5th wheel hitch and crew cab setup

[Steve Hammel]

Nothing on mine is wielded. We cut the ears that hold the "swivel bar" off the top of the 5er hitch. Bought 5/8 steel cut to length and width ($40). Had holes drilled in the new steel to match holes in the top of the 5er hitch which were widened and then bolted on with # 8 strength bolts ($50 at machine shop). Then drilled for the ball and it works like magic. I have over 4k miles on it now and couldn't be happier. I did pay $150 for a used 5er hitch because mine was a slider hitch and too bulky. I also had rails already installed from pulling my 19' Aljo. Not cheap!

[mfsray01]

As far as I can tell, nothing is adjustable on the hitch. It is either mounted with pins locking it in or off/out of the bed.

[Steve Hammel]

No bolts on the side that will line up with holes at varying heights? My Reese, and every other Reese I've seen, has bolts on the sides that allow me to raise or lower the height of the mounting platform.

[cstonick]

I'm considering a Scamp 5th wheel but I read that the side rails of the tow vehicle can't exceed 48" in height (from the ground, presumably). My 2008 F-150 has side rails 55" above the ground. Is that a showstopper? Is the only option to use a different tow vehicle?

[Darwin Maring]

cstonick - You can raise the camper.

[cstonick]

I read that I can flip the axle and get an add'l 3-1/2" and increase tires to 14" and get another 1-1/2" but that still leaves a very tight clearance between the rails and the underside of the loft, especially on driveways. Is there any other tweaks that I can consider?

[Steve Hammel]

"I read that I can flip the axle and get an add'l 3-1/2" and increase tires to 14" and get another 1-1/2" but that still leaves a very tight clearance between the rails and the underside of the loft, especially on driveways. Is there any other tweaks that I can consider?"

These are welded to the frame torsion arm type suspensions there is no flipping like on a leaf spring suspension. You can get a small amount of adjustment but not nearly enough for what you are looking at. You could switch it over to a leaf spring or possibly add some spacers and 15" wheels and tires.

[Alf S.]

Originally Posted by cstonick

I'm considering a Scamp 5th wheel but I read that the side rails of the tow vehicle can't exceed 48" in height (from the ground, presumably). My 2008 F-150 has side rails 55" above the ground. Is that a showstopper? Is the only option to use a different tow vehicle?

Hi: cstonick...Check out the Escape 5.0.Escape Trailer Industries > Home Lots of Texans towin' them with F150's. We have the Escape axle lift on our 5.0 which came with a GMC Sierra PU. We now have a Nissan 4X4 so there's even more room under the 5th.
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[cstonick]

Alf, thanks for the info and pics. I have emailed both Scamp and Escape regarding this rail height issue and can't believe either has "written off" modern 1/2 ton PU's as tows. I checked Chevys today and found their rail height comparable, so I expect there are lift kits that the manuf'rs can recommend or provide. Hopefiully that's the answer I'll get from them and then I continue blissfully thru the decision process to an ultralight 5ver.

[Darwin Maring]

I lifted our Scamp 5r when I installed a new (Bolt On) axle.
With a bolt on axle you can change it yourself in one afternoon and the 2 to 3 inch lift levels everything out really nice.

[cstonick]

Darwin, that's good news! I'm not allergic to changing the axle...I just want to know what to expect if I order one and get there expecting to pick it up and ride. What is your tow, and more to the point, what is its side rail height? And what kind of clearance do they have to the loft?

[Alf S.]

Originally Posted by cstonick

Alf, thanks for the info and pics. I have emailed both Scamp and Escape regarding this rail height issue and can't believe either has "written off" modern 1/2 ton PU's as tows. I checked Chevys today and found their rail height comparable, so I expect there are lift kits that the manuf'rs can recommend or provide. Hopefiully that's the answer I'll get from them and then I continue blissfully thru the decision process to an ultralight 5ver.

Hi: cstonick... I just remembered that Reace& Tammy of Escape Trailers actually tow a 5.0 with a F150 ecoboost 4dr. pickup. I think they were away at the fall NOG gathering over the weekend.
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[cstonick]

Alf, thanks for the info. I received a response from Scamp today that they support raising the axle and/or increasing the tire size to 14" and that the maximum side rail height from the ground for their 5er is 57"...and they will sell the unit with the desired mods, i.e. warranteed. So I guess my concern was essentially unfounded. BTW, since I'm just in the shopping phase this was my first experience with a forum like this, and the experience (you and Darwin responding so quickly) just reinforces my wanting to join this community. Thanks!

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Alf S.

I think they were away at the fall NOG gathering over the weekend.
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

Nope didn't see them

But did see a couple of 5.0s (along with a 13, a couple of 17s and a couple more 19s)

[cstonick]

Just to close this loop, I did receive a reply from Tammy at Escape:
"When we designed the Escape 5.0 we designed it to tow behind mid-sized trucks with a bed height of 54”. With all of the new truck going to a 56” bed height we have now started putting a 2” lift on the frame of the trailer which provides more than enough clearance for the Escape Fifth Wheel."
So basically, both Scamp and Escape 5er's have adapted to the current std 1/2 ton bed heights.
Thanks folks!

[Jared J]

As to the so called "fifth wheel", yes, in theory, they should be ahead of the rear axle. However, we're talking about a trailer that you could also bumper tow (weight wise). No, 6-12" behind the rear axle isn't ideal, but how can it be worse than being 3' behind it?

[cstonick]

Not sure how your reply fits. My concern was with the ground-to-top of the PU box wall height interfering with the ground-to-the bottom of the loft height of the trailer loft. That, as we'd expect, both Escape and Scamp have adapted to the increased height of this dimension in full-size PUs is good news to me, so bascially this thread (happily) turned into a "tempest in a teapot". But thanks for contributing.

[Jared J]

I was referring to the original post, not yours.

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Jared J

As to the so called "fifth wheel", yes, in theory, they should be ahead of the rear axle. However, we're talking about a trailer that you could also bumper tow (weight wise). No, 6-12" behind the rear axle isn't ideal, but how can it be worse than being 3' behind it?

Because there's weight and then there's tongue weight. In the thread http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...rld-43010.html the Scamp "tongue" has weighed anywhere between 480-680 lbs.

[Jared J]

Understood, but most anything with a bed will take that tongue weight on the bumper, and the closer you get to the rear axle, it just gets better.

My car trailer has about 400 lbs tongue weight empty, and my '89 Nissan pulled that with my race car on it, just fine.

IMHO, if moving the hitch from a few inches ahead of the axle, to a little behind the axle puts you in dangerous handling, you're already on thin ice.