Hitch recommendation for 303rls and gmc 2500?

[cstratton73]

Lots of replies here. This topic always brings a lot of attention. So, for what it’s worth, here are my two cents. I thought I’d chime in because I have first-hand experience with several of the recommendations people have made.

For reference, I have a Ram 2500, with a 6’ box and a Reflection 340RDS.

I have owned and used both the B&W Companion slider and the Anderson Ultimate.

I got rid of the B&W for two reasons:

1. It was a beast. Extremely well-built, but impossible to move by myself.

2. It’s a slider , but the manual slide feature is almost worthless in my opinion. Having to get out of the vehicle to engage the slide option is both a pain and not always possible, depending on the circumstance you find yourself in.

I am currently using the Andersen Ultimate and you’ll find posts of mine on this forum raving about it. It is so easy to install and remove and it is very light. It certainly addresses my #1 issue with the B&W noted above. However, it does eliminate the slide option that I had with the B&W. Granted, as I mentioned, that feature on the B&W was “almost worthless” but did have some value when I was in a tough spot and could get out of the truck to engage the slide feature.

All of that said, my son recently purchased a new Momentum; he has a Ram with a 6’ bed as well. I encouraged him to consider the Pullrite Superglide, which is an auto-sliding hitch (no getting out of the truck to “engage” the slide feature, it just happens automatically). The reason I recommend he go this route was one, he’s new to fifth wheel towing and two I’ve found myself in a handful of situations where not having a slider with my short bed truck has put me in some difficult spots. I am very good about not getting myself into tough spots, but sometime you arrive at your site and find it’s a very tight or there are are vehicles or other obstacles in your way, making the situation a bit more stressful. Anything can come up, right?

Long story short, my son did go with the Pullrite. I had the opportunity to tow his setup recently and I was sold! The spot he stores his unit in is quite tight and narrow. It was sooooo easy to get in and out. I wasn’t at all worried about crushing the cab (that’s ALWAYS in the back of my mind when towing using my Andersen). Yes, the Pullrite is on the heavy side (although not as heavy as B&W Companion I previously owned) the peace of mind I had while towing his unit made me forget all about the weight.

As much as I have loved my Andersen, I’m switching to the Superglide this week and I have now doubt I’m going to absolutely love it.

If you don’t mind buying used, there are quite a few hitches (of any make or model for sale out there). Many times you can find something in great shape for 50-75% less than what they sell for new.

Hope my experience with these various hitches helps. I wish I’d gone with the Pullrite Superglide from the start…would’ve saved some money and some stress, but hey, live and learn.

Good luck to you.

I have had my Anderson Ultimate 5th Wheel Hitch for many years and before I got it, I had the Superglide! I have no problem with sharp turns with my Anderson... I have it installed with the offset facing backwards! Never hit my cab ever!! I can take it out in 5 minutes and it only weights around 35 pounds! I will never go back to the heavy Superglide! Love my Anderson hitch for too many reasons!

[bdelcurto]

I have had my Anderson Ultimate 5th Wheel Hitch for many years and before I got it, I had the Superglide! I have no problem with sharp turns with my Anderson... I have it installed with the offset facing backwards! Never hit my cab ever!! I can take it out in 5 minutes and it only weights around 35 pounds! I will never go back to the heavy Superglide! Love my Anderson hitch for too many reasons!

Glad you’re happy. I’m a pretty happy guy myself. I’ll be even happier next week after I’ve installed my new Superglide. [emoji16]

[curtist1]

Have Anderson in 2500 Ram 6"4 bed on 2 trailers no problem my old hitch har to use tractor forks in and out and it was loud taking off and stoping and turning and it was a slider never used it 1 time . Anderson about 45 to 50 lbs easy in and out out and quite .

[bdelcurto]

Lots of replies here. This topic always brings a lot of attention. So, for what it’s worth, here are my two cents. I thought I’d chime in because I have first-hand experience with several of the recommendations people have made.

For reference, I have a Ram 2500, with a 6’ box and a Reflection 340RDS.

I have owned and used both the B&W Companion slider and the Anderson Ultimate.

I got rid of the B&W for two reasons:

1. It was a beast. Extremely well-built, but impossible to move by myself.

2. It’s a slider , but the manual slide feature is almost worthless in my opinion. Having to get out of the vehicle to engage the slide option is both a pain and not always possible, depending on the circumstance you find yourself in.

I am currently using the Andersen Ultimate and you’ll find posts of mine on this forum raving about it. It is so easy to install and remove and it is very light. It certainly addresses my #1 issue with the B&W noted above. However, it does eliminate the slide option that I had with the B&W. Granted, as I mentioned, that feature on the B&W was “almost worthless” but did have some value when I was in a tough spot and could get out of the truck to engage the slide feature.

All of that said, my son recently purchased a new Momentum; he has a Ram with a 6’ bed as well. I encouraged him to consider the Pullrite Superglide, which is an auto-sliding hitch (no getting out of the truck to “engage” the slide feature, it just happens automatically). The reason I recommend he go this route was one, he’s new to fifth wheel towing and two I’ve found myself in a handful of situations where not having a slider with my short bed truck has put me in some difficult spots. I am very good about not getting myself into tough spots, but sometime you arrive at your site and find it’s a very tight or there are are vehicles or other obstacles in your way, making the situation a bit more stressful. Anything can come up, right?

Long story short, my son did go with the Pullrite. I had the opportunity to tow his setup recently and I was sold! The spot he stores his unit in is quite tight and narrow. It was sooooo easy to get in and out. I wasn’t at all worried about crushing the cab (that’s ALWAYS in the back of my mind when towing using my Andersen). Yes, the Pullrite is on the heavy side (although not as heavy as B&W Companion I previously owned) the peace of mind I had while towing his unit made me forget all about the weight.

