First time 5ver
Posted this to Forest River forum but wanted to get your feedback as well. So after 4 years in our BH TT we have decided that we want to upgrade. We have looked at about 100 units in the last week ...
Forum Discussion
charles.maine wrote:donn0128 wrote:
For the fivers your looking at you will also need to start looking for more truck. With pin weights over 3000 pounds, your 2500 is simply not enough truck.
The things tou would expect to see in a fifth wheel are exactly the same things you would look for with any RV. Fit, finish, signs of leaks in used units, assembly quality.
Am I reading this wrong? I thought my max kin ping weight was 3500 lbs and all of these are at 2600-2800 except the Big Horn which is 3010.
Without looking up those FWs, I'd say you're looking at dry weights. Since you'd never tow your FW completely unloaded (except, =maybe=, home from the dealer), you can only estimate the loaded pin weight. 2 methods to do so. Take the GVW and multiply by 20% and by 25% and that will give you an estimate of the pin weight at GVW. Another method is to divide the dry pin by the dry trailer weight and multiply that by the GVW. These would be =max= weights you'd see if loaded to the spec'd GVW. You might never see this, but then you might in an unusual circumstance. If the max weights you're seeing are over your truck's RARW or tire rating, then you need more truck or less FW. Simple as that. Now, with all that being said, you might find that your tires have less capacity than your RARW, so you could look to upgrade truck tires for a few hundred lbs more capacity. Personally, if I were over the truck's numbers by a couple hundred lbs, I wouldn't worry too much about it, but that's just me. Another thing to consider is simply how the truck handles those larger FWs while towing. You may find that you need a dually for stability, especially if towing in windy conditions.
Lyle
