Whats harder to back up , 5th wheel or regular bumper pull trailers ?

fastfredracing · 04-16-2025, 09:06 AM

All of my campers were 5th wheels. They went down the road like a dream, but I always struggled a little bit to stuff them in to tighter spaces backing them up.
Seems I can make a trailer turn in a shorter radius on a bumper pull trailer as opposed to 5th wheels . Or, maybe I am just not as used to them and anticipate how they will turn incorrectly
Its trailer inspection season here, and I just spent 10 minutes trying to back a big 5th wheel horse trailer into my garage , while traffic sat there looking at me like it was my first time .
Whats your experience ?

berettafan · 04-16-2025, 09:11 AM

never towed a 5th wheel but would've thought it's easier as the pivot point is the same as the truck.

stevej37 · 04-16-2025, 09:26 AM

Same here, never towed a 5th wheel so I can't compare.

But I do know that a tow dolly with a car on it is very hard for me to back up.
I think it's because it's so close and I can't see the towed car pivoting on the axle.

GH85Carrera · GH85Carrera's Garage

I was at a local gas station and as I was filling up I watched a F450 pulling a 2 horse trailer with two hoses inside pull in for diesel fuel. A chick that had to be no taller than 5'5" hopped out, pumped her fuel. She was in full "cowboy up" clothes. I went inside to buy beer, and watched as she masterfully backed that rig up, and then pulled out like a total pro. I was in awe.

I don't pull a trailer but a few times per decade. The last time I did I was very happy no one was around to watch. It was embarrassing to me at my lack of ability.

onewhippedpuppy · 04-16-2025, 09:41 AM

I have pulled up to a 16’x80’ mobile home, and spent years pulling 30 ft of boat and trailer for hours at a time. The single most difficult thing I’ve ever backed was a single axle 4’x8’ utility trailer. If you even look in the wrong direction you’ll jackknife the SOB, and it disappears behind a truck. Thank God I sold that stupid thing.

Scott Douglas · Scott Douglas's Garage

I've pulled a car trailer for a friend with his truck, bumper pull.

I'd think the part that makes it harder to back a 5th wheel is the fact you don't get the same type of pivot action on the trailer as the bumper pull does. I'd think they both take practice to become proficient at backing up. And yes, small short trailers are the worst kind to deal with.

My brother put front hitches on all his tow vehicles for a reason.

CurtEgerer · CurtEgerer's Garage

^^^

Yes, the dreaded 4x8 utility trailer. They're the worst.

I towed a 40' 5th wheel for several years and all sorts of bumper pull trailers. Towing down the road? No question, the 5th wheel is superior. Backing in, I remember there was a bit of a learning curve with the 5th wheel. It's different, but no better or worse that I recall. Basically, your starting point before you start backing is in a different location.

I was constantly amazed by the over the road truckers who would back these semi trailers between 2 other rigs with a foot on each side and do it perfectly in one try.

3rd_gear_Ted · 3rd_gear_Ted's Garage

Try backing an empty PWC trailer down a steep boat ramp.
I have a buggy whip flag that goes in the center rear of the trailer so as to not loose site of it turning on me.
The electronic back up with a dash knob in the bigger Ford trucks work well only on fairly level ground.
The guys that back dual 40" trailers in MX full of LPG into a storage terminal are skilled drivers.

LWJ · 04-16-2025, 10:58 AM

A long tongue / wheelbase makes all the difference when backing a trailer.

I had a 5th wheel. It was pretty cool how you could move it around if you had skill. I didn't.

Answer: my opinion is a 5th wheel is easier as the truck can move in greater than 90 degrees to the trailer if needed which should give greater mobility.

Sooner or later · 04-16-2025, 11:04 AM

After a short learning curve both were easy to me.

vash · vash's Garage

I think a fifth wheel is easier overall.

But a bumper pulled trailer is easier to back up. It reacts slower to inputs.

Given: both trailers are about equal length.

craigster59 · craigster59's Garage

I used to drive big rigs back in the day and we had a dock that was very tough to back into. You essentially had to back up along the trailers lined up and when you found an opening you had to cut hard and "jack knife" the trailer into the open spot.

I can back up a trailer into a gnat's ass, for me the longer the trailer the easier to back up. The short ones "get away" from you quicker.

rfuerst911sc · 04-16-2025, 11:35 AM

Towed our 5th wheel on Monday to the campground and came home today . Short shake down trip . In my opinion the 5th wheel is superior to bumper pull . But everyone is different , skill level can be all over the place . But it's also what you are used to . If you have towed bumper pulls for 20 years a 5th wheel won't feel natural . Same if you towed a 5th wheel for 20 years and went bumper pull .

This is only the 3rd time I have pulled this camper and it's my first 5th wheel . All my towing experience has been with bumper pull . Only oddity for me was getting used to seeing the camper " right there " in the rearview mirror .

onewhippedpuppy · 04-16-2025, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by craigster59

I used to drive big rigs back in the day and we had a dock that was very tough to back into. You essentially had to back up along the trailers lined up and when you found an opening you had to cut hard and "jack knife" the trailer into the open spot.

I can back up a trailer into a gnat's ass, for me the longer the trailer the easier to back up. The short ones "get away" from you quicker.

Truck drivers are definitely the masters. I’ve seen some amazing YouTube videos. Boat ramps were bad enough.

stevej37 · 04-16-2025, 12:02 PM

On the double trailers that semi drivers sometime use...they use a special 'pin' to lock the two together for difficult spots to back in.
One driver I talked to said "It makes backing doubles as easy as a single trailer"

fastfredracing · 04-16-2025, 12:20 PM

I just pulled it out of the shop and backed it into my lot to make it easier for the client to just zip out after work tonight with backing up herself ( crazy horse people ) . She can probably drive circles around me with a truck and trailer .
I think I get it . 5 th wheel seems to back up nice ,but takes more real estate to correct if you have to change directions . I bet if I had that truck/trailer for a weekend , Id be johnny on the spot . Still took me 4 stabs to back a 30 foot trailer into a spot , that I have backed into hundreds of times over the last 23 years of being here .

Scott Douglas · Scott Douglas's Garage

When I was going to school at SDSU I had a friend that was in the park service part time. We spent many a weekend just 'observing' the boaters down at the launch ramp at Mission Bay.
Good times for all!

Arizona_928 · 04-16-2025, 01:24 PM

Gooseneck is the easiest (as the trailers are longer and gives you more time to adjust). Bumper pulls suck as it’s a further back pov. Small trailers and tow dollies are the absolute worse.

stevej37 · 01:39 PM

The tow dolly I had, if you backed up and cut it too sharp...you ran the danger of the fender on the dolly hitting and gouging the towed car's door.
That is because the towed car sits with it's wheels on a pan. The pan rotates when the road curves...making it very difficult to back up.

Arizona_928 · 04-16-2025, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stevej37

The tow dolly I had, if you backed up and cut it too sharp...you ran the danger of the fender on the dolly hitting and gouging the towed car's door.
That is because the towed car sits with it's wheels on a pan. The pan rotates when the road curves...making it very difficult to back up.

Yeah. Fifth wheel/ goosenecks will take out the cab corner and/or back window/door with extreme angles.

Which brings up the point of the use of long beds for 5th wheel/goosenecks.