Getting B&W Companion Hitch in/out of truck bed

[backtrack2015]

I always wonder how much and how often you really need the bed of the truck empty of the hitch?

I’ve removed it three times so far to make space for other things. So the answer in my case is “rarely.” I’m able to work around it most of the time. I use a chain hoist strapped over a large beam in the garage ceiling.

 

[Steven@147]

I can lift and move a fair amount of weight when needed but even in two pieces the B&W Companion Hitch is a tough lift from the ground into the bed of my F350. It's quite a way up from the ground to the tailgate. I figured I was eventually going to slip or hurt myself or the truck getting it in and loading ramps would have to be very long to make the incline worth the trouble to put them out. I looked and looked and finally went with a Rack Jack designed for deer hunters to be able to field dress a deer and then swing it over into the truck bed. They're not that expensive on Amazon, easy to set up (three pieces) and also make it easy to get my generator and other heavy items into the truck. I cut some off of the vertical support tube since I didn't need it to be as tall as it would need to be to hang a deer. Weight limit is 300lbs. It works fine. I use a small dolly to make the final 4' trip from the bed to where the hitch sets into the bed pucks and just set it down into the holes and lock it down. Never have to lift it. I have a small wooden platform on casters that I store the hitch on so can just roll it into the garage and then roll it out to load.

View attachment 8737

Now that's a good idea, thanks

 

[Steven@147]

I'll file this idea away for the future. We wont get our 5er until we go fulltime, by then I don't anticipate we would ever need to remove the 5th wheel hitch but if we do this would work. We have an 8 ft bed so there would still be room for smaller things placed in the bed. I don't think I like the idea of letting the hitch dangle from the pin, that's a lot of weight just hanging there but if the pin holds the RV during towing, whats the problem, it's just the visual. Does give thieves ideas though. Of course head banging is a problem. I do that now on my car lift in my shop, banging my head on the lift arms, got to wearing a hard hat when working under the lift. Not just the lift arms but suspension parts hanging under a vehicle on a lift.

 

[GENESIS]

I do some warm up stretching exercises, then climb into the bed of the truck, pull that black plastic release lever, and groan as I lift this 2 pound device:

https://www.towuniverse.com/Reese-2...MIvKDp5Nne3gIVzbrACh0yzQuZEAQYAiABEgL1QvD_BwE



Tom

 

[grandsl]

I was gonna say, does anyone else just leave it in the truck bed permanently? I guess we just use the rig enough to make it kind of a PITA to want to move it in and out. Haven't needed the truck for anything else than towing the 5er yet though either.

 

[WhittleBurner]

The only time ours has come out is when we switched it to the new truck.

 

[gordofuchs]

Why not pull the pins on the base of the hitch and raise it out of the truck with the FW landing gear? Once the hitch is raised enough, drive the truck out and re-level the FW. Then leave the hitch attached to the king pin for storage.

Jim

I thought about doing that but had some reservations. We stored it in a semi-secure lot and was worried about a prankster or some curious person pulling the release lever, even with a lock on it.

 

[Rapid1]

I was gonna say, does anyone else just leave it in the truck bed permanently? I guess we just use the rig enough to make it kind of a PITA to want to move it in and out. Haven't needed the truck for anything else than towing the 5er yet though either.

This makes it where I don't need to remove the Pullrite from my truck...ever. It has barn doors so loading and unloading is a breeze, much closer to the ground also. No mucking up the back of my pickup with rock or bark either. Plus, at 8ft, it is longer than my truck bed...

 

[Leon T]

I had a B&W Companion hitch. I could lift it in and out of the truck with no problems, but still got tired of dealing with it. I bought a Reese Goose Box and now I only have a gooseneck ball to deal with. Sold the Companion for pretty close to what I paid for it and all is good. Clean bed and no extra time taken to uninstall a 5th wheel hitch. Been on 2 trips with the Goose Box and it works great.

 

[DaveMatthewsBand]

Getting B&W Companion Hitch in/out of truck bed

Try lifting my Patriot slider.

lol

The base alone weighs 169 and the head is 52.

But hey if anyone wants to trade I don’t need the slider.
I was thinking of going to Quartzite in January and trying to find someone with the Companion that needs my slider and swapping ‘em out.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Unit88]

I had a B&W Companion hitch. I could lift it in and out of the truck with no problems, but still got tired of dealing with it. I bought a Reese Goose Box and now I only have a gooseneck ball to deal with. Sold the Companion for pretty close to what I paid for it and all is good. Clean bed and no extra time taken to uninstall a 5th wheel hitch. Been on 2 trips with the Goose Box and it works great.

We plan on getting a 5th in the next couple of months and I'd like to start out with a goose box on either the 29RL or 303 and avoid the expense of purchasing 5'r plate etc. and then having to sell it. My F350 was prepped from factory, but not sure what I need to purchase to get it ready for a goose box. I believe I will need an offset ball as my truck has the standard bed. I've never pulled the rubber plugs in the box to see what is below.

 

[GENESIS]

I had a B&W Companion hitch. I could lift it in and out of the truck with no problems, but still got tired of dealing with it. I bought a Reese Goose Box and now I only have a gooseneck ball to deal with. Sold the Companion for pretty close to what I paid for it and all is good. Clean bed and no extra time taken to uninstall a 5th wheel hitch. Been on 2 trips with the Goose Box and it works great.

+1000. I've had a Goose Box on my 337 since day one. And after almost 3 years of use, I can't imagine ever using anything else.

Tom

 

[Leon T]

We plan on getting a 5th in the next couple of months and I'd like to start out with a goose box on either the 29RL or 303 and avoid the expense of purchasing 5'r plate etc. and then having to sell it. My F350 was prepped from factory, but not sure what I need to purchase to get it ready for a goose box. I believe I will need an offset ball as my truck has the standard bed. I've never pulled the rubber plugs in the box to see what is below.

