2007 Pacific Coachworks Tango 256RKS (GVWR/Tongue Specs etc)

It's been a few months since I came on here asking all of my questions so I figured I would do a quick update..

We absolutely LOVE both our 2007 Tango 256RKS travel trailer and 2004 F250 (turbo diesel) truck.
We decided on a Center Line TS Weight Distributing Hitch System,
rated for 800-1200 lb. Tongue Weight to tow the trailer.
Well worth the money!

Towing our trailer with the F250 using this hitch system has been effortless.

The travel trailer is wonderful with everything working perfectly. I have no doubts that @ $7500, we got an awesome deal.
There is plenty of room for me and my hubby and of course, our two doggies.

The only thing we did was remove the small TV that was installed in the travel trailer and replace it with a 32" LCD TV & dvd player.

After asking lots of questions and doing our homework we figured up the 'ins and outs' of operating the trailer (electric, propane, water, battery etc) as well as towing and hooking up the trailer.

Overall, we are extremely pleased with both our new 'toys'.

So I've been checking out the..
Center Line TS Weight Distributing Hitch Systems, 800-1200 lb. Tongue Weight

If anyone has any thoughts or reviews on this particular distribution hitch I would appreciate hearing what you think..

I found the perfect truck yesterday..or should I say the truck found me? lol

and it's NOT a Chevy :p

I had actually drove down to Ontario, CA to go look at a 2007 Chevy 2500HD, but after my initial inspection and test drive, there were a few red flags about that truck that didn't sit well with me, so I went with my gut and passed on it..the 'salesman' at that particular dealer was a real ass on top of it, making my decision to walk away even easier, lol

So, I figured while I was down the 'hill' I would drive around and check out some other trucks and this one just so happened to catch my eye.
It's a 2004 Ford Super Duty F-250 XLT 4D Crew Cab, V8 6.0L/364 DI V8 Turbo Diesel (Power Stroke)

It's got the Class V towing package with 7/4 pin combination connector, trailer brake wiring kit ect.
It also has a Prodigy P2 Brake Control mounted in the cab under the stereo.

This was a 1 owner truck, and with only 106,321 miles (which I think is good for a diesel no??) it looks and more importantly runs beautifully. The previous owner really took care of it and kept up to date with the servicing (kept all records)
oh yeah, and it's also fully loaded :p

I think I did good at $13,000 out the door...






So now, I'm going to be shopping around for the distribution hitch..
After all this, I'm going to need a little vacation with my hubby in our new travel trailer. haha

Thank you jmtandem :)

That era Tangos tow extremely well because they tend to be a little tongue heavy. I would go 15% of gross and add another 75 pounds or more for the weight distribution hitch. I would be surprised if your tongue and hitch weighs less than 1000 pounds at gross weight. Any 250/2500 will tow it well, the diesel exceptionally well. Tangos were very well built and above average quality for the money. You did well securing this unit.

Thanks Barney,
I'll show that to my husband :)
(p.s my husband is retired U.S Navy, and our youngest son (19) just enlisted back in June..just now finished up 'A' school)

I had suspected as much with regards to the 1500's or 1/2 ton pick ups and that's why we decided to look at the 2500 series..

I was able to find the 'specs' label inside the cabinet directly under the kitchen sink :)

this is how the label reads..


GVWR is 7400 lbs.

minus

UVW (Unloaded Vehicle Weight)is 5500 lbs
*it says this includes the tongue weight/pin weight and axles

minus
fresh water (50 gallons) @ 8.3lbs per gallon is (415 lbs)

minus
propane weight 14 gallons @ 4.2 lbs (59.64 lbs)

=

CCC (cargo carrying capacity) 1425.36 lbs

I've been learning a lot of information this past week by asking these questions and I'm very grateful for all of your replies.

While I'm sure it will be several months before we have everything in place as far as the 'truck' is concerned, I am so looking forward to taking out new 'beast' out on the road.
I still have much to learn though so I'm sure I will be throwing out a bunch of additional questions...if your all willing to put up with me :P

No not on the tongue. Left side of the trailer about knee level and maybe 6 inches back from the front wall. ALL trailers have the tag on them when new. Mine is 10 years old and still readable, so it should be there.

I suspect your loaded hitch weight will be around 800-850lbs, maybe a bit more. I would look for a truck that has the carrying capacity to carry at least that much hitch weight plus whatever else you are going to put in it.

Most of the modern 1500/150 series trucks would be just about right at their load limits but doable. Check the weight carrying/weight distributing rating on the trucks receiver also for some help.

Here is a way to weigh your tongue without going to a public scale.
Barney

Thanks guys for your replies..

I actually just got a call back from Pacific Coachworks and found out that they have NO specs on anything prior to 2008 as the original 'company' went out of business. the 'name' or entity (Pacific Coachworks) continued to manufacturer the Tango trailers under different ownership after that and have no previous records of trailers prior to 2008.

Donn, the only 'tag' I've seen so far is a small metal label on the side of the tongue with the VIN number stamped on it.
There is some 'stamped' information on the top of the tongue itself, but it's hard to make out...
I'll have to go through all of the cabinets and see if I can't find the info...or look at the tongue again in case I missed it.

The 2009 Tango 256RKS lists the following specs..
GVWR @ 7400 lbs.
Dry Weight @ 5500 lbs.
Payload @ 1900 lbs.
Hitch Weight 520 lb

Currently we have no way to get it to scales as this would obviously be the most accurate way of getting the weight, but unfortunately our Chevy Tahoe, as much as I love it, just wouldn't be suitable to tow this size of a trailer..(although it did great when we used it to maneuver the trailer around our property and into position lol)

either on the side of the trailer or inside a cabinet will be a label with the weights. You still should be taking it to the scales to see what the real weights are, or at least weighing the tongue.. in my opinion, the truck specs and tongue weight are the most important.