B&W Trailer Hitches: An American Dream Story
Our current state-of-the-art facility
B&W was formed in 1987, in a small garage in Humboldt, Kansas by Roger Baker and Joe Works. Roger had seen declining demand for his skills as a classic car restorer and Joe had fallen on hard times with the family farm. Together, they started B&W Custom Truck Beds, Inc. with the goal of building the highest quality truck beds on the market. The truck beds proved exceptional, with custom headache racks, toolboxes, matched paint, and hand pin striping. Business grew quickly as word spread about the quality and good looks of B&W's quality beds.
Roger and Joe understood that having a gooseneck ball permanently mounted in the bed of a truck is a huge inconvenience.
Photo of our facility in 1994
At that time, in 1988, the best option for getting rid of the gooseneck ball was a large plate with a ball that folded down. This option required a huge hole in the bed, and installation was cumbersome. Together, Joe and Roger designed a hitch with a ball that could be pulled out, turned over, and stowed beneath the bed. The mounting framework they designed bolted to the truck frame and required no welding, drilling, or bed removal to install. This new hitch, the Turnover Ball, revolutionized the gooseneck hitch industry, as this type of ball storage and mounting system is used by nearly every gooseneck hitch manufacturer today.
B&W grows, new products are designed and brought to market, but quality remains number one concern.
Joe Works, now the sole owner and President of B&W, remains involved in the continuous design and improvement of innovative hitch solutions, including RV and receiver hitches. "Nearly twenty years after we started this business, our mission hasn't really changed. We believe in building innovative, high quality products that meet the needs of real users. We don't want to get so big that we forget our roots," says Joe.
Strong, Consistent, and Trusted, B&W's products are manufactured in a state-of-the-art facility that houses a skilled workforce of craftsmen and the most technologically advanced equipment available. B&W has become an industry leader that customers seek out for the quality and respect for their customer care.
