Lawrence wrote:

hello to all,

I have the good fortune to own a new pickup, a Dodge Ram 3500.
Luckily, i still have the old Toyota as well so now I am a two pickup
household. Here's a pic of the new truck:

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/lwhale...e2.jpg&.src=ph

This thing is big and I want to tow a big trailer with it. I need to
tow a bobcat skidster and to deliver lumber and firewood. Been
shopping for trailers and am considering a goosneck style which would
require the installation of a fifth wheel hitch which is in the middle
of the bed over the axle. The ladder rack you see in the pic can be
partially dissasembled to allow for the use of such a hitch. I already
have a regular heavy duty hitch but have heard that the goosneck setup
will be easier to tow and will handle a bigger load over the axle. I
already know it is more expensive not only for the hitch but the
trailer too. How much will this hitch interfere with the convenient
use of the bed? Can anyone out there have any experience with this
type of setup give me some pros and cons?

Lawrence


First of all, you either get a goose neck hitch or a fifth
wheel hitch. They are not the same. There are some hitches
that are designed to be both, but unless you have both kinds
of trailers, you won't need one of those.

A goose neck hitch is a pin that is set in the bed of the
pickup (with the correct bracing and placement). It is not
much more than a large ball hitch, but the frame of the truck
must be integrated into the installation so that the bed of
the truck is not carrying the weight. The weight is
distributed to the frame. After installation, you just a ball
(or a receptacle for the ball) in the bed of your truck. It
very unobtrusive and easy to deal with.

A fifth wheel hitch is another animal all together. The frame
of the hitch distributes the load to the frame of the truck
and placement is once again critical. The FWH will take up a
lot of room in the bed of the truck. Don't think you will be
able to throw a sheet of plywood in there with the hitch in
place. They can be removable, but they are quite heavy and I
have a chain hoist that I lift mine off with. I can get it
off by hand, but it is a real pain and very difficult to
reinstall by hand.

You probably need a goose neck set up. Much less intrusive
and less expensive.

Look at the two kinds at this site:

http://www.usa-trailer-hitches.com/W...ck-hitches.htm

Click on the fifth wheel hitch on the left to look at fifth
wheel hitches.

--
Robert Allison
Rimshot, Inc.
Georgetown, TX