King Pin ?

[joesann]

I have a 2018 GD Reflection 337RLS. Was wondering if changing the king pin to the Reese Revolution Combo #1516 King Pin would void the frame warranty ? Looking at a F-350 6 1/2' bed. This king pin moves the pivot point back to where the hitch connect to the 5th wheel so no slider hitch is needed. The turning is done without coming close or hitting the truck cab, and it's automatic

[Second Chance]

We pulled our 337 the first 12,000 miles with a non-sliding hitch (Andersen Ultimate rail mount) without any clearance issues at all. The modern front caps with the sculpting at the outside corners are a far cry from your grandparents' squared-off fifth wheel front ends. To your question, though, I believe the Reese Revolution is coming OEM on some of the "1/2-ton towable" GD fifth wheels.

Rob

[sande005]

I had the Revolution on my old Jayco fifth. It was a factory add-on at the time. Can't answer the warranty question - that would be something to call GD about. But I doubt it. Overall, I loved the combination with my 6.5 bed truck. A couple of hints:

1) Read the directions - it doesn't need much greasing - but there are a couple of small points where it should be lubed. Makes a world of difference in hitching/unhitching. No, you do not need any kind of grease/teflon/etc on the hitch plate at all.
2) The extended king pin locks to the hitch, and uses a "wedge" to prevent it from turning at the hitch. The wedge should be tight - but it is possible to get it too tight. That makes it really hard to hitch or unhitch (especially unhitch). So make it tight, but don't really hammer the wedge into place before tightening the lock bolts down. They sell a generic wedge, as well as some made specifically for popular brands of hitches - which would be the way to go, if available.
3) Because the pivot point is now well back, remember that the pin box must be straight on to the hitch to hitch up. It is possible for the pin box to be turned off of perpendicular to the front of the trailer, so while you think you are backing straight in, the pin box is actually at an angle, and makes getting it locked hard. It can be VERY hard to manually move the pin box to get everything lined up before hitching - so make sure when unhitching, your truck is straight with the trailer, so everything will be lined up when you hitch up again.
4) Because you may sometimes be backing in at a slight angle to line up with the Reese, that can mean one corner of your truck will be closer to the fifth than the other. With a tailgate down, you very well may make contact. I learned how to repair a hole in the fiberglass skin on the fifth that way. We got in the habit, quickly, of almost hitching up, then closing the tailgate before doing the final backing.
5) It has provisions to use bolts to lock the rear pivot point, so that without the wedge, it can be used as a regular pin box. My dealer would lock it, and use his tractor to move the fifth around - no need to fuss with the wedge. BUT one time he hitched me up without taking out the rear lock bolts and I drove home. The creaking noises were a bit more than usual, but not by much. After the 15 mile tow and backing into the drive I found the Reese destroyed, the front assembly of the pinbox area on the frame severely bent, the hitch destroyed, and had to go to a frame shop to have the truck assessed (luckily no damage). The dealer fixed/replaced it all - but it was a very expensive lesson for him.