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Odie42 · 08-10-2014, 07:00 AM

Hi, I am new to this forum !
We bought a used fifth wheel, a 28.5 ft Jayco in Febuary and asked the dealer what truck we needed to tow it. So we bought a F350 crew cab single wheel. "Bigger then we needed" When we went to pick up the fifth wheel the truck was too high. The dealer called Dexter, the manufacturer of the axles, dexter wanted the plate number off the axle, make and model of the truck and the rail height. They sent the proper kit to raise the axle with spacers for $50 per wheel. We raised 4 inches. We towed it from Pennsylvania to Washington state in June with no problems. We ran into a lot of head winds and cross winds but it did not effect us one bit, heard from others, mostly MH, how bad they were having it, it handled very well.
I know your axles are already flipped but I would go with whatever the axle manufacturer says to do.

oldgeezer · 08-10-2014, 11:10 AM

Odie42 Thanks! I will contact the axle manufacturer by phone tomorrow morning with all the information you recommended. You went through the same thing we are going through. Getting a truck to carry the load. Again, thank you very much.

Odie42 · 08-10-2014, 11:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldgeezer

Odie42 Thanks! I will contact the axle manufacturer by phone tomorrow morning with all the information you recommended. You went through the same thing we are going through. Getting a truck to carry the load. Again, thank you very much.

You are welcome! They said that more people are getting bigger trucks and they are ask this question often !

Gordon Dewald · 08-11-2014, 08:23 AM

When we hooked up our 450 to the 5er we were told the magic number for the box rail height was 56". How tall is your truck?

Odie42 · 08-12-2014, 06:14 AM

Our F350 4x4 to top of side rail is 56.5" empty.

Gordon Dewald · 08-12-2014, 10:20 PM

We tow our 5er with at the lowest settings for its axles. We have about 5" clearance on the box. Have to be really carefull as I have managed to touch the box and 5er a few times. No damage but the possibility is there.

Fred1609 · 08-12-2014, 10:41 PM

I had to have our 5er blocked after we bought our 2011 F350 4x4, with 20 inch optional tires......our previous F350 was a 2 WD and a lot lower. Its worked very well.....

road dogs · 08-12-2014, 11:06 PM

I wouldn't tow a 5th wheel with flipped axles and additional 5+" of lift, I have several local underpasses I can't make at 12' 6" and there are some 13' underpasses I cringe every time I go under. Besides, I don't care what anyone says, adding about 10+" of lift (axle flip + suspension lift) does NOT make it handle as safely as stock height. I don't know why all the new trucks have raised the bedsides so it's difficult to tow a 5th wheel. I'm hoping I can keep my 2004 GMC going until I no longer need to tow my trailer, I have everything set up to tow dead level with 8" of bedrail clearance.

Kurmudgeon · 08-13-2014, 06:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by road dogs

I don't know why all the new trucks have raised the bedsides so it's difficult to tow a 5th wheel.

It's not a new thing. I have a 1978 Chevy Dually, completely stock, and the bedsides are 56 inches.

Many of the new 5th wheels come from the factories with what you call an "axle flip," with the springs mounted on top of the axle. Whether that connection is on top of the axle or under the axle makes little or no difference in the load it experiences. The only effect is that it lowers the center of gravity.

An additional 5" lift would definitely be a bit extreme, especially if it's done with lift blocks on top of the axles. Five additional inches between the spring and axle will significantly increase the loads on that connection. And as it flexes there is the potential for adverse effects on handling.

If it's done at the frame, it won't change the geometry of the suspension or affect the strength of the spring to axle connection, and flexing remains at a minumum. But either way you do it, it will certainly raise your center of gravity.

sknight · 08-13-2014, 07:57 PM

Y'all got me curious.

At the rear axle I'm at 56", at the tailgate I'm at 58.5". But when I hook up it drops a few inches and levels out nicely.

Have you actually hitched up to see how much it drops? It could end up being a non issue.

mcumbie · 08-22-2014, 08:27 AM

Any way someone with this height issue with their truck take a pic to help the rest of us understand the issue better? I have a 2014 Ram CTD 4x4 like the OP does on this thread and I do not have any issues with my bed height.

I wonder if the hitch set up is more of a problem for folks than the height of the truck. I am running a B&W hitch in mine (the 25K model for the factory pucks) and I have almost 8 inches of clearance in the highest setting for the support arms and a have right at 7 in the next lower set of holes.

I have towed at both settings, but I just moved it back to the highest setting because I felt the lower height was increasing my pin weight a bit more than I liked and giving me more rear end sag than the highest height setting. I am almost perfectly level at the highest setting. When you stand beside my truck, you can see that my capture plate of the hitch sits just below the bed rails, which are right at 56.5 inches high.

So again, I am having a hard time understanding how any 5th wheel could not clear these bed rail heights...are there units out there that are built that low to the ground? Have that short of landing gear travel length? etc....?

Question for oldgeezer, can you post the measured height of your 5th wheel front end bottom edge to the ground?

glennwest · 08-23-2014, 03:54 AM

To level my Teton enough for towing I have to put the hitch in the lowest setting and this gives us like 5" clearance. Bed is too high. Teton is 13' 3" now. No raising it.

oldgeezer · 08-23-2014, 08:47 AM

We just got back home. Thank You for all the comments, ideas , suggestions and replies. To answer some questions, the 2 5th wheels we are looking at are both new, one is 11'11" to the top of the A/C, the other is 12'4" to the highest point. We have a new 2014 Dodge, 58" [ in tow mode] to the top of the bed, lowering the truck is not an option, it has factory air bag suspension [no springs]. We have only seen a few with springs on the bottom of the axle.

oldgeezer · 08-23-2014, 08:51 AM

Oh, yes we did hook up to several 5ht wheels, lift the front jacks and the air system puts it right back back to 58", even put 2200 pound pallet of bricks in the back, by time I pulled out of the loading area 58".