Andersen rail mount & Tundra - tailgate clearance

[richm]

Originally Posted by Ronn

]To the center of the rear rail is 23 inches but I would now do 24" instead. You will then use the hitch for the placement of the front rail, CORRECT?
As a double check this will place the center between the two rails 35 inches or so from the tailgate.

Yes, 24 would put the center of the hitch 35in from the tailgate. The front rail would be 22in forward from the rear rail.

This is with the hitch oriented so that the ball is offset closer to the tailgate?

[UncleTim]

Hey you guys. Another thing to think about.

The border between Canada and the U.S. may be opening soon. If so, then Trademasters becomes an alternative solutions. I would try and do that because these guys know and they are very fair.

I realize you may need to move sooner than that. But if it becomes possible to have them do it, I would!

[Ronn]

Originally Posted by richm

Yes, 24 would put the center of the hitch 35in from the tailgate. The front rail would be 22in forward from the rear rail.

This is with the hitch oriented so that the ball is offset closer to the tailgate?

Yes, this is correct.

[Mark J]

Hi Tim,

Chilliwack and TradeMasters would be our first choice for pickup and installation. Where did you see that Canada may be opening the border soon? Time is running short for us, we plan to receive our 5.0 first week of August. One of the problems is that the rail kits, like everything else right now, are in short supply. I've ordered a custom rail kit from eTrailer but it is backordered until early July. If Canada becomes a possibility for pickup, I'll get in touch with TradeMasters and see if I can get it done up there and then return or cancel the rail kit I've ordered.

The Andersen hitch itself arrived yesterday, so this starting to get real!

Mark

[ReconFF]

Originally Posted by Ronn

I have the short bed F150. Here is my take which might lend some light on the subject for you.

We hook up without raising the tail gate.

Trying to put this information into a post is likely to create some conflicting "opinions" but here goes.

I went through hundreds of posts when getting my rig set up and I could not find a consensus on what works best with a short bed truck and the possibility of hitting the cab on a sharp turn.

Prior to 2019 Trademaster's in Chilliwack installed many hitches behind the rear axle on short bed trucks because of the turning clearance issue. It appears early 2019 they quit doing this (I'd venture as a lawsuit protection). They now mount standard location which I believe on an F-150 puts it an inch or two in front of the axle. This creates two issues.
1) shorter turn angle
2) tailgate clearance - when hitched there is very little clearance for the tailgate to be opened, so when hitching the tailgate needs to be raised once king pin is in the box. This tailgate problem is not only on the short box F150, it exists on all the F150 box sizes.

To answer the question of moving the hitch behind the axle, there is much info on this forum that the 800 lb 5th wheel hitch weight placed a couple inches behind the axle has less effect than the 500 - 600 lbs placed on the hitch behind the rear bumper by a pull behind trailer.

We mounted the RAIL MOUNT ANDERSEN ULTIMATE with the center of the Kingpin behind the axle. This has worked out just fine for us, no issues with squat or handling.

We did not need to drill any holes in the frame. I ordered two different sets of UNIVERSAL rail mount kits. We were able to match up with exiting holes in the frame and we did not need to do any drilling. We only needed one of the UNIVERSAL kits and sent the other back (etrailer).

Our trailer tows perfectly, we have plenty of turn angle, I haven't measured, but we never come close to jack knifing the trailer. I can both hitch up and get into the truck bed with the tailgate down (can walk between with tailgate down).

I know most people struggle with this decision as I did, hopefully this helps. I know most 5.0TA owners mount with in the "normal" mount locations and do well with it.

Thanks for the info Ronn. One more question: how tall is your tailgate? I want to make sure I have room to open my tailgate on my shortbed Tundra if I mount the center of the rear rail 24 inches from the tailgate.

[Ronn]

Originally Posted by ReconFF

Thanks for the info Ronn. One more question: how tall is your tailgate? I want to make sure I have room to open my tailgate on my shortbed Tundra if I mount the center of the rear rail 24 inches from the tailgate.

When lowered my tailgate is 25 inches when measured from the hinge (outside measurement is 26 inches top to bottom). Inquisitive, what does yours measure as I would think they are pretty standard (+ or -)

[ReconFF]

Originally Posted by Ronn

When lowered my tailgate is 25 inches when measured from the hinge (outside measurement is 26 inches top to bottom). Inquisitive, what does yours measure as I would think they are pretty standard (+ or -)

I will let you know when I get home Wednesday.

So you're saying when your tailgate is open, from the rear most point of the tailgate to the center of the rear rail is 48 inches?

[Ronn]

Originally Posted by ReconFF

I will let you know when I get home Wednesday.

So you're saying when your tailgate is open, from the rear most point of the tailgate to the center of the rear rail is 48 inches?

Yes, that is correct (if I added the extra 1" forward that I talked about it would be 49").

[ReconFF]

Just measured my tundra tailgate- open, measured from the rear of the bed is 25.5 inches.

