5th wheel vs bumber/trailer hitch

[fitzy54]

1st time soon to be camper trailer owner. Now I have a Dodge 250 Cummings diesel pick up. And we want to stay under the 30’ mark 5th wheel vs bumper tow pros and cons would be appreciated from experienced drivers

 

[taskswap]

This is pretty opinionated. But we personally find fifth wheels to be smoother rides and easier to maneuver. Having the pivot point be over your rear tires instead of the bumper means you can make much tighter turns backing up. And fifth wheel hitches can be rated for much higher loads, although if you want your max to be 30' that won't matter much to you. Finally, fifth-wheel campers typically have higher ceilings and more space for an equivalent length due to the portion that sits "up and over" the truck.

That being said, the hitches themselves are also often MUCH more expensive (all three parts of our Curt, together, were like $1700 IIRC), are very heavy, and take a lot of bed space. I think there's something to be said for both types...

 

[CoveredWagon]

This is pretty opinionated. But we personally find fifth wheels to be smoother rides and easier to maneuver. Having the pivot point be over your rear tires instead of the bumper means you can make much tighter turns backing up. And fifth wheel hitches can be rated for much higher loads, although if you want your max to be 30' that won't matter much to you. Finally, fifth-wheel campers typically have higher ceilings and more space for an equivalent length due to the portion that sits "up and over" the truck.

That being said, the hitches themselves are also often MUCH more expensive (all three parts of our Curt, together, were like $1700 IIRC), are very heavy, and take a lot of bed space. I think there's something to be said for both types...

I believe Andersen hitches are well under $ 1,000

 

[rhodies1]

Go with the B and W hitch. Far superior toany hitch out in the market. One great advantage of the 5 th wheel is no trailer sway… You see travel trailer going up and down the road swaying like a dogs tail. This doesn’t happen with a 5 th wheel. A disadvantsge can be the height. You need to be aware of your surroundings when towing a 5 th wheel, there height Is higher and you need to watch for bridge height and sometimes tree branches in camp grounds. I have had 3 —5 th wheels and would never go back to a trailer. My opinion.

 

[NYSUPstater]

^^^^^^^ What Rhodes said ^^^^^^^^

 

[Johnston1107]

Floor plan is 1st priority can’t go wrong with 5th wheel easy towing better head room

 

[rhodies1]

Last comment. You currently have a proper rig for towing a 5 th wheel.

 

[david-steph2018]

1st time soon to be camper trailer owner. Now I have a Dodge 250 Cummings diesel pick up. And we want to stay under the 30’ mark 5th wheel vs bumper tow pros and cons would be appreciated from experienced drivers

Questions about the truck, is it stock? Have you modified the suspension or put larger tires on the truck?
Any upgrades to the truck?
The reason I am asking is, if you have installed a lift kit and larger tires, you may have some issues towing the 5th wheel level.

 

[CoMaddMax]

With my 30K+ miles of RV travel I have never seen a 5th wheel in the ditch or on its side. I have seen several bumper pulls in the ditch or sitting on their side. One on its side actually held the rear wheels of the Suburban off the ground.

 

[fitzy54]

This is pretty opinionated. But we personally find fifth wheels to be smoother rides and easier to maneuver. Having the pivot point be over your rear tires instead of the bumper means you can make much tighter turns backing up. And fifth wheel hitches can be rated for much higher loads, although if you want your max to be 30' that won't matter much to you. Finally, fifth-wheel campers typically have higher ceilings and more space for an equivalent length due to the portion that sits "up and over" the truck.

That being said, the hitches themselves are also often MUCH more expensive (all three parts of our Curt, together, were like $1700 IIRC), are very heavy, and take a lot of bed space. I think there's something to be said for both types...

Thank you for your input on this gentleman. I too do like the idea of a fifth for handling. But I am also coming across the latest and greatest of a what they call goose neck pin box or something like that, and this allows you to remove the ball hitch, when not in use but putting all that weight on the ball hitch, I do have some concerns. Seems like an awful lot of pressure on one spot versus the kingpin and fifth wheel plate. has anyone had any experience with this gooseneck style?

 

[CoveredWagon]

Thank you for your input on this gentleman. I too do like the idea of a fifth for handling. But I am also coming across the latest and greatest of a what they call goose neck pin box or something like that, and this allows you to remove the ball hitch, when not in use but putting all that weight on the ball hitch, I do have some concerns. Seems like an awful lot of pressure on one spot versus the kingpin and fifth wheel plate. has anyone had any experience with this gooseneck style?

I've used the Andersen Ultimate hitch for 8 years pulling for many many K miles. I pull a 35 ft Heartland 3270 rs well within the weight limits of the hitch. You'll hear the old timers tell you all kinds of stories about safety and this and that. I'll just tell you it's easy and it works for me. Interestingly enough other manufactures have started selling ball type hitches as well.

 

[rhodies1]

Everyone has their thoughts in the gooseneck style. Personally I am not a fan of those style hitches. To me it’s another attachment to the current hitch or you need to remove the king pin and bolt on another. Not my style.

 

[Bogie]

I've used the Andersen Ultimate hitch for 8 years pulling for many many K miles. I pull a 35 ft Heartland 3270 rs well within the weight limits of the hitch. You'll hear the old timers tell you all kinds of stories about safety and this and that. I'll just tell you it's easy and it works for me. Interestingly enough other manufactures have started selling ball type hitches as well.

I have had an Andersen Ultimate for the last 7 years. Have also had some tell me they are unsafe because they are aluminum. I just suggest they should probably never fly in an airplane. I can say that in the past, there have been times when backing into an uneven camp site, my conventional hitch would not disconnect, causing the need to disassemble the capture plate from the hitch in order to get it off. Never had that problem with the Andersen.

 

[fitzy54]

Questions about the truck, is it stock? Have you modified the suspension or put larger tires on the truck?
Any upgrades to the truck?
The reason I am asking is, if you have installed a lift kit and larger tires, you may have some issues towing the 5th wheel level.

Re:truck Yes it is all stock. I came across it searching the web 2011 Dodge Laramie Cummins Diesel, only 56k on it and doesn't take the def 👍 Thanks again

 

[taskswap]

Thank you for your input on this gentleman. I too do like the idea of a fifth for handling. But I am also coming across the latest and greatest of a what they call goose neck pin box or something like that, and this allows you to remove the ball hitch, when not in use but putting all that weight on the ball hitch, I do have some concerns. Seems like an awful lot of pressure on one spot versus the kingpin and fifth wheel plate. has anyone had any experience with this gooseneck style?

I find that style very appealing and seriously considered it myself. But the gooseneck conversions are actually super expensive and complex to DIY (they're very heavy), plus I read some bad reviews of folks with frame cracking due basically adding a 2' lever to where the attachment point is. I have ZERO personal knowledge of whether any of this is true, but it did put me off purchasing one.

If you want another alternative, have a look at the Curt Crosswing. It just came out in the last year or two, and it still takes some bed space but a lot less than a typical fifth wheel, and it's very light. The Anderson hitch also does something similar but the Crosswing supposedly resolves a few issues the Anderson had. As always, YMMV.

 

[Dahillbilly]

Currently using the Curt Crosswing hitch, word of CAUTION before buying make sure you have a standard-length pin box. The Crosswing is not designed to be used with any extended pin box for short bed trucks. Can be costly to buy different pin box to work with the Crosswing. Been there!! I do like the weight factor of the Crosswing.