Fontaine Fifth Wheel manufactures fifth-wheel coupling systems for commercial trucks, highway tractors, and heavy-duty vocational equipment. Its product range includes lightweight highway fifth wheels, cast fifth wheels, severe-duty couplings, mounting systems, and replacement parts.
Truck Equipment Atlas covers Fontaine products to help readers understand fifth-wheel construction, locking mechanisms, mounting options, and application differences.
History and Background
The original Fontaine company was founded in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1940 by John P. K. Fontaine. During a wartime shortage of cast fifth wheels, Fontaine developed a pressed-steel fifth wheel in 1942, establishing the foundation of its coupling-equipment business.
Fontaine subsequently developed its No-Slack locking technology and expanded its fifth-wheel offering across highway and demanding vocational applications. Today, Fontaine Fifth Wheel is a member of Marmon Holdings, a Berkshire Hathaway company.
What Fontaine Fifth Wheel Manufactures and Supplies
- Stamped-steel and cast fifth-wheel top plates
- Heavy-duty and severe-duty fifth wheels
- Clean Connect fifth wheels with grease-free trailer-contact surfaces
- Sliding and stationary mounting systems
- No-tilt and application-specific mounting options
- Air-actuated release options
- Replacement locking components, repair kits, and service parts
Fontaine Fifth Wheel Products on Truck Equipment Atlas
Highway and General-Service Fifth Wheels
- Fontaine No-Slack 6000 Fifth Wheel — A lightweight stamped-steel fifth wheel for standard and moderate-duty highway service.
- Fontaine No-Slack 7000 Fifth Wheel — A cast fifth wheel for standard through heavy-duty applications.
- Fontaine No-Slack 7000CC Clean Connect Fifth Wheel — A cast fifth wheel with a grease-free trailer-contact surface.
Heavy-Duty and Severe-Duty Fifth Wheels
- Fontaine H7 Heavy-Duty Fifth Wheel — A reinforced cast fifth wheel for demanding highway, vocational, and off-highway applications.
Technology and Product Development
Fontaine’s No-Slack mechanism automatically adjusts around the trailer kingpin to accommodate normal wear and variations in kingpin geometry. This helps control movement at the coupling and reduce shock during acceleration and braking.
The 6000 and 7000 families share No-Slack locking technology while using different top-plate constructions. Clean Connect adds a grease-free contact surface between the fifth wheel and trailer coupling plate. The H7 extends the range into heavier applications with a reinforced cast housing and application-specific mounting options.
Company and Location Information
Fontaine Fifth Wheel lists its worldwide headquarters at 3520 Industrial Parkway in Jasper, Alabama. The company supports commercial-truck manufacturers, fleets, owner-operators, and aftermarket customers.
This page focuses on Fontaine fifth-wheel couplings, mounting systems, and service parts. Fontaine Trailer equipment is covered separately within Truck Equipment Atlas.