Question on 5th Wheels

[Legacy Posts]

I see that Scamp makes a neat little 5th Wheel and perhaps others do, too. I heard once that people can legally ride in 5th Wheels. Is this true? Do they-- the 5th Wheels, not the people-- come equipped with factory seatbelts and all?

Thanks,

Kitty

[Legacy Posts]

I don't know if you can or can't legally ride in a 5th wheel travel trailer. BUT, it would not be a option for me. I that seen travel trailers which have been in accidents and it is someplace I would not want to be. Usually there is nothing left of them. If any state does permit it, they should change their laws. If you want to ride in your travel vehicle, consider a motor home.
Pat

[Legacy Posts]

Orginally posted by parmm
I don't know if you can or can't legally ride in a 5th wheel travel trailer. BUT, it would not be a option for me. I that seen travel trailers which have been in accidents and it is someplace I would not want to be. Usually there is nothing left of them.

Thanks, Pat. I appreciate your insight. I've got a truck as well as a mini, so I got to wondering if the truck could be a comfortable tow vehicle. Sounds like it's not a safe option.

Kitty

[Legacy Posts]

I was surprised to learn that my state doesn't outlaw riding in trailers, but I don't think I would want to for the very reason Pat mentioned. No wait, I believe it's the other way around. (thanks George) Well, It's one or the other, but I'm not riding in one either way. :crazy-ii

[Legacy Posts]

Every trailer owner should have a Trailer Life Directory! (Mostly for the extensive guide to campgrounds.)

But answers to questions like this are are available on a couple of pages entitled ''Rules of the Road and Towing Laws.''

Riding in fifth wheels and travel trailers is ok in a few states and provinces. Some have explicit requirements, such as two-way communication. But it still isn't safe, IMNSHO!

By the way, Janifer, you can go out to California and buy that Boler on ebay, then tow it home, where triple towing is allowed! (Of course I don't know what you'd do about those states you have to cross to get home.) And then your signature could read ''Towsyellowtrailerwithyellowtrailerwithyellowesca pe'' Sorry, JJ, again, I just got carried away.

:conf :huh :quiet :shg

[Legacy Posts]

Hi All
My 0.2Cents Cdn worth.I feel that to have people in trailer while being pulled Is totally stupid,Wheather it is legal or not.Those few people that I have seen doing this usually have their KIDS in there.As said previously,the trailers I have seen in my life time that were in accidents are normally Beyone repair.Think of person in there.
Thats my feelings.I didn't write this to affend anyone.Each to there own.:wave

[Legacy Posts]

HoooKAY. I get the picture. I have only seen the inside of a 5th wheel once, and was told that they-- unlike conventional trailers-- were safe for underway occupancy, much like motorhomes. Sounds like this was salestalk and not reality.

Back to looking for something I can drag behind the minivan.:r

Thanks,

Kitty

[Legacy Posts]

Then there was the time I pulled into a big TT dealer hunting a little TT for my Escape. Being the person I am I asked if I could pull that big 5th wheel with my Escape. they said they could put the hitch riight on top for me. of course we both knew we were joking. but I tell you that sucker would have turned on a dime.

[Legacy Posts]

about 5th wheels. There is some legal opinion that 5th wheels are safe to ride in. There are a number of states that allow it. Is it safe? Are motorcycles safe? Are convertibles safe? Is bungee-jumping safe? Are chain saws safe? You'll have to decide what risks are acceptable to yourself. HOWEVER, please understand why they think 5th wheels are safe. A bumper hitch is a fairly small connection, bolted to a possibly-not-too-solid bumper. A frame hitch bolts right to the frame, and is very solid. The law assumes the worst case, and dis-allows riding in a rear-hitch mounted vehicle.

Fifth wheels, on the other hand, specify that they are to be bolted, not TO the truck bed, but THROUGH the truck bed, and then to the frame. I've seen way too many 5th wheel hitches just bolted to the sheet metal of the truck bed, not to the frame. This isn't safe to tow with, IMHO, let alone ride in the back of. However, if the hitch is securely fastened to the truck frame, it is indeed a secure mounting, and you then have to just weigh the risks of how much protection will the camper give me, and am I comfortable with that?

By the way, the same argument applies to riding in a motor home. Just how much protection do you believe that flimsy 2x2 stick built coach-box is going to give you in a roll-over? I remember seeing a motor-home one time, scattered over about a 1/4 mile stretch of road, and the frame/chassis was sitting by itself, with not a shred of motor-home still attached to it.

[Legacy Posts]

Good point, Paul, That fear was with me the entire time, but it didn't keep me from riding/drive in the thing (motorhome) Somewhere in these post (from PineconeDon I beleive) there is a picture of a 5th wheel trailer with a pickup on it upside down (that would make it under it not on it, :yep) well anyway, the hitch ball cracked in two. so the trailer came off. scarry

[Legacy Posts]

Howdy....The only other RV that I owned was a converted school bus which I did. I assumed it was safer than a regular motorhome because I had a front engine and all steel body. Seen too many stick built motor homes and trailers littered all over the highways during accidents. So much for my opinion.... Benny