Fifth wheel tailgates?
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Laughing Gas
Joined: Nov 2020
Posts: 774
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From: CNM
Fifth wheel tailgates?
Have these gone out style?
Anybody here have one on the latest year models?
If so, brand and part number please...especially if it has built in plug and play camera, or if you have modified it to use the stock camera.
Prepping for camping and fishing...
Anybody here have one on the latest year models?
If so, brand and part number please...especially if it has built in plug and play camera, or if you have modified it to use the stock camera.
Prepping for camping and fishing...
Logistics Pro
Joined: May 2022
Posts: 4,281
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From: Everywhere and nowhere
If I didnt have a camera in the tailgate I might consider one but I dont see a need anymore. They really just limited how high you had to raise the legs to clear it when hooking/unhooking without lowering it. Other than that they serve no real purpose.
Moderator
Joined: May 2004
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From: Home Base Nebraska
Used one for years but then the trucks got higher so the hitch had to be lowered in the bed so had I to lower the gate or raise the pin higher. Now we have a Pull Rite Supper Light hitch so the gate had to be lowered anyway so I went back to the standard tailgate. I did mount the camera in the 5th wheel tailgate but because it was lower in the tailgate it never worked right.
Denny
Denny
Lead Driver
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It's been proven that a tailgate up gets better MPG, so the open gate designs went out of style. That was one of their main selling points, get better MPG with it. I think Mythbusters put an end to that. The only real purpose they may serve is for those trailers that do not have enough clearance between them and the back of the truck to be able to open and close it.
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Laughing Gas
Joined: Nov 2020
Posts: 774
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From: CNM
Well I really enjoyed mine on my old truck. Never had to drop the gate to hook up and of course the one time I forgot to drop the regular gate, I bent it good, so the notched one was the winner. It also allowed me to to get my fishing gear w/o dropping the gate, along with other items on either side of the notch.
New trucks often have very expensive gates with steps etc, which are kind of heavy also. I can see why if you have one of those you would not want to replace it. The rear camara also negates one advantage of the notched and slotted ones.
What I didn't consider until now is the effect of the new truck being 2.5" taller than the old one from the ground to the bed floor. I guess where the notch bottom is now could indeed affect the usefulness of it. Be a shame to invest in one only to find out it's not as useful as it used to be...
Still hoping for someone, or two, to chime in that has one and share their experiences.
New trucks often have very expensive gates with steps etc, which are kind of heavy also. I can see why if you have one of those you would not want to replace it. The rear camara also negates one advantage of the notched and slotted ones.
What I didn't consider until now is the effect of the new truck being 2.5" taller than the old one from the ground to the bed floor. I guess where the notch bottom is now could indeed affect the usefulness of it. Be a shame to invest in one only to find out it's not as useful as it used to be...
Still hoping for someone, or two, to chime in that has one and share their experiences.
Cargo Master
Joined: Jan 2016
Posts: 2,669
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I like our fifth wheel tailgate because I can leave it up while backing under or pulling away from a fiver or goose neck. I'm guessing newer trucks tend to have electric up/down tailgates so folks don't feel the need for a fifth wheel tailgate.
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It's been proven that a tailgate up gets better MPG, so the open gate designs went out of style. That was one of their main selling points, get better MPG with it. I think Mythbusters put an end to that. The only real purpose they may serve is for those trailers that do not have enough clearance between them and the back of the truck to be able to open and close it.
These days, especially with locking tailgates and expensive stuff in the bed, I'd imagine that any possibility of a marginal gain in fuel economy due to aerodynamics of a tailgate on a $100,000.00 25,000-pound assembly would be negated by the security of making it difficult to steal stuff out of the bed and/or steal the tailgate itself.
I don't think I've seen one of those tailgates in action in probably a decade. I have seen a couple of used ones on Craigslist though.
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Laughing Gas
Joined: Nov 2020
Posts: 774
Likes: 252
From: CNM
I always saw them as a convenience factor, not having to worry about opening and closing the tailgate, not a mpg thing at all. Not sure why that keeps coming up here.
So between the trucks being higher, the factory tailgates being more expensive and useful with a camara and steps, it seems like louvered and notched tailgates are less attractive nowadays.
I just hope I don't forget and bash in/out my factory tailgate...
So between the trucks being higher, the factory tailgates being more expensive and useful with a camara and steps, it seems like louvered and notched tailgates are less attractive nowadays.
I just hope I don't forget and bash in/out my factory tailgate...
Lead Driver
Joined: Feb 2022
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I saw that episode, but that was with an empty bed. With some of the fifth wheels pushing some air sideways, some air up, and some air down, I could see a possible advantage to a louvered fifth-wheel tailgate or no tailgate at all. Haven't seen anyone test that though.
These days, especially with locking tailgates and expensive stuff in the bed, I'd imagine that any possibility of a marginal gain in fuel economy due to aerodynamics of a tailgate on a $100,000.00 25,000-pound assembly would be negated by the security of making it difficult to steal stuff out of the bed and/or steal the tailgate itself.
I don't think I've seen one of those tailgates in action in probably a decade. I have seen a couple of used ones on Craigslist though.
These days, especially with locking tailgates and expensive stuff in the bed, I'd imagine that any possibility of a marginal gain in fuel economy due to aerodynamics of a tailgate on a $100,000.00 25,000-pound assembly would be negated by the security of making it difficult to steal stuff out of the bed and/or steal the tailgate itself.
I don't think I've seen one of those tailgates in action in probably a decade. I have seen a couple of used ones on Craigslist though.
Not much can change the drag effects of a 5th wheel hooked up. With a big nose just above the bed leading well past the roof, there would be so much turbulence that the tailgate wont be a factor. It's only when empty does the tailgate make a big difference. TFL just recently did a test on a Ram to compare to Mythbusters and they got pretty much the same results, about a 2 MPG difference up and down.
More Turbo
Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 638
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From: Montana
Not much can change the drag effects of a 5th wheel hooked up. With a big nose just above the bed leading well past the roof, there would be so much turbulence that the tailgate wont be a factor. It's only when empty does the tailgate make a big difference. TFL just recently did a test on a Ram to compare to Mythbusters and they got pretty much the same results, about a 2 MPG difference up and down.
Lead Driver
Joined: Feb 2022
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Sounds right. I tested years ago when I had a long highway speed commute and tailgate up is better than no tailgate for empty cruising. The thing that surprised me but won't help 5th wheel people is that tailgate up was better than having a topper/bed cap installed. From talking to others that have tested a tonneau cover is probably even better than tailgate up though.