ramlovingvet

We bought our first 5th wheel and need info on Hitch placement in tghe bed of the truck. (Short Bed)<br>Thanx<br>Richard.

billnourse

Richard,<br><br>The hitch should be mounted where the 5th wheel pin is 2 inches in front of the rear axle. With the short bed pickup you might also want to consider a slider hitch.. This allows you to move the hitch back about 11 inches when turning sharp to avoid hitting the cab of the pickup with the front of the 5th wheel. <br><br>I have a 16K Reese with a slider and like it real well. I've only had to use the slider once, but it was a lifesaver, and well worth the extra 270.00<br><br>Good luck,<br><br>Bill

Big dawg

Richard,<br> Billnourse is correct, 2&quot; in front of the rear axle and I'd get the slider as well. <br>Big dawg

TPilaske

Yep, what the other two said! ;D I still have my slider hitch, even though I now have a long bed! ;D Guess I could make some really tight turns if I had too! ;D<br><br>Tony

pwabbott

Richard, What billnourse said about the slider is true. The actual position of the installed hitch will depend on underbed reinforcement members.

Here is what Reese says regarding installation of Reese KWICK SLIDE hitch in short bed trucks:
&quot;The trailer king pin should always be directly above or slightly forward of the rear truck axle when towing.&quot;

&quot;REESE suggest the use of a minimum of a 13 inch pin box extension to be able to comfortably make normal turning maneuvers with a short bed truck.&quot;

It is critical that you find the axle centerline location in your truck bed since this is the furtherest back the hitch can be mounted.

The Vallely Industries web site has has instructions for installation of their hitches in PDF format. http://www.valleyorders.com/Public/C...EEL/INDEX.HTML

In my 98 Ram 2500 my Reese Slider was positioned 1&quot; in front of the rear axle centerline due to underbed reinforcing.

Haulin_in_Dixie

Just so it is mounted ahead of the axle, the more the better, mine is four inches, handles great in slippery weather. Some of the weight needs to transfer to the steering to keep traction in bad weather. It is a scarey feeling when you turn the wheels and nothing happens, been there done that.

pwabbott

Haulin in Dixie, couldn't tell by your signature is your Ram a long or short bed? Hope it's a long bed and 8 ft wide trailer. I makes all the difference in the world in terms of clearance. On my 2003 long bed 2500 Ram the hitch pin is 3 inches ahead of axle. Hitch weight of 2100# lowers bed only 1 inch at rear axle, handles great. 8)

Haulin_in_Dixie

Yeah the truck was a long bed 2500 pulling a 50' 102 wide trailer. The trailer is 96 inches at the front. In a full 90 degree jack the trailer is two to three inches from the window. I have to watch it close as I regularly jack 90 degrees. With a trailer that long it is necessary. I converted it to dual wheels and removed the pu body. There is not more than a one inch difference between loaded and empty.