Want a premium, US-made hitch that can be removed to leave your bed totally free? Check. Need a slider to get you through those tight turns? Check. How about the option of towing a gooseneck trailer when you're done with the camper? You got it.
Features:
Specs:
Note: This fifth-wheel trailer hitch is not compatible with Sidewinder or Revolution king pins. Do not use any device that changes the pivot point of your trailer's king pin with this hitch.
With the Companion from B&W, you get a heavy-duty fifth-wheel trailer hitch that mounts in your truck bed by connecting directly to the included Turnoverball gooseneck hitch. No modifications are required to your truck or trailer. And no additional parts are required for the system to work. When you're done towing, the Companion can be removed for complete bed access.
The included Turnoverball serves as a sturdy, custom base for installing the Companion in the bed of your truck, but it's also one of the most recognizable gooseneck hitches on the market.
Gooseneck Specs:
With the B&W Turnoverball underbed gooseneck trailer hitch you get the best of both worlds. When you go to tow a gooseneck trailer, the Turnoverball creates a sturdy, dependable connection with your trailer. And when you're done towing, you can stow the ball upside down in the hitch to get full bed access and a clean appearance. When you're ready to tow your fifth wheel trailer, just install the Companion in the ball hole in place of the gooseneck ball and lock the post in place using the built-in handle. You can remove the fifth wheel when you're done towing, leaving your truck bed open once again.
This kit is custom designed for your vehicle. The mounting brackets bolt to existing holes in your truck's frame. While some modification is required - you will need to cut a 4" diameter hole in your bed for the hitch ball and drill holes for the built-in safety chain loops - there is no need to weld onto or to drill into your frame.
Once you have the brackets and center section installed, set up the operating handle. This handle is designed to be accessed from the rear driver's-side wheel well. On the end of the handle is the heavy-duty steel pin that secures the mounting post of the Companion (or the base of the gooseneck hitch ball).
The 1" thick jaw on the Companion is precision machined to provide a tight, sturdy connection. And unlike slide-bar models, the rounded 2-piece jaw on this fifth-wheel trailer hitch inhibits rattle and movement by securely wrapping around your trailer's king pin, resulting in easier hookup and a safer, quieter ride.
In addition to the sturdy jaw, the Companion has durable polyurethane bushings built in to provide a smoother, more comfortable towing experience. These bushings sit on top of the pivot arms that support the fifth-wheel head. Because the head is resting on a padded area, it is able to pivot without clanking. The ability of the head to pivot - both front to back and side to side - along with the trailer also helps to limit the chucking that may occur with a more static hitch.
The dual jaw on the Companion is operated by a simple-to-use cam-action handle. This handle allows you to quickly and easily release the jaws on the hitch, even if you are on uneven terrain. If any binding does occur between your truck and trailer, the jaws may remain closed after you move the handle to the open position. But because the handle is unlatched, there is nothing keeping the jaws closed except for the binding pressure. Therefore, simply driving your truck forward will be enough to force the jaws to open.
The cam-action handle is held in the closed position with the included pin and clip. For extra security, you can replace the pin with a sturdy padlock. The shackle on the lock you choose should have a diameter of 5/16", height of 3", and a width of 2-1/4".
Most often used on trucks with 6' beds, a slider helps to eliminate clearance problems during slow-speed turns. When you are towing a fifth-wheel trailer, your hitch must be situated on the cab side of your truck's rear axle. However, at slow speeds you can use a slider to slide the fifth-wheel hitch (and the trailer) toward your truck's tailgate and past the rear axle, creating enough space between the cab of your truck and the trailer to permit less-restricted turning.
The slider that is built into the base of the Companion allows for 12" of fore and aft travel to give you the clearance you need.
The Companion's pivot arms are what allow the hitch to be adjusted front to back as well as up and down for optimal positioning. As a result, this hitch can accommodate the height of your trailer and also help to give you some additional cab clearance. To adjust either the height of the hitch or the fore/aft positioning, just attach the hitch's pivot arms in the desired location on the base.
The hitch head installs on top of the pivot arms. When you have the head in position, simply secure it to the arms with the included pins.
Alternate Instructions
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
Hello, neighbors! It's Brad here at etrailer, and today we're taking a look at a replacement BMW sliding base for your 5th wheel companion. Now, if you are taking a look at this, chances are that you probably already have a BMW receiver and you wanting to either change this up because you went from a long bed to a short bed, or maybe you just want a little bit of adjustability and you want to upgrade your old system. Either way, this is gonna be a great option to be able to just get this without having to buy the whole 5th wheel kit itself. And so, it's gonna be pretty simple in the fact that it's still gonna use your companion receiver head here and it's gonna drop on just the same. So if you are upgrading or replacing a damaged slider base, this is gonna go on just the same as you would on your previous one. That's gonna drop in and just grab your pins in place now.
