ThomasFour wrote:
Sorry if this in the wrong category, I am very new to the forum. I appreciate the response(s). I was always under the impression that a fifth wheel design facilitated more towing capacity. I guess I am learning that is not true.
5th wheels tow better and the hitches themselves are very strong, but your truck isn't heavy duty enough to take advantage of the difference. I don't know the numbers for your truck, but let's take my 2005 Dodge Ram 3500 as an example. It weighs 7300 pounds empty and it has a 9900 lb GVWR. That gives 2700 pounds of available payload, of which I can use all of it without overloading anything else on the truck (tires, rear GAWR, etc.).
The same truck in a 2500 would have an 8800 lb GVWR and the weight would be within 50 pounds of my truck. The result is 1100 pounds of payload capacity that a 3/4 ton doesn't have, yet it still weighs just as much. Remember that 2700 pounds? It's 1600 now--not enough for any 5er of substantial pin weight. And even that 2700 pounds is light if you're talking about a 5er that is near the actual towing capacity the truck has GCWR-wise.
ThomasFour wrote:
I've considered two different options to upgrade from our small TH. First is the Nitro 29udql5 - 5th wheel. From my calculations the 2,029lb pin weight and 10,377 dry weight of this rig will be too much for my 08 GMC 2500 crew cab diesel. So, option 2 we are considering is the Amped 32GS, which is a travel trailer TH about 10,000 lbs dry and about a 1,400 lb hitch weight. So I thought I knew something about trailers, but in my case a bumper tow trailer is okay for my truck, but a 5th wheel is too much? Thanks for any insight from the pros.
I don't know if your truck is 4wd or not, and I'm not sure if the GM is lighter than my Dodge, nor if yours is a long bed, but I suspect that if you intend to carry passengers, tools, dogs, or anything else for that matter, a 10k lb. trailer will be too heavy for your 3/4 ton truck.
I'm not saying you can't overload your truck if you want to, but you will likely be overloaded.
Newer 3/4 tons have a 10k lb GVWR and the 1 ton SRWs closer to 12k lbs to take into account that while trucks got heavier since the '80s, their ratings didn't go up by very much to accomodate. My truck is at least ~800 pounds heavier than an '80s or '90s Chevy 1 ton crew cab, and yet its GVWR is 700 pounds more--and the more******they continue to put on these beasts, the heavier they get. The GVWRs need to go up more or the payload will go down. That necessitated better wheels, brakes, and tires, which if you look closely at the new SRW trucks, they have 18" wheels, both to accommodate the bigger brakes but also to increase capacity.
The GVWR of a 3/4 ton makes it pretty worthless for pulling a big 5er without overloading it. That's why, 10 years ago when I bought my truck, I insisted on a 1 ton SRW. And if I ever get a new one, it will be a DRW--and perhaps I will even go up to a 450/4500 or bigger--because there isn't as much cushion as you think!
