TC weight and truck capacity

If the max load of the front axle says 6000 lbs and the rear axle says max load is 9000 lbs why is the total gvwr only 13000. I read my door jam and thought that was kind of odd.

SkiMore,
I would feel better with more truck opposed to less truck. Im running a 2500HD but would rather have a 3500 and i'm sorry i don't. Im thinking of adding a leaf or two to the rear spring pack and not relying on the airbags as much. The airbags still offer good side to side leveling to offset campers that are more heavy on either side. Added spring leafs will offer more support but not officially change the GVWR of the truck. To do that you will a DMV/DOT makeover.
To repeat myself, the rear tires and wheels are the limiting factor and thats what you need to watch. That's why some people swap up to 19.5" wheels/tires,they carry more weight and last longer,commercial grade.
Being that i only use my truck for my camper,for my next truck i would probably buy a LB dually, even to haul my SB 845 at this time. I would use the extra space in the front of the bed to haul equipment for the time being. Having that LB DRW truck,i would be in a better place when i buy a new camper offering me more choices.

SNOW :
I never noticed any problems driving a DRW truck in the snow because the ones i drove were heavy. An empty DRW may tend to float the rear tires in snow. I think you can get used to it and learn to compensate for it,but you will probably notice a difference when riding empty in snow. Four rear tires will be distributing the weight opposed to two, making it float. It just don't know how drastic it is.
I think the DRW/snow thing gets negative attention because the tires on the trucks that people use to professionally plow are srw so they can use a narrow blade. You would have to use a wider plow blade in order to clear a path for the dual rear wheels. Working on homeowner driveways and such, can be a PIA with a DRW and wide blade.
Plowing big roads or open spaces, DRW can be used, but the blade is wider to clear the path for the tires to ride, allowing them to bite.

bobndot wrote:
This is just an example:
The average 350 DRW is about 8000# on a scale (depending on engine choice and dealer options).

Here's mine, nothing in the truck except me and 7/8 tank of fuel:
2009 3500HD Dually, Duramax/Allison

Weight is a game of "educated guessing."

When you don't have the truck or camper in hand, and unlimited access to a set of scales, you have to go by what the manufacturer lists, add some extra for good measure, and hope you do okay.

It's not that difficult, and it's not that critical that you come out to the exact pound. Just use the best information you have available. See how others are coming out. Err on the side of overkill.

Bob & brholt, Thanks for the examples and your real world numbers. It sounds like you need a 1 ton DRW truck for all but the lightest of TCs if you want to be under GVWR. Based on your numbers I think you may need to add 1500# or more to dry weight get a good guess on what truck you will need.

It's a lot better to be a little scared of numbers than to buy a truck and TC and be scared driving down the highway.

I'm not surprised that a DRW is more stable, but I assume it is worse in the snow than a SRW. Or, does it not matter much when you weight 8000#?

Thanks again.

My last tc was a 10.5' Fields (in the late '70s). My trucks made me a living so off the tc came when we got home. I sat the tc off on the scales at a feed store. It weighed 3120 lbs fully loaded however that didn't included 480 lbs of other camping gear we carried in the truck.

Now I can say the camper fully loaded for camping weighed 3120 lb or as some tc owners may say it weighed 3120 lbs + 480 lbs of other stuff in the truck = 3600 lbs and thats not counting occupants.

I wouldn't worry what other tc owners report as their camper weight as we have no idea how it was weighed or what they consider camper weight vs other weight the owner has added in the truck.

Just like reported truck weights. Some folks carry lots of necessary junk and others may carry non so we get two weights some times 1500 lbs difference for the same configured truck. TC weights are no different

Here is another weight post.

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/14416442.cfm

SkiMore wrote:
Bob,

Thanks for the advice. I find it amazing that your camper is 1500# over the MFG dry weight. Did you add a lot of options? Or, is the posted weight a complete fantasy number? I just went to the lance site and built an 855 with generator and colman9 AC unit. It says 2410# dry plus 223#(options) for a total of 2633#. Do you think that is close to accurate? I know it will weigh more when you add your stuff and fill the tanks.

At this point I'm budgeting. I have looked at various floor plans and am now trying to figure out what truck would work for them. I'd hate to buy a TC and find out I need a 550 (which I can't afford). I'd also hate to buy a basic FWC popup TC only to find out I could have gotten a more featured TC on a reasonable priced truck. Having more truck than I need is better than having too much camper for the truck I buy.