That's pretty easy. You get your receiver on and you're ready to hook up and tow. Now, some of the things that make this stand out, if you haven't had a sliding base before, it's possible that when towing a camper, you've gotten pretty close to the cab corners on your truck, especially if it's a short bed. Well, that's the glory of this, is that it actually slides it back. You actually get 12 inches of movement to play with and that saves you from hitting your cab corner one time while turning.
I think that's cheap insurance. Now, also, if you have a long bed or just a regular bed truck and you actually want to adjust where the king pin is going to attach to, not only can you slide this with the pull of the handle to get that perfect spot, it also locks in place when you get it there, but you also have points of adjustment here where when you bolt these in, where your receiver sits, you actually have three points of height adjustability on that as well. And you can rotate it to give you a little offset as well, so you have tons of adjustability with this setup, allowing you to custom cater to whatever you're towing. Now, as far as your weight capacities, things are gonna stay the same with those BMW companion and that's gonna be that 20,000 pound gross trailer weight, and then you have a pin weight of 5,000 pounds. Now you're also gonna want to check to make sure that your Gooseneck kit itself can handle that as well as the truck that you're using to pull it and take the lowest of those numbers to make sure that you're not overextending any of those and keeping you safe.
Now, a lot of our customers had said on our website that this has been a really great option as they went from a long bed to a short bed. And as I've seen vehicles come in for installations that are regular beds without a slider, some of these cab corners are smashed in and this is gonna be a great way to not have to worry about that as you're sliding this back, keeping the actual camper or whatever 5th wheel you're towing from really being able to make contact. So if you are going from a long bed to a short bed and you already have some BMW parts like the receiver here, this is gonna be an awesome option and it's gonna keep your truck from getting crunched up. Now, this is also a very high quality. It's got a nice gray powder coat finish that's heavy duty.
Installation of this is super easy as it uses the BMW's square style turnoverball that just plops into there. You adjust the feet that are on here to match your bedrails. And then other than that, you just have eight bolts to attach these into place. And again, when doing this, you're gonna want to make sure that you're measuring the height of the actual camper or trailer that you're pulling, and you can custom fit this to the height to get it perfectly leveled. Now, something I will note, if you are going from a regular base to a sliding base, these are very heavy duty and they also are very heavy, so I suggest having a few extra friends help you load it in. But once it's in place, it's not gonna go anywhere because you'll have it latched into that turnoverball and these rails will kind of make it custom fit to your truck, so it's gonna sit flush. Another great thing that I really like about the sliding is, you're not gonna accidentally get it not latched. You know pretty quickly when that drops forward, it goes into lock position. So that's also a good peace of mind, 'cause sometimes when you actually adjust or hookup, you are always kind of questioning whether or not it's actually attached. BMW does a really good job of letting you know that things are actually engaged and this is no different. And that was a look at the BMW replacement sliding base for your 5th wheel..
Extremely easy install. You will need a torque wrench that’ll go up to 110 ft/lbs. glad I did my research and went with the B&w gooseneck hitch in anticipation of getting this 5th wheel companion hitch at a later time.
Fast shipping and the box was in perfect condition. I appreciate the amazing customer service. They were friendly and had a good attitude when I called with questions. I look forward to shopping with them in the future. The shipping company called ahead of time and scheduled the delivery because it was such a large item they were friendly and was within their timeframe. Thank you etrailer.com I appreciate it.
Great hitch.All around experience was good. Would recommend getting it. It gives two options gooseneck or put the hitch in to haul a fifth wheel. Not hard to install but do recommend two people to move and install as the hitch is heavy and should be it’s rated for 20,000 lbs.
Really like this unit with the slide option. With the under the bed option it is also nice that I can remove it and have full bed access. The slide is great as maneuvering is improved significantly without worry of hitting your cab. Assembly is simple. It is heavy so be prepared when installing to have some help but can be handled pretty easily.
Outstanding product! Purchased for a 2020 Dodge Ram 2500 w/6.4L Hemi. It took my wife & I about 8 hours to install & everything went together nicely. ~2 hour delay because I wasn’t paying attention & installed the base backwards & had to build a gantry to lift it out. I definitely recommend greasing the round hitch receiver in the bed floor & the square hitch in the base before installing to make removal easier. I recommend the product & looking forward to years of goose neck & 5th wheel hitch use.
