Heaviest 5er without a dually?

[tealboy]

What do u think is appx the heaviest trailer I can buy but still be able to safely travel across continental US using a single axle f250 or 2500 series diesel, vintage 2014-2016 model tow vehicle. Prob prefer short bed if possible but not sure if that is ok.

Here's why I ask, I am still working full time in downtown msa in an office building w a parking garage. I need the tow vehicle to be my daily driver when not traveling and a dually will not fit in the parking garage.

Also note, I am new to this, have towed many boats and trailers but have never owned or rv'd. Very comfortable towing but pointing this out as FYI.

Looked at a used 5er w a gvw of 14,000 lbs today. Have not looked st trucks so realize that needs to happen to drill down on tow capacity but for a rough start, wanted your expert assistance. Thank you

[TxGearhead]

I will just say if you are wanting a Ford look closely at the tags in the drivers door. I had a 2014? F350 SRW diesel, crew cab, long bed, 4x4, Lariat with a payload of 3267#. I ended up with a pin weight of 3400-3700 (washer & dryer). I traded the Ford for the 2016 Ram 3500 diesel, crew cab, long bed, 4x4, Laramie with 4018# payload.
Apparently Ford had several GVW packages and I had a low one. Not sure what they are selling now.

[Me_Again]

neal10a wrote:
looks to me that a 2017 F350 SRW diesel truck with all factory upgrade options will pull a 16500 GVW without any problem. Pin Weight on some or those trailers will vary because of where the water and washer dryer are located. Some water tanks are behind the axels and some are not. So a full water tanks and washer dryers will make a significant difference on pin weights. just sayen 😉

My RAM is rated to tow 17,050 5th wheel. However one would be hard press to stay under the RGAWR at that weight. Chris

[neal10a]

looks to me that a 2017 F350 SRW diesel truck with all factory upgrade options will pull a 16500 GVW without any problem. Pin Weight on some or those trailers will vary because of where the water and washer dryer are located. Some water tanks are behind the axels and some are not. So a full water tanks and washer dryers will make a significant difference on pin weights. just sayen 😉

[Me_Again]

Here are some weights for our 2015 RAM SRW 3500 CC SB Laramie and 2017 Bighorn 3575el.

Front axle 5120
Rear axle 6620 (varies trip to trip on loading of truck and basement)
Truck sub 11740
Trailer axle 12780
Combined weight 24520

Pin weight runs 3K+/- depending on loading. As you can see if I had a trailer the started at 2900-3000 for dry pin weight then I would be over on the rear axle of the truck.

Truck weight ratings 11700 GVWR, Front Axle 6000, Rear Axle 7000, Combined 25,300
BH3575el Axles 7K GVWR 16,000

Pin weight

[Cummins12V98]

5er's have typically 20-25 percent pin. MANY people have no clue what their pin weight is, It will shock most.

[Me_Again]

justme wrote:

Me Again wrote:
I will repeat this again. Any 5th will that has much over 2500 lbs dry pin weight will not work with a SRW TV. Chris

That is an over statement and not true. My real world pin weight is 3040lbs for my F350 SRW pulling a 40ft. 16500GVW trailer. All Ford Specs are met except combine weight which is 400 lbs over. Axle and carrying are well in spec. The 400 lbs over combined is not a real world problem as far as I am concerned. In that 400lbs is a generator, 12 gal of extra fuel with a full truck tank, 100 lbs of misc like tools, a passenger, a trailair pin box, 20k Reese pro fifth wheel and a cat.

Read what I posted again. the 2500 is dry weight. What I posted is a way to estimate loaded pin weight. What is the dry pin weight of your trailer? the percentage does not vary that much, however can be effected by washer and dryer as I stated.

Chris

[justme]

Me Again wrote:
I will repeat this again. Any 5th will that has much over 2500 lbs dry pin weight will not work with a SRW TV. Chris

That is an over statement and not true. My real world pin weight is 3040lbs for my F350 SRW pulling a 40ft. 16500GVW trailer. All Ford Specs are met except combine weight which is 400 lbs over. Axle and carrying are well in spec. The 400 lbs over combined is not a real world problem as far as I am concerned. In that 400lbs is a generator, 12 gal of extra fuel with a full truck tank, 100 lbs of misc like tools, a passenger, a trailair pin box, 20k Reese pro fifth wheel and a cat.

[Me_Again]

I will repeat this again. Any 5th will that has much over 2500 lbs dry pin weight will not work with a SRW TV. Take the dry pin weight and cal the percentage of total dry weight. Then apply that percentage to the GVWR.

Example, my Bighorn 3575el
Dry pin weight 2435
Dry trailer weight 12950
Percent pin weight 18.8%
GVWR 16,000
Cal estimated load pin weight 3008 lbs.

Now lets apply the same logic to a trailer with 2950 dry pin weight.
Dry pin weight 2950
Dry trailer weight 12950
Percent pin weight 22.78%
GVWR 16,000
Cal estimated load pin weight 3645 lbs.

So dry pin weight is an important number to watch while shopping, as I did picking the Bighorn, and passing on pin heavy Cardinal's and Montana's in the size range we wanted.

