Vehicle Towing Assistance - Weight Ratings

Best I can tell from your specs, you might be a hair over on payload when fully loaded but just fine on towing weight.

You're under every rating except the payload rating. Same brakes and running gear as a 3500. It will stop and start the same. Handling will be similar but the 3500 may feel firmer overall OEM wise. Your airbags would make it feel the same IMO.

"Recently got a Cougar Camper 5th Wheel and its roughly 11441lbs shipping with 2065lbs on the hitch"


Those ^^^^^ are DRY Weights and don't mean too much cause you do not tow DRY


WHat you should do is load truck/trailer up 'camp ready' (fuel, all passengers, stuff in cab, stuff in truck bed and all the stuff in trailer)
GO to a CAT Scales and get weighed. Truck/Trailer combo then drop trailer in parking lot and go reweigh truck only
Then you will have actual weights on truck front axle, rear axle, trailer axles and with just truck Front/rear axles ----which gives you WET pin weight of 5vr

Compare those weights with truck AXLE Ratings etc.
Now you KNOW vs guesstimating

Correct me if I'm wrong but often the tires are the limiting factor on 250 series trucks and not the rear diff/axle combo. It seems when playing around with the build price functions that I'm often get the message to fet this GVW package you must get such and such tire package.

We need more info but I suspect you are probably right around the max limit for pin weight but if over, you probably aren't over by much.

Give us the full details on truck and trailer (there are stickers on each with payload info). Also tell us what you carry in the truck.

proffittk wrote:
So I haven't quite figured out how the whole weight rating thing goes.

So I've been doing some reading and based from my reading and lack of understanding, I have a truck to small for the beast I haul behind it.

Recently got a Cougar Camper 5th Wheel and its roughly 11441lbs shipping with 2065lbs on the hitch

I have a 2015 Ram 2500 Mega Cab Longhorn 6.7 Diesel. Given it tows with no issues, no squat (has air lift), but I'm trying to see what kind of risk game I'm playing hauling it with this truck? Figured a few of you have much better understanding and experience with this than me, the NOOB of camper hauling

Need more info, make and model of new Keystone 5er.
This will allow us to see the Dry and Gross weights, better to see if will work.

So I found a free scale to try out.

Did the GVW..my GVWR is 10K and without passengers and a full camp out load...I was at 10680 (OUCH)

Then did my GCW. My GCWR is 25300 and again without the extras and a loadout w/ water I'm at 20620

My Towing weight is around 12380 with a max of 15190

My max on VTWR is 3798 and VTW was 2440.

So looks like my biggest risk factor is the weight on the rear axle. Here's where I could use some opinions...how high is the risk? The tires have a 3600lb per rating, but I have the air leveling system on the rear and course its pushing past the OEM ratings

If your state licenses tonnage make sure you are licensed for 11K or 12K and trailer on. Your truck should have a 6500 RGAWR and you should be under that. GVWR is a manufacturers warranty issue. No pickup will exceed the the Federal Bridge Weight laws. Your 2500 has rear coil springs verse the leafs or air on the 3500 with a 7K RGAWR.

If correctly licensed, you should be fine. Search Wadcutters posts on weights here in RV.net for more info.

Two folk have mentioned that the OP may be over on payload. Yet the OP hasn't given us the payload capacity of the truck. Until we get that, everything is speculation. Payload is typically the first capacity exceeded.

proffittk: what is the payload capacity on the decal on the driver door jamb?

I do hold a 12K plate, which is good I did that without thinking of it.

As for cargo. The only piece I can see is the tire label saying not to exceed 1806 on passengers and cargo. Course that's with factory tires