Pin box replacement

Has anyone replaced their pin box? My QBBS came with a standard pin box. I think I would like to know how difficult it is to switch it out for one that isn't so rigid!

Cory

I ordered mine from Demco and had it shipped to a RV repair place that
I'd already worked out the dates/time with. I took the 5th wheel
over and they swapped it out. Dropped it off in the morning and
picked it up in the afternoon. The times were picked to avoid
traffic while towing across town. Charged me $125 IIRC, and at
about $75-100 and hour shop rate up here, that means it was a quick
job. Oh yeah...they got rid of the old one for me also, but
put my teflon disk back on for FREE.

I am giving serious thought to replacing mine with the 5th Airbourne Sidewinder. Everything that I have read indicates that it is a straight forward swap since the units are exact replacements as far as bolt holes. They do recommend that you have another person present as the units are about 100#. They also recommend using screw drivers to put in the bolt wholes to align the unit. The swap time is said to be about twenty minutes.

Replaced ours with the Demco Glide Ride - bought from Demco and installed myself with help of a friend.

I replaced the Lippert pinbox with a 5th Airborne, and it was a 15 minute job with the help of my Dad.

The hardest part is gtting the heavy, new pinbox up into the uprights. After that, its just bolting it down, no problem.

We replaced ours with a 5th Airborne after I think the 3rd time we used it. Was a very good mod. Our dealer installed it when we took it in for service, but don't remember what we paid for the install.

I had mine replaced with a 5th Airborne at Camping World. The installation was $70.00 and it took about a half an hour. The thing that made it nice was they had a jack just made to hold the pin box. It was worth the investment.

I replaced mine with a Trailair. Took me about an hour, as I had to fashion a "lift" to get the new one in position. Get someone to help if you can (and make sure it is someone who will show up). Makes the job much easier. Mine bolted right on, with no drilling. Actually added an extra bolt to each side.

In doing some looking around on this it would appear that I need to know the specific information about my 5th wheel. I see someone mentioned Lippert...I take it that is what I have on the 32 QBBS? If so they seem to have some sort of a model number with them as well?

Any idea what I might have?

There should be a tag on your pin box with the model number. Ours was a LP1621 for example.

My 32QBBS had the Lippert 1621HD...it is the most common pin box out there.....

Thanks! I will get a look next chance I get.

When I replaced my pinbox with the Demco, I used a tripod stabilizer for 5th wheels to help support the hitch. I also used screw drivers to line up the holes. It took about 30 minutes to install. The original 1621 one is much lighter than the Demco. This is the best mod I have made as far as towing is concerned.

Sorry, not sure of the of the improvment? Not a cheap mod, what makes this so?

Silversides,

It all boils down to the way roads are built and
how they wear. The road has a wave to it's surface. Basically
what's happening
is that the tow truck starts "down" a slight
incline in the road at the same time the FW starts "up" a slight
incline and it jerks backwards on the truck. When the truck hits the
top the FW hits the bottom. They they cycle through a set of "up/down",
while the WC tries to pass the truck and pushes it because of the
hitch, before starting all over. When you get a section that has it's
wave tuned to the wheelbase of the truck/FW you get a lesson in
frustration. Especially when your keys on the keyring are bouncing off
of the instrument panel.

At least that's how two completely different truck drivers explained it to me. They'd never met and never will.

I used to have serious bucking on pavement joints (concrete roads) and over bridges and overpasses. Now I cannot feel any of the bumps. The bucking would throw our heads forward (just place your head against the headrest and see if you get pushed forward over bumps.)

Both myself and my parent's Wildcats suffered from bucking until installing Demco pinboxes. I tried weight distribution first. I think it is a characteristic of my long bed 3500 4x4 Chevy and the lighter front end of the Wildcat.

I had Camping World install mine and waited only about 30 minutes to have it done. I have the Fifth Airborne and it has helped a lot with smoothing out the ride. We have terrible concrete highways here in California in many places and the drive was very rough. Be sure to get the correct shock and airbag for your pinweight if you get the Fifth Airborne. BTW, I have a short bed Chevy 2500HD.

