Some Towing Math and Questions
Hello all, new to the forum. A little about my camping setup, I currently have a 2017 RAM Bighorn 1500. My current trailer is a Dutchmen 222ES, a three bed hybrid. Canvas flip out beds. It is 26 foot long, including the tongue, and weighs 4700 pounds, curb weight. It can handle nearly 2000 pounds of cargo, for a total weight of 6700. Of course I never put a ton of stuff in it. I tow this effortlessly, dont even notice it back there, for the most part. The canvas beds can be noisy in some camgrounds, so I am looking at a new TT, hard sides.
I am looking for some opinions on towing capacity of my truck. It is an 8 speed transmission, 3.92 rear end, crew cab Bighorn. Trailer Life towing guide from 2017 lists its towing capacity at 10140 pounds.
I am an engineer, so I am trying to figure this tow capacity for real. I did the math on this three different ways, one based on trailer life rating minus the weight of me, passengers, payload, etc times a factor of safety of .85. This rating comes out to be 7500 lbs. The second way, based on GCWR of both units, comes out at 8255. The third way based on hitch weight, comes out at 7326. I didnt factor tire diameter into this, or anything that crazy, but it could affect it. You can only get so nerdy about this.
So weight, it seems I should be around 7500 pounds max. Does this make sense to people on the forum? The trailer I am looking at has a curb weight of 6100 pounds and a GVWR of 7700 pounds. So it can hold like 1600 pounds of stuff. I wouldnt put that much in it, and also that 7700 number is in line with my math. Thoughts?
Now on to length. I dont want to be all stressed out towing this thing as a result of wind pressure due to length. As I said, my current camper is 26ish feet long, and the new one would be about 31 feet long, both have tongue included. Five feet, no big deal right? Do people safely pull 30-33 foot TT's with half ton trucks, in general? Also, I found an online formula for length based on wheelbase of TV, and my math here says I should be between 25 and 28 feet. I do not know if that is the box length, or total length with the tongue.
So all that being said, what are your opinions of my thoughts, and do normal people pull such trailers safely with half ton trucks??
Thanks in advance, and sorry for all the nerd speak.
I am looking for some opinions on towing capacity of my truck. It is an 8 speed transmission, 3.92 rear end, crew cab Bighorn. Trailer Life towing guide from 2017 lists its towing capacity at 10140 pounds.
I am an engineer, so I am trying to figure this tow capacity for real. I did the math on this three different ways, one based on trailer life rating minus the weight of me, passengers, payload, etc times a factor of safety of .85. This rating comes out to be 7500 lbs. The second way, based on GCWR of both units, comes out at 8255. The third way based on hitch weight, comes out at 7326. I didnt factor tire diameter into this, or anything that crazy, but it could affect it. You can only get so nerdy about this.
So weight, it seems I should be around 7500 pounds max. Does this make sense to people on the forum? The trailer I am looking at has a curb weight of 6100 pounds and a GVWR of 7700 pounds. So it can hold like 1600 pounds of stuff. I wouldnt put that much in it, and also that 7700 number is in line with my math. Thoughts?
Now on to length. I dont want to be all stressed out towing this thing as a result of wind pressure due to length. As I said, my current camper is 26ish feet long, and the new one would be about 31 feet long, both have tongue included. Five feet, no big deal right? Do people safely pull 30-33 foot TT's with half ton trucks, in general? Also, I found an online formula for length based on wheelbase of TV, and my math here says I should be between 25 and 28 feet. I do not know if that is the box length, or total length with the tongue.
So all that being said, what are your opinions of my thoughts, and do normal people pull such trailers safely with half ton trucks??
Thanks in advance, and sorry for all the nerd speak.