I'm not sure how your gooseneck setup is on your truck or what is available for a Ford factory system (I'm not familiar with them). I have a B&W gooseneck hitch on my truck that I installed right after I bought the truck and I use their 4" set back ball. It works great. I highly recommend you use a 4" set back ball on a standard bed.

 

[ChicagoRay]

I can lift and move a fair amount of weight when needed but even in two pieces the B&W Companion Hitch is a tough lift from the ground into the bed of my F350. It's quite a way up from the ground to the tailgate. I figured I was eventually going to slip or hurt myself or the truck getting it in and loading ramps would have to be very long to make the incline worth the trouble to put them out. I looked and looked and finally went with a Rack Jack designed for deer hunters to be able to field dress a deer and then swing it over into the truck bed. They're not that expensive on Amazon, easy to set up (three pieces) and also make it easy to get my generator and other heavy items into the truck. I cut some off of the vertical support tube since I didn't need it to be as tall as it would need to be to hang a deer. Weight limit is 300lbs. It works fine. I use a small dolly to make the final 4' trip from the bed to where the hitch sets into the bed pucks and just set it down into the holes and lock it down. Never have to lift it. I have a small wooden platform on casters that I store the hitch on so can just roll it into the garage and then roll it out to load.

View attachment 8737

I found your post and was thinking the same thing. Does the deer hoist boom give you enough reach to easily place the hitch on the rails (or into the pucks)? It is a cheap solution but I am concerned that the reach will be insufficient and I will have to lift it inside the truck bed to get it on my Rails. Appreciate your input

 

[huntindog]

I can lift and move a fair amount of weight when needed but even in two pieces the B&W Companion Hitch is a tough lift from the ground into the bed of my F350. It's quite a way up from the ground to the tailgate. I figured I was eventually going to slip or hurt myself or the truck getting it in and loading ramps would have to be very long to make the incline worth the trouble to put them out. I looked and looked and finally went with a Rack Jack designed for deer hunters to be able to field dress a deer and then swing it over into the truck bed. They're not that expensive on Amazon, easy to set up (three pieces) and also make it easy to get my generator and other heavy items into the truck. I cut some off of the vertical support tube since I didn't need it to be as tall as it would need to be to hang a deer. Weight limit is 300lbs. It works fine. I use a small dolly to make the final 4' trip from the bed to where the hitch sets into the bed pucks and just set it down into the holes and lock it down. Never have to lift it. I have a small wooden platform on casters that I store the hitch on so can just roll it into the garage and then roll it out to load.

View attachment 8737

I have a deer hoist. Mine, and all of the ones I saw when I was shopping for it had /have a short adjustable foot that attaches to the bottom of the hoist and rests on the ground. Your pic does not show such a piece. I would be shocked if it did not have one. The square tubing woud need to to be so much thicker without it as to make it really heavy

 

[suzhou]

It reaches so that the hitch lands just inside the tailgate. If you push it a bit before setting it down all four feet of the hitch land in the bed and clear the tailgate, barely. I started out using a small dolly to move it into final position but it's hard to get a good lift point so I just walk it down into position lifting each side, then the other. It would be great if the reach were longer but then it would't clear the sides of the bed when I swing it around.

 

[suzhou]

Mine doesn't have a support leg or foot that goes to the ground. It just fits into the square receiver on the truck and the square tube goes over the round pole. The entire structure is not a tight fit and has a bit of wobble so I fabricated an A shaped support frame to go to the ground. It didn't make much difference in the wobble, was more stuff to set up and a hassle so I don't use it. The square tube with the boom arm, cable and ratchet assembly isn't light but not too heavy to lift up onto the tube. Once you accept that even though it wobbles a bit when you swing it around it's strong enough steel that it's not going to fall or bend it works fine.

 

[ChicagoRay]

Thx! For the money it is worth trying. The alternatives are heavier and more costly.

 

[ChicagoRay]

Also considering the Harbor Freight in bed hoist. Requires some added bracing underneath (lots of examples on YouTube on how to do it - basically creating a rectangle from 2” square bracing that extends along the width of the underside and tack welded to the frame - easy job for a local welder to do). A bit more money but will work not only for the hitch but for anything items that are too heavy to physically fit. This also allows you to place and drop the hitch directly into the rack or pucks.

https://www.harborfreight.com/12-ton-capacity-pickup-truck-bed-crane-60732.html

Decent reviews from buyers and for what I will use it for (3-4 times a year) it will meet my needs. I am interested if anyone has installed this hoist and use it to install/remove their fifth wheel hitch.

 

[COGrandDes]

Also considering the Harbor Freight in bed hoist. Requires some added bracing underneath (lots of examples on YouTube on how to do it - basically creating a rectangle from 2” square bracing that extends along the width of the underside and tack welded to the frame - easy job for a local welder to do). A bit more money but will work not only for the hitch but for anything items that are too heavy to physically fit. This also allows you to place and drop the hitch directly into the rack or pucks.

https://www.harborfreight.com/12-ton-capacity-pickup-truck-bed-crane-60732.html

Decent reviews from buyers and for what I will use it for (3-4 times a year) it will meet my needs. I am interested if anyone has installed this hoist and use it to install/remove their fifth wheel hitch.

I use a low-cost electric wench from my shop rafters as others have noted. I can drop in my B&W companion hitch assembled right into the pucks. No lifting or maneuvering. I also load/unload my 225 lb Yamaha generator the same way with the electric wench and drop it in the bed of the truck. I have no need to remove these items while I am traveling so the wench at home works awesome for me and provides lots of versatility.