General Information
The hitch is a Reese(R) 16K Slider Model #30051 which has the +- 5 degrees side tilt capability and Rails #30035 being installed in a 2001 Ford F250 Short bed.

I will be adding pics as soon as available.

I have a short bed truck and decided on the slider hitch.  After reading several posts, I am certainly glad I did.  I had little to go on when I began shopping but the helpful people on the forums.  It seemed like there were some new brands coming out about the time I started looking (Mar 2001), but the one that seemed most prevalent was the Reese.

I was able to get a feel for the cost of the hitch and checked local RV shops and Anchor Truck (a local truck mod shop) to get an idea of the cost for installation.  I was unable to find anyone whom would do the installation for less than $240.00 so I decided to do it myself.  Im glad I did.

I found the best price for the Reese 16K slider at http://www.hitch-web.com at $634.00 for the Reese 16K slider and rails and http://www.hitch-web.com paid the freight to 48 states.  I had checked a local RV shop and apparently they wanted my business too as -the met the price so I ended up buying it locally - actually $635.00.  But still wouldnt budge on the $240.00 installation.

Hitching
One of the errors in hitching that has caused damage to truck walls and 5th wheels is attempting to hitch when the 5th wheel hitch is too high relative to the hitch.  One of the of the nice features of the Reese(R) hitch is it provides feedback to the operator when properly hitched by the action of the handle.

Preparation
I read the Reese 16K slider installation instructions section on the Ford F250 several times hi-lighting the parts that seemed most important.  The instructions indicated that you need a 17/32" dia drill bit to accommodate the shoulder on the bolts which are drawn into the frame when the bolts are tightened.  You dont need a wrench on the back side of the frame bolts.  I was able to find the 17/32" dia drill  bit at a local fastener shop for about $17.00.

First problem I experienced was I only had a 3/8" dia chuck on my drill motor.  I had a friend take it to his shop and turn down the end to fit into the 3/8" dia chuck.

I wanted to use the whole assembled hitch as a template to maintain straight and parallel sections so we assembled the hitch complete with the bed rails outside the truck.  It certainly takes 2 to lift it into the truck.

Installation Process
The Reese bracket kit provides 2 different length brackets for mounting to the truck frame - the 2 short legs are for the bolts in the front rail as they interfere with the overload leaf springs of the Super Duty suspension.

We started with the right (passenger side) front bracket attaching to the frame of the truck.  The instructions indicate to put the bracket ahead of and against (or very close to) the bed sill or cross member channel that supports the bed on the truck.  This set the location for all the remaining holes.

We first drilled a pilot holes in the frame using a 1/4" dia bit, then the 17/32" dia bit, and bolted the bracket to the frame.  The flange of the bracket that mates to the truck bed has 3 holes - staggered - for adjustment and positioning.  With this bracket in place we drilled one small 1/16" dia hole from the underside, through the bed using the inner most hole (assuming it would be most likely covered if wrong)  - this is the only way we can identify where the hitch was going to sit in the bed.  After having one hole drilled, we placed the assembled hitch over this hole aligning the front outer hole on the hitch rail.  We then measured to center and square the hitch in the bed from the top.  You can pretty much eyeball the location based on the creases in the bed.

The drivers side was a little different.  We had to verify the driver side would end up outside the frame approximately the same distance as the passenger side and a hole in the bracket flange would mate with the hitch rail in the bed of the truck.  The fuel line crosses the truck frame right at the truck bed sill right where one of the bolts for the hitch rail attaches.  The instructions indicate to use the rear hole on the front rail on the drivers side for the bracket that attaches to the truck frame.  If there was a problem, there are 2 other holes in the leg of the bracket that attach to the bed that could have been used - each giving a slightly different position for the bed rails.  But it did work out fine.

This time the drilling was from the top of the bed.  Once verified, we could drop a bolt through the rail and bed and place the drivers side bracket in place aligning 1 of the 3 holes in the flange.  Then we attached the flange to the truck frame as the first bracket.  Use caution on the front hole in the bed - the fuel line sits right below the bolt hole.

The rear wasnt much different.  We used the front hole of the rear rail and the longer bracket per the instructions.  Went through the same process using the 1/4" dia pilot and 17/32" dia bit for the final holes.

Overall it wasnt too bad of job.  The 17/32" dia drill bit was good quality which certainly helped.

After thoughts
I later decided to add Airlift(R) airbags.  I had read on the forums there were possible conflicts with the hitch brackets and airbag brackets.  Here is my write-up: AirLift(R) Airbag Installation