A shattering turn of events
We've talked about sliding hitches for short bed tucks here in recent posts. Watch this video to see why they are necessary. - Jerry Brown
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
We've talked about sliding hitches for short bed tucks here in recent posts. Watch this video to see why they are necessary. - Jerry Brown
12 Comments:
I'm sure that every fifth wheel hauler has dne that at least once.
By Anonymous, at 6:37 AM
Disagree, only those who don't pay attention and try to cut corners by using the wrong mix of truck, hitch and trailer have this sort of problem. There have been endless articles about this very issue,either use a long bed truck or a sliding hitch in a short bed or be prepared to crunch the truck and/or rig as this poor guy did.
By Anonymous, at 8:07 AM
Looks are deceiving. With trailer hooked up & in a straight line with the truck, it appears that there is plenty of room for the swing. Big mistake. I used to pull a 5th wheel with a long bed and even then in a tight turn the trailer came very close. These people probably bought their trailer from a private party, because I can't imagine any dealer not informing them that a short bed without a sliding hitch will not work. Either that, or the owner just didn't believe him. Thinking that the dealer was just trying to get more money out of them. Either way, BIG MISTAKE!
By DaveB, at 8:27 AM
I bought a Pullrite Superglide hitch, so I could be SURE it would never happen to me.
By Dave, at 9:48 AM
We do not anticipate having this happen as we have a Titanium 5th wheel, which has the partial over cab design, with our short bed truck. We have a manual sliding hitch but have never felt the need to use it. Has any Titanium owner out there ever had any problems?
By Anonymous, at 6:40 PM
Come on, you just need to pay attention to what the heck you are doing. Why spend the money when good old 'situational awareness' will prevail. Watch the video, the driver is NOT paying attention to his drving, his attention is to the conversations going all around him and to 'hey look over there' comment.
By Anonymous, at 7:46 AM
All the trucks I have owned were long beds so that I will never have this type of problem towing a 5th wheel. MJ, San Diego
By Anonymous, at 2:53 PM
to drive a truck with a 5th.and not have proper mirrors to start with would also make you wonder,as well as backing up without a spotter with that quantity of people on board makes me think that this owner was just waiting for a problem to occur. To say that this has happened to everyone is lame as a little forethought is what is needed when towing. Eric Ont.Can.
By Anonymous, at 5:39 AM
He is lucky if he only does it once! We have done it three times on three different pickups!!
We now have a hitch extender, which has really helped. Of course we camp places most folks wouldn't think of camping! Really out in the wilderness!! Best place!!
By Anonymous, at 2:24 PM
My wife and I are considering purchasing a fifth wheel, how can we be sure that we are buying the right one so that this does not happen?
Also, does anyone know of a fifth wheel rating guide for consumers? We are looking at the 2007 silverbacks and Colorado's with bunks, we have little kids. Thanks
By The hawaiian dr, at 4:31 PM
We made sure our turning radius would not be a problem when we bought our fifth wheel trailer to tow with our short bed truck. It is very forunate that they were not injured. I do have one question though, who was shooting the video and why? Seems like it was a bit staged to me. Good acting though if it was.
By Anonymous, at 2:31 PM
why would anyone want to stage something like this. Here is the real answer. Any driver is responsible for knowing what a vehicle can do safely, and his level of skill. Anyone driving a vehicle like this should have this foremost in his mind every single moment behind that wheel. The first thing you should do is program yourself to the vehicle. go to a mall parking lot or similar large empty space. (after hours of course) and make some tight radius turns. paying attention to how tight you can get safely. Memorize these positions with cues and never exceed them. simple.pay attention. also, make some fast stops in practice and some mock evasive techniques (safely) before you have to perform them for real. that way you will have a good idea how your vehicle will react in real life situations. And you will know your skill level.And what you can expect if you yank the wheel suddenly. Most people overreact. If you are drivng at 60 and yank the wheel quickly and then back you can avoid a road hazard safely. Just dont overyank the thing. I know a 27 year old who is paralyzed because the driver took evasive action. She didn't want to hit poor bambil so she hit a tree instead? If you can't manuever safely, don't manuever. its common sense. hit that damn deer. it's softer than the oak tree next to the road for sure!
By Anonymous, at 10:42 AM
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