Questions concerning fiberglass 5th wheels

[Ken Jr]

Ive owned many trailers both bumper pull as well as 5th and I like the 5th better. I think the 5th pull better & have no problem with the loss of room
in my truck, I still pack way to much stuff. Not sure about the diff between the BF & Scamp other than width I like the lay out of my big foot and im looking forward to camping in it when its done. As far as your dogs mine
ride's in the back seat of my dodge and if a camp ground wont let my dog in then its not where I want to be. No pets,No small FG trailers, No kids = no Ken & Judi

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by nikljones

And in looking at some of those places I'm not sure I'd want to stay there. I'm almost certain a FG fiver wouldn't qualify even brand spanking new.

I once got turned away from a campground on the Oregon coast as the brand new motorhome I was driving was only 23' - they had a requirement of only 25' or longer trailers & they had to be less than 10 years old.

[Wayne Hill]

All,
Thanks for the responses. I'm still in the market for a 5th wheel. I just realized that the 5th wheel that I was looking at is what you would term a "stickie" even though it's a BIGFOOT.(Oakland)

I've got a line on another 20 ft Bigfoot. With the height of my GMC 2500 I suspect that I would have to do a spring over in order to have enough clearance between the bottom of the overhang on the trailer and the top of the box (56 ").
Could someone tell me what the height to the bottom of the overhang would be if I do this? How does it handle? Would you do it differently> Different size tires? More lift? New springs ???

Thanks in advance

Wayne
Our dogs ride just fine in the back seat of our crew cabr - when it's folded flat. 2 dog beds, makes life comfortable for them as they can stretch right out. They pretty well travel everywhere with us - most times you wouldn't even know they are there.

[Paul O.]

If you don't mind my asking - what did you end up buying in the end? (Just curious.)

[Wayne Hill]

To date nothing.

I was close to buying a 19 foot 1985 Bigfoot 5th wheel but apparently my truck is too high to clear it without modifications to the trailer. My truck bed is 53" from the ground to the top of the sides. The seller indicated to me that I would not be able to tow it as it is too high. He could only pull it with certain truck of his.

It is a spring suspension type of trailer and it appears (from the pictures) as though the springs are tired. Maybe fresh springs with extensions? will help the height issue.

It is a fair distance away from us and I have not had the opportunity to actually look at it to see if there is any way that I can somehow prop it up higher or change the springs out right there. This would be just to get it home without wrecking something. Or maybe I can get him to tow it to a trailer dealer and have them fix it up, after I look at it of course. So it is still on the very short list.

I've also looked at a couple of other of these trailers and all of them have had numerous issues and were not, in my opinion, worth the effort or $ to rehab them.

The best apparent deals are always 1/2 way across the country! AND pictures don't always do the trailers the injustice that they deserve

I've had a wanted add in Kijiji for months now with no responses for the type of trailer that I think that I want.. Lots of responses just nothing in the molded fiberglass type.

I've also looked at several other types of trailers with rubber roofs but have decided that I am not interested in that type of trailer.

[Paul O.]

Almost three years ago I replied to an ad for a ten year old Scamp 19D. It almost went to somebody else, but his truck was too high, so I was the lucky one. Happy shopping!

[Wayne Hill]

Good morning,
The thing is, my truck is not modified, not lifted, has factory sized tires on it, etc, so pretty well stock. I would have thought that it would easily fit under most 5th wheels, apparently I was wrong. The seller won't give me an estimate of the actual clearance height that I would need to pull it home, so I don't know if maybe jacking it up, sliding a few 2x4s in the suspension to lift it would work or not. (It won't be as jury rigged as it sounds)

Could someone on here that has a Bigfoot 5th wheel trailer let me know if they pull a 5th wheel what their box height is? Or what their actual pulling height is? Or if you pull a Bigfoot what you had to do to modify it to fit over the truck.

I know that it can be modified to fit. I just have to figure out how to get it home

Wayne

[Alf S.]

Originally Posted by Wayne Hill

Good morning,
The thing is, my truck is not modified, not lifted, has factory sized tires on it, etc, so pretty well stock. I would have thought that it would easily fit under most 5th wheels, apparently I was wrong. The seller won't give me an estimate of the actual clearance height that I would need to pull it home, so I don't know if maybe jacking it up, sliding a few 2x4s in the suspension to lift it would work or not. (It won't be as jury rigged as it sounds)

Could someone on here that has a Bigfoot 5th wheel trailer let me know if they pull a 5th wheel what their box height is? Or what their actual pulling height is? Or if you pull a Bigfoot what you had to do to modify it to fit over the truck.

I know that it can be modified to fit. I just have to figure out how to get it home

Wayne

Hi: Wayne Hill... Sorry I don't have a Bigfoot or a full size truck...but I do pull a fifth wheel. The max height for an Escape 5.0TA is 54" to the top of the box sides. Our truck comes up to 49". For the larger trucks Escape has to place the axles under the springs and in severe cases add a frame lift. Our hitch plate is aprox. 46" from the ground. We have lots of clearance for turns etc.
Regards Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Wayne Hill

Good morning,
The thing is, my truck is not modified, not lifted, has factory sized tires on it, etc, so pretty well stock. I would have thought that it would easily fit under most 5th wheels, apparently I was wrong. The seller won't give me an estimate of the actual clearance height that I would need to pull it home, so I don't know if maybe jacking it up, sliding a few 2x4s in the suspension to lift it would work or not. (It won't be as jury rigged as it sounds)

Could someone on here that has a Bigfoot 5th wheel trailer let me know if they pull a 5th wheel what their box height is? Or what their actual pulling height is? Or if you pull a Bigfoot what you had to do to modify it to fit over the truck.

I know that it can be modified to fit. I just have to figure out how to get it home

Wayne

Just ask the seller what the height is from the lowest point under the loft (body or frame) when the trailer is level. Then you measure your truck box on the outside at the rear wheels. That will tell you if the bed is low enough. What it won't tell you is if the king pin will fit into the hitch without extending the pin box. But, it's a start. You aren't asking the seller for an opinion... you are asking for a measurement. I don't blame the seller for not telling you what you need.

Since your truck isn't a 4x4 and doesn't have a lift kit, you shouldn't have any problems with clearance... I think.

[Wayne Hill]

Donna,
Unfortunately (in this case) it is a 4x4. The bed (height of 34")itself, I think is low enough, the problem will be the clearance on the top of the truck sides to the bottom of the hitch pin arms on the trailer as they hangs down the farthest? Looking at Alf's (thanks for the info) picture it may be that I could get away with raising the height of the trailer up by jacking the trailer up, then blocking up the springs so that there is no more sag, letting it down and then bring it home. Then just properly by doing whatever is necessary.

My truck has the older style of box so the sides are not as high as most if not all of the newer ones. I was vey surprised when told that I would not be able to tow it with my truck due to clearance issues. Roughly figuring and measuring makes me believe that I will be able to tow it home if I set the 5th wheel hitch on the truck and trailer at its lowest or highest setting. The trailer will not be sitting at its optimum level but I think it would be doable for the 5-6 hour trip back.

I'll know better once I see and measure it for myself - providing the trailer is as advertised. No mice, water leakage, mildew, body in good condition, everything working, etc.

Does anybody have any other or better suggestions, concerns or comments that may help?

Thanks in advance
Wayne