Preferred Hitches

BobandMary · 02-04-2019, 09:30 PM

Do you have a preferred hitch for towing? I am currently towing with a 26K Husky in the bed of a 2016 Chevy 3500 DRW. The DRV has the MorRyde IS and a MorRyde pinbox and weighs 18K empty. What are the benefits vs the drawbacks? I have heard of Trailer Saver and the Comfort Ride hitches but I don't know anyone who has either.

Cummins12V98 · 02-05-2019, 05:04 AM

I personally like the B&W hitches. HUSKY are LOW on my list of quality standard hitches.

Is there something wrong with how your setup tows?

NOT impressed with Comfort Ride! If going to a air type hitch the TrailerSaver is the way to go.

Honestly adding air bags to your truck and setting them at around 30psi and changing your shocks to Bilstein 4600's will do wonders for the ride!!! BEFORE doing anything else do this!!!

golf_bears · 02-05-2019, 12:22 PM

Last September I purchased a new 2019 Ford F-450. I had the Trailer Saver BD5 installed in the bed. Getting a great ride, you can just see the RV floating as you travel down the road.

I had a 2008 Ford F-450 in which I had the Trailer Saver TS3 installed, was great ride also.

In the new truck I decided to go with the BD5 because of the vertical height adjustment and the fact that it comes in two pieces and makes it easier to remove if needed. With the newer trucks, the bed heights are higher therefore getting the “bed rail to RV nose” clearance can be an issue. The BD5 can be easily adjusted vertically by removing a few bolts. The TS3 needs riser bars at a cost of about $200 for the proper set.

The BD5 is rated at 28,000 lbs. and the TS3 is rated at 32,000 lbs. I have a 2017 MS 39 DBRS3 with a GVWR of 20,500 lbs. so the BD5 works out great for me.

I also installed the “In Cab” BD5 air compressor controls, comes in real handy when needing to adjust the air pressure. I have a downward sloping driveway so getting the RV down is an issue. I need to air up the hitch to clear the high point in the drive way so the RV nose doesn’t contact the truck rails. Then I need to air down the hitch so the RV rear hitch doesn’t drag on the concrete.

I also have the Air Lift air bags with the wireless control on the truck. This combo, bags + the BD5, gives me a great ride and they are both controllable from inside the truck cab.

All in all, this setup works great for me. If you need additional information, PM me and I’ll give you my phone number so we can chat further.

MTK46 · 02-05-2019, 06:40 PM

My 20k Curt is now in its third F-350 and doing just fine. Bought it back in 2005. Hasn't been used steady over that time. I towed with a gooseneck in a FL60 I had for two years. Also had a MH for two summers.

BobandMary · 02-05-2019, 10:55 PM

Improving the ride of the RV is my primary interest but a better seat of the pants experience would be a plus. While the Morryde IS makes a BIG difference over an axle/spring suspension, I am looking for the best way to best isolate the RV from the truck and the road. Air bags for the truck are not something that I have thought about. My misconception was that they were strictly for “leveling” an overloaded, squatting tow vehicle. Thanks for the eye opener on the benefits they can provide to ride quality. More research needed!

I have noticed that quite a few DRV owners use Trailer Saver hitches. Two-piece hitches are the only ones I would consider as I have to remove the hitch periodically and the hitch gets heavier with every passing year. My concern with the air ride hitches is do you have any issue with “rebound” or “bounce” from the air bladder? While they are quite different, I had issues with air ride pin boxes in the past and I don’t want to go through that again.

If you had to choose one, air bags on the truck or an air ride hitch, which would you choose first? Which made the biggest difference?

Golf_bears, while I’m happy that I don’t have your driveway issue, it appears that you have a well thought out solution. I didn't plan ahead for a 42' RV so I have a carefully choreographed "dance" to turn it around in driveway between my house and my shop!

MTK46 · 02-06-2019, 10:51 AM

I had air bags on my 2012 F-350 SRW truck. I have the trail-air hitch on the M.S.
Air bag on the 5th wheel hitch is my pick hands down. Oh and my Curt is a two piece hitch. Fact with the reese adaptor my hitch is a three piece set-up. I never remove the adaptor though.

Cummins12V98 · 02-06-2019, 01:04 PM

BobandMary get your truck ride the best it can be FIRST!!! Then decide if you really need a different hitch.

Night and day difference with bags and new Bilsteins.

porthole · 02-07-2019, 01:18 PM

My experience.

I have the same driveway issue, and with the crown of the road it is amplified.
I have to dump the hitch air and truck air to enter the driveway and then once all the wheels are on the driveway I air both up to clear the rails when I get to the top where I park.

Even with that the rear overhang was so much for the first 4 months of traveling I was running up on boards to get in and out of the driveway. Final workaround was 12' long, 3 boards high and 10" wide, along with spacers under the gaps. Heavy and awkward.

