TC + extended hitch
I'm a newbie when it comes to TC's and towing. I don't own a TC yet (still shopping/reading/learning) and don't have an immediate need to tow concurrently. I'm trying to make sure I understand the proper way to set things up so I make informed decisions now rather than having the wrong TC and hardware on my truck down the road.
I'm looking at a Bigfoot M15C9.5FS which is a lighter 9'6" camper. I will be hauling this on a 2016 Ram 3500 CTD SRW. I am planning on maintaining towing for a horse trailer that may be needed down the road. I have read/watched videos/spoken to people who seem to agree that the Torklift SuperHitch/SuperTruss setup is awesome but expensive/complicated/heavy. It also requires replacing the factory class 5 receiver which will presumably have little to no resale value.
The trailer would be 2 horse weighing approx. 5500# with a 15% tongue weight (825#). The camper is listed at 2250# so I figure loaded (500#) I'd be around 2750#. That puts the total at 3575 which is well under my max payload of 4400#. I don't yet know if stabiloads or air bags would be necessary, but that can be dealt with later.
I measured from the back end of the camper's bumper to the truck's hitch and it looks like I need a 12-13" extension to get it back to the same spot. I've spoken to multiple people with a similar setup (similar camper + trailer) and they have suggested just using a class 5 extension/stinger. But, just because it's been done doesn't make it safe. Reese, Curtis, etc make them, but I've yet to find a shorter 18" model. The shortest I've seen is 24" once cut down. At 24", the specs for the extension claim it will work fine. I'm just concerned about a long arm and backing up or hitting bumps when not on pavement.
The only alternative I've seen is extending the hitch on the trailer. That looks like it would work, but it requires the same mod for any trailer that might be used (can't move/use someone else's trailer) and probably would make the resale tougher.
I'm open to suggestion but primarily want to make the right choices for setting up the TC now. Links to products would be very helpful.
I'm looking at a Bigfoot M15C9.5FS which is a lighter 9'6" camper. I will be hauling this on a 2016 Ram 3500 CTD SRW. I am planning on maintaining towing for a horse trailer that may be needed down the road. I have read/watched videos/spoken to people who seem to agree that the Torklift SuperHitch/SuperTruss setup is awesome but expensive/complicated/heavy. It also requires replacing the factory class 5 receiver which will presumably have little to no resale value.
The trailer would be 2 horse weighing approx. 5500# with a 15% tongue weight (825#). The camper is listed at 2250# so I figure loaded (500#) I'd be around 2750#. That puts the total at 3575 which is well under my max payload of 4400#. I don't yet know if stabiloads or air bags would be necessary, but that can be dealt with later.
I measured from the back end of the camper's bumper to the truck's hitch and it looks like I need a 12-13" extension to get it back to the same spot. I've spoken to multiple people with a similar setup (similar camper + trailer) and they have suggested just using a class 5 extension/stinger. But, just because it's been done doesn't make it safe. Reese, Curtis, etc make them, but I've yet to find a shorter 18" model. The shortest I've seen is 24" once cut down. At 24", the specs for the extension claim it will work fine. I'm just concerned about a long arm and backing up or hitting bumps when not on pavement.
The only alternative I've seen is extending the hitch on the trailer. That looks like it would work, but it requires the same mod for any trailer that might be used (can't move/use someone else's trailer) and probably would make the resale tougher.
I'm open to suggestion but primarily want to make the right choices for setting up the TC now. Links to products would be very helpful.
