Towing Comfort

[SeattleLion]

I have seen a lot of forum comments (not necessarily on this forum) about "chucking", "bucking", and other uncomfortable motions in the towing vehicle pulling a fifth wheel. I am posting here because I suspect that different brands respond differently to towing. My new 3160 is sitting at the dealer right now. It is waiting for slide toppers and for me to be able to park it at home. We have had a lot of rain and I park on my side lawn. Yesterday, the dealer sent his tech to fix a stuck slide in my trade in (Kodiak piece of junk) and drag it back to the dealership. The lawn was so muddy that my wife had to come home from work with our truck to pull his truck and the trailer out of the mud. We won't be able to pick up our new camper until the ground firms a bit.

Anyway, I know that our BH and Landmark trailers have shocks. What is your experience towing over various roads with the factory pin box? Do I need to find the money for an air pin box?

Thanks

 

[cookie]

I highly recommend some sort of dampening pin box or hitch.
There are several things that can contribute to the chucking. Truck wheelbase length, lack of pin weight and springs, to name a few.
I personally have a short bed truck with air bags and a TrailAir Tri Glide pin box. I have no chucking.
I am not promoting a product, it's just what I use and it works.
Others with different setups report the same.

Peace
Dave

 

[SeattleLion]

Thanks Dave. Is it severe enough for me to put it on top of things I need to buy?

 

[cookie]

I guess that you could tow your rig as is and see how you like it.
When I look in the mirror and see that air bag moving up and down I keep thinking, ahh, one more bump that me and the trailer didn't feel.

Peace
Dave

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk

 

[SeattleLion]

I will do as you suggest and try towing with the factory pin box. It shouldn't take long to determine if I have an issue.

Thanks, Dave.

Bob

 

[JohnDar]

If our infrastructure took care of the highways instead of pork barrels, we wouldn't need shock absorbing pin boxes.

 

[travelin2]

I went with the upgrade MorRyde pin from the start. It's obvious by the marks left by the nylon bushings that it smooths out the ride!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[GlenStMary]

I pull mine with a 350, 4 x 4 Super Cab, long bed, dually that has air bags and a B & W Companion for the factory pin box on the 5ver. It has always surprised me as to how smooth that RV rides behind that truck.

 

[Westwind]

I ended up with a Trailer Saver BD-3 FW hitch which has two air bags and tow shocks, it was a deal that I worked out with Hensley Hitch in which they gave me a credit for my Hensley Arrow hitch which we used with our Travel Trailer.
I have nothing to compare with since this was our first fifth wheel. Our Bighorn rides real well no bucking and minimal, I mean minimal chucking.

 

[Hippy]

Cookie, do you or have you lost substantial air from your trailair pin box?

 

[cookie]

Cookie, do you or have you lost substantial air from your trailair pin box?

I have had a Trail Air on two rigs. When new they both leaked air.
I removed the fittings and put new thread sealer on and that eliminated the air leak.
If you are loosing air, fill the bag with air and use some dish soap to see if you have a leak there.

Peace
Dave

 

[jdfishing]

I found I could live with the chucking if the trips were short. However, last year we made the journey to the National Rally in Indiana and about half way there, I made my decision that I was gonna have some type of hitch/pinbox to reduce that annoying chucking for the return trip home. The freeze/expansion joints on the freeways in the Midwest gave me some of the worst chucking I have ever experienced. Anyway, I had the TrailAir Tri Glide pin box installed on my Bighorn and have been very pleased. The chucking is not totally eliminated but greatly reduced. The ride home was a pleasure.

 

[Hippy]

Bought and only had mine on my Cyclone for about 2 weeks never giving it thought it would lose air. I backed up the Cyclone into my driveway at night with about a 65% degree angle and slight incline. Got up the next morning to un hitch. when I notice the electrical box on the pin box was bent out of shape. I started to look and notice the left side of my truck bed was damaged. That's when I saw the airbag below the marked recommendation for height/air. I took it back to the dealer for service and brought it to their attention. It had lost 40 lbs of air. Dealer had it for a week to service and monitor the pin box. To my luck it didn't lose any air. So my thoughts, somebody had taken the air out. Well 4 weeks and 1,800 miles later, I hitched up and this time noticed it had lost air again. About 35lbs. I had to look around the campground for somebody that had a 150 psi compressor. I have the Cyclone in the same dealer right now and their huddling how their going to take care of this. This was a big learning lesson and for those reading this thread, don't take it for granted because it's new it's going to hold up. It would be something else added to the check list.

 

[TandT]

I love my TrailAire pinbox. No chucking or bucking at all.

Mine has always leaked a little over the course of a week or so.
I have an onboard compressor on my TV, so it is easy to add air.
That being said, I believe the mfgr says you can run it even if it is completely out of air in a pinch.
I think I will take Daves advice however and try applying new thread sealant to the Schrader fitting. Trace


Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997

 

[JohnDar]

While we haven't towed a lot, I did change to the 5th Airborne pin a couple of years ago. Very noticeable improvement. I check the bladder pressure when I load the rig on the hitch when getting ready to move. One trip along I-69 in Michigan will make you a convert to a better pin or hitch system.

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

My only experience has been with the Trail Air. When new we had the basic Trail Air and added the lower tri glide jaw when it became available. Like Dave (Cookie) and others, ours lost a bit of air and removing the air fitting, cleaning the threads and re-installing solved that. There are also 9 grease fitting that have to be frequently attended to .
I find that during overnight temperature swings, the PSI decreases and during a sunny day will increase. I initially had an issue with the rear of the pin box score the side rails of my tonneau cover frame when making tight maneuvers. I trimmed the rear of the pin box and adjusted the pin height and hitch height to resolve the problem.
Does it reduce chucking? Yes. It also helps reduce the shock to the trailer during normal travel. There are still times when no hitch/pin combination will remove everything. Some whoop dee do's in our roads can't be avoided.

 

[Heathcote4]

What experience is there with retrofitting the existing pin box with an air ride system? In reading this thread I am learning two new terms, bucking and chucking. I am new to fifth wheel towing.

As imagined my toy hauler rides much differently when there is a 1200 pound hunting vehicle in the garage. When I take a bump the trailer really yanks the back of the truck around. Is this "bucking"?

I have seen that Trail Air in the RV showroom but my Road Warrior did not come with it. I am interested to investigate the cost of the upgrade.

Thanks to all for the information.

 

[BobX2]

What experience is there with retrofitting the existing pin box with an air ride system? In reading this thread I am learning two new terms, bucking and chucking. I am new to fifth wheel towing.

As imagined my toy hauler rides much differently when there is a 1200 pound hunting vehicle in the garage. When I take a bump the trailer really yanks the back of the truck around. Is this "bucking"?

I have seen that Trail Air in the RV showroom but my Road Warrior did not come with it. I am interested to investigate the cost of the upgrade.

Thanks to all for the information.

Be prepared for some sticker shock. I too am new to the 5th wheel scene, and was surprised by how a 5th wheel pulls. Got to looking at air hitches and OH MY GOD! Decided I would take a look at the air pin boxes and oh my god. Just purchased a MOR/ryde pin box and hope to install it this weekend. Everything I have read about them sounds like it is the solution for me. My pin weight is light, but it is the forward/rearward jerking that is really bad. Don't think air bags were the fix for my issue, but the MOR/ryde is built just for my specific issue. Fingers crossed. It is also by far the most reasonably priced option at $600. Everything else is at the very least double that amount.