As much as I have loved my Andersen, I’m switching to the Superglide this week and I have now doubt I’m going to absolutely love it.

If you don’t mind buying used, there are quite a few hitches (of any make or model for sale out there). Many times you can find something in great shape for 50-75% less than what they sell for new.

Hope my experience with these various hitches helps. I wish I’d gone with the Pullrite Superglide from the start…would’ve saved some money and some stress, but hey, live and learn.

If you’re sold on the Andersen Ultimate, I’ll have one for sale in a week or so. [emoji6]

Good luck to you.

As a follow up to my post above, here’s a nicely done video from The Hitch Guy showing both the Andersen Ultimate and the Pullrite Superglide in action and installed in the same short-bed truck.

Does the Andersen have its upsides? Absolutely. Does the Superglide outperform the Andersen as it relates to turning radius? Absolutely.

You must decide for yourself what your priorities are. Having now owned both hitches, I’m squarely in the Superglide camp.

Others certainly have differing opinions, but I’m not here to convince, just to convey my own experience.

https://youtu.be/FeSjFZBzqxc

[COGrandDes]

As a follow up to my post above, here’s a nicely done video from The Hitch Guy showing both the Andersen Ultimate and the Pullrite Superglide in action and installed in the same short-bed truck.

Does the Andersen have its upsides? Absolutely. Does the Superglide outperform the Andersen as it relates to turning radius? Absolutely.

You must decide for yourself what your priorities are. Having now owned both hitches, I’m squarely in the Superglide camp.

Others certainly have differing opinions, but I’m not here to convince, just to convey my own experience.

https://youtu.be/FeSjFZBzqxc

That's a great and informative video about the two hitch types. Thanks for sharing. I certainly learned allot about short bed towing. I would still be way too worried purchasing a short bed and using either for our boondocking trips. He notes several times in the video about uneven backing surfaces and complex angles further limiting the turning radius of the truck and camper. Both hitches still have height and radius limitations either with the bed rails or the cab. I was told 20+ years ago to stay with a long bed for towing a fifth wheel even before I knew any better. I'm thankful that truck/camper backing clearances are one less thing that I've had to worry about over the years. Backing up huge campers in the woods on unlevel dirt and terrain is hard enough on it's own.

[bdelcurto]

That's a great and informative video about the two hitch types. Thanks for sharing. I certainly learned allot about short bed towing. I would still be way too worried purchasing a short bed and using either for our boondocking trips. He notes several times in the video about uneven backing surfaces and complex angles further limiting the turning radius of the truck and camper. Both hitches still have height and radius limitations either with the bed rails or the cab. I was told 20+ years ago to stay with a long bed for towing a fifth wheel even before I knew any better. I'm thankful that truck/camper backing clearances are one less thing that I've had to worry about over the years. Backing up huge campers in the woods on unlevel dirt and terrain is hard enough on it's own.

Thanks for the response.

Agreed…going with a long bed is one way to skin the cat, but that option has its downsides as well.

Every one of the options presented in this thread have both pros and cons. It’s all about prioritizing what’s most important for you (or, in my case, me) and weighing the available options against your priorities and needs.

Enjoy.

[Lance Glogowsky]

Anderson hitch for sure. I have a 303 with a 6’ bed. Very easy to remove from my bed and reconnect.

[Soundsailor]

As a follow up to my post above, here’s a nicely done video from The Hitch Guy showing both the Andersen Ultimate and the Pullrite Superglide in action and installed in the same short-bed truck.

Does the Andersen have its upsides? Absolutely. Does the Superglide outperform the Andersen as it relates to turning radius? Absolutely.

You must decide for yourself what your priorities are. Having now owned both hitches, I’m squarely in the Superglide camp.

Others certainly have differing opinions, but I’m not here to convince, just to convey my own experience.

https://youtu.be/FeSjFZBzqxc

The video seems a little tilted toward the Pullrite products. One thing he doesn't mention is the ease of hitching. If I made tight turns a lot I might think differently, but I've never been much tighter than 45 degrees backing into even quite tight spaces. Some of the comments to the video talked about how difficult it is to hitch the Pullrite unless you're straight. I have the rail-mounted version of the Andersen, and it is the simplest hitching I've ever encountered. Straight, angled, uneven site, easy to hitch no matter the terrain.

[bdelcurto]

The video seems a little tilted toward the Pullrite products. One thing he doesn't mention is the ease of hitching. If I made tight turns a lot I might think differently, but I've never been much tighter than 45 degrees backing into even quite tight spaces. Some of the comments to the video talked about how difficult it is to hitch the Pullrite unless you're straight. I have the rail-mounted version of the Andersen, and it is the simplest hitching I've ever encountered. Straight, angled, uneven site, easy to hitch no matter the terrain.

You could be right. I thought it was a fair assessment, but I think the video was geared towards the turning radius differences between the two. Pullrite definitely wins, hands-down, in that category. With that, having owned both the Pullrite and the Andersen, my opinion of the two is tilted towards the Pullrite as well. No doubt, the ease of hitching and weight of the Andersen make it a very attractive option.

I have seen mention of the Pullrite hitching process being somewhat finicky, but I guess I prefer to
deal with that inconvenience than the inconvenience/expense of replacing a rear window or worrying about it.

In the end, there are a ton of good products and options out there and it really all comes down to preference and priorities.

It’s always good to hear from people who have experience with the products one is considering. Especially, when they have experience with a number of different options/products.