Well IT Did Happen To Us!

[jjbbrewer]

No, actually you don't hear of people dropping their trailer on the rails with a BW hitch. If the hitch is latched properly it won't, can't, come loose. I cannot remember anyone ever saying they dropped their trailer if they have a B&W hitch, not counting the two occurrences just recently. And that would be over the last 20 years or so.

Agreed.
Here's a video (promotional, of course) that tells me that B&W takes quality pretty seriously.
I'm going to get my 349M tomorrow. If I can I'll make a "high hitch" video showing how it's done.

[Tom Traveler]

No, actually you don't hear of people dropping their trailer on the rails with a B&W hitch. If the hitch is latched properly it won't, can't, come loose. I cannot remember anyone ever saying they dropped their trailer if they have a B&W hitch, not counting the two occurrences just recently. And that would be over the last 20 years or so. The only other time was a guy who pinned his handle open and it didn't stay put when he pulled forward. User error.

Over the years, I’ve learned to not use “can’t, won’t”. Anything that doesn’t violate the laws of physics can happen. I don’t know how the B&W hitch latches, but there could be a rare defect or mismatch in machining or casting that releases the hitch under a very unusual set of circumstances. Something wiggled, vibrated, and bounced at just the right time. Could be incredibly unlikely, but still possible.

I had no experience with 5th wheel hitches before I purchased our current Superglide. I looked at the B&W and didn’t like the fact that the jaw split at the back of the pin. Essentially, all the force of the trailer is continuously trying to open the jaw. That just seemed like a bad design concept to me. Yes, I know, the latch is designed to prevent opening if the latch arm is locked. That doesn’t mean there is not some rare set of circumstances that could cause it to fail. There is no secondary mechanism to prevent release. If the latching mechanism fails in any way, that pin is pulling out.

I’m sure if you asked Kwikset 20 years ago, they would have said it is “impossible” to open a deadbolt with a blank key and a piece of wood 2x2, yet we now know that you can pop a lock with a bump key. That’s probably not a very good comparison, but rare things happen all the time.

[Hoopy Frood]

At one point in this thread, there was some discussion about "high hitching" a B&W hitch. Just out of curiosity, and someone else had mentioned it, I took some pictures of my attempt to "high hitch". Attached are the proof that you'd have to be optically challenged, , not to know you're not hitched up correctly. I backed up with the large part of the pin right where the jaws are until the truck stopped. At no point did the handle come back.