Hitch for Chevy - Montana Owners Club

Nu5r · 12-07-2011, 02:14 PM

We're new to 5th wheels, or will be in January, and need to decide on what brand hitch to get installed in our 2011 3500HD LB 4X4. I know our truck bed is high and need some direction on what brand, or brands, might be the right choice for us. All comments pro and con will be appreciated. Thanks in advance to all.

Ray

exav8tr · 12-07-2011, 03:06 PM

I guess we all like our choices of hitches and I am no different. I feel the TrailerSaver hitch is the best of all. This is an Air hitch that is used by many HDT's on the road. If it's good enough for them then it must be good enough for me. This is not a cheap hitch but it will give your trailer a very good ride thus, increasing longevity of your new home. I opted for the on board compressor and underdash controls, just fill and empty from your seat. When I first started pulling with it the trailer seemed to float and still does.....Good luck with your choice, others will be along to support their choice. Ultimately, your choice.....

racerjoe · 12-07-2011, 03:42 PM

there are a lot a good brands out there. The choices are many, my only thought is if you are going to do a lot of traveling then spend the money on some sort of air ride type hitch to help the ride. if you are doing weekends only and short trips then I would say a standard hitch would be enough. I guess your choice should be first how much use and then pick a quality hitch.

WaltandLynne · 12-08-2011, 01:19 AM

We have a Trailer Saver TS3 also. We use it in a 2011 Chevy and needed to also put in the 3" riser to keep it above the bed rails. We also added a bed saver in case we make a mistake hitching. Good luck with your choice.

Walt

DarMar · 12-08-2011, 02:32 AM

With our new Chevy LB we went with a standard Hijacker 21k hitch and it has worked well, lots of clearance.

With our previous short bed we had an auto slider hitch which at 340lb. took a chain hoist to put it in and out of the truck box.
As we need our truck box for other reasons around the acreage, removing the hitch is a must. From our experience we will never go back to the SB and auto slide combo.

If I wasn't ever to remove the hitch it would love to have a TrailerSaver hitch.

Keep us posted.

dieselguy · 12-08-2011, 03:35 AM

I've got a Curt Q5 as I don't full time. I've had 2 Reese tilt head hitches, but there is no provision to lube the pivot pins so they wear out rather quickly. If you have a friend with a tilt head Reese ... grab ahold of the head and pull up and down ... more than likely it'll be loose on the pin.

akf15e · 12-09-2011, 01:48 AM

Another Curt Q5 20K fan here. Installed it myself. Night and day difference from my old Reese 16K. Rubber dampeners smooth the ride. The hitch breaks down into 2 pieces that I can remove myself, unlike previous hitch which was one piece and too heavy. Easy to access lube points as mentioned by Dieselguy. Jaws were a bit touchy at first, but I relubed them and after a few uses they release and latch just fine. I have the same truck as you and did not have to adjust the hitch height at all - plenty of clearance (6-7") and was perfectly level with my "normal" load on board. Obviously, there are plenty of other great hitches out there, but Curt fit my budget and had rave reviews from users, so I went with it.

Paddler · 12-09-2011, 07:52 AM

I also recommend the Curt Q20 hitch. Smooth operation and vitually no "chucking", something I could never say about my old 16K Reese Pro.

kdeiss · 12-09-2011, 09:21 AM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by dieselguy

I've got a Curt Q5 as I don't full time. I've had 2 Reese tilt head hitches, but there is no provision to lube the pivot pins so they wear out rather quickly. If you have a friend with a tilt head Reese ... grab ahold of the head and pull up and down ... more than likely it'll be loose on the pin.

I have a 1995 Reese 16K does not have a loose pin
Looks like I got a good one!

mhs4771 · 12-09-2011, 09:37 AM

I have a Reese 18K (part number has since been upgraded to 20K) was transferred from my 2005 to the 2011. Everything is still level, yes I did loose a little clearance to the side rails since they are higher on the new TV. Easy to lube, pull two pins and top section lifts off (easy to add a little high pressure grease), pull four more pins and the base section lifts out of the rails. I have removed and replaced it several times by myself, heavy yes but don't need a hoist.

snfexpress · 12-09-2011, 11:23 AM

We have a Super Fifth with Super Rails so that we can completely remove the hitch from the bed of the truck. Because it is component-based, I can take pieces of it out myself. For the pin box, we went with Glide-Ride and feel it is superior to Mor/Ryde.

dieselguy · 12-10-2011, 05:09 AM

Ken ... the model of Reese I was refering to was the Pro Series 15K tilt heads. I looked at a photo of a 16K and it seems to be designed differently ... perhaps for the better. If you look at a Pro Series 15K, you'll see the steel pins rosette welded right to the center cross frame ... the pivot head has just a hole in the steel that the pin fits in ... no brass bushing ... no nothing. You can spray lube at it all day and get nowhere. I went thru 2 and have seen others in my summer travels.

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