# Pullrite Superglide 5Th Wheel Hitch



## scubapop

We are first time buyers, 2010 Sydney Edition 325 FRE, that we'll be pulling with a short bed trundra, 6 1/2 feet. so a slider hitch is a must. Yesterday a ran across the pullrite superglide the automatically moves the king pin aft when backing in order to provide additional clearance between trailer and the tow vehical and again moves automatically into the towing position when pulling foward. Anyone have any experience, pro or con with this particular system.

Scubapop


----------



## Nathan

The downside is that you can only hitch/unhitch when the rigs are in a straight line. I would have had a problem last summer:









Now, before you buy anything, PLEASE check the payload capacity of the Tundra and the loaded pin weight of the 5'er. If you don't know the loaded pin weight, assume 20% of the GVW of the trailer. I suspect you'll be way over on what the Toyota can handle.


----------



## Collinsfam_WY

That 5'er will crush the payload cap. on that Tundra before you have loaded one person or one bag into that truck. You will have 1700lbs on the hitch with that Sydney before you have put 1 thing in it, much less batteries, propane etc. etc.

-CC


----------



## outback loft

The max payload on the Tundra is 1555, and the pin weight of the Outback you are talking about is 1685, so you are 1000 pounds over the payload capacity of the truck, the trailer also has a shipping weight of 10090, which is going to put you over the limit of the truck as well. Since the shipping weight does not include anything but the trailer.

You are going to either have to downsize the trailer or upsize the truck.


----------



## webeopelas

Your putting a 36 ft Fifth wheel behind a 1/2 ton truck? You are a braver man than I.

Empty Pin according to Keystone is 1685 lbs. After it is loaded, you are easily looking at 2000 lbs.

Payload on your tundra is 1555 (2010 crewmax, not sure what year/model you have) and your max trailer weight is 10100.

The trailer from the factory is more than that.

If you have already bought the trailer, go punch the salesman in the mouth because you are WAY overloaded for that truck. Even if you get moving, everything on that truck will wear out quicker. If you have not bought it yet, reconsider, or go buy a larger truck.

I normally am not a weight police type of guy, but I think you are getting into a dangerous situation.


----------



## Dub

I'm guessing you guys are falling victim to a troll. I know some of the guys from the Tundra forums love to go make posts like this on RV.net since the consensus over there is that you need a semi to pull a pop-up and pulling anything bigger than a jet-ski trailer with a 1/2 ton will result in the death of your own family as well as the 5 other families you run into on the road. And this is the guys first post...he is probably expecting an RV.net style reaction here which usually results in 3 pages of Tundra bashing heated arguments before the thread is closed.

However, since he has the 6.5ft bed, that puts him in a double cab which has a 10,200 tow capacity and 1,620 payload capacity (if he has the 4x4). The GVWR for the truck is listed as 7100lbs. The 325FRE has a hitch weight of 1685 and a ship weight of 10,090. So that would leave him at -70lbs payload before adding himself--going to -270lbs--plus some extra stuff so say -400lbs. It's within tow capacity so he has 110lbs for stuff in the camper...I know I have around 1000lbs in mine so put him at -900lbs. GVCWR loaded would be 16790, or 790lbs over the 16,000 rating of the truck.

There are a ton of guys pulling a 5er with the Tundra and here is their justification. The GVWR is 7100, but the GAWR for the front is 4000 and the GAWR for the rear is 4150 making the new calculated GVWR 8150lbs. Also the rear axle is a Hino axle and it has been tested rigorously with 5000lbs.

Using the axle ratings recalculated new payload is 2670, tow capacity is unchanged, GCVWR is now 17,050. Using the same numbers from above he would still have 650lbs of payload, still be over tow capacity at the same rate, and GCVWR would have 260lbs left. Most of the guys doing this say that by having the 1700lbs of the kingpin on the truck reduced the trailer weight from 10090 to 8405 so they would claim they are not over tow capacity.

I'm just saying that is how they do it, not how you or I should calculate it, or that is right. I'm simply explaining how others justify towing over payload and tow capacity.

