If you’re a 5th wheel owner with a short bed truck, we probably don’t have to tell you about the clearance issue between the front of your rig and the cab of your tow vehicle. For those of you thinking of towing a 5th wheel trailer with a short bed truck...be aware, be very aware! Certain hitch and pin box combinations can reach a point in a turn where the front of the rig will hit the rear of the cab. There are many products to keep this contact from happening. One such product is the RV5 pin box extension. The folks at PopUp Industries have developed just about every product for you to get the reach, turning radius, or pin conversion you need for your trailer. So for all of you that just need a few extra inches of clearance, the RV5 may be just what the doctor ordered. The way it works is really quite simple: the RV5 slides over the kingpin located at the front of your trailer. Then a steel collar with two bolts is placed around your OEM pin under the RV5 and secured. The collar has four large allen head screws that you tighten from the bottom up. This causes the new pin box to lock down flat and level. Now your new pin location is about ten inches in front of and about three and a half inches below its old location. This is where you would adjust your factory pin box height if bed rail clearance is an issue. The adjustment is usually only needed on lifted trucks, but you should always double check.
At this point you have to decide how to eliminate any side to side movement of the new extension; your options are to either drill or weld. The RV5 comes with twelve pre-drilled holes for you to bolt the new extension to the factory pin box. Since not all pin boxes are the same you will have to verify a couple of things to use the bolt-on option. First, is the perimeter of the factory box flat all the way around or is it “swept” up in the front and back? If it’s swept, it will need to have a stitch weld placed in those spots for extra safety. Second, if the thickness of the old box where you plan to drill the holes is less than one quarter inch thick, it should be welded on, rather than bolted.
With that step out of the way, you should now have the extra clearance you need to make your turns. Always “test” your clearance with the help of a friend. Go to a parking lot or large area where you can put the maximum turn on the tow-vehicle. Have your friend stand at a safe distance with a good view of the trailer and the rear cab of the truck. Now slowly apply the maximum turn on the tow-vehicle to ensure that you have the clearance you need.
For more information on the RV5 and the many other conversion products offered by Pop-Up industries you can visit them online at www.popuphitch.com or you can call toll free at 1-800-837-8578.
-THM
