Short box and slider

[wakamicamper]

Do I need a sliding hitch on a 6'6" box? I am considering a Rockwood 8280SS 5th wheel. It has an extended pin box and the dealer has told me that I can do a 90 degree turn without a slider hitch. Can this be verified?

I have a 2010 GMC 2500HD Crew Cab long box on order. The wife wants a short box to fit into the garage, the long box is 1' longer than the garage.

Any comments and advice would be greatly appreciated. I live in Canada, and the difference in price between the long and short box is only $5.00 so money is not an issue.

Thanks in advance

[RustyJC]

If 1/2 the width of the RV is greater than the distance from the back of the cab to the kingpin axis in the 5th wheel hitch, it will contact the cab at 90 degrees. An extended pinbox doesn't change the width of the RV.

Depending on the configuration of the front corners of the RV, it may or may not contact the back of the cab before reaching 90 degrees. If you have the dimension from the back of the cab to the kingpin axis in the hitch referred to above, you can cut a string to this length and swing an arc from the center of the kingpin on the RV's pinbox for 90 degrees to either side (180 degrees total). Anything that protrudes beyond this arc will contact the back of the cab at some point.

Rusty

[TEX-CTD]

ill second that it depends on the design of the front cap on your 5er.

i pull with a short bed 3500 and have an auto slider. worth every $$$

what hapens with a manual slider when u get into a jam and dont have time to stop, unlock slider, pull up, lock slider, then go.

say pulling into a filling station or heavy traffic or sticky situation on the hi-way

[TEX-CTD]

Rockwood Travel Trailers & Fifth Wheels by Forest River

from the look of it the front cap isnt a full nose but not very short bed frendly if u ask me.

like these..........
left column next to last pic
Keystone Fuzion | Gallery

here is another...
Gallery - Sundance Mid-Profile | Heartland RV



you can kinda see how mine is in this pic...

[wakamicamper]

The wife won. (Surprise) I have notified the Truck dealer to switch to a standard box, and I have decided to go with a slider hitch for peace of mind.

Thanks to all who replied.

[yogi154]

Just another thought is a Airborne Sidewinder. We have a SB Dually and I have a slider but have never use it. We pick-up our new Jayco Monday. I am ordering the Airborne Slider Tuesday. Just my thought!!!

[FatDog]

i had a husky 16k manual-slider and although it wasn't terribly light i could lift it in and out of the truckbed myself without any disassembly, just pulling some pins and lifting,
... obviously the auto-sliders are nifty, and accordingly several times more expensive, but how much effort is involved for their removal from the bed after the roadtrip is over ?

[Chemtchr]

FatDog,
I bought an inexpensive 1-ton hoist at the local hardware store, used a 4x12 in the rafters of the garage and through a cable over it for the hoist. I hooked up four chains with quick release hooks and with a cart, the hitch and rails are out in less than 5 minutes.
I have a Pullrite 16k that I use with my short bed GMC 2500 HD and I love it. No worries at all when backing.

[FatDog]

Chemtchr ....
that is a good idea, I should have done something like that myself, as I found out numerous times that I was always strong and energetic before the trip when loading the slider onto the truckbed but was typically much less robust after a relaxing week of vacation when lifting the slider back off,

shoot a pic of that sometime and post it to this thread, I'm sure it would convince other lazy guys like myself to make a fieldtrip to homeDepot

[steelpony555]

I have 6'6" bed and an older 5er without the beveled front end. I have the Reese manuel slider that I have never slid back yet. Yet, is the big word. I at least have the capability to slide if necessary but it is a heck of alot cheaper then an auto slider. Also it breaks down into 2 parts making it easier to get out of the truck without the hernia.

[Vulcangw]

I had a manual slider for about three years. Slid it into "maneuvering position" twice after first got it. Found out quickly what a pain in that butt that is, so decided to simply avoid situations that would necessitate sliding it back. That also became a pain, always having to avoid situations that require sharp turns.

I finally decided I have worked long enough and hard enough (and subsequently retired) to enjoy the fruits of my labor. So I went out three weeks ago and purchased an auto slider. Just got back from a 4,000 mile trip. Am so glad I made that purchase. Simple example - I pulled into a service station and all the left hand side diesel pumps were in use. No problem. I drove threw a bay, turned around sharply, and pulled in on the other side. There was not enough room to do that with the old hitch without manually sliding it back (something I certainly would not take the time to do at a gas station). Sure, I could have just waited in line for a pump, but it sure was nice not to have to do so. And that's just one small example.