Trailer to Bedrail Clearance with 2017 Ford 350 Super Duty 4x4

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Question:

Im getting some feedback from blogs and FB about how I might have trouble using a 5th wheel trailer due to the rail height on my Super Duty. My tailgate, with back up camera, is 61inch from the ground. The tailgate open to ground is about 36.9. The box is 21inch deep. The rails to ground are 59, the tailgate being 2 inches higher for camera, I suppose. Im being told that I wont be able to maintain the necessary 5 to 6inch clearance from trailer to tailgate/rails. I bought the Q24 from you folks but was ill for quite a while and I never mounted the hitch. Now Im a bit nervous, as a newbie, about finding a trailer that will have clearance. Can you enlighten me?

asked by: Steve

1

Helpful Expert Reply:

Pickups are getting taller (at the bed rails) and tire sizes are increasing. Both of these truck attributes, along with lift kits, can make it difficult to maintain safe trailer-to-truck clearances for 5th wheel towing.

We do have a specialized replacement 5th wheel tailgate designed to improve pin box clearance at the tailgate, Stromberg Carlson's composite plastic louvered model # VG-15-4000 which fits your F-350, but this does not address the matter of bedrail clearance (or your OEM camera). The linked diagram shows the recommended minimum clearances for 5th wheel towing.

The most common fix to improve/increase bed rail clearance is a trailer axle over-under kit. These are sometimes called an "axle flip" kit. We offer two such products, kit # K71-384-00 for 2-3/8-inch diameter axles and kit # K71-385-00 for 3-inch diameter axles. Each kit will raise the trailer by the sum of the axle diameter plus the height of the leaf spring stack. So for example, if you installed two of kit # K71-385-00 on a tandem axle trailer with 3-inch tall leaf springs you would pick up 6-inches total height.

When using an over-under kit it may be necessary to adjust the height position of the pin box on the trailer's mounting wings; keeping the hitched trailer level remains a priority for good handling.

expert reply by: Adam R

1

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Answer 1

You will have to go with a sliding hitch to allow the trailer to make tight turns. For a trailer 8 feet wide the only bed length that's going to allow 90 degree turns without a slider is a stationary hitch. That being said you have two options.…

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Answer 2

The OEM prep package consists of 4 "pucks" in the bed of the truck that will allow you to drop in puck style hitches for easy installation and removal, that gives you a completely clear bed when not in use. The B&W Companion OEM 5th…

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Answer 3

Choosing the right height setting for your 5th wheel hitch is a combination of a few different variables. First of all you want your towing setup to be as level as possible. With your Montana High Country 340BH level you will want to measure from the…

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Answer 4

I spoke to my contact at Horizon Global. He said it is acceptable to mount the Bulldog Powered-Drive Kit #BD1824200100 to the slave jack itself. He also said that if you need to switch the motor wires to make it work correctly, that would be fine, as…

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Answer 5

The length of wire desired depends on your vehicle connection and your personal preference. You want enough slack for turning, but not so much for dragging as you mentioned. A little extra slack isn't a problem and not enough could lead to stress…

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Answer 6

It could be a tow package fuse on the vehicle. Use the owners manual to find the locations of fuses/relays related to the tow package wiring to check them and replace as needed. If the issue is not a fuse or relay then you can test the vehicle side…

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Answer 7

Since the issue appears to be on the vehicle side for your 2017 Toyota Tacoma, I recommend first checking the connector itself. Look to see if there is any dirt or corrosion built up inside the connector that may preventing a solid connection with…

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Answer 8

I've never heard of an actual third brake light connector on a camper shell to plug in on a truck and we don't carry any parts to do that. The light generally needs to be hardwired into the truck's brake light circuit. The issue with this…

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Answer 9

I did some checking and the hub/drum we offer that will work for you is the part #8-430-5UC3. This uses the same bearings as the 8-415 and will be an exact fit aside from the fact this is a non-ABS setup and the 8-415 came in an ABS setup and non-ABS…

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Answer 10

The old version of the #HBA-CAM used 4 wires, but the product was updated awhile back and now uses only two wires as shown in the photo on the product description page. The white wire from the HBA-CAM would tap into the white ground wire and the blue…

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Answer 11

The squeaking noise on your trailer is probably coming from the joints in the suspension creating metal to metal friction. So, unless your original Equa-Flex Cusioned Equalizers are damaged or corroded, what will make the biggest difference is to…

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Answer 12

You will need the Red LED Trailer Clearance or Side Marker Light #328-K-52 or Amber LED Trailer Clearance or Side Marker Light #328-K-51 for your 2018 Forest River Sunseeker motorhome. These lenses have the same Top Command SAE-AP2-16 markings on the…

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Trailer to Bedrail Clearance with 2017 Ford 350 Super Duty 4x4

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