Add a washer and dryer to a front bedroom closet and it only gets worse. And do not forget to add the weight of the hitch(mine is 270 of Demco picture frame and B&W manual Slider) and anything else you put in the bed of the truck.

Chris

[RVcrazy]

We ft with a 3500 SRW short bed Duramax Chevy. We are SO happy we got the short bed. We chose to pull with a Pull-Rite automatic slider hitch. It has done very well in our 3 years ft, including over the Rockies. Our RV is rated at 15000, but scales at less. Even with the 3500, hitch weight will be the biggest question & challenge. Our RV is within the truck specs. Don't forget that clothes, W/D, generator, chicks & blocks etc will impact hitch weight, as well as anything in the back, or back seat of the truck. Our hitch weighs 200 lbs. For a SRW, I would not exceed 15000 lbs. Less gives you a better margin. Good luck with your decision!

[justme]

My Ford F350 SRW, rated at 11500 gvw, is pulling a trailer that is rated 16500 GVW. Everything is in Ford spec except the combined weight which is 400# over. I have driven over 50000 miles with the trailer and have not experience any problems with the truck. The trailer suspension is another matter and is more of a concern. I have replace 4 bearings and one axle so far on a Heartland Landmark with Dexter 7000 lbs axles. That trailer IMHO was not intended for long haul travel..... However, the truck is....

[BBworkdog]

You've heard a lot of opinions on weights, capacities and payload. These did not address your issue of driving in city with a full size pickup truck. With practice, you would be surprised where you can park a long pickup once you understand the dynamics and practice parking. Even what a lot of experienced RV-ers don't understand is that it is much easier to BACK a long wheelbase pickup into a stall parking than to pull in to it. It is amazing watching long wheelbase pickup drivers trying to pull in to a space, backing in and out numerous times and never getting the vehicle straight. I went from a CC shortbox truck to a full CC dually. Yes, the dually is harder to park, but it is the wide fenders, not the length that causes the concern in getting in and getting out. I work at a large urban hospital and I have had to find parking spaces that will work and those (most) that won't. My concern is greater getting out because you don't know who or what is going to park around you before leaving. So, I look for spaces where I can pull straight out into the exit lane. Backup cameras are required for backing in to most spaces. Buy an aftermarket one if your vehicle doesn't have one.

[7_3_psdman]

I have an old F-350 and before I bought the highest rated tires I could find- Bridgestone Duellers I had a couple of blow outs and one where the bands failed in it. I'm only towing 13,400 max. with 2300 pin weight. Seems like the tires on the fifth wheel and the truck are the first things to fail if you don't really upgrade to the good ones. You can change your pin weight a little by raising the hitch to put more weight on the trailer wheels but you don't want to lose too much pin weight either. I have seen times when I was glad that I had the F-350 crew cab long bed.

[laknox]

tealboy wrote:
Based on fords website, the f250 4x4 diesel w a 3.31 axle is rated for 3400 payload and 15,400 tow capacity. Assuming payload of 3400 includes the need to deduct for passengers, wt of hitch, dog and all other cargo so net number may be 2800 lbs or less, hence the reason you recommend a f350. With the 350, oddly, tow ratings go up, not just payload. It goes from 15,400 to 21,000 if I am following this correctly.

I can almost guarantee that you won't like the 3.31 axle when towing. At =minimum= the 3.73 (or whatever Ford's is) ratio would be a much better compromise. I have the 3.73 in my '02 D'max and =wish= I had 4.10 for the mountains here in AZ. 'Course I =wish= I had an '07 "Classic" LBZ, too. :B

Lyle

[Rangerman40]

Walaby wrote:

Rangerman40 wrote:

azdryheat wrote:
I'd get a late model F350/3500 SRW. Properly equipped, a single rear wheel F350/3500 truck can handle a 5th wheel weighing in the neighborhood of 17,000 pounds.

Eh.... no. You'd be looking at a pin weight north of 4K. You aren't going to do better than about 4400 payload on a stripped down SRW. Add a full tank of fuel, the hitch and a couple passengers and you are over. You do see plenty of idiots out on the road pulling a triple axle toy hauler with a SRW though....

Isn't pin weight typically 20% of total weight. So a 17K 5er would be around 3400lbs pin right? Not north of 4K.

Mike

I've seen them up to 25% which would put him at 4250. All depends where the storage is and how it's loaded, but lets go with your example of 3400lb and a 4400 payload capacity leaving him with 1,000lbs left. I'll use my family and my hitch as example weights. A full tank of diesel ( 30 gal) weighs 207lbs, my hitch weighs 278lbs (Demco Autoslide), I weigh 250, wife is 130, kids are 45 and 35. Their car seats weigh around 10lbs apiece. That's 965 before we add anything else. I usually keep a cooler, a bunch of kid ****, whatever entertainment my wife brings, 10 extra gallons of diesel and 5 gallons of unleaded for the generator and my tonneau cover. Just blew that 1k out of the water. I didn't even add in the weight of the picture frame for the hitch because I'm not sure what it weighs.