Once again pondering going for a 2018 F250/F350 but the height of the new ones on my calculation is 5" higher than my 06 and my setup is perfectly level. I can go down 2" on hitch but not sure what that will do for height between bed rail and camper.

Thoughts? I can't higher the camper as the axles do not support the height kit.

Lower truck?

 

This is a common discussion point. Check for threads on lowering the rear end. It's not too hard or expensive and you can reduce the height about 1.5". Be sure to maintain your 6" clearance between the 5er and your bed rail.

 

why wouldn't you lower the front and the rear?

I am thinking that I would need to lower 3" or so...if I possible can lower hitch 2, then I need 3+ lower on the truck to equal the level of the camper currently.

 

Lowering the rear can be done with just a different set of blocks. The front? Not so easy.

Removing the blocks may require different shocks. In this case, if an F-250 uses a smaller block then you would want a shock made for an F-250. However, I'm not sure if the 2017+ for the 250/350 use the same block. There was a lot of discussion on this in the 2017+ forum so you might want to check that.

 

After making some measurements..

2006 ground to bottom of bed 34" (2017 is 38)
2006 ground to top of rail 55' (2017=?)
ground to lowest point on camper nose 60' (note pin is on highest setting on 5er)

defiantly have my work cut out if I want to upgrade. Will have to get the measurement of new truck from top of rail to ground.

Kind of ironic ford has a 5th wheel prep for a truck it seems so many people have to modify to tow a 5th wheel

 

My '17 F350 sits at about 59" to top of the tailgate. It seems that a test fit is in order before purchase of a 5er.

 

My trailer has a 3k pin weight and the truck is level with it hooked up. I have an Andersen hitch set on the lowest ball setting and the trailer is very slightly nose high, but not enough that I'm worrying about it. I haven't measured the bed rail clearance yet, but it's plenty, I have no concerns with it. If your pin weight is less than mine, you may have issues.

 

..that would leave 1" from top of tailgate to bottom of camper, looks like I would have to lower truck 4" to get 5" of clearance

My Forest River camper is a 2018, with the type of frame and axles raising the camper is not an option.

 

Yep, and another 1" if you have a tonneau of any kind. Figure your truck will sag 2 to 3 inches with pin weight; maybe 57" then? To maintain a 6" margin to your bed rail, a 5er with 60" under the sleeper with still be nose up a good 3". My 5er is only 58". So, nose up is going to happen. I'm going to be 5 to 6" high in front!

Took it to a scale. Despite the nose up, the rear axles are within 150 pounds of each other on weight.

 

Dealer tells me that raising or lowering suspension voids all warranty on truck, does anyone know if this is indeed true?

 

Not likely the entire warranty. My understanding they can only deny warranty coverage in areas when they can prove that what you did contributed to the warranty claim. There may be a dealer installed shorter block kit available for your truck. You may want to check with the service dept.

 

I did a axle flip on the trailer rather then mess with my new truck's suspension/warranty.

 

I have a 2018 F350 CCSB 4x4 6.7 w/ snow plow package. My previous tow vehicle was a 2008 F350 2wd 6.4. My fifth wheel is a 2015 Grand Design reflection 317RST with around 2100lbs pin weight. I had to move my pin box to the very top setting. I didn't purchase a new hitch for the puck system so I had to go with a Reese adapter which raised my old hitch about 2.75". So I had to lower my hitch which puts it around 18" from the bed floor to the hitch plate. Hooking up my fifth wheel squatted the rear end 3.75" and the front around 1". The truck is sitting perfectly level and the fifth wheel is an 1/4" nose down. I didn't get a picture of the space between the top of the bed rail to the bottom of the fifth wheel, but it was 6.5" clearance. One thing to note, my hitch is a slider hitch which was in the rearward position, so once I slide the hitch forward that may change these measurements once the weight is shifted above the rear axle. Another thing to mention is I did this in my driveway which slopes down. I'm not sure if that makes any difference as long as the measurements front and back are as close as possible.



Truck front measurement from the ground.


Truck rear measurement from the ground.


Fifth wheel front measurement from the ground.


Fifth wheel rear measurement from the ground.

 

I bought an adapter as well but bought the Demco adapter. It doesn't raise your hitch nearly as much as the Reese from what I can see. But, it is a more expensive adapter. This comment is not a criticism of your Reese but I thought the information might be useful to others looking for an adapter.

The Demco raised mine about 1" from 16" to 17". I also had to move my pin box.