Bed Length and Turning Point Hitches

[Potatoheads78]

When I bought my 2022 Reflection 150-series 226RK 5er, I had a 2021 F-150 with a 5.5 foot bed. The dealer sold me a B&W Patriot 18K hitch. Considering the short bed length, the dealer put the Curt king pin box into turning point mode so the 5er wouldn't contact the truck cab. I never pulled the GD with the 150 because I got very nervous about over-maxing the 150. Our first trip with it was to be Mexico and that added to my concerns (distance, recovery service, repair availability, etc.). So, I got a 2022 F-250 diesel with a 6.75 foot bed. I now have 8000 miles on the trailer and am still using the turning point mode.
My questions for you who are, obviously, more experienced than I are:
1) do I still need to use the turning point mode on the Curt king pin box, considering the somewhat longer bed?
2) Are there any differences between the two modes, with respect to towing and reversing?
Thank you in advance for your comments.
RWBriggs

 

[dryfly]

You will get lots of opinions on having or not having a slider hitch or Turning Point pin box with a short bed truck. Probably a lot depends on your type of camping and the need to put the truck/trailer in very sharp turns. From personal experience I can only tell you that in 14 years of pulling 5th wheels with a 6.5' bed truck, I have never once had the need to use the slider function of my hitch.

From what I have read, one disadvantage to the Turning Point hitch is frequent maintenance and lubrication. Other than that I would assume there is no disadvantage to leaving it as is if you feel you could need it.

 

[trailrydr]

We got a 23 F250 CREW SB and use it on our "locked" Turning Point pinbox 295RL. Locked ours out due Lipperts parts non-availibilty for older Turning Point pinboxes, and the required maint for using them unlocked. Particularly no grease zerk for lubrication - only removal option which is cumbersome on the road.

Because of this, we locked ours out and made it a normal non-rotating pinbox and purchased a Demco Auto Slider 18k hitch and follow the "would rather have it and not need it, than need it and not have it" rule.

Lots of folks with SB F250s use standard 5th wheel hitches and have little to no problems with clearence with non-rotating pinboxes. However, will say that the turning radius of our F250 SB is awfull compared to our old F150 SCREW SB. Having some form of slider does keep me at peace with any situation we may have with tight CGs using our F250 SB.

 

[Potatoheads78]

Thank you.

 

[Recreational Raskels]

If I can possibly tag along on this discussion. I just purchased a GD Reflection with a Curt Turning Point box. My bed is 6.5 and need to buy a hitch. I was considering a slider, but might not now, Jim/Annette, given that you have 8,000 miles on the Curt without issue. Can I ask what maintenance you have needed to do on it?

Have others used the B&W hitch? Are their other recommendations on whether I should get a slider in addition to using the Curt in locked position? My GD is 33' and I'm new to 5ers.

Tim and Andrea
Recreational Raskels
Fairbanks, Alaska

 

[trailrydr]

If I can possibly tag along on this discussion. I just purchased a GD Reflection with a Curt Turning Point box. My bed is 6.5 and need to buy a hitch. I was considering a slider, but might not now, Jim/Annette, given that you have 8,000 miles on the Curt without issue. Can I ask what maintenance you have needed to do on it?

Have others used the B&W hitch? Are their other recommendations on whether I should get a slider in addition to using the Curt in locked position? My GD is 33' and I'm new to 5ers.

Tim and Andrea
Recreational Raskels
Fairbanks, Alaska

Ours is not the Curt version, but the "Trailair" Turning Point pinbox, which from what I understand has the same maintenance as the Curt.

With the Trailair version, the pinbox turret bearing needs to be greased every year (as stated in the owners manual) which requires the removal of the pinbox from the trailer. This became cumbersome, so we have locked ours out and now use it as a fixed position pinbox. To compensate for the "turning" portion, we purchased a Demco 18k auto-slider 5th wheel hitch which is much easier to maintenance than the turning point hitch turret.

Some with 6.5 beds have been able to use a locked out turning point pinbox without issue. We opted to purchase the Demco for the "peace of mind" factor of having it for any situation which may require manuvering our trailer in tight spaces while traveling.

 

[Potatoheads78]

Thank you.

 

[Second Chance]

Thank you.

[MENTION=61744]Potatoheads78[/MENTION] -

Thread moved to Fifth Wheel Hitching Topics.

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[MichaelL]

If I can possibly tag along on this discussion. I just purchased a GD Reflection with a Curt Turning Point box. My bed is 6.5 and need to buy a hitch. I was considering a slider, but might not now, Jim/Annette, given that you have 8,000 miles on the Curt without issue. Can I ask what maintenance you have needed to do on it?

Have others used the B&W hitch? Are their other recommendations on whether I should get a slider in addition to using the Curt in locked position? My GD is 33' and I'm new to 5ers.

Tim and Andrea
Recreational Raskels
Fairbanks, Alaska

I have a 6.5 ft bed and the B&W Companion RVK3300 hitch (non sliding), with the turning point un-locked. I have travelled about 4500 miles with it like this so far and Have not had any issues. As others have mentioned it does need more maintenance, but according to Lippert only annually to check the bearing.

 

[BerkenRV]

If I can possibly tag along on this discussion. I just purchased a GD Reflection with a Curt Turning Point box. My bed is 6.5 and need to buy a hitch. I was considering a slider, but might not now, Jim/Annette, given that you have 8,000 miles on the Curt without issue. Can I ask what maintenance you have needed to do on it?

Have others used the B&W hitch? Are their other recommendations on whether I should get a slider in addition to using the Curt in locked position? My GD is 33' and I'm new to 5ers.