[Ronn]

Originally Posted by ReconFF

Just measured my tundra tailgate- open, measured from the rear of the bed is 25.5 inches.

Mine is 25 inches "from the rear of the bed"

[UncleTim]

Originally Posted by Mark J

Hi Tim,
Where did you see that Canada may be opening the border soon?

Mark

It was in an article that is a few months old now. I have not seen it repeated either. Good luck.

[Perry Butler]

When we purchased our 2018 5.0 we had a 2015 F150 with a 6.5' bed. I installed the rails myself ( I'll never do that alone again! ) with an F150 easy install kit, and had about 1" clearance if the truck was perfectly aligned to the camper. It was too tight and was hard to remove the LP tanks to fill. Even an inch would be much better. The center of the rear rail (closest to the tailgate) to the edge of the bed where the tailgate is located was 34".

We now have a 2019 F150 with 6.5' bed. I wanted at least 2" more clearance. Truckin America in Rochester, MN sold and installed my rails. I asked that the center of the rear bed rail be installed/located 31" from the end of the bed, however when installing they said the best they could do was 31 1/2". Some bed bracket/reinforcement was in the way, but could have done it similar to Ronn's. To install at a specific spot they use a universal kit, NOT a stock kit for an F150.

We now have over 3 1/2" of clearance, plenty to lower the tailgate at most angles and that extra room makes it much easier to remove the LP tanks or walk between the truck and the camper.

What I didn't consider was hauling a trike. When we moved the rails back it moved the front wheel of the trike closer to the tailgate. The trike wheel is bungee'd to the Andersen hitch, so can't be located further from the tailgate. This moved the boom toward the tailgate, so my trike boom is about 1" from the tailgate. Thank goodness I didn't move it even further back like Ronn.

Using a universal kit, bed rails can be located in different spots in the bed. I know of one GM owner who had his ball for his Andersen gooseneck version installed too far forward and he can't open his tailgate. Know what you want and find an installer that knows what they're doing. If they say they can't install it like either Ronn or I wanted go elsewhere!

Enjoy,

Perry

[TJD]

Hi Ronn,
Any chance you could inform us of the specific model of universal rail mount that permitted you to install behind the axle without drilling holes? We are newbees expecting delivery of a 5.0 in Oct of next year. My TV is a 2018 F150, 6.5' bed. I would really like to achieve the installation you have so nicely described that permits the tailgate to be fully lowered with a few inches to spare. Thanks for the help.

[Ronn]

Originally Posted by TJD

Hi Ronn,
Any chance you could inform us of the specific model of universal rail mount that permitted you to install behind the axle without drilling holes? We are newbees expecting delivery of a 5.0 in Oct of next year. My TV is a 2018 F150, 6.5' bed. I would really like to achieve the installation you have so nicely described that permits the tailgate to be fully lowered with a few inches to spare. Thanks for the help.

Here you go, my F 150 is a 2015, don't know if that would make a difference or not. Good luck and keep us informed on how this works out for you.

We ordered the "Universal Kit" from etrailer (Reece Universal Base Rails and Installation Kit #RP30035). We also ordered another set of just brackets and hardware in case we needed to create a more custom installation. That bracket kit was "Husky Universal Mounting Bracked Kit #HT31563 - this kit is only brackets and hardware, not the rails. We did not need to use any of the parts in the Husky kit and returned them for a full refund.

[TJD]

Great! Thanks so much Ronn.

[nrlaney@gmail.com]

Hi Ronn,
You asked that I update you on the progress with installation of the universal hitch kit, per your extremely helpful guidance (F-150, 2018 4WD, 6.5' bed). We have just returned from the 5000-mile trip to accept delivery of our trailer at Sumas. I am happy to report that everything is exactly as I hoped it to be with the placement of the Andersen hitch, per your instructions. Plenty of room between the bumper and the front of the trailer. I can squeeze past the tailgate when it is down. No issues whatsoever with side rails or cab. I am extremely grateful for the information you and your colleagues on Escapeforum.org have shared.
Best wishes,
--Tim (and Nancy)

[Ronn]

Originally Posted by nrlaney@gmail.com

Hi Ronn,
You asked that I update you on the progress with installation of the universal hitch kit, per your extremely helpful guidance (F-150, 2018 4WD, 6.5' bed). We have just returned from the 5000-mile trip to accept delivery of our trailer at Sumas. I am happy to report that everything is exactly as I hoped it to be with the placement of the Andersen hitch, per your instructions. Plenty of room between the bumper and the front of the trailer. I can squeeze past the tailgate when it is down. No issues whatsoever with side rails or cab. I am extremely grateful for the information you and your colleagues on Escapeforum.org have shared.
Best wishes,
--Tim (and Nancy)

GREAT, glad it worked out for you. Nice looking rig, it looks like you are in great shape to enjoy your 5.0.

[cpaharley2008]

This is what make this forum great, owners helping other owners and sharing their knowledge....:}