Just bought first 5er. Question is this...is the Pullrite worth the extra money or will the Reese slider work fine with the short bed? By the way, new trailer is Keystone Cougar. Thanks in advance for your input.

 

Slider will work fine if you do not forget to stop and shift it before any tight manuvers. For my money the Pullrite is well worth the peace of mind. You just hook up and go, without any worry about tight manuvers. The Pullright works great, just keep it greased.

 

I agree with Farmer Jim, if money is no matter go for the pullrite. I have a Reese 16K slider and it works great.

 

I agree with FarmerJim's first point. As long as you don't forget, the manual slider is fine. Also the front of the fiver might be more or less forgiving of sharp turns. I could get away with every forward turn because the front of my Dutchman is shaped just right for my small Dodge. I could get away with sliding the hitch only when backing into a campsite. That way I could place my full attention on the task at hand and not worry about the trailer hitting the cab, which it would in the right circumstance.
I'm also a cheapskate so I wouldn't spend the money for a Pullrite (yet). It does sound nice though if you'd be towing a lot so you don't forget that one, expensive, time.

 

Stillman,
My Dad and I both pull Cougars with short-beds. I don't have a slider and Dad does. As BlueRam01 stated, some brands of 5ers are better suited for short-beds and the Cougar is one of them. Dad and Mom just got back from a two month trip towing from VA to CA and back. He never used his sliding hitch once. I chose the non-slider because I already had one installed on a previous SB truck and it was cheaper for me to just swap. I've never had any problems and can turn lock to lock when moving forward. I do have to watch when I'm backing up though,,,,,, still, no problems. However I did suggest that Dad go with a a slider just in case, when he got the new short-bed.
The picture below was taken with Dad's truck in a lock to lock turn with the slider in the forward position and you can click on it to see his others. I wouldn't want to jack the trailer any more than this because as one picture will show,,,,,, it puts an awful strain on the tires, axles, and hitch components.


Don't get me wrong,,, the Pullrite is NICE! I just could not justify the price for my needs.

 

Spend the money and go with the Pullrite SuperGlide. Those of us that have swear by them. I saw a brand new truck with the bed crushed and dented and the 5vr dented becauase he FORGOT to slide the hitch.
I love the fact that I just go and don't worry about sliding the hitch.
There are pics of the install on my web page.

 

Thanks for the quick responses and GREAT info. I'll let you know which hitch gets installed later this week.

Rattlin', great photos. By the way, how are you and your dad liking your Cougars?

 

I went with the pullrite and am very happy I did. I never have to worry about the trailer hitting. First time I was sure I was going to hit, but the hitch worked just like advertised. Definitely worth the money.

 

We've been very happy with them. There were some small issues that we both felt should have been caught at the factory, (loose wires on the holding tank sensors, self-tapping screws wrung off from using air/elect tools, and some interior cabinet framing that could have been done with a little heavier stock),,,, but these types of things seem to appear on even the highest rated rigs. We both agree that they pull great and we've had no problems with the slides or other mechanical parts on them.
Dad and Mom did have two tire failures on their last trip and luckily the first blow-out happened after they had reached the bottom of the mountains in Montana. The second tire went flat after pulling into a rest area about 150 miles later! The tread had seperated in both cases. He bought 4 brand new ones after that.

The only other thing that I have read about,,,, and Dad actually spoke with another Cougar owner on their trip,,,, was that there were some of the Keystone trailers that were equipped with the wrong axles (too small). Dad said the gentleman spoke of having an axle and spring fail and as soon as he contacted Keystone, they replaced the entire suspension, axles, hubs, rims and tires. I had read of this problem about a year ago on either this forum or one of the other RV foums. I'm not sure of what models or what year, but that it was an isolated problem and Keystone was making every effort to remedy it.

The one thing that I have concluded in talking with and reading the RV forums,,,,,
No matter the brand, or advertised quality, or cost of any RV,,,,,, you can rest assured that they will all share some of the same problems as any other mass produced product.

Close inspection before you roll off the lot and hope that it's not a Monday or Friday built rig!


Enjoy your new rig!

 

For the money if you are not fulltiming it, I'd go for either a Hijacker or Reese Slider hitch.

The Hijacker hitch is a very well built hitch, I have a Reese 15k, but am going to move up to the Hijacker hitch.

If you keep the slider rails lubed with "Dry Lube", you can slide in less than 30 seconds.

 

Don't let the dealer tell you that you don't need a slider - my wildcat blew out the rear window turning around (going forward) in a parking lot at night. I'd love the pullrite, but already had a reese - I just bought the slider parts and was done. Keep it lubed and don't forget it and you'll never have a problem! Sliding the hitch is fairly painless as long as you don't forget it.