Eventually had wheels welded on to the trailer hitch. That helps a lot and fortunately we have a concrete driveway, so the wheels only leave marks, not gouges.

My F-350 with the previous trailer and only about 400 pounds less pin weight had a horrible ride with certain trailer loads (was a toy hauler).
What I found was that when the ride was bad due to loading it was that the frame was just hitting the overload brackets, and hammering.

On my next truck unless I can afford a Kelderman I will probably remove the overloads and supplement with bags.

Something else to consider. At Hershey last year Classy Chassis had one of their bodies on a Ram 5500. Was a nice truck except for the plain white paint.
Tom (the owner) had changed the rear suspension. I don't remember the exact numbers, but he removed like 5-7 leafs from the spring pack and then used air bags to supplement the suspension for loading. He said it gave the ride of a 1500 unladed and still carried the weight.

I have a TS-3 and I like the concept, I just don't like the lack of grease fittings, availability of parts and the general overall attitude of the guy who runs it, Aaron.

When all is good it is gives the trailer a cushioned ride, resulting in a less harsh ride of the truck.

I have made a few changes to the TS-3 and one of them is the ability of raising the hitch to gain about 4-6 inches of extra clearance of the bed rails when needed.

Cummins12V98 · 02-07-2019, 01:32 PM

With a standard sprung rear axle you want to be riding on the overloads, not bouncing on and off of them.

porthole · 02-07-2019, 03:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cummins12V98

With a standard sprung rear axle you want to be riding on the overloads, not bouncing on and off of them.

Saying and doing are two different things. Not easy to maintain the optimum overload load if you don't know what that is.

And on the overloads the truck still sagged too much in the rear.

Cummins12V98 · 02-07-2019, 06:24 PM

OK, is this truck "SAGGING" ?

jsum24 · 02-09-2019, 12:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cummins12V98

OK, is this truck "SAGGING" ?

Looks good Cummins!!

Some guys KNOW everything...........

Cummins12V98 · 02-09-2019, 12:42 PM

Just a general statement, nothing personal. I don't do the Friend request thingy.

BobandMary · 02-09-2019, 01:25 PM

Thanks guys! We brought the RV home from having some warranty work done yesterday. I paid attention during the 230 mile ride home and I'm certain that I'm staying on the overloads.

I am going to take a hard look at air bags and will probably add a set. I can see how that could really help with the bounce when we hit the bridge approach slabs and then the bridge ends. I may add the Bilsteins also. I wanted to wait and get a little more wear out of the stock shocks but if it makes a difference I'm all for it.

Cummins12V98 · 02-09-2019, 04:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobandMary

Thanks guys! We brought the RV home from having some warranty work done yesterday. I paid attention during the 230 mile ride home and I'm certain that I'm staying on the overloads.

I am going to take a hard look at air bags and will probably add a set. I can see how that could really help with the bounce when we hit the bridge approach slabs and then the bridge ends. I may add the Bilsteins also. I wanted to wait and get a little more wear out of the stock shocks but if it makes a difference I'm all for it.

On my 11 DRW pictured above I dumped the stock shocks at an early mileage and added the Bilstien's. I also added PacBrake bags and set them to 30psi LOADED.

First pic is with no bags with 4,500# pin weight. Second pic is with bags at 30psi. The ride height did not change but the ride quality was AMAZING after!!!

Do it you WILL thank me!

Notanlines · 02-10-2019, 06:34 AM

"Just a general statement, nothing personal. I don't do the Friend request thingy."
Where did that come from, and what is a friend request?

Cummins12V98 · 02-10-2019, 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Notanlines

"Just a general statement, nothing personal. I don't do the Friend request thingy."
Where did that come from, and what is a friend request?

Guess it did not apply to you.

I had a Friend Request, figured without calling anyone out I just made a simple statement.

If I replied NO it would not explain why. Guess I could have sent a PM but hey may as tell everyone I have enough FRIENDS!

Notanlines · 02-10-2019, 03:54 PM

I don’t know what it’s for, but I suspect it is more for the Facebook crowd. So that one can sit in a restaurant with all your friends, stare at your phone the whole time, and try to get everyone to look at the “Uncle Phil does a backflip in his undies” picture.
But i digress, sorry.

clev · 02-23-2019, 09:21 AM

I'm one of the few that uses a Gooseneck. I've never had a fifth wheel prior to this one and know nothing about typical 5th wheel hitches. But I do know that they are heavy, cumbersome, and take up space in the bed of the truck. In a lot of other forums, and a few trucks that I've ridden in with a 5, there's a lot of complaining about clunking going on. My Gooseneck is MorRyde and DRV approved, makes no noise, disappears when the trailer is unhooked, and I cannot imagine a better towing experience. Initially, I did notice some slippage in the joints that are secured with large bolts, but after I got it where I want it, I brought in a welder and he sealed/welded both joints all the way around.