Short or Long Bed

[tazz46]

Put a Reese Sidewinder on your 5ver
You will never have to worry about it again!

[Fleetman]

Same here, F250 Lariat, CC, 2WD, 8' bed.,6.7 diesel, 38' North Point. Smooth ride, tri-fold bed cover. Flip it up past 5W standard hitch and have tons of cargo carrying covered space. Wife hates it because I'm always looking for pull thru parking spots at in parking lots or I just back in. Little aggravating but the stability and comfort while towing out ways the negative.

[nynethead]

I am on my second fifth wheel. One older non cut front and a new Jayco HT. I had no issues with either trailer using a 6.6’ bed pu

[davolson]

We have the 28.5 RSTS, and have the F250 short bed WITH the BW companion slider mounted to the puck system. We use the slider nearly every time mostly because with it in forward position there is very little clearance between the tailgate when down and the trailer, ie truck has to be very straight inline with the trailer when you go to hitch or unhitch. The slider takes only a few seconds to move and has been flawless. (The main reason we got the slider though is that my driveway has a fairly sudden down angle, and we get a little more clearance from the bed rails when backing down). Also, we found when in sharp turns it's not the front of the trailer that is at risk of hitting the back of the cab, but the actual neck of the hitch that gets close to the sides of the box. FWIW.. we wouldn't change anything. As far as 6.5 bed vs full length, in our travels when unhitched we have found maneuvering and parking on busy "touristy" city streets having any longer a truck would be very challenging.

[redley]

As a past Class A Driver for a national Light to Heavy
Rental Equipment Driver, I don’t mind tight turns.
Using my F-350 Ford 8’ bed pick up. I haul a 17K lb.
43’ North Point trailer RV trailer by 5 wheel. Tight turns
are easy peasy! Lots of room around the 5th wheel to
take ice chest, lawn chairs, etc. on your camping trips.

[Sun N Fun]

I use my truck for many reasons and want as many options available as possible. I have a 2500HD w/ an 8' bed. The extra length is a little challenging at times but I enjoy the ride, and the additional cargo area. When it comes to tight turns, it's nearly impossible to get the truck and trailer tangled. I do appreciate the point someone made with the short bed and slider and using the slider to maintain clearance above the rails when navigating uneven ground but I suppose I could add the slider to my 8' too.

[JeremiahM]

How would a slider gain you vertical clearance? You should be able to adjust height of your current hitch

[Steveii]

Long bed. You get longer wheel base and longer bed. I always hate a short bed when you have to haul plywood or drywall that is 8'. Just me though. Not sure if the longer wheel base means anything with a fifth wheel. But common sense tells me it should handle better. Best of luck.

[kayakterp]

I love my 8’ bed !!
But It really depends on your usage?
I use my truck for daily driving and want a long bed for kayaking and occasional hauling materials
Yes it’s hard to park but I used to drive 22’ & 24’ box trucks and 19’ flat-bed so I’m used to the extra length & turning.
It tows like a dream and very stable while on the interstate and I can pack as much as I need in it without having to put “everything” in the RV.

[davolson]

In regards to bed length, need to make sure we're comparing apples to apples re wheelbase and overall length. My perceptions are related to our 6.5 box full crew cab. Making that an 8 footer would be a beast imho!

[oldmanAZ]

Originally Posted by davolson

In regards to bed length, need to make sure we're comparing apples to apples re wheelbase and overall length. My perceptions are related to our 6.5 box full crew cab. Making that an 8 footer would be a beast imho!

Looking at that chart, the 8' box and crew cab also gains on fuel: 48gal vs 34; about a 40% increase.

[Les7h]

Personal preference- why take a chance that could cost thousands of $$ - I would only own a long bed - more fuel and more room Les

[LeonDawn]

I won't have anything but an 8 ft bed! Tri-fold tonneau cover folds up while towing and covers items in bed safe from wondering eyes while not! On our second Ram 3500! Dont mind walking a bit further in parking lots and have always used truck stop diesel lines.

[robkelly]

I've had both and as long as we're towing a 5er will never go back to a standard bed. With the 8' I don't have to worry about tight turns, and like others have said, better fuel capacity and IMHO a better ride.