Real towing experiencing with SRW
Okay "Fivers", I've been around this forum a few years now and have on occasion shared my opinion based on my experiences. Hopefully someone has found at least one of my experienced based opinions to ...
Forum Discussion
I'll chime in! As per my signature, I am currently towing a 37' Keyston e Fuzion toyhauler with a 2011 Ford F350 SRW. Fully loaded the trailer weighs in around 15,500 lbs and has a pin weight of around 3100 lbs. According to the weight police, I should be a deadly accident waiting to happen, but I am a few hundred pounds under my RAWR and several hundred pounds under the rating of my tires. I am however a few hundred pounds over the GVWR of the truck itself.
Although the stock suspension will handle the trailer on it's own, I have installed Firestone airbags for a better ride. To date with just over 3,000 miles of travel with this combination, I can't say that I have any more worries than I would if I were to have a dually truck. The rig stops just fine without the trailer brakes anywhere near maxed out. I don't seem to have any issues being pushed around by semis on the highway either. The truck gets the job done. Yes if I were going full time, I would probably get a dually, but for our recreational use, I feel that my truck is sufficient.
Not to join the weight police since they already have enough members, but the one problem I see with your truck is the Dodge trucks of that era do not have very high weight ratings. I am not trying to diminish the capability of your truck, just observing that from a legal standpoint, you may be fairly limited in the size of the fifth wheel that you tow. That being said, I do know with a truck nearly identical to yours who is towing a trailer very similar to mine. He has airbags, performance chip, etc. The last time I talked to him, he was talking about upgrading his truck to a dually because he wasn't comfortable with the way the truck handled the trailer. Power wasn't an issue, just plain handling.
I haven't done any heavy towing with a Dodge, but my opinion (we all know about those!) is that you would be the most happy with your truck if you keep the trailer weight under 12,000 lbs. Again, that is just an educated opinion.
Although the stock suspension will handle the trailer on it's own, I have installed Firestone airbags for a better ride. To date with just over 3,000 miles of travel with this combination, I can't say that I have any more worries than I would if I were to have a dually truck. The rig stops just fine without the trailer brakes anywhere near maxed out. I don't seem to have any issues being pushed around by semis on the highway either. The truck gets the job done. Yes if I were going full time, I would probably get a dually, but for our recreational use, I feel that my truck is sufficient.
Not to join the weight police since they already have enough members, but the one problem I see with your truck is the Dodge trucks of that era do not have very high weight ratings. I am not trying to diminish the capability of your truck, just observing that from a legal standpoint, you may be fairly limited in the size of the fifth wheel that you tow. That being said, I do know with a truck nearly identical to yours who is towing a trailer very similar to mine. He has airbags, performance chip, etc. The last time I talked to him, he was talking about upgrading his truck to a dually because he wasn't comfortable with the way the truck handled the trailer. Power wasn't an issue, just plain handling.
I haven't done any heavy towing with a Dodge, but my opinion (we all know about those!) is that you would be the most happy with your truck if you keep the trailer weight under 12,000 lbs. Again, that is just an educated opinion.
