[RajinCajun]

Howdy all, here is what I have... 03 F450 with a Western Hauler bed, it has the chanel down the center of the bed up to the gooseneck ball. Great set up and I love it, only problem is I now have a 5th wheel camper I now need to set my truck up to tow a 5ther but don't want to kill my ability to tow with the gooseneck.. I have seen pics of a B&W hitch that uses the hide-a-ball system (which I will install if needed).... my question is does anyone have one of these hitches or something similar that will fit inside the channel.. if needed I will bolt something down over the gooseneck ball hole, I just want a strong set up for a 15k toy hauler

 

[SmokeyWren]

Although your trailer manufacturer will probably void the warranty on your trailer, I would convert the hitch on the trailer from a kingpin to a gooseneck.

But you can't just simply install a gooseneck hitch on the trailer. The gooseneck will add a lot more twisting and bending force to the pin box and the frame up under the overhang of the trailer, so you have to have a good welding shop reinforce that area by adding a lot of junk iron. To access that area, if underneith your overhang is covered up with fiberglass or aluminum skin, then you have to remove the skin before you do the welding.

The owner of the local welding shop I use converted his 5er RV trailer to a gooseneck several years ago. He's drug that trailer thousands of miles with no problem. But the area under the overhang is reinforced with a lot of iron welded in.

Colibert makes the most popular gooseneck conversion kit. Click on the following link to see several brands of gooseneck converters, including the Colibert brand:
The Hitch Corner sells gooseneck to 5th wheel hitch adapters

Note that most brands of gooseneck conversion kits caution you about the additional leverage the gooseneck conversion has, but most don't mention the obvious fix: weld in a lot of junk iron to reinforce the frame of the trailer under the overhang, and to heck with the trailer waranty.

 

[fordsforever73]

I bought my dually from Texas and it has a gooseneck hitch. (seems like all southern trucks have gooseneck hitches). A month later I traded my slide in camper for a fifth wheel, and I faced the same dilemma as RajinCajun. I ended up settling for a gooseneck adapter and don't regret it one bit. It is heavy duty (good for 30000lbs) and I, and most others that see it love the fact that the box is still usefull.

 

[BlueMuleTrucking]

I saw a conversion from gooseneck ball to king pin several years ago.

 

[SmokeyWren]

I now need to set my truck up to tow a 5ther but don't want to kill my ability to tow with the gooseneck.. I have seen pics of a B&W hitch that uses the hide-a-ball system (which I will install if needed)....

That's probably a good option for you. Contact Western Hauler in Fort Worth and ask them if it would be practical to change out your current gooseneck hitch for a B&W Turnover Ball hitch.
Western Hauler - "The True Choice of Champions"

If that's do-able, then install the Turnover Ball, then add the B&W "Companion" 5er hitch. Since you're in Abilene, it's only a coupla hundred miles to Fort Worth, so maybe have Western Hauler do the work. That may not be much more expensive than doing a good job converting the 5er to a gooseneck.
B&W Turnover Ball Companion Hitch

No, I haven't done that personally, but I've read lots of reports of folks using the Companion hitch, and nothing but praise for it.

 

[SmokeyWren]

I saw a conversion from gooseneck ball to king pin several years ago.

But that requires the fifth wheel to be mounted on the trailer, or upside down from normal. Then the hitch in the truck could not be used for normal gooseneck trailers.

 

[Kanman]

I would go with the B&W Companion Hitch. That's the good stuff. Will allow you to go from Goose neck to 5th wheel in ten or fifteen minutes, and its solid as all get out too.

 

[BlueMuleTrucking]

But that requires the fifth wheel to be mounted on the trailer, or upside down from normal. Then the hitch in the truck could not be used for normal gooseneck trailers.

I should explain it better. It's a gooseneck ball that goes into the trailer's coupler,then the other side is a kingpin.

 

[Believer45]

Kind of like THIS BlueMule? Only it does not go between gooseneck and kingpin, it just converts the gooseneck trailer coupler to a kingpin for a standard fifth wheel hitch on the truck.

Dave / Believer45

 

[LandShark-47]

Reese makes a combo setup that only requires the removal of the 5er hitch head, this uses the same rails Draw-Tite 25K Gooseneck Trailer Hitch 6002 : Trailer hitch bike rack and trailer hitches - etrailer.com

Use this for the 5er. If you need the slide fora short be then just get the slider version. 16K Fifth Wheel Hitch by Reese 30047 : Trailer hitch bike rack and trailer hitches - etrailer.com

 

[BlueMuleTrucking]

Kind of like THIS BlueMule? Only it does not go between gooseneck and kingpin, it just converts the gooseneck trailer coupler to a kingpin for a standard fifth wheel hitch on the truck.

Dave / Believer45

Nope, the coupler was actually a gooseneck ball. It must've been custom made. Was pretty mutant looking, but very practical.

 

[BlueMuleTrucking]

You may want to look into a Resse set up. It's fifth wheel rails with normal hitch then an attachment "The Goose" I believe that's inserted into the rails. The previous owner of my truck has that set up in her new F-450. She wishes she kept my truck LOL.