looking for best 5th wheel for 1/2 ton pickup

Forget all the geniuses who claim that NO 1/2 ton truck can pull a 5er and stay within ratings. LOOK at ALL of your TV specs then LOOK at many available trailers. I suggest starting with the Sportsmen S235RK.

From KZ RV:
S235RK
UVW (Unloaded Vehicle Weight) 5,925
Dry Hitch Weight 860
Dry Axle Weight 5,065
GVWR 7,000

I owned this model and pulled with a 1/2 ton, SAFELY and WITHIN ALL ratings.

I've been looking at small 5th wheels and my preference is a late 80's - early 90's 17-20 ft. I haven't found one locally (with in 200 miles) to buy so I started looking at 22 ft models because they are fairly common. Try as I can I cannot see any way the numbers work for a 1/2 ton. 22 footer's average about 4000 lb dry so I figure they will be 5000 lb when loaded. 1000 lb pin weight doesn't leave enough cargo capacity for people, dogs, fuel, etc. on a 1/2 ton. If you can find a used 17-20 ft the dry weight should be about 3000 lbs and the numbers work. Since the manufactures of trucks over rate their MPG to sell trucks I assume they do the same with cargo capacity. Meanwhile trailer manufacturers under rate their wight to sell trailers so I like some cushion in the numbers.

Bamaman1 wrote:

kaydeejay wrote:

BUDDY1963 wrote:
im new to rving , can I get some suggestions on what makes and models to look at for my 1/2 ton pickup.

Welcome to the Forum, but you're not going to like the advice you are going to get!
Unless you have a recent F150 HD with the Max tow package, ferget about a 5th wheel on a 1/2 ton.
Only the smallest, lightest fivers will not overload your truck.
While it may be rated to PULL a good load, the limited payload capacity will bite you - FAST!
Start out by looking at the yellow & black "Tire and Loading Information" label near your driver's door.
It will say something like "Combined weights of occupants and cargo must not exceed XXXX pounds".
THAT is your maximum payload capacity and must handle everyone and everything IN the truck, full tank of fuel, the hitch weight plus the loaded pin weight of the fiver.
Get that number and do the math!

If the truck is equipped with the max tow package, look at a Grand Design Reflection series. They have a lightweight series designed to be towed with a 1/2 ton truck that's properly equipped. They also just came in with a couple of premium travel trailers that a 1/2 ton can handle.

Only 1/2 ton truck that would close to towing the lighter Reflection trailers would be an HD F150. The rest will be overloaded.

I have a 2005 Chevy Silverado 4X4 short bed. I am towing a 1991 Shadow Cruise 24 foot. It only weighs 3570 (Dry) and tows like a dream. It has a tapered nose so I am able to turn ALMOST a full 90 degrees with it. Not a big trailer but just perfect for my wife and I and so easy to tow.

Buddy... from someone that actually tows a FW with a so called 1/2 ton... Do your homework, then do it again. Before we bought our 5er, DW & I spent well over a year going over all the #'s of what our truck weighted (actual travel ready), trying to match it with the right 5er. Must have looked at gazillion 5er's, going over #'s and more #'s until we found what we feel is the perfect 5er for our truck.
But the bottom line is .... You gotta have the right configured truck to do the job you want done. Just any ole truck won't do ...JMTC


Milo

Check out the Open Range Light's--they have several that are 1/2 ton
towable and can be turned 90 degrees without damage to the cab.

http://www.openrangerv.com/

A lot of talk here. I have a 2004 GMC sierra with the factory pull package. Max FW tow is 8100 lbs per GMC. I pull a 2005 24.5 ft Keystone Hornet with one slide out. (empty weight is 6500 lbs +/-) The only modifications I have made is adding Tembrin load levelers and a Mor Ryde hitch to the FW. My pin weight loaded is 1100 lbs. I pulled it over 9500 miles last summer and averaged 10.5 MPG.

We pulled a Cougar High Country 246RLS all over the country with our 1/2 ton Dodge with no problems for two years. We did add air bags to level the truck out better after the first year. The added bonus of a Reese sidewinder pin allowed us to be able to maneuver the trailer well. If we could turn the truck around we could turn the trailer around. We now have a 3/4 ton Dodge and it doesn't even notice that the trailer is there. In fact, we had to lower the receiver down as far as it would go so the trailer did not sit nose up as bad. It is still a little nose up though....pretty stiff suspension I guess.

SkiSmuggs wrote:
"However, we have discovered one truck brand that may tow fifth wheel trailers up to 11,712 pounds and not exceed the ratings. That truck is the 2015 Ford F150 with the 3.5L V6 EcoBoost. The configuration that meets this requirement follows: 3.73 gear ratio, 4X2, 163.7" wheel base, SuperCab. With two passengers, the loaded vehicle weight is 5,388 pounds. The GCWR = 17,100 and the GVWR = 7,850."

As I mentioned on another thread, I want to hear from someone who has actually got one of those 2015 HD F-150s delivered to them. Because I ordered one with exactly the above-quoted specifications (except on a 4x4) on August 15, 2014, the first day that 2015 F-150 pricing was released. The first estimated delivery date was mid-January 2015, the second was mid-February 2015, and the third was late March to early April 2015. Last Friday, February 27, I got a call from the dealer that the new build date would be July, with delivery in early August 2015--one year after I placed my order.

This is a Ford truck we are talking about, the "best-selling vehicle in America for 38 straight years," not a limited-edition Ferrari! I convinced even the General Manager of the Ford dealership that the reason for the delay is that Ford can't meet the max tow and HD payload numbers published on their Website. That's because, for the first time this year, they finally agreed to use the voluntary SAE J-2807 tow standard that Dodge has been using for several years. Since Ford is selling far more aluminum F-150s than they anticipated, they don't really miss a few cancelled orders for HD payload-max tow trucks and the really pissed-off "buyers" who tried to order them.

So, "show me the money, Ford" because I don't believe a word of your 2015 F-150 HD payload capacity any more. And I am a "Ford guy" who owned a '57 Ford and a '64 Ford in the 1960's and had many more since then.

Short story long, I cancelled my F-150 order last Monday, got my deposit back Friday morning, and bought a 2015 RAM 2500 diesel Friday afternoon. Which is what I should have done 6.5 months ago.

Now that I got that rant out of my system, what was this thread about?

Cougar x lite and flagstaff models come to mind. The problem is that a lot of dealers advertise a line of "half ton towable" lines, then you actually look at the specs and discover there is a wide range of weights in that light category.
I remember when other people I travelled with and I had 23' models and we were happy. I haven't seen anything in dealerships or on line that small anymore.