Reese Sidewinder 20K Vs. Reese Elite Airborne Sidewinder

Side by side comparison of the Reese Sidewinder 20K 5th wheel pin box and the Reese Elite Airborne Sidewinder

[@billtharp158]

Excellent video. I have the Air Sidewinder Elite and wanted to do the recommended yearly maintenance on it but Reese has discontinued this pin box as well as the maintenance kit you have to buy to replace the bushings if needed. I'm really pissed off about that. No support for the older pin box. Says alot about Reese's customer support. really appreiate the time you put into this. Thanks

[@philsalsbery9994]

I have this exact set-up with my 2017 RAM 3500 SRW 6'4" bed with Ram Boxes. Both Reese & etrailer worked with me to come to this solution for towing my 2018 39 foot Montana 5th wheel. Back then, I got the Reese 19K Sidewinder using the Reese 20K 5th wheel hitch. My towing experience has been solid and confident with no slipping of the rear wheels as some have mentioned, but I am a very cautious driver when towing a big 5th wheel, especially on wet surfaces The only issue I have had is while uncoupling the 5th wheel from my truck. It can be difficult to release the hitch's pull bar handle at times unless truck & trailer are perfectly aligned because the wedge block is very tight. A couple simple taps on the handle with a rubber mallet, and it slides right out. I love this set-up and would recommend it. Great video.

[@jeffbeaston6826]

I have the reese elite airborne sidewinder with b&w companion hitch. I'm on my 2nd airborne sidewinder swapped them out on 7 different trailers over the years. I know it's not following their guidelines but the first thing I do with those king pins is tear them apart clean the thoroughly of all the lithium grease and lubricate them using reese Teflon ball hitch lube then I torque the 4 turrett bolts to 35 ft lbs using blue loctite. Jerking motion in rotation is non existent . Nice and smooth. I have a 303rls currently and have the bag adjustment screws all the way front toward the truck and have found for me that 50 to 60 psi works best for the smoothest ride with my trailer. It's alot of trial and error to get the best ride and a couple psi up or down makes a big difference in ride quality

[@poiryra]

I'm with you 100 percent. I have the B&W Companion Slider hooked into my Gooseball mount and like it other than having to get out to move slider back. Always looking at other options. But other than having to deal with the wedge each time hooking it up seems to be a great setup. Also my pin box is the lippert Roto flex that works pretty well too. Going to suggest this setup to a friend that needs a setup.

[@philsalsbery9994]

I have the older Sidewinder 19K pin box, and once I dialed in the wedge, I have not touched it again in 6 years. It is a one time deal, set it right, and it stay put. Zero bucking and chucking while towing.

[@Kevin-midmichigan]

Awesome review,, Thanks..im thinking same as you..smooth is better..also looking at a trailer saver TSL3 for fifth wheel..Is it rough with the companion?

[@sidetech]

This is an amazing video! Thank you for taking time to put this together. I have the identical setup (Reflection 303RLS with RAM that has ramboxes). I purchased the Elite with the airbag. One thing I am noticing is significant "bucking/slamming" when going over pavement that has "whoops" in it, or bumps. It feels like the hitch is "bottoming out". Airbag is at 70lbs. Have you experienced this in your tests? It pulls fine when on fairly even pavement, but when I start to hit those waves in the road, it "slams down". I have airbags in my RAM as well. Did you happen to feel any of that when you went back to the regular one?

[@MyGrandDesignReflection303RLS]

I did play with the air pressure on the Elite and found that I preferred to tow with a higher pressure. I think what you are feeling is actually the opposite of bottoming out, but rather hitting the stop at full extension. There is a bridge on Interstate 5 just north of Sacramento Ca. that will beat a 5th wheel to death. I did discover that the Elite seemed to make the problem worse as a rhythm developed due to the expansion joints in the bridge. The Elite is good at dampening smaller jerks and bumps - very smooth on a good road, but didn’t seem to handle the bigger bumps as well. As I said in the video, I actually prefer the 20k hitch because there is much less movement at the pin.

[@Propnut48]

Someone needs to do a video of how dangerous these types of hitches really are on the stability of the truck in the rear. I have the turning point hitch and it has tried to push the rear end of the truck out from under the trailer sliding the tires. It acts like a standard bumper pull TT. It is especially dangerous when on a wet or icy road. I am going to go back to a standard slider hitch. More work but I felt 100X safer. These are a good idea but very unsafe in reality.

[@HomeOnWheels320MKS]

I have the old sidewinder 16K and it is so jerky that I have had it slide the rear wheels of the truck sideways when encountering a curve on wet pavement. The 45 ft-Lbs of torque on 4 bolts preloads the wear plates to 17280 lbs. No wonder it is hard to turn even when lubricated.

[@poiryra]

Great point!!! The law of physics at work. I had a situation of sliding sideways once even with the regular 5th wheel hitch and it was a very unpleasant feeling to say the least. It was in the late season with a little slush in a driveway apron of an RV dealer but that situation would definitely have been much worse with this setup. May have to rethink this.

[@philsalsbery9994]

I have the older 2018 Reese 19K sidewinder pin box pulling my 39' 2018 Montana 5th wheel (14K lbs.) while using the Reese 20K standard 5th wheel hitch in my 2017 Ram 3500 SRW with the ram boxes. I've been towing with this package for 6 years all over the western states with zero problems. I'm not sure what Reese has done since then to produce substandard pin boxes, as some say? In wet road conditions, I always tow very cautiously, as I would while towing any trailer. I experience no bucking & chucking at all. I had to set my wedge block initially, but have never touched it in 6 years as it performs flawlessly. Even with my SRW truck, I have never experienced any sideward pressure at the rear wheels. With experience and safe towing practices, this sidewinder is a great package for me. Happy safe travels to all.

[@roberttaylor8261]

Your Video an explanation is Spot on an came to be true as The Airborne was scrapped an left all of the trial an error people with their hand over their Asses!