I'm in the learning stage and trying to figure out how to read the specs. I kind of figured I could take posted weight add 1000# and if it was less than the spec on the truck website I'd be in in a position to consider that combination. I know that I can rule out a AF1150 and a Tacoma.

I will pick the TC first then the truck then ask you people for advice before I buy anything.

I was surprised too. Its difficult to weigh the same each time you travel. I really had to trim down to get it to a 1000# over dry wt. rating.
The 855 dry wt. could be 2600-2700 but that seems a little light by 200#. Lance dry wts. are pretty accurate from what im told. I didnt weigh the Lance when i bought it so i really don't know how accurate they are. I think as time goes by and people become more educated in this whole rv thing, the MFG.'s may very well have to start stating somekind of truth regarding weights.
I believe that Northstar actually weighs each unit as it leaves the factory with its options and put on a transport carrier...thats the posted dry wt of that individual camper, like a shipping weight . IMO, thats the way it should be done with nothing to hide. I think if your Northstar is too heavy for you, it's because you loaded it up with too much stuff, that's the way it should be. Hopefully other MFG.'s will follow this method.

My 845 options were about 450# w/o an a/c unit and no genny.
My dry wt.(as posted on the decal was then 2850 or so, i have two awnings, winter package, storm windows , by-pass kit and a few other lightweight options. On a scale, im in the neighborhood of ( + - ) 4k. But, i carry a lot of fishing gear , a sat. antenna / tv / recvr. and a Honda 2000.
When i use my tc as a tc should be used , i pack it with my backpacking gear and remove all the heavy stuff, i can get my weight down ( when i don't load it up like im in a class A MH full timing it :) ).

A 350 will carry most campers. From my experince driving trucks, i think a dually is a more stable platform (foundation) for any camper, especially taller basement models. However some people need a SRW truck for various reasons and choose to go that route . SRW 350's work in a lot of applications.
My intent was to not scare you, only to be aware of weight as well as height regarding crosswind resistance .
You are doing this the right way by asking questions and im sure you'll find what combo fits your needs, you'll be very happy. It's a 'band of brothers' here and there are some real good people to help you make your decision and all are willing to help .

Bob

Like you we looked very hard at weights. The camper we selected was a AF1150. To handle the weight we ended up with a 2013 F350 DRW 6.2l CC 4x4 Lariet with the camper option. The camper sticker that came with the truck said:



Which was down a fair amount from what the 5,969 lbs Ford Tow Guide (which has truck camper weights) had listed for my configuration. The difference is the options we had going from a base Xl. (Note the slide in weight rating includes 150 lb passengers). Our door sticker looks like:



Which is again down from the "max" payload table listed because of the options on the truck.

Regarding the campers, when all is said and done the rule of thumb about camper weight plus 1000 lbs is a pretty good one. Alternatively, look at what Truck Camper magazine does. They take the campers, add the weight of everything else, (Batteries etc.) add the weight of filling the tanks, and throw in 500 lbs of "stuff". That too provides a decent estimate. Here is their page with Lance estimates (notice the weight calculations):

Truck Camper Magazine Buyers Guide - Lance

Returning to our example, the estimates worked pretty well for us. With 3 people, a lab, and our camper with full tanks we rolled up to a CAT scale and weighed in at 13,700 lbs or just under our 14,000 lb GVWR. We got enough truck for the AF 1150 and it handles the camper weight very well without having to worry about suspension modifications (we did add stable loads to it "level" on the truck.)

Bob,

Thanks for the advice. I find it amazing that your camper is 1500# over the MFG dry weight. Did you add a lot of options? Or, is the posted weight a complete fantasy number? I just went to the lance site and built an 855 with generator and colman9 AC unit. It says 2410# dry plus 223#(options) for a total of 2633#. Do you think that is close to accurate? I know it will weigh more when you add your stuff and fill the tanks.

At this point I'm budgeting. I have looked at various floor plans and am now trying to figure out what truck would work for them. I'd hate to buy a TC and find out I need a 550 (which I can't afford). I'd also hate to buy a basic FWC popup TC only to find out I could have gotten a more featured TC on a reasonable priced truck. Having more truck than I need is better than having too much camper for the truck I buy.

I'm in the learning stage and trying to figure out how to read the specs. I kind of figured I could take posted weight add 1000# and if it was less than the spec on the truck website I'd be in in a position to consider that combination. I know that I can rule out a AF1150 and a Tacoma.

I will pick the TC first then the truck then ask you people for advice before I buy anything.