Howdy,I installed a Hillsboro aluminum flatbed on my 2001 Ford SD...short bed. I love the bed, it is a well crafted unit. But I have made another "problem" for my self. My trailer, 8' wide tapered nose Featherlite, will now endanger the headache rack of the flatbed during off camber turns. Never had the problem before, but the headache rack subtracted at least 4" of room. To complicate matters, the GN ball is in a 14" long x 18" wide dropbox. I've looked at the Ranch Hitch extender, and emailed back and forth with Anderson Mfg about it....don't believe it will work, as it would probably pinch under the 8" offset when the truck pitches downhill...only 1" clearance from the top of bed to underneath the offset plate. Looking at the B&W Extend-a-hitch, the trailer portion, not the part that fits into a B&W hitch. Any other options? Maybe the SB1 by Pop-Up?
Posted 2011-09-22 10:04 PM (#137797 - in reply to #137782) Subject: RE: Goose neck offset
Expert
Posts: 2689
Originally written by wyndancer on 2011-09-22 1:42 PM
Howdy,I installed a Hillsboro aluminum flatbed on my 2001 Ford SD...short bed. I love the bed, it is a well crafted unit. But I have made another "problem" for my self. My trailer, 8' wide tapered nose Featherlite, will now endanger the headache rack of the flatbed during off camber turns. Never had the problem before, but the headache rack subtracted at least 4" of room. To complicate matters, the GN ball is in a 14" long x 18" wide dropbox. I've looked at the Ranch Hitch extender, and emailed back and forth with Anderson Mfg about it....don't believe it will work, as it would probably pinch under the 8" offset when the truck pitches downhill...only 1" clearance from the top of bed to underneath the offset plate. Looking at the B&W Extend-a-hitch, the trailer portion, not the part that fits into a B&W hitch. Any other options? Maybe the SB1 by Pop-Up?
The Convert-a-ball one is "believed to fit" in there with enough space for its rectangular base to pivot around.
Perhaps more importantly, the various gizmos that set your trailer farther BACK when towing straight merely set it farther to the SIDE when making 90 degree spin turns - a fact sadly omitted from the sales blurbs.
Simple geometry will verify this, as well as showing that the edge of the headache rack that is threatening your trailer will merely threaten it the 'n' inches farther forwards and at a very small number of jack knifing degrees tighter.
Your trailer nose probably tapers from 8ft to 5ft in 8 1/2 ft, bisect that and you have 18 inches of taper in 8 1/2 ft on each side.
From that figure how much skinnier the nose is the 9 or 10 inches farther forwards, your new "point of contact" - IOW not worth it.
To put it another way; If you're getting that close it is only a matter of time before you crack it with the cab ANYWAY, so buying very small margins is a very poor investment.
If you think through this you may decide that abandonment of the headache rack may be a better solution.
OK, so you abandon a few pretty lights that aren't visible when you are towing anyway and you have enough in the bed edge to be legal when you are not towing - it seems like a no brainer to me ???
The "headache rack" isn't... so why keep it and go through further grief with an extender that only offsets at right angles to the direction of the problem that it promises to solve ?
BTW, there is also that "issue" of offset leverage.
Instead of being supported "straight up and down" on the coupler the trailer nose gets supported on an "L" shaped bracket, supposedly not all trailers accept the additional stresses of that well.
Posted 2011-09-22 10:56 PM (#137800 - in reply to #137782) Subject: RE: Goose neck offset
Elite Veteran
Posts: 690 Location: missouri
We have an adjustable plate that is bolted down through the bed bolts and has four holes for adjustment for-or back....I learned the hard way.... with one of old trailers. ouch. So... we don't use drop hitches anymore.
Posted 2011-09-23 7:19 AM (#137808 - in reply to #137782) Subject: RE: Goose neck offset
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 406 Location: Minneapolis, MN
Thanks Reg. I'm aware of the geometries when the offset is truck mounted or trailer mounted. I have thought of replacing the headache rack with something that simulates the height of a pick-up box, slightly below the rear window. I won't rule that out, but dang that bed is drop dead cute!
Posted 2011-09-23 10:00 AM (#137814 - in reply to #137808) Subject: RE: Goose neck offset
Expert
Posts: 2689
Originally written by wyndancer on 2011-09-23 7:19 AM
Thanks Reg. I'm aware of the geometries when the offset is truck mounted or trailer mounted. I have thought of replacing the headache rack with something that simulates the height of a pick-up box, slightly below the rear window. I won't rule that out, but dang that bed is drop dead cute!
Yeah, I know its drop dead cute (-:
The REASON that I know is that I have one.
The DIFFERENCE is that mine is on a 1 ton chassis/cab - as you probably know there are a couple of extra inches cab to axle distance on chassis/cab vs tin box.
I haven't looked closely at mine recently, but at a guess you would want SOMETHING there to prevent whatever is on the bed from sliding into the cab,,,, something.
I don't know, maybe cutting the headache rack down to tin box equivalent height ?
That COULD be done tastefully, do you have (can you USE) a tig welder ?
or MIG with aluminum wire ?
Hmmm, a "project".
I would probably abandon the headache rack and glue a strip of stall mat on the back of the cab, maximum protection for minimum space (-:
Now that I am awake; the 18 inches of taper (per side) over 8 1/2 ft comes to 18/102 for every inch of offset - to the SIDE.
So for a 10 inch SIDE-set you only get to a 180/102 inch skinnier part of the trailer ~= 1 3/4 inches.
Against the 4 or so that removal of the headache rack would give you.
On second thoughts...
How about cutting it down CAREFULLY and making up a couple of inserts for the tubing so that you could just take the top half off when towing, put it back on when "croozing", or whatever you do with a gussied up truck (-:
I think this could be done almost undetectably, i.e. with full preservation of resale value and "LOOKS".
Goose neck offset