Most of the people towing a 5er with a Tundra have no problems, but they are also not towing one so heavy or close to payload. Most have models without a queen slide over the cab (the slide adds pin weight) and most are towing 5ers in the 26-27ft (8000lbs empty) range and are within the limits safely.

When I was in Michigan this summer I ran into numerous non-HD f150's and RAM 1500's towing huge 5ers, something I've never seen in any other state, probably has something to do with the auto industry being in Michigan. I talked to a few of them because I know they were overweight, one guy with an f150 was towing a 33ft Jayco with triple slides. He told me he had the dealer adjust the hitch on the camper somehow to put more of the weight on the axles which took weight from the king pin and that it was within the tow cap of his truck...kinda hard to believe because when he was hooked up he was sitting on his bump stops.

I would love to tow a 5er with the Tundra but if I did I would not tow the 325. I would find something with a pin weight at least 300-400lbs lighter. I do highly recommend upgrading to E rated tires and getting ranchero or blisten shocks before attempting a big 5er.


----------



## outback loft

Dub said:


> I'm guessing you guys are falling victim to a troll. I know some of the guys from the Tundra forums love to go make posts like this on RV.net since the consensus over there is that you need a semi to pull a pop-up and pulling anything bigger than a jet-ski trailer with a 1/2 ton will result in the death of your own family as well as the 5 other families you run into on the road. And this is the guys first post...he is probably expecting an RV.net style reaction here which usually results in 3 pages of Tundra bashing heated arguments before the thread is closed.
> 
> However, since he has the 6.5ft bed, that puts him in a double cab which has a 10,200 tow capacity and 1,620 payload capacity (if he has the 4x4). The GVWR for the truck is listed as 7100lbs. The 325FRE has a hitch weight of 1685 and a ship weight of 10,090. So that would leave him at -70lbs payload before adding himself--going to -270lbs--plus some extra stuff so say -400lbs. It's within tow capacity so he has 110lbs for stuff in the camper...I know I have around 1000lbs in mine so put him at -900lbs. GVCWR loaded would be 16790, or 790lbs over the 16,000 rating of the truck.
> 
> There are a ton of guys pulling a 5er with the Tundra and here is their justification. The GVWR is 7100, but the GAWR for the front is 4000 and the GAWR for the rear is 4150 making the new calculated GVWR 8150lbs. Also the rear axle is a Hino axle and it has been tested rigorously with 5000lbs.
> 
> Using the axle ratings recalculated new payload is 2670, tow capacity is unchanged, GCVWR is now 17,050. Using the same numbers from above he would still have 650lbs of payload, still be over tow capacity at the same rate, and GCVWR would have 260lbs left. Most of the guys doing this say that by having the 1700lbs of the kingpin on the truck reduced the trailer weight from 10090 to 8405 so they would claim they are not over tow capacity.
> 
> I'm just saying that is how they do it, not how you or I should calculate it, or that is right. I'm simply explaining how others justify towing over payload and tow capacity.
> 
> Most of the people towing a 5er with a Tundra have no problems, but they are also not towing one so heavy or close to payload. Most have models without a queen slide over the cab (the slide adds pin weight) and most are towing 5ers in the 26-27ft (8000lbs empty) range and are within the limits safely.
> 
> When I was in Michigan this summer I ran into numerous non-HD f150's and RAM 1500's towing huge 5ers, something I've never seen in any other state, probably has something to do with the auto industry being in Michigan. I talked to a few of them because I know they were overweight, one guy with an f150 was towing a 33ft Jayco with triple slides. He told me he had the dealer adjust the hitch on the camper somehow to put more of the weight on the axles which took weight from the king pin and that it was within the tow cap of his truck...kinda hard to believe because when he was hooked up he was sitting on his bump stops.
> 
> I would love to tow a 5er with the Tundra but if I did I would not tow the 325. I would find something with a pin weight at least 300-400lbs lighter. I do highly recommend upgrading to E rated tires and getting ranchero or blisten shocks before attempting a big 5er.