I installed the Demco box, by my "little" self. I raised it into position, with a floor jack, sitting in the bed of my truck. Just gotta watch what you are doing, so as to not pinch fingers, etc.
Demco made me happy.

why are you replacing the pin boxes?

I looked yesterday and I do have the Lippert 1621 as well. I see I have another family of birds in there from the winter...last year they got in the thing and died...stunk like all kinds of hell of about a month! :roll:

H O G Hauler,
Some road surfaces cause fifth wheels to buck, or jerk, making for an uncomfortable ride. Recognizing this problem, several manufacturers have developed a solution, which is a replacement pin box. All of them help, or eliminate the bucking, and jerking. Prices vary for each design. Some have shock absorbers, some have air bags. Demco uses a different method.
More info at: http://wvw.demco-products.com/rvtowingmarine/glideride.html

Thanks for the explanation.

We don't seem to have the jerking problem with our Toy Hauler maybe because we have a lot of weight in the back of the camper (the bike is 900 pounds).

I brought the fiver home in March from the dealer and though only 50 miles it did make an impession1 on me for hauling. The wife decided before we head for Illinois next month we need to do something about the chucking. After reading all of these posts about pin box replacements I did a little research and we decided on the 5th Airborne. Thanks to all who posted!

I installed the TrailAir RotoFlex this past weekend with the help of my Dad. This was definitely a 2 person job, plus a jack. The RotoFlex was a direct replacement for my 1621 Lippert. The bolt holes lined up, but it was a tight fit getting it into place (that is where the jack came in - a little force got it into place). The new pin box was over 100 lbs and as a previous poster stated, this one too is heavier than the stock one. Lippert recommended replacing the bolts and nuts as well (use Grade 8 hardware).

I bought the RotoFlex direct from FR - paid $360 plus shipping which I thought was a pretty good deal.

I go out in 2 weeks for the first time this season, so I have high expectations!

Just out of curiousity, those of you that replaced the stock pin box, what did you do with the old one? Is there a market for used 1621 Lippert pin boxes? I was thinkiig of posting it somewhere for sale, but have no idea what it's even worth.

We talk about replacing our pin box every time we start bucking - I imagine it will be our next big installation project. We'll have the installation done professionally, probably at Camping World if they are still in business when we're ready.

Just out of curiousity, those of you that replaced the stock pin box, what did you do with the old one? Is there a market for used 1621 Lippert pin boxes? I was thinkiig of posting it somewhere for sale, but have no idea what it's even worth.

It's laying in the shed, wrapped in a plastic bag.

JonC wrote:I installed the TrailAir RotoFlex this past weekend with the help of my Dad. This was definitely a 2 person job, plus a jack. The RotoFlex was a direct replacement for my 1621 Lippert. The bolt holes lined up, but it was a tight fit getting it into place (that is where the jack came in - a little force got it into place). The new pin box was over 100 lbs and as a previous poster stated, this one too is heavier than the stock one. Lippert recommended replacing the bolts and nuts as well (use Grade 8 hardware).

I bought the RotoFlex direct from FR - paid $360 plus shipping which I thought was a pretty good deal.

I go out in 2 weeks for the first time this season, so I have high expectations!

Just out of curiousity, those of you that replaced the stock pin box, what did you do with the old one? Is there a market for used 1621 Lippert pin boxes? I was thinkiig of posting it somewhere for sale, but have no idea what it's even worth.

Mine is in my shed also.........I found that there are quite a few number of fivers that use that same pinbox, so if I decide to upgrade in the future, I can put the original back on and keep my Fifth Airborne for the new one.


Steve

I'm putting a Demco GlideRide on my Cat this weekend. I'll take some pictures and let you know how it does.
Mark

Yep, my old Lippert pinbox is sitting in the back yard in case I upgrade trailers someday. Of course, I'll probably end up leaving the new one on just because of the hassle of taking it back off!

Yep, my old Lippert pinbox is sitting in the back yard in case I upgrade trailers someday. Of course, I'll probably end up leaving the new one on just because of the hassle of taking it back off!