Question about stationary fifth wheels

aint neva heard of a pro of having one, normally companies that haul the same freight at the same weight (food grade tankers, fuel tankers, some dry vans) order their trucks with stationary fifth wheels cause they're cheaper, but if you're an owner Op you'd want the sliding fifth wheel because you'd want to be able to shift weight from your tandems to steer axle if the need arises.

 

I generally pull light loads, so I set the 5th wheel as close to the cab as possible for two reasons:
The first is that it improves the fuel economy.
The second is that, IMHO, it makes it less likely to jackknife.

When I get to a receiver that has a hole for a dock, I will set the 5th wheel all the way back and drop the air bags to get the trailer as level as possible. I have to pull pallets out as well as put return pallets of cardboard on.

Thinking about it some more, there is one receiver that I have to pull the 5th wheel all the way back for to keep the bottom of the trailer from hitting the frame rails. That drop has a steep short ramp.

Once in a while I will end up with a overloaded / misloaded trailer that I can pull legally if I have nearly empty fuel tanks and the 5th wheel set forward.

Overall, for dry van, you are better off with a sliding 5th wheel.

 

Hey :
He said it right . better off with one than without.
I just added an APU to my truck. A fixed 5th wheel and I would have been totally screwed.

There are times when You will need it.

 

Well my truck came with fixed, the first company i leased on to i never need an adjustable one. My boss on the second company said i needed one so i bought one from a wrecking yard rebuilt it and now $1500.00 dollars later it sets in the same spot never moved, just rusting away!
But hey its there if i need it right!

 

lot of company trucks came with them, some because the loads are all the same, tanks, dumps for example. some because the fixed fifth wheels are cheaper and lighter. some because the company hauled lighter loads where shifting weight usually wasn't a concern . some because the driver's were guessed to be too stupid to move them. it is really according to what you haul. i suck the trailer up as close as possible for economy, when the weight allows. i have 3 trailers. each has a different pin setting, so i use mine quite often. i will state the obvious. it's easier to slide a sliding fifth wheel than to move a stationary one.free advice and worth every penny, johnny

 

Hey :
The last post had a good point and I failed to say that. I pull company trailers. Many different makes. They do have different pin settings and I recently had to back up because the trailer would have hit the Fuel tank I added for my new APU.

 

There are a lot of dry van outfits that have stationary fifth wheels. They work fine. They do save about 250 lb, give or take, over a slider. When set right on the frame one would hardly ever go too heavy on a front axle. And the maintenance is lower on a stationary. Less parts, less fuss. I have a slider, but for most of what I do, it would not hurt me to have a stationary fifth. Guess it really depends on what one is doing as to whether they need a slider or not. When I was a company driver for a dry box carrier in the 90's, none of the trucks had sliders and I never had a problem not having one for the 9 years I was with them. That should tell you something.

 

Heck, I pulled reefer loads of 79K plus, with a stationary 5th wheel.

Never had a problem, even out west...............in that state !!