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Old 11-12-2016, 07:49 AM   #1
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Any Truck Damage from Andersen Ultimate Hitch

Okay, I've seen all the love stories some 5er folks have with the Andersen Ultimate Fifth Wheel hitch and I must admit that I could love it too except for one question. Has anyone ever had, seen or heard of any damage to a short-bed truck cab/back window using a Andersen Ultimate?

I have read about 2 or maybe 3 cases where a driver made a sudden or panic stop and the hitch itself suffered damage and Andersen quickly replaced the hitch. So I'm okay with these issues.

Now the key here is "short-bed" truck which for my question is a 6"4" bed. I have spoke with the factory that just said "be aware" of what you're doing and it will work fine. When towing I think everyone has to be aware so this doesn't answer my question.

Please don't tell how you installed your hitch since all those stories have been covered on iRV2 and other forum many times. Please share stories of any damage or situations where damage was imminent and you took corrective action.
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Old 11-12-2016, 12:22 PM   #2
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You are more likely to have damage from hitching errors than with the hitch or turning.
A couple of friends have dropped their 5th wheels on the bed because of being distracted when hitching up.
The hitch is fine buy it and start traveling.
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Old 11-13-2016, 11:53 PM   #3
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I just don't see how a 5th wheel trailer ball hitch and pin box adapter would be stronger than a regular 5th wheel hitch, especially in an emergency situation.
Good luck if you choose to go that direction......
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Old 11-14-2016, 12:14 AM   #4
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My truck is similar to yours and I tow with the Andersen. I did pop my rear window last summer while parking at a friend's farm. It was my own fault.

My break away cable pulled out of the switch and I didn't realize it. When the 5er wouldn't move with 4 disc brakes locked up - not realizing that was the issue, I put the truck in 4wd and it still wouldn't move so I put it in 4 wheel low. Then the truck moved, but the trailer still didn't. I went beyond 90 degrees and took out the passenger side panel of my back window. When I got out to examine my blunder I heard the pump running and realized what had happened.

Of course, you can't buy one panel you have to buy a whole new window. Luckily I did not contact the cab - just the window. A several hundred dollar lesson. I think given the same circumstances, it could also have happened with a long bed.

I recommend the Andersen Ultimate.

Happy trails,
Bill
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Old 11-14-2016, 06:37 PM   #5
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I run Andersen on my 6.5' bed. Originally with ball forward and pin aft in the adapter, my pinbox would potentially hit the bedsides during a sharp turn. Now the pin is fwd and ball aft and I can almost get 90 degrees before my cap almost touches the rear window.


I have been in tight campgrounds and even made a U-turn while keeping my rear window intact.
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Old 11-18-2016, 05:00 AM   #6
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I don't think one can make any blanket statements on this. It will depend on how the front of your fiver is designed. Is the front cap deep sculpted or more flat ? I know there are many out there with a short bed thst are successfully towing with the Anderson. But I have also read a few reports of Anderson/short bed owners that have damaged their cabs from making too tight turns.
For the record, I have the steel version/gooseneck Anderson and love it. But I also have a 8' box.
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Old 11-22-2016, 04:11 PM   #7
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Okay, this post has been here for over a week and I haven't seen any first hand stories that have changed my mind. I did talk with PullRite today asking about the SuperGlide height and how it could be adjusted; they said 18" plus 3" for OE Dodge adaptor, so at 21" that is above my bed rails and my bed cover. Can't believe they have a hitch without height adjustments, and the customer service rep admitted that the trucks are getting higher and the hitch hasn't kept up with that.

Going to get the Andersen Ultimate and use caution when making the deep turns. Since I'm a risk adverse guy, Andersen does have a return policy with a 10% restocking fee it if doesn't work out....
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Old 11-22-2016, 05:03 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by FloraBama View Post
Okay, this post has been here for over a week and I haven't seen any first hand stories that have changed my mind. I did talk with PullRite today asking about the SuperGlide height and how it could be adjusted; they said 18" plus 3" for OE Dodge adaptor, so at 21" that is above my bed rails and my bed cover. Can't believe they have a hitch without height adjustments, and the customer service rep admitted that the trucks are getting higher and the hitch hasn't kept up with that.

Going to get the Andersen Ultimate and use caution when making the deep turns. Since I'm a risk adverse guy, Andersen does have a return policy with a 10% restocking fee it if doesn't work out....


