This is primarily a question for Howard and Fred Wishnie but anyone with an opinion please chime in. Howard and Fred during this past year you both dropped your 5th wheels onto your tucks causing what looked like serious damage. Have either of you consider a Bedsaver http://www.campingworld.com/browse/skus/index.cfm?skunum=31244&src=SRQB. I am looking for any pros or cons.

Grant,

To be honest, I'd never heard of this product.  So I did some quick checking on some other forums and folks there are raving about the Bedsaver.

I'm going to check into it a little more.  It just takes one person interrupting you in the middle of hitching or one little mistake (and anyone can make them) to drop your fiver.  If I can find that the contraption will support such a heavy load as our trailer and really protect the bed rails, it looks like pretty cheap insurance to me.  It sounds like it works beautifully on lighter fifth wheels, but I want to do more research.

Thanks for the link.  It's a good thing we've never pretended to be know-it-alls.       

Hi Grant,
This device wouldn't have helped me, as I didn't actually drop the trailer.

Before we knew to use wheel chocks, I knocked the trailer off the front jack stands hooking up while we were in sand. The front end sank deeply into the sand, and the jacks wouldn't extend long enough to lift the pin high enough for me to hook up.

I mistakenly thought the truck bed walls were rigid enough to support the trailer weight, so I lowered the front end of the trailer onto the truck in order to raise the legs high enough to put the blocks back underneath. Once the legs would be back on blocks, I would be able to raise the coach back up high enough to hook up.

As soon as I saw the damage I was doing, we went to plan B and lowered the trailer frame onto stacked cement blocks instead. This allowed me to get blocks back under the jacks. The next weekend we bought RotoChocks at the Daytona show, and they are ALWAYS the first thing on and the last thing off.

I don't quite understand how you could drop the hitch the way the ad describes. When you are hooking up, the front end of the trailer is supported by the front jacks and can't fall. I don't know of anybody who would retract the jacks until they had the hitch secured with the safety pin, and with my hitch at least, that cannot be accomplished unless the hitch latch is closed. The safety pin simply won't go in.

It looks to me to be a solution to a non problem.

Fred

Bed Saver,  We had the Bed saver on two other 5th wheels.  It's my opinion that the Bed Saver is well worth the money.  I have since changed to the Trailer Saver Air ride 5th wheel and the Bed Saver will not work on the Trailer Saver.  Google Blue OZ and see how the Bed Saver works.  Very simple to install.  And it will prevent dropping  the 5er on the TV.  GBY...

OK, this is just my opinion, and it is free, so you know what thats worth....

I don't think you need a bedsaver. The only real way to drop a fiver is to not latch the hitch positively. Some hitch heads do not latch real well, or are hard to tell when they are positively latched. I'd rather spend the money on a hitch that works PROPERLY, and is easy to latch. Money invested in a hitch is money well spent. Take a look at hitches that use Binkley heads. They latch positively, and if you hook up right you will never drop your fiver.

Personally, if I was outfitting a fulltiming rig I would lean towards a Trailersaver hitch. Air ride, Binkley head, proven track record, easy hookup. Yes, it costs a little more than a cheap Reese (or equivalent), but you get what you pay for. In hitches, it is wise to not skimp, IMO.

Jack Mayer is correct,  I agree if you have a good hitch there is really no need for the Bed Saver.  We went to the Trailer Saver Air ride hitch with the Binkley head.  The best up grade we have made.  It's just a awesome hitch.  GBY...

FULL TIMING...CLASS OF 06...       

Okay.  A follow-up from my point of view.  Keep in mind I dropped our fifth wheel because of a series of several stupid mistakes, NOT because of improper hitching - I knew the thing wasn't hitched.

I agree with Jack that a fiver hitch is NOT the place to skimp.  I also agree that it SHOULD be nearly impossible to drop your fiver when hitching with a good hitch that forces you to be sure it is hitched properly and by running through your procedures.  I won't go quite so far as to say it is a "non-problem."  What if your front jacks fail or break while you are hitching? Remember we had seal leak on our hydraulic front jacks which theoretically could have caused our trailer to end up on our truck rails. 

Also, the forums are full of people with lots of experience that have dropped their fifth wheels on their trucks.  And those people are ones that never thought they would do it.  If you look closely in every full campground with lots of fifth wheels, I bet you can find at least one truck with bent rails from a dropped fiver.

Can it happen?  Sure.  Does it happen more often than people think?  My guess would be yes, since it is not something most guys want to admit to.  In the overall scheme of things, is the percentage of time it happens compared to the number of times a fiver is hitched high?  Definitely not - very, very low in fact.   

So, putting aside the extra space and weight the Bedsaver might take up, it comes down to a question of insurance.  Is $150 - $200 too much to spend for something that probably will never happen with a proper hitch and checklist?  Or is the peace of mind worth that amount of money so you don't have to worry about that one time you might get interrupted or make a mistake that leads to a couple thousand dollars or more in truck damage?

Had I been more familiar with the product, would I have bought it up front?  Probably not.  Do I wish I would have had it when I dropped our trailer?  You betcha.  Am I going to rush out and buy one now?  Nah.  Will I kick myself for months if I drop the trailer again?  Of course. 

Is the cost of the insurance reasonable for the risk?  You make the call! 

 

I have a bedsaver on our Reese hitch and it seems to be a great product and looks like it should work well. I talked to another Rver last fall who had dropped his 5er on the truck bed and he said he wished he had one.

I do try to be very careful when hitching, but a little insurance (the Bedsaver was about $150) is comforting.

aH yes to revive an old thread. After seeing many trucks that have the dented beds and damaged fifth wheel overhangs I put the bed saver on my husky hitch as soon as I could get it shipped to me. My Fifth wheel is one heavy bugger and the bed saver is just an ounce of prevention for a hundred pound problem that works. got stupid once and it saved me thousands so is it worth it ? To me yes to others no until they have a crs moment. I have crs moments every few minutes or so, so you been warned lol Thom