Amazing option for 5.0TA hitch

[Linda]

Check this out. This is quite the 5th wheel hitch. Just watch the first segment.

5th wheel hitch

[PGDriver]

That's a pretty cool unit and will certainly get the interest of short bed truck owners. Only thing might be the cost.

Cheers
Doug

[NW Cat Owner]

Originally Posted by Linda

Check this out. This is quite the 5th wheel hitch. Just watch the first segment.

So, gonna be adding one soon?

[Brian B-P]

I didn't watch the video (I have better uses for my limited internet download capacity) but I see it's the Reese Sidewinder. This is a bit obscure, but has been around for a while and has been discussed in EscapeForum before.

Bob posted the same video in Towing escape 5.0 with Toyota tundra, and it was mentioned as Reese's solution for short-bed trucks in 5.0TA with 2015 F150 2.7L 5.5ft bed. As I mentioned in the first of those discussions, I wouldn't use it, but it is obviously widely used with larger trucks and trailers.

This is a thousand-dollar accessory weighing 140 pounds or more (although it replaces the lower part of the pin box, compensating for some of that weight). The eTrailer page gives some details.

[Brian B-P]

Also, note this from that eTrailer link for the model suited to the Escape 5.0TA:

Note: Do not use the Sidewinder with any of the following:

• Curt Q5 5th-wheel trailer hitch
• PullRite SuperGlide 5th-wheel trailer hitch
• Reese Trail Boss 5th-wheel trailer hitch
• B&W 5th-wheel trailer hitch
• Colibert 208BW 5th-wheel trailer hitch

The issue is presumably with how the locking wedge fits to the fifth-wheel plate to keep the Sidewinder's pin from rotating the way a fifth-wheel pin is normally supposed to.