Tim and Andrea
Recreational Raskels
Fairbanks, Alaska

Sounds like you have the exact set up we do. Our GD is the 295RL (32.75’) and the truck is and F250 Crew with 6’9” bed. I choose a B&W Companion Hitch. Previously I have had an F350 with a 40’ Montana and on a slope the trailer touched the back window and cab. As a result we moved to a slider on that unit.

On this GD set up with the 150 Series the front of the trailer is not as domed as the Montana. I had thought I would use the turning point hitch and purchased the wedge rather than have a slider. I have not engaged the turning point pin box or locked it at the King pin. Part of the reason for this is how I set up the B&W hitch. The uprights on this hitch can be installed in 2 positions. One puts the king pin 3” further away from the cab. For me it’s enough comfort level and IMO there is sufficient clearance. Keep in mind I have had the scare in the past and installed a slider previously.

I have 9000km on the truck and 2000km with the GD trailer and am super happy with the B&W hitch. I am very cautious when turning and certainly would never go to 90deg, but that is not because of the risk of hitting the cab. It just doesn’t make sense in any circumstance. The B&W is ~150 lbs , in 2 parts ~75lbs each. Very manageable vs the previous curt slider, which was a beast and 2 person job.

Here is a picture of the B&W with uprights showing the offset to give extra room to the cab.
.
I have the option to unlock the Turning Point hitch and install the locking wedge if at some point I think I need more room. I won’t ever go to a slider again.

Of course. . . to each his own.

 

[Robert58]

When I bought my 2022 Reflection 150-series 226RK 5er, I had a 2021 F-150 with a 5.5 foot bed. The dealer sold me a B&W Patriot 18K hitch. Considering the short bed length, the dealer put the Curt king pin box into turning point mode so the 5er wouldn't contact the truck cab. I never pulled the GD with the 150 because I got very nervous about over-maxing the 150. Our first trip with it was to be Mexico and that added to my concerns (distance, recovery service, repair availability, etc.). So, I got a 2022 F-250 diesel with a 6.75 foot bed. I now have 8000 miles on the trailer and am still using the turning point mode.
My questions for you who are, obviously, more experienced than I are:
1) do I still need to use the turning point mode on the Curt king pin box, considering the somewhat longer bed?
2) Are there any differences between the two modes, with respect to towing and reversing?
Thank you in advance for your comments.
RWBriggs

I have a Silverado 2500 SB truck with the B&W Companion hitch towing a GD 295RL with Trailair Turning Point pin box. We use our rig about 30 nights per year, total of 11,000 miles in the past four years. Maintenance . . . pin box a year ago. My hitch is set up like BerkenRV shows his. We use the wedge, never had a problem although one thing I adjust periodically is the wedge itself. Over time, it gets pushed away from the kingpin from the hitching operation. Just as I check my tires before moving, I check the location of the wedge. It just takes a few minutes to readjust it if necessary so it is tight against the kingpin. If not adjusted, the trailer will pivot slightly at the kingpin despite the wedge being used causing an unnerving lateral tug on the rear of the truck, usually slower speeds off interstates. Keeping the kingpin adjusted removes that issue completely.

 

[GeorgiaJeff]

We have a very similar setup. We have the B&W Companion hitch. Our 230RL has the turning point pin box. We had it unlocked to use the turning point feature for a few trips but didn't care for it. It seemed that the trailer didn't like to return to center well behind the truck. Not sure if this is from the weight being uneven left to right in the 5th wheel or not or because the dealer didn't get the B&W specific wedge. But we had the pin box serviced (we full time so had to remove it ourselves which is a pain!) and it still didn't seem to track the way I'd expect. It also seemed to be susceptible to chucking. We locked it in this spring and towed from Georgia to Indiana with a few stops in between. So far we had no issues with it coming close to hitting the cab. I ordered the proper B&W wedge and keep it with me in case I decide to go back to it. I figure if I end up somewhere like Diamond Lure in North Georgia I may need it.

 

[tdginctr]

Sounds like you have the exact set up we do. Our GD is the 295RL (32.75’) and the truck is and F250 Crew with 6’9” bed. I choose a B&W Companion Hitch. Previously I have had an F350 with a 40’ Montana and on a slope the trailer touched the back window and cab. As a result we moved to a slider on that unit.

On this GD set up with the 150 Series the front of the trailer is not as domed as the Montana. I had thought I would use the turning point hitch and purchased the wedge rather than have a slider. I have not engaged the turning point pin box or locked it at the King pin. Part of the reason for this is how I set up the B&W hitch. The uprights on this hitch can be installed in 2 positions. One puts the king pin 3” further away from the cab. For me it’s enough comfort level and IMO there is sufficient clearance. Keep in mind I have had the scare in the past and installed a slider previously.

I have 9000km on the truck and 2000km with the GD trailer and am super happy with the B&W hitch. I am very cautious when turning and certainly would never go to 90deg, but that is not because of the risk of hitting the cab. It just doesn’t make sense in any circumstance. The B&W is ~150 lbs , in 2 parts ~75lbs each. Very manageable vs the previous curt slider, which was a beast and 2 person job.

Here is a picture of the B&W with uprights showing the offset to give extra room to the cab.
.View attachment 51153
I have the option to unlock the Turning Point hitch and install the locking wedge if at some point I think I need more room. I won’t ever go to a slider again.

Of course. . . to each his own.

Similar to us. We previously had an F250 that didn’t come with the factory puck mounts so I installed a B&W TurnoverBall as the base for the B&W Companion. According to Curt, if you have this setup (I.e. single point of attachment for the Companion) you CANNOT use the Turning Point hitch in the unlocked mode. I assume this has something to do with insufficient strength of the TurnoverBall base to handle the additional forces from the Turning Point. We’ve subsequently switched to an F350 with a factory puck mount base and could now unlock the Turning Point if we wanted to but I’ve had no need to.