I'm really starting to think hard about a 5th wheel upgrade from my bumper pull Grey Wolf 27RR, and I do have my sights set on a Raptor 362 floorplan since it's the floorplan that checks the most boxes on our wish list. That being said, I started looking at the supporting accessories I'm going to need for going 5th wheel and at the top of that list is a 5th wheel hitch.
I have zero experience with 5th wheels or Goosenecks. I installed the factory puck system/gooseneck myself after purchasing the truck so I'm going to want to go with a hitch that utilizes that setup. My truck is a short bed, so if I went with a conventional 5th wheel hitch I'm thinkin' I'd have to go with a big heavy auto slider. I'm hoping to avoid that. This is something I'd probably only use a couple times a year, and the rest of the time I'd want it out of my bed, and I don't want to need to have to phone a friend every time I gotta put the hitch in or take it out. So I was looking at lighter simpler alternatives.
I did consider a goosebox, I see now that one of the companies makes an offset ball for the factory gooseneck which is great, but I also read goosebox setups put a lot of extra bad physics and stress on the frame of the 5th wheel which is no good either. I've been reading plenty about the trash that's rolling off RV assembly lines the past decade, and I don't want to give their garbage welds any more excuses to fail than they already have. I also happened to be talking to my father the other day about the poor build quality on new RV's, and he was a regional sales rep for a few different welding companies (Linde, Cyberweld, ESAB) for over 30 years, and he said he remembers going to Trailer factories in PA and being blown away by the garbage frame welds they were laying down on the production line.
But back on topic, I ultimately landed on the Curt Crosswing. Seems like a great solution for being lightweight and easy to use. I figured that would be the direction I would go in, until I saw some posts the other day on the Andersen Ultimate 5th wheel hitch. I know these hitches are not exactly the same, but they're similar concepts of light weight easy to use setups. The Curt does look more robust, and it does weigh twice as much as the Andersen, so it may be totally fine, but I was hoping to get some opinions from those here on the forum with more 5th wheel experience. Thanks.
I have zero experience with 5th wheels or Goosenecks. I installed the factory puck system/gooseneck myself after purchasing the truck so I'm going to want to go with a hitch that utilizes that setup. My truck is a short bed, so if I went with a conventional 5th wheel hitch I'm thinkin' I'd have to go with a big heavy auto slider. I'm hoping to avoid that. This is something I'd probably only use a couple times a year, and the rest of the time I'd want it out of my bed, and I don't want to need to have to phone a friend every time I gotta put the hitch in or take it out. So I was looking at lighter simpler alternatives.
I did consider a goosebox, I see now that one of the companies makes an offset ball for the factory gooseneck which is great, but I also read goosebox setups put a lot of extra bad physics and stress on the frame of the 5th wheel which is no good either. I've been reading plenty about the trash that's rolling off RV assembly lines the past decade, and I don't want to give their garbage welds any more excuses to fail than they already have. I also happened to be talking to my father the other day about the poor build quality on new RV's, and he was a regional sales rep for a few different welding companies (Linde, Cyberweld, ESAB) for over 30 years, and he said he remembers going to Trailer factories in PA and being blown away by the garbage frame welds they were laying down on the production line.
But back on topic, I ultimately landed on the Curt Crosswing. Seems like a great solution for being lightweight and easy to use. I figured that would be the direction I would go in, until I saw some posts the other day on the Andersen Ultimate 5th wheel hitch. I know these hitches are not exactly the same, but they're similar concepts of light weight easy to use setups. The Curt does look more robust, and it does weigh twice as much as the Andersen, so it may be totally fine, but I was hoping to get some opinions from those here on the forum with more 5th wheel experience. Thanks.
