Converting Fifth wheel to gooseneck?

[1slow01Z71]

Any difference in how it pulls? Ive got a B&W hitch right now and I might be picking up a 5er for the deer lease, its cheaper to convert the tongue to gooseneck then buying the companion for my hitch. Is there any benefits other then saving me a few bucks, or any downfalls to not running a 5er hitch? If its worth the money to get the 5er hitch then I will but if its all the same then well Ill spend the extra 200 bucks on beer

 

[Mike]

Just harder to hook up and disconnect as far as draw backs. If the goose neck is a well constructed one in the bed, you'll notice extra bounces will be gone.

 

[JoshH]

From what I hear, changing a fifth wheel to a goose neck is hard on the frame as there is more leverage on it than there is with a fifth wheel pin. I'm not sure I would risk it.

 

[kodiak]

A lot will depend on the size and weight of the camper. If it is just a small 26-28' deer camp rig, then I would say its good to go. If its a 40' toy hauler with some quads in the back garage...it would stress the crap out of the front frame.

I have used both types with 5 of my campers I have owned.

 

[1slow01Z71]

It cant be too bad on them I see it all the time here. Im also not going to be pulling it all over the place either. My deer lease is a little over an hour away and the place where we go camping on the river is about an hour away too. No cross country trips with it. Ill probably just end up getting a companion for my B&W but I figured Id ask.

 

[Renntag]

Just harder to hook up and disconnect as far as draw backs.

Which? The 5th wheel or the goose?
I have a goose and its a breeze to hook up. I have never used a 5th wheel.

If the goose neck is a well constructed one in the bed, you'll notice extra bounces will be gone.

Is there a performance difference between the two?
I see larger capacity numbers for goose hitches than 5th wheel types. (currently shopping for a GN for my Dmax.

 

[Mike]

Which? The 5th wheel or the goose?
I have a goose and its a breeze to hook up. I have never used a 5th wheel.



Is there a performance difference between the two?
I see larger capacity numbers for goose hitches than 5th wheel types. (currently shopping for a GN for my Dmax.

A breeze for some is a pain for others. Not being able to line up the ball with the coupler. Ie, out and back into the truck, use of balls to line as backing. I my self have a mechanical coupler to back into that helps line things up a bit if I'm close. With long wheel base trucks short bed and long bed, seeing the ball is a b&&&h.


With a traditional fifth wheel yes there is a performance difference between the two. A standard fifth wheel tends to have a couple of extra bumps when hitting a bump or traveling over rough highway. A firm gooseneck hookup with a well built fifth wheel to gooseneck adapter takes that out. As mentioned before, some campers/trailers can't take the slight added leverage created with adapters.

 

[Subman]

One thing with a goose neck on a short bed is the high probably of hitting the back of the cab on a very tight turn. I just bought a 36' inclosed goose neck trailer to haul the race truck and that was a problem. I found a site called Tweety's.com that sells extenders to move the goose neck back 16" to solve this problem. $299 shipped.

 

[nuffsaid]

If your 5er has an extended hitch, I would stay away from the gooseneck adapter. Been there done that with my 32' holiday rambler. Even with a heavy built front frame, there was a lot of flexing and sometimes it even set up a harmonic on rough roads and would jerk the truck around. I built my own version of a companion hitch to use with an ox hitch gooseneck and mated a curt 16k 5th wheel plate to it worked great. Now I just installed a flatbed and have modded the plate to fit on top of the bed. Now I just need to lift the trailer about 2" to get it back to level.

 

[lawnboy01]

I made my own gooseneck hitch for my camper. The biggest advantage I can see, is not having the big 5th wheel plate in back of the truck.

 

[malibu795]

hitchpoint is the biggest dif.

5th wheel is 14-18" above the frame with anywere form 1500-3000lb
GN 2-4"
alot of the 5ver come with GN as an option

some say run 5th cause that is what the big rigs run

the lowest rated GN iirc is 5,000/20,000 bolt in plate to 7500/30,000 like a B&W/reese mounted directly to the framerail vs 1/4"plat in the bed with bolts on 14ga steel. and not directly attached to the frame.

towing 18k both with a 5thwheel setup then swap out the adater for a GN. pin load was 3500lb.. dropping the pivot point ~16" setled the truck so much it want funny. if i can i will never tow 5th hitch style again. less on a semi

here is the front pic of my brothers GN dump trailer. 21,000lb worth of axles weighs 6,000lb empty and GN.. mind you he has wreck 2 trucks. infront of this last winter. never bent it. the wieght he hauls daily ~16k of cargo you would be darn near stupid with a 5ver IMO so it takes little more fenise to hook up... no more then it take to hook up a tag trailer. :booty:

 

[Turbotug]

B&W hitch with a Gooseneck toyhauler here. The trailer was home built (by the PO) but, on an almost daily basis I'm real glad there isn't a 5v'er hitch in my bed..

IMO, if you only tow it a few times a year I'd pick the least expensive route.

 

[FIREFIGHTER 503]

One more thing to consider, the higher the hitch point, the more leverage your trailer has on the truck, hence if you ever jack knife, the fifth wheel hookup has a better chance of rolling the truck.

 

[skiandplay101]

Mine works great

 

[username taken]

Just a thought - with the offset gooseneck adapter, you put the pinbox frame DIRECTLY over your bed rails. Uneven pavement means expensive bodywork. If you have a short bed, I recommend 5th with a slider.

If you have a long bed, the GN is a much more secure hitching option. I've had both, and wish I had a GN hitch right now instead of the 5er. I got my 5er hitch cheap, so I didn't go back to the GN, but the 5er has alot more squeaks, thumps, bumps, and rattles than the GN did. Plus the bedrails make the bed pretty useless for hauling cargo, never mind that big hitch sitting back there.

Next time GN for me, though I do worry about the additional stress on the pin box of the trailer.

 

[Stove]

I think I paid $700 for my companion somewhere online, maybe ebay. Not sure what it will cost to convert it over.

 

[Econn2000]

I had a '78 Holiday 32ft that came factory with an "inverted 5th wheel." With a flip-over Kingpin/gooseneck ball, it was a great set-up! Why can't I find this option now? It makes no sense to me what-so-ever to have an 80lb piece of steel always taking up your bed!

 

[moore428]

Found out the other day that you can roll a goose neck over on it's side. Not pretty.
A 5th wheel probably wouldn't have. A 5th wheel might carry tongue weight better too.

 

[Firescooby]

Many fifth wheel campers frame warranty will be voided with a gooseneck adapter (most actually).

Also be cautious with the extended necks. This really throws the weight further back, making weight distribution different and a worse towing experience.

I just bought a 18 month old 16k sliding 5th wheel hitch off Craigslist for $100.

 

[kupitz]

OK...this might be a stupid question, but I'll ask anyway....I just bought a truck with a GN hitch, I currently tow a regular camper but considered a bigger toyhauler. What are the advantages/disadvantages of both. I realize not having the 5th wheel plate is a big one, but is one preferred over the other?