This could very well be a troll, but it is so close to the limits, and is bound to go over very easily with the addition of supplies, or even filling the fresh water tank. I am not going to bash any automaker, since I am not loyal to any particular one. ( I have a Chevy, Ford, Dodge, and have had a Nissan and Toyota.) I do however look for the best value, when buying. I have stuck with the three because they all have treated me very well, and have a more attractive price for what they are offering. For what I paid for my Dodge brand new, I would have only gotten a base model Tacoma, or Frontier without 4wd. For what my Ford cost I could have bought two of them for what a Tundra was going for, and The Chevy was the most expensive of them all, but was a custom order/build. I wont say that all the trucks are perfect, but they do what they need. The Chevy eats through rear brake pads, the Dodge needed a torque converter at 150,000, and the Ford is underpowered. The Nissan that I had just had lots of little stupid things that broke/malfunctioned, and the Toyota needed a transfer case and rear end. So I have had issues with all the manufacturers, but I also have to keep in mind the cost of repairs since they are all work trucks and I am sure my help does not treat them like their own personal vehicles. The Toyota and Nissan were just the most expensive for repairs, so they had to go.


----------



## Nathan

I don't want this to degrade into one of those threads, but reccommending that someone exceed their GVWR by 1000 lbs and their GCWR by a similar amount is irresponsible. Ok, so maybe tha axle can take 5000 lbs. The suspension is NOT set up for that and that 2 piece riveted frame isn't either. Sure, I've seen the F150's and Chevy 1500's sitting on their bump stops as well, but that doesn't make it right, or SAFE!!! I don't care what the badge on the front end says, I would never try something like that!

The cold hard facts is that most 1/2 tons can pull trailers up to ~26-28' and up to ~6000-7000 lbs before they exceed their weight ratings and the sail area begins overpowering things. Over that, and you need a 3/4 ton to maintain all limits. For 5th wheels, most 32'+ need 1 ton suspensions to handle the pin weights, although there you at least have the ability of modifying the suspension since all other components are the same.


----------



## vdub

Nathan said:


> I don't want this to degrade into one of those threads, but reccommending that someone exceed their GVWR by 1000 lbs and their GCWR by a similar amount is irresponsible.


Yeap! That's right! You can put a Cat 500 into your rig and mount a Freightliner rear axle if you want, but it doesn't change the ten cent sticker on the door frame. Thou shalt not exceed the sticker specs -- 'nough said.

But, back to the superglide. Best thing since sliced bread -- note the equipment I have and distance pulled. If you have a short-bed, then highly recommended.


----------



## OutbackPM

Well I think there is enough said on the towing cpacity and I agree with all of it. I have a 2500 with a measured pin weight of 1800 lbs loaded up. The 18K SuperGlide is about 200lbs by the time you have all that you need. You need 1) Frame rail brackets either side, 2) 2x super rails and 4 pins 3) a pin adaptor/plate and last the slide assembly.

I have been very happy with mine and glad to have the auto slide to cope with tight turns you wished you were able to avoid. One of which is reversing into my drive way. If you use the dry film slider lubricate it stops the greasy mess from deveoping and seems to work well. I have no complaints about "chucking" when driving over any pavement or hitching up. I don't have anything else to compare to but when hitching the handle will not shoot across unless it is properly positioned so the risk of being unattached is low.

Appart from the cost, where you decide if the auto slide is worth the money, the only draw back is that it is heavey so I have a hoist in the garage to lift it up then drop onto a home made dolly so I can wheel it across the garage. The hoist makes it very easy with only a few taps of the hammer needed to release the pins.

SCUBAPOP Good luck with you trailer or truck choice.


----------



## vdub

I have the 16k superglide. Believe the total weight of it is 250 pounds. When I take it out of the pickup, I take it out in 2 parts. The head comes out first, then the body comes out. Not sure what the body weighs (probably 150), but it is the heaviest piece -- I haven't had any problem moving it to the tailgate and then puttting it on the ground. That might change as I get older.... Like PM, I put the unit on a dolly. I use the $20 HarborFreight thing and it works well.

