Criteria for 5th Wheel Hitch Selection

[Wood Chip]

Originally Posted by manwithnorv

Well, I think I'm about to order a Trailer Saver BD5-G for the new GMC hunk-a-puck-a-truck.

You will be happy with it. My pin weight is relatively light and the difference is night and day.

[RoadEyePie]

Called Hensley about the hitch and they often run sales during the holidays so I can afford to wait and see.

[mobilemike]

Originally Posted by xrated

I'm going to join in here with a question or two.....who knows, maybe more. First of all, I don't own a 5ver at the present time. My Toy Hauler is a 35' tow behind (13K GVWR) and I'm towing with a 2016 F350 Dually. I know, overkill for the present trailer, but I bought it with the possibilities of going bigger with another T.H. and of course 5th Wheel. So my truck has the factory 5ver hitch prep as well as the gooseneck setup. The Reese goosebox has me intrigued, but if I'm not mistaken, the largest of those is a 20K goosebox. So my question is this. One of the future T.H.s that we are considering is a Keystone Raptor 426TS. GVWR of that trailer is 19K lbs which would have a pin weight of roughly 4000 lbs.....plus or minus. So would the 20K goosebox be adequate for a trailer of this size and weight and pin weight? I've always believed in having excess capabilities (obviously....Dually pulling a 13K tow behind), and I'm just wondering if the 20K goosebox would just be too close to the maximum for that trailer?

Thanks in Advance

The goosebox is designed with the pin weight calculated when they put the the capacity on it.

A 20k goosebox will support the required pin weight for a 20k 5th wheel.

[CecilD]

Originally Posted by manwithnorv

Well, I think I'm about to order a Trailer Saver BD5-G for the new GMC hunk-a-puck-a-truck.

Good choice. You will pat yourself on the back every minute you tow with that hitch, which may be difficult as your back side will be comfortably planted in your truck seat.

[Nlambert]

Originally Posted by mobilemike

The goosebox is designed with the pin weight calculated when they put the the capacity on it.

A 20k goosebox will support the required pin weight for a 20k 5th wheel.

I'll second this. If you are considering a 5er and can find someone who has a Goosebox on their 5er and will let you hook up to it, take it for a spin. My only regret on my Goosebox is not going to in the beginning.

[42willys]

Originally Posted by CecilD

Good choice. You will pat yourself on the back every minute you tow with that hitch, which may be difficult as your back side will be comfortably planted in your truck seat.

Nothing wrong with Hensley,have you looked at comfortride?Does the same as Hensley with cushions instead of air.Save some $$$ also.I have one and pull 20k 5er with it very smooth.

[Wundertaker]

Originally Posted by Nlambert

I'll second this. If you are considering a 5er and can find someone who has a Goosebox on their 5er and will let you hook up to it, take it for a spin. My only regret on my Goosebox is not going to in the beginning.

I've heard quite a bit about problems with goosenecks putting stress on the fifth wheel hitch and frame.

[aknavy]

Originally Posted by Wundertaker

I've heard quite a bit about problems with goosenecks putting stress on the fifth wheel hitch and frame.

Goosebox and gooseneck adapters are two very different hitches. Goosebox is covered by Lipperts frame warranties.

[RoadEyePie]

Originally Posted by 42willys

Nothing wrong with Hensley,have you looked at comfortride?Does the same as Hensley with cushions instead of air.Save some $$$ also.I have one and pull 20k 5er with it very smooth.

Just checked their website. Their middle model 245 seems to be comparable to the BD5 and isn't a big cost difference. Their top model 308 HD is more expensive than the BD5. Also, I didn't see anything where they are compatible with puck systems. I want a puck-ready, drop and go, plug and play hitch without adding rails or anything else. The biggest draw back to the Hensley BD5 is the weight, but there are numerous ways to mechanically lift the hitch out of the truck at home. I don't believe I'm going to need to do that when I'm on the road camping. Hensley says that if no other option is available, you can just pull the pins, jack the RV up and leave the hitch hanging. Not sure I like this suggestion, but I suppose a 300 lb hitch isn't much for the steel frame of the RV to support. I wonder what Lippert has to say about this.

Update. Just called Lippert Technical support and the guy I spoke with said he felt this was a bad idea. That it would deflect the frame causing a dip in the flooring or something to that effect. Thought that hanging for a minute or two might be acceptable but not for longer periods.

[RoadEyePie]

Just ordered the BD5-G should have it in the hunk-a-punk-a-truck around Thanksgiving. Also ordered a BakFlip MX4. This isn't a cheap adventure but you only live once and most of that is behind me.

[gmacecsko]

Originally Posted by manwithnorv

Just ordered the BD5-G should have it in the hunk-a-punk-a-truck around Thanksgiving. Also ordered a BakFlip MX4. This isn't a cheap adventure but you only live once and most of that is behind me.

I see I was not able to sway you towards the Goosebox. Good luck with your new adventure.

[hclarkx]

Originally Posted by manwithnorv

Update. Just called Lippert Technical support and the guy I spoke with said he felt this was a bad idea. That it would deflect the frame causing a dip in the flooring or something to that effect. Thought that hanging for a minute or two might be acceptable but not for longer periods.

That just does not make sense. The system can carry what, a 3000# load, and it can't carry a few hundred lbs hanging from it? Heck, my hitch probably takes as much downward pull as the weight it puts on the truck when I go onto some bridges. In fact, once I'm pretty sure the rear wheels of the 2500 HD were pulled off the pavement for an instant going on to a bridge at speed south of Seattle.

[CecilD]

Originally Posted by manwithnorv

Update. Just called Lippert Technical support and the guy I spoke with said he felt this was a bad idea. That it would deflect the frame causing a dip in the flooring or something to that effect. Thought that hanging for a minute or two might be acceptable but not for longer periods.

Sometimes I wonder about Lippert. I wonder if loading the front closet, installing a bedroom washer and dryer, and a couple of adults in the bed would cause the frame to dip. Certainly more weight than a hitch. They may be good at making frames but their marketing department needs help. Their video on the cause of chucking is laughable. They had another installation video of a pin box using a trailer damaged truck and poor/dangerous torque wrench usage. The up and down forces on a pin box while towing are far more severe than hanging 300# static weight for a while.

[RoadEyePie]

Originally Posted by CecilD

Sometimes I wonder about Lippert. I wonder if loading the front closet, installing a bedroom washer and dryer, and a couple of adults in the bed would cause the frame to dip. Certainly more weight than a hitch. They may be good at making frames but their marketing department needs help. Their video on the cause of chucking is laughable. They had another installation video of a pin box using a trailer damaged truck and poor/dangerous torque wrench usage. The up and down forces on a pin box while towing are far more severe than hanging 300# static weight for a while.

You may be right and make some good points. To be fair, he never said or implied that doing so would jeopardize the warranty. He wasn't speaking in any official capacity. He just said he wasn't sure it was a good idea. I'm sorry if I characterized it differently.