This hitch is one fine piece of equipment. Instructions were perfectly detailed and if that's not enough there are videos to guide you. Installed in 4 hours with no problems. Haven't gone anywhere yet but did hook up to camper and was impressed. 2017 Ram 2500 Short Bed
This hitch works extremely well. The slide is nice if you get into any tight cornering situations. The hitch top and base separate making it a bit easier to mount and unmount.The lock washer used with the mounting bolt that draws up against the gooseneck pin broke on the 2nd use. I had 2 different torque wrenches set to 79 lbs that I tested the bolt with. Unsure why it broke. But overall we love this hitch and we pull a 38f 5ver without issue. Very smooth ride.
Works great. Love the slide feature. Let's me move the clack back so I can fuel up the generator without needing to unhook. Coach just floates behind truck with this hitch. Super simple to hookup and unhook as well.
Too heavy for one person to install unless you did what I had to do (alone without any help). Removed the bolt from the tailgate end of the roller tubes, pulled the tubes out and separated the upper assemble from the lower bed contact assembly. Doing that allowed me to lift each piece into the bed without tracking down a neighbor.
easy to install no drilling just bolt on
There is a slapping noise or a bumping coming from the fifth wheel can't seem to find it and I don't know if something is wearing out been finding metal shaving in the bed not big one's but enough to concern me though maybe you might have some insight about this?
This starting happening about 6 months of Use.
We bought a 30-foot 5th wheel that came with an Andersen Ultimate hitch. Tow vehicle is an F250 short bed. After setting up the rig with the Andersen, I wasn't satisfied with the clearances, both cab and bed. Since the turn-over ball was already installed, this hitch was perfect for going to the traditional 5th wheel hitch and it solved all of my clearance concerns.
Great for short beds, I can back into spaces or get myself out of smaller than expected gas stations with no worry if contacting with the trailer. For sure recommend and also being able to visual see when the hitch is properly closed on the pin is always great.
Install was not that complicated. Use it to pull 41’ 5th wheel. Slider sure comes in handy
Excellent experience all the way around! From customer service to sales all the way to will call. Product was easy to install and works excellent.
We have towed a 5th wheel camping trailer over 5,000 miles so far with the BW hitch with no problems. We find it easy to hitch up and go. Very happy with this 5th wheel hitch.
Was as described very heavy, I would have given 5 stars but after installing I tried to take up. Not gonna happen unless I have some kind of hoist.
Just started 5th wheel camping and wanted a hitch that when removed left my truck box bare. I also talked to alot of people who talked about clunking and noise from their hitch while towing. I bought a 2013 32' Coachman which is pushing my 2009 F150 to its max. When pulling with this hitch it feels like the truck and trailer are one unit. No noise and no slop between the two units. I made a lifting pin that goes into the jaws and lifts it out with a comealong hooked to a rafter support in my garage. I then put it onto a wheel cart I made. No heavy lifting and one person can do it all. I've had one teflon foot fall of the hitch and the service was amazing no questions, no pictures, and no waiting. New piece was sent right away. Anyone who tows now and has looked at the hit are very impressed. I would definitly recomend this hitch to everyone.
I've had this for about a year. Only have about 2,000 miles of use with a 13,000 lbs 5th wheel travel trailer.
It is still like new. Jaws are tight, no rattles with or without the trailer attached.
I use a nylon guide plate, to keep things clean.
The only issue is the slider will not unlatch from the locked position with the trailer attached.
Unlatch and slides fine when not loaded.
Just haven't made the time to talk to B&W about this.
The base is a heavy bugger, and fits snug in the receptical. I've lifted it in and out myself, but not a smart idea.
Overall I would buy again. For our use, where we need the whole bed the majority of time it is an easy solution.
This this is heavy and strong. The only thing that did not meet my expectation is the draw down bolt prevents the hitch from being removed by simply opening the gooseneck locking pin. But the drawdown bolt keeps this hitch quite in the bed and tight, no rattling when unloaded! Great product and customer support!
The hitch works great and the slider has got me in and out of a couple of tight places that I have found myself in. The hitch is heavy and takes up a lot of real estate in my bed but I don’t think that’s a bad thing when pulling a 15k 40ft 5th wheel. Easy to operate and locks up tight and secure. Great product as expected.
Excellent hitch. If your truck doesn't come with factory 5th wheel hitch prep, the combination of the turnover ball and this hitch works like a charm. Easy to connect to truck and disconnect. Towed for hundreds of miles. Highly recommend.
I haven't used the products yet, but the B&W Companion 5th wheel hitch came on a pallet and was not damaged at all. It's in the truck and ready to go. Looks great!
Hitch worked awsome, it made a huge difference pulling trailer. The ride was a lot smoother than the ball reciever I used to have. I would highly recommend this reciever. The only down fall with it was trying to take it out at the end of season...dirt gets down in the attachment to the truck and it jammed in the reciever, it was a bear to get out
Very happy with the quality
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