Crew Cab and long bed

wtmtnhiker wrote:
Thanks to all,
I decided on a 2013 Silverado 3500 Dually-Duramax-Allison with a crew cab and 8' bed.

Great truck right there. Git'r done. Post some pic's when you got it.

Thanks to all,
I decided on a 2013 Silverado 3500 Dually-Duramax-Allison with a crew cab and 8' bed.

rhagfo wrote:

ib516 wrote:
I have a Megacab Shortbed - 21' long. It's a pain to park in tight spaces or smallish parking lots.

Really! I have a LB Quad cab also just over 21' long I find it very easy to parallel park. I don't need much more than 3' or a 24' space to park.
I most parking lots I back in, much easier than diving in.

X-2 and my quad cab is a little longer than yours.

I would not ever give up the ride and stability of my CC DRW LB as for the turning issue, it does seem like I should just learn how to drift the truck and fifth wheel. LOL

Someone makes pickups with a bed smaller than 8'?!?!?!?!?! wow! who would a thunk!

Sounds kinda dumb to me, wish I could get a 10' pickup bed frankly!

But as far as maneuverability goes......... get the truck with the most wheel cut. My 188"WB Navistar can out turn my 88 155" gm ext cab. Not quite on par with my reg cab truck, but it will out turn pickups really easy! Take the same rig with a 45 degree vs the 55 degree, and the 45 is over 15-20 wider radius!

Marty

10s of thousands of miles a year pulling a 34' FW and a 38' Horse Trailer always loaded down with tons of stuff. Wouldn't think of pulling with anything but a CC LB Dually. Even my 20 year old daughter sometimes pulls these trailers with a CC LB Dually. Have some patience and get used to the vehicle, you'll get used to it and it won't be a big deal.

I don't think it's bad. The advantages, especially with a 5er, far outweigh the disadvantages. Even with a SB ext cab truck I had, it was easier to back into a slot than to head in. More storage ahead of the hitch and no special hitch or ext. pin box required. You gotta get better at backing cuz the lwb doesn't correct as quickly. No biggie to me, either.

ib516 wrote:
I have a Megacab Shortbed - 21' long. It's a pain to park in tight spaces or smallish parking lots.

Really! I have a LB Quad cab also just over 21' long I find it very easy to parallel park. I don't need much more than 3' or a 24' space to park.
In most parking lots I back in, much easier than diving in.

wtmtnhiker wrote:

How much difference do you think it would have been if you had an extended cab instead? I think the crew cab is about 10" longer.

I am sorry. I thought you were concerned about the long bed vs regular bed. Not the ext cab vs crew cab.

But regardless. You asked about maneuverability. The long bed crew cab is one long truck. Before my current ccrb, I did have an F350 SuperCab (extended cab) with the 6.75' bed. Much shorter wheel base. And much more maneuverable. Anyone that tells you that (all other things equal)a shorter wheelbase is not as maneuverable as a longer wheelbase, is not telling you the truth. My 6.75' bed CC is NOT as maneuverable as my CC 6.75' bed truck. And my previous CC 8 foot bed was NOT as maneuverable as this CC 6.75' bed truck. All were F350 4X4's.

Here is my issue...my driveway is 400 feet long. Has and "S" bend in the middle. Pavement is 10 wide. On the edges are large rocks and large trees. With my CCLB, it was an issue backing down my 34 foot 5'r. I could do it. But it was not very easy. My SuperCab 6.75' bed was so much easier. But those suicide doors were such a pain. Then we replaced the 34 foot trailer with a 38 foot trailer. Longer trailer by 4 feet. Backing down the driveway became a bit more hassle. But not really that much trouble.

Next came time to replace trucks. Bought the CC 6.75' bed. Now backing that trailer down my driveway is more of a challenge again. But still not nearly as bad as my cclb would be with that trailer. A steeper steering cut would help greatly.

The shorter the wheelbase, the more maneuverable the truck is. Whether it is a regular cab short bed. Extended cab regular bed. Crew Cab long bed. The shortest wheelbase will be most maneuverable.

Others may dispute it...but there are some places you cannot back a large trailer into with a long truck. Sometimes the truck and trailer just will not fit. Such was the case in our snow bird park. Narrow access road. Narrow camp sites. And people need to park very close to the edge of the road. People need to move their cars for others to get backed in. If they think they can get their long trucks and trailers in there with cars parked in the way, good for them.

To be fair, most generally the CCLB will not be a real problem. But sometimes you will find limitations that a shorter wheelbase would not be a problem.

43 foot 5th wheel towed by a F350 DRW CC 8ft bed and I have never had a problem. Just have to get use to it then it becomes second nature.