i pulled the truck in this evening and snapped a couple pics of what i have now
raising 5th wheel
Discussion in 'Trucks [ Eighteen Wheelers ]' started by Ezrider_48501, Jan 1, 2015.
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You got the lowest mount holland makes. Just go to the wreckers and get mid or a high mount. Should be lots avallible. Whole lot less hassle then what your trying to do with the tubing.
Betcha $100 or less for good used legs.Diesel Dave Thanks this. -
I have seen tubing, as well as taking flat stock and welding it togather to make tubing which seems like a lot more work for the same end result. I need a taller fifth wheel as well with this hopper. I ordered a set of mounts only from truck pro for 150 bucks. My plan was to air arc my old ones off and weld my new ones on. I haven't picked them up yet so i can't confirm or deny how well its all gonna come together.
Ezrider_48501 Thanks this. -
Several years back, Fontaine used to sell the risers separately. Because of the liability factor and lawsuits from badly installed risers, they quit selling them individually. Now you have to buy the complete slide assy. Just remember, if you alter what the manufacturer set up, you and your liability insurance own it. Now you can imagine how fast your insurance company is going to disown you if a related failure occurs. That leaves, just you. Not trying to be a PITA, just speaking the truth.
wore out Thanks this. -
In my area a tall used slider is harder to find than a honest politician. I would double the tubing if using 1/4 wall two 3" or 4" tubes welded side by side will give you a 1/2 vertical web directly over the frame rail. All of the ones I have fabed up have turned out nicely. I try to locate the holes at the edge of the tubing so a spacer in the tube isn't necessary. I also tack weld the tubing to the slider and the frame brackets, (not the frame). The other truck I did differently was using 4x8x1/2 and it was heavy.
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Ahh, the "buy it to cover your butt" mentality is strong here I see. Not to mention some of us pay for our own stuff, have the tools and knowledge to use them safely, and actually enjoy making something better for less money. But wait, buying a 20yr old one from a junkyard, from a truck that has been wrecked, is OK though.....
Wonder what is wrong with the country in general these days......I'll let others figure that one out. Luckily the folks that built this great country exercised their abilities to do things for themselves instead of wussing out.
As soon as someone can tell me why my setup is worse than anything I could have bought, bring it on.
Tubing would be OK if it was bushed with a minimum of 1/4" wall round tubing too, but would need welding in IMHO. So the holes would have to be 1.25" diameter assuming 5/8" diameter bolts.
Just my .02 on it all
MartinEzrider_48501 Thanks this. -
I'm not opposed to replacing the legs, I'm going to look into it, used isn't likely there is a big truck junk yard about 120 miles away but he is slow (as in weeks to get parts pulled) then fuel and time to go get it, there is a junk yard close but there more automotive they do have a couple big trucks that are pretty well totally picked over. if new legs end up in the 800 range I wont be buying new legs I can buy material to build some over built super beefy legs and ramps for probably the 300-350 ballpark. I got a couple big steel supply house's in the area. I also got a new 10lb spool in the welder and a new tip in the plasma cutter as well as a handful of new drill bits that didn't get used up in my pusher install.
I was looking it over a bit after i pulled it in today the L brackets are 3/8's so i think i would want to go 3/8th for my wall thickness. i also measured my 5th wheel highth and I'm already at 49" with the bags aired up and bobtail with 11r24 rubber so if i ever end up pulling taller trailers behind my truck the 5th would have to come back down after I raise it.leftlanetruckin Thanks this. -
SHC did this a couple years back with starliner. I'd shoot him a pm and see if he can help.
KHEzrider_48501 Thanks this. -
Seen a customer experience a lawsuit from one of their trucks that was involved in a fatality with a four wheeler. There was no way the truck driver could have prevented it. They came after the driver and owner with a vengeance. They looked at maintenance and repair records with a magnifying glass, especially zeroing in on any modifications of the truck. Their suit had nothing to do with a fifth wheel by no means, but it made me realize that if something is altered, it throws up a red flag. That made me realize that if you fabricate something, it fails, and injury or death is involved, your work will be put under a microscope, and they'll bring it on in ways you won't believe. -
Hello Rockhauler, been a while;
Ergon hasn't changed their position on altering fifth wheel height- do it with factory risers or not at all. Recently had an (another) issue with this on a truck owned by a newby wanting to lease on. His truck's fifth wheel height was waay too short, 2.5" IIRC. He left, came back a week or so later with 3" square tubing and U-bolts that look like they were purchased at Wal Mart for a car exhaust system (small diameter). Had the nerve to get upset whenever the techs would not accept his mods. In addition to being verbally communicated, this rule is in our lease agreement, our "take on" agreement, and again mentioned in our 90 day inspection stips.
Hard to pretend you didn't see it.
Not a DOT rule, just a company rule that came about because someone used inferior workmanship/parts to do a simple "raise the fifth wheel height" job on a lease operator's truck. It failed shortly after the mod, and before the 90 day where it probably would have been noticed and rejected by the inspecting tech. The company owned tanker caused injury and damage after it broke loose from the truck- not due to a wreck, or veering off the roadway, but simply travelling down the road, that's how shabby the job was. Guess who got drug into court and sued?
Even though I am a lease operator, I can see the reasoning behind this company rule, and have no problem with it. I was also shown pics of the mods done to the newbys truck I previously mentioned, and was glad they didn't accept it.
In addition to seeing some really nice shop done mods to raise fw height, my dad and I have used square/rectangle tubing in his shop by non professionals and never had any problems- this isn't rocket surgery, but like anything else, for some people common sense is not as common as one would think.Ezrider_48501 Thanks this.
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