Do a couple turns in a large area to get a feel for her and make height adjustments as needed. Also, figure out which way works best for the adapter. The adapter is pretty easy to spin-around if you need to adjust. Just loosen the jack screws. PM if you have any questions.
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Old 03-21-2017, 09:15 AM   #9
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I just got the Andersen Hitch for my 2016 Chevy Silverado 3500 HD Dually Long Bed. (No suspension mods) It was professionally installed by the dealer that sold me my 2017 Momentum 327M. After I pulled away, I asked how far I could turn the truck and trailer and he said I could practically jackknife it, but that he would not recommend it. So once we got to our site and ready to level and unhook, I noticed that it hit the side of my bed and took a nice gouge out of the metal and plastic. I imagine this could have been worse and done a lot more damage. I was very careful about how tight I was turning and did not feel or hear the contact. I have enclosed a photo which hopefully shows the situation. I have written Andersen and after 2 weeks, still no reply. I do notice that there is some adjustment up and down on the ball of the "tripod" and I have 2 higher positions to raise it up. If I do set it to the highest position, could that affect my handling, braking, etc? I am also told I could switch the position of the "adapter" around so that the cup is behind the plate, but don't know what that means. Any ideas? https://flic.kr/p/RUA7eK
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Old 03-21-2017, 09:25 AM   #10
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Any Truck Damage from Andersen Ultimate Hitch

I have a 2014 3500 Ram and with the new trucks they are very high I could see that my pin box would hit the truck bed rails. I raised my Anderson to the top position and also cut an inch off my trailair pin box. I now have lots of clearance. Also do,to the height truck to get the 5th level I had to raise it 5 in. Level now and pulls well! I have an extended pin box and that is the reason for hitting the bed rail not the Anderson hitch.
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Old 03-22-2017, 04:12 AM   #11
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Originally Posted by midngn View Post
I just got the Andersen Hitch for my 2016 Chevy Silverado 3500 HD Dually Long Bed. (No suspension mods) It was professionally installed by the dealer that sold me my 2017 Momentum 327M. After I pulled away, I asked how far I could turn the truck and trailer and he said I could practically jackknife it, but that he would not recommend it. So once we got to our site and ready to level and unhook, I noticed that it hit the side of my bed and took a nice gouge out of the metal and plastic. I imagine this could have been worse and done a lot more damage. I was very careful about how tight I was turning and did not feel or hear the contact. I have enclosed a photo which hopefully shows the situation. I have written Andersen and after 2 weeks, still no reply. I do notice that there is some adjustment up and down on the ball of the "tripod" and I have 2 higher positions to raise it up. If I do set it to the highest position, could that affect my handling, braking, etc? I am also told I could switch the position of the "adapter" around so that the cup is behind the plate, but don't know what that means. Any ideas? https://flic.kr/p/RUA7eK
Flip the adapter around. I had the same problem on my setup originally. My turning radius was not that great because the pinbox could not rotate all the way within the bed. I flipped the adapter so that the pin is fwd and ball is aft. Pinbox now rotates freely within the bed.
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Old 03-22-2017, 08:08 AM   #12
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it is the one

Seems like most of the problems are owner failure to adjust properly before use.There is warranty for what? Incase of product failure. Anything manufactured can fail, not a product death sentence. This type of hitch is the wave of the future. Love my Andersen.
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Old 03-22-2017, 09:41 AM   #13
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There are many turn situations that may cause contact between any hitch and truck bed rails--being off-level will raise the potential for contact. Until you go thru several backing situations with constant watching the contact area, you won't know how much clearance you have/don't have.

midngn,
You and the dealer should have tested this out before leaving the lot--"practically jacknife it/wouldn't recommend" is a sure red flag to try it out. I also learned the hard way to be extra careful on backing/turning that resulted in my cutting off the back end of the trailer mount flange area. Once I did this, no more contact and had many miles of towing will no ill effects from the cut metal. You might look at the trailer mount metal to see if any can be cut off that would not cause a loss of capacity--usually there is a lip that is the problem that really does not contribute to strength of the mount.
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Old 04-15-2017, 12:20 PM   #14
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Is anyone towing a 5th wheel with the Andersen Ultimate hitch that also uses a shock absorbing pin box like MORryde, TrailAir, 5th Airborne, etc?
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