Like PM said, the handle springs to a locked position when the pin makes a solid connection. I had it fail once when I didn't have it lubed enough. Believe it was the first hookup of the season. Normally, it is spot on.

Generally speaking, you do want to unhook and hook with the pickup straight on. Normally, not an issue. I have, however, unhooked with about a 15 degree offset and had no problems.

I wanted to put a storage box in my pickup. The one I choose is about 2' x 2' x 4' (walmart special). I had to cut off about 1" of the release handle, so that it would clear the box when turning.

We've had this setup for 4 years and average about 40 hookups a year and probably 7k to 10k miles pulled, so we have used the hitch in almost any imaginable situation. It's definitly a winner.....


----------



## Dub

I was not advocating towing a 10K 5er with a 1700lbs pin weight with a half ton truck. I was simply explaining the justification that others use to go ahead and tow overloaded with a Tundra and other branded trucks. The OP can take the risk if he likes, I wouldn't. I forgot all about the 5er hitch adding a couple hundred more pounds.

I do disagree with the comment that a 1/2 ton is only suited to tow a 26-28ft trailer. My old trailer was a 27ft trailer and if you were riding in the cab you wouldn't know there was a trailer behind you. I have no problems pulling the 310BHS which is around 36ft and have towed it from OH to FL through mountains in WV, NC, and TN. I've had it in 30-40mph crosswinds in Michigan, I've stopped it with a broken pigtail (no brakes), and I've stopped it in emergency situations with brakes quickly (like when a mattress came off of a car in front of me). I've looked through both the toyota towing guide and the ford towing guide (up to 11K lbs on some F150's) and saw only weight restrictions, nothing about length in either. Your preference may be to tow a big trailer with a 3/4 or 1-ton or maybe even bigger than that but it doesn't make it any safer, it just gives some drivers a false sense of security like a car alarm in a crowded parking lot does to some owners. Find me some real world data, some raw numbers on the number of wrecks with 1/2 ton trucks towing 26-28ft vs. 28ft and larger vs. 3/4 & 1 ton trucks towing the same sizes. If there really is an issue with length then there will be some reliable data from reliable sources on the subject--I've yet to see any proof.


----------



## swanny

The hitch you are asking about is an awesome hitch. I have the 16K. You can hook and unhook at some pretty bad angles but to do this you need to pull the head pins and raise the front of 5ver until the head is high enough. then move the truck out from under the head, the head stays on the pin. This is an option when you can't get straight enough. My hitch is in a 2500HD

Good luck and be safe, Kevin


----------



## vdub

> If there really is an issue with length then there will be some reliable data from reliable sources on the subject--I've yet to see any proof.


I don't think I have ever seen length as an issue except for state laws regarding length. As far as I know, you could pull an 80' trailer as long as you don't exceed the GVWR and GCWR of tow vehicle. Out west, you could even haul doubles or even triples as long as you are within state length limits. I know that for a fact because my cousin pulls a 34' rv with a 25' snowmobile trailer behind it with a Dodge 3500. Believe he has to get an overlength permit in a couple states, but not many. I don't think there is an RV made that would even come close to exceeding most state limits. Some cities and some small or winding roads have length limits, but not many.



> You can hook and unhook at some pretty bad angles but to do this you need to pull the head pins and raise the front of 5ver until the head is high enough. then move the truck out from under the head, the head stays on the pin.


Never thought of that. Excellent idea! Hope I never have to do that, tho.


----------



## Collinsfam_WY

Let's please stay on topic and stay off of the belligerent comments. He sure may be a troll but on Outbackers we tend to trust folks and do our best to help them out until they prove they are something else. Thanks for the heads up on the possible troll btw - we don't see all that many here.

-CC


----------



## OBcanOB

For those worried about weight. Get the Colibert hitch and use the Fifth Airborne Sidewinder pin box. Hitch is very small and light, but very strong. The pin box will allow you to hook up at any angle and never worry about tight turns.

http://colibert.com/products/index.asp?modelNumber=128%7E208%7EFalse


----------

