if the cab is 80" wide, divide that by 2 and the set back from the pin needs to be 40" at the edge of the trailer nose. Make sense??? I think this is right and 40" is a lot of set back. Don't know if there are any trailers out there with that much. He had to add a set back goose neck type hitch to make it clear.

Spud.

 

Here's what mine looks like cranked way over. You can see the trailer cap is beyond the truck cab. I can go farther but why? I've never needed this type of articulation in any real-world scenarios. The trailer is a wide-body at 102 inches. This pic is before airbags btw...

 

Epic's photo shows it all. Long before you're at that point you are badly twisting the tires and trailer suspension and putting significant side loading on the trailer frame, pin box and hitch that they weren't designed to withstand. If you need to jack it that badly, you need to find another site.

 

Maurader - Just to add another thought...

I watched the same video in this thread before buying my hitch and was amazed that the window broke during such a simple maneuver. The combination of truck and trailer in that case was a clear mismatch. I've watched the vid over and over again and still scratch my head. Bottom line, he just didn't have enough clearance and POP! Sliders are an easy solution in such a case.

For me, I used a tape measure and trailer specs to figure out that I was going to be fine with a fixed hitch. Glad to report that in all my tight turning and off-road situations it was the right choice for my combination. On the other hand, I got lucky in regards to the trailer to bed-rail clearance. I wasn't thinking about that but it turns out my kind of usage demands plenty of clearance. There was one point during one of my trips where the back of the bed came up under the fifth wheel and just touched it. If there was any less clearance, something would have had to given. So don't forget to consider that as well. Our trucks have very high bed rails and the trailer needs to sit up high enough to provide plenty of clearance. If you get off road much like I do, you'll need every bit of it.

Here's another video of my truck pulling the big trailer out of a pretty taxing situation. It was the very bottom of this hill where the bed-rail to trailer clearance was tested. It's a re-run but shows what these trucks are capable of:

YouTube - ‪Leaving White Wash with the 5th Wheel‬‏

 

Do you have the Reese under the bed rails RP30126 ?
Do they have a cut out or knotch for the passenger side shock mount ?
I just looked under mine and my upper shock mount appears to be in the way....(see attached pic)

Also, the "round indents" in the bed.... I don't see them but I am not sure what I am looking for either. I see the spot welds but not the round indents or Ford's center punch mark... What should I be looking for ?

Is there going to be a difference between the F250 & F350 ?

Attached are pics of the shock mount and the bed to show what I am seeing...

 

Sorry. Don't you just hate it when work interferes with your forum posting??!! The toy hauler that I saw was a Forest River XLR. My wife and I are avid cyclists and just figured we would put the bikes in the trailer when traveling and then deal with a way to lock them up when at the site. I had never seen the inside of a toy hauler and when I did, I started to see the real potential of the stuff that we could stash in there.

The Newmar I saw was absolutely beautiful inside. I saw a bunch of Keystone Cougars and I could clearly see the difference in the quality of materials. Of course that comes with a price.

So, now after my toy hauler experience, I am back at trying to figure out which way to go.

 

I watched it a number of times too. I thought that the bike handle bar might have gotten in between the truck and the trailer, but I think the unrounded corner caught it. That one kid sure did shoot out of there in a hurry!

Being new to the 5th wheel setup, I am asking a lot of questions. But then again, my insurance company will be asking them of me when I pop my window! Seriously, the slider thing keeps coming up for a couple of reasons. The first is that of the 5 trailer dealers I visited, all said "I'd go with a slider if I were you". I saw the articulation you are getting on your setup and it looks great. Although that picture you posted would have given me a pucker factor measured on a national debt scale!

It's their comments and also my memory of the parks we visit. A good number of them were built back when small tagalongs ruled the roads. I thought with the trailer a bit back, it would give me a little more comfort turning it into ome smaller spots. Maybe I should just fine new parks!

 

lol - Just to be clear, I'm not trying to dissuade you or anyone else from slider hitches. I think they are great. The only downside to them in my mind is the weight and additional cost. There are many huge positives to them not the least of which is the peace of mind one gets knowing they'll have to jack-knife beyond 90 degrees to do any damage. It would take a pretty careless driver to get into that situation. That is certainly worth the cost difference but the extra weight on the other hand, is another matter.

Most folks in this thread are talking about the Reese slider which I have no experience with. My Chev-driving buddy has a Curt slider that weighs so much it's all the two of us can do to get it into the bed! I mentioned earlier that he actually rigged a hoist system to get it in and out of his truck. My knees and back just won't let me lift that sucker too many more times. I prefer to keep them in serviceable condition for the next couple of decades if I can.

You're doing the right thing obsessing over these details. It adds to the fun of the deal. It will only take a few tows with that awesome new 5er and you'll be a fan for life.

 

Is that a block or ready-mix plant in the right side of your picture? Oh ya, that trailer is nice too. ha.

 

Nice catch! lol. It's a U-Cart concrete batch plant just across the street from where I park my trailer. I poured my side driveway with 4 yards from there!

Geeze, I have to pay attention to what I post up... Never thought anyone notices the background. Guess I better clean my garage next time I video something.

 

lol - I too pay attention to background stuff (makes it difficult watching some movies with dumb effects) and that is exactly why you won't see much related to the inside of my garage right now because it needs some work!
Since we didn't have Spring this year, IDK when I'll motivate myself since it's 100 degrees with southern humidity now.

Your fiver is close to that rear window!