5th Wheel Hitches

I'm looking at getting a 5th wheel family camper soon. I have not dealt much with light truck 5th wheels and want some opinions.
It's going to go on my 2010 Dodge Crew Cab Short Box (6'2" I believe).

I was thinking an under bed rail system would be nice so it's not intrusive, and I've always had good luck with Reese hitches, plus I get a discount on them.

Some things I'm curious about:
1) Most don't have a lube plate. Is that okay?
2) Are the under bed rails really tough to get to with exhaust and spare tire?
3) Do I need to do anything special to avoid clearance issue with the cab since it's a short box?

And any other advice from the guys here that tow 5th wheels a lot.
I had thought about Firestone bags and removing the overload springs, but might see how it tows first.

Thanks!

I would consider the reese goose box. hooks up to the trailer and gives you air ride. Hooks right onto the gooseneck ball. this is the only goosneck conversion adapter to not void your warranty on the trailer frame.

The clearance issue is something to pay attention too. I have an uncle with a brand new Duramax who had to buy a new back window after a tight turn with his travel trailer. He moved the king pin on the trailer forward I believe but there may be some adjustment in the hitch to slide it back for a short bed as well. This isn't my area of expertise but I would double check everything.

For grease, there is a UHMW plate you can buy that sits on the king pin of the trailer. This way you are not messing with grease all the time. As others stated, be mindful of your short bed and tight turns when towing. Might need an offset/slicing hitch to move king pin rearward as you turn.

Have you looked at B&W’s design where the 5th wheel hitch attaches to their goose neck hitch? No use of rails in the bed.

Red Sleeper said:

For grease, there is a UHMW plate you can buy that sits on the king pin of the trailer. This way you are not messing with grease all the time. As others stated, be mindful of your short bed and tight turns when towing. Might need an offset/slicing hitch to move king pin rearward as you turn.

Have you looked at B&W’s design where the 5th wheel hitch attaches to their goose neck hitch? No use of rails in the bed.

Click to expand...

That plate looks like it just got added to my list.
I'm having a hard time finding that B&W adapter.

1stgensleeper said:

The clearance issue is something to pay attention too. I have an uncle with a brand new Duramax who had to buy a new back window after a tight turn with his travel trailer. He moved the king pin on the trailer forward I believe but there may be some adjustment in the hitch to slide it back for a short bed as well. This isn't my area of expertise but I would double check everything.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I definitely plan on going to a parking lot and figuring out my max turning radius. I was more or less looking for someone that had a good rule of thumb on where I should place the 5th wheel. Usually you're aiming for a foot in front of the drive axle, but I imagine that's not going to work well in my case.

Brian Lent said:

I would consider the reese goose box./QUOTE]

Wow, this thing is sweet! I might go this route. It'd help me out with clearance too.

Click to expand...