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Full transcript: https://www.etrailer.com/tv-install-b...
Hey everybody, Ryan here at etrailer. Today on 2023 GMC Sierra 2,500, we're going to be checking out the B&W Companion Sliding Fifth Wheel Hitch. So right away the Companion, this is going to be designed to work with the B&W Underbed Gooseneck Trailer Hitches. And there's a couple of reasons that I can think of why you'd want to use the Companion over the standard type fifth wheel head that uses the traditional type rails. And one of them is that you have a couple of different types of trailers. So if you have a gooseneck and a fifth wheel, having the gooseneck hitch allow you to pull that trailer and then by picking up the Companion, it'll let you drop this fifth wheel right into that gooseneck hitch and hook up to your fifth wheel trailer.

Maybe you only have a fifth wheel, right But maybe you don't want those big rails in the bed of your truck, you know, taking up space. and you know, they're not super easy on the eyes by any means. The gooseneck kit, since it's all underneath the bed, you really don't see much up here and you still have full bed access. So you could always do that, drop the Companion in place and tow your fifth wheel. They make these style of hitches in a couple different configurations, some that are fixed, meaning they're in a fixed position, and some that slide, like this one that we have here today.

And you know, what you're going to need for your truck is really just going to depend on your bed length. If you have a short bed like we do, a sliding type one like this will be more appropriate. And that's because when it's in its towed or most forward position, you don't have as much space here as you would with a long bed. And so when your trailer's kind of overhanging, you make super tight turns, you could potentially, you know, the corners could collide and cause damage to the trailer and the cab corners. Definitely want to avoid that.

So that's the point of the sliding hitch. You know, if you find yourself in that scenario where you're making that super tight turn, what you can do is set your trailer's brakes and then you come out here lift up on the handle there and you know, depending on if you're putting it back in the tow position just scooching it back, you'd either reverse or go forward (metal clanking) and this will slide back giving you that additional clearance that you need. Which in our case would be more than enough to actually make that tight turn. Do get quite a bit of people wondering if a tonneau cover will clear the hitch. And it's a hard answer or a hard question to answer for sure.

But generally speaking you're not going to run into any issues. So right now I have our hitch set in the medium height 'cause this is adjustable to kind of fine tune it to your trailer. So I have mine in the middle and we have quite a bit of distance here. Matter of fact, I've yet to run into one that hasn't cleared. I'm sure they're out there, but it's just going to depend on your situation. But as I said, chances are pretty good it'll work and it's definitely understandable 'cause this thing is super heavy and kind of a pain to take in and out, to be honest with you. So having the cover back here makes sense, keep it out of the elements and everything else. And that brings you to my next point too. If you plan on pulling this thing in and out fairly often, B&W makes an attachment that locks into here. And then if you have some type of winch mechanism or something like that, you can put that in, winch this up out of the bed and drive the truck out from under it. It makes getting this in and out a lot more manageable. A lot of people also wonder about, you know, will the hitch fit in their bed if they have a toolbox back here And I do not see why it would not. There's more than enough space here for just about every toolbox out there, I would imagine. So that's how your truck's set up, shouldn't really have too much to worry about. I am a big fan of the jaw mechanism here that would go around your kingpin. It's super thick steel and makes a complete 360 degree contact there. So for me it just gives me a little more peace of mind knowing I have such a solid connection 'cause that's really important, you know. And it opens up nice and wide, letting you kind of back the truck up to the trailer and get it sorted and hooked up and whatnot. The head here is going to articulate, so it does have some movement in it making hooking it up a little bit easier. Not to mention too, I feel like this will help the trailer ride a little bit better, you know, there's no more forgiveness in the