Need a truck

Sounds like you already have a good truck...

In our humble opinion, the F-350 is a workhorse, I would go with that again. Depending on what you may do in the future, We would stick with the diesel, and go with the Long bed, to assure you have enough clearance for turns, and backing in campsites for your 5'er. Good Luck and keep on campin !!

If you plan on continuing with camping, IMO I'd get another F-350 but, a diesel Dulley reason being, sooner or later you'll want/need a bigger 5th wheel and already having the truck to handle it will help out.

I would go diesel, and I have. I'm on my first long bed. If you can deal with it on a daily basis when not towing, I love the long bed. With most trailers now days, sharp turns aren't a big issue in a short bed, but I really like the extra space in the long bed for carrying other items. I carry firewood, hammocks, and bikes in the bed. Just my opinion though.

Mark

My 2c worth...
Much has been said about the merits of any 350/3500, diesel, dually.
If you have unlimited disposal cash then I agree.
However when considering COST/BENEFIT, you may want to give this some thought.
- Is this your primary vehicle, how much towing do you really do?
- Mountain towing, flat land towing?
- Eight foot box is ideal for 5th wheel towing, however do you have the room to at home for parking. Add a 4 door configuration and the length is event greater.
- Diesel is the better towing option, engine brake, turbo etc. But the initial purchase cost can easily be $10,000.00 +. Diesel maintenance tends to be also more expensive, not all corner garage are proficient diesel mechanics. Do you have someone you can trust (this is true for gas or diesel) to maintain your vehicle?
-Dually will offer more road stability. Do you like to hand wash your unit in all sorts of weather or do you prefer car wash luxury. Added cost of more rubber on the road. Sacrifice ease of parking, do you mind walking in from the back parking spaces?
- Some research will tell you that their is little difference between a F250 Super Duty and a low end F350???
.... Personally we tow a 38ft, 12,000 lbs 5th wheel. We opted to factory order a F250 Super Duty, CAB PLUS, s/w, 8ft, 6.2 gas, 4.30 rear, 6sp trany. We had both RV and Truck dealer talk to each other to make sure the configuration worked i.e. weight, bed height etc. We spent some $'s on the interior comforts, towing package, power towing mirrors, power rear window.
-We only tow 7 to 10,000 miles per year and could not justify the additional cost.
To each his own...
GPG :-)

As a friend said to me a few months ago, "What's wrong with your truck?" Why buy another truck? If yours does the job, is paid for or almost paid for, still in good shape, and not beginning to dollar you to death. Then just say no. I was looking because I wanted something newer. I have a 97 GMC 1 ton dually. Runs great, looks great, and pulls my trailer with no problem.

But if you are looking to just go newer then go for it and get what you want.

Happy Trails

I have to agree with GPG52!, he makes very good points! As stated, if you have the money to burn, and have room for a vehicle dedicated to towing, an 8 foot bed, dually diesel, is what you want! If this is a daily driver, do limited towing then you need to rethink your options! A SRW 350/3500 or a 250/2500 may be a better option. Only thing I disagree with is "diesel maintenance". The maintenance of my diesel consists of oil changes, and fuel filter changes. I do not know what else you need to do to maintain a diesel? For years that was one of the selling points of diesel, you had expensive tune ups for gas engines.

I would think long and hard before buying a diesel.

Because once you've pulled with one, you won't ever want to go back to gas. You might have to, but you won't want to.

If the 12000# is dry weight, you are closer to 14000# loaded. I'd go for a 1 ton diesel dually. One trip to the mountains and you will believe a diesel is the only way to go.


Ken

You don't need diesel for a 12k lb fifth wheel but you'd like it, especially if you plan on towing out west. You also don't need DRW for that size fifth wheel, so unless you're planning on going dramatically bigger in the future I'd stick to your preferred variety of SRW - easier to park, better daily driver, better off-road or on tight forest service roads, better in snow/ice, and they look nicer (that last one is subjective and not terribly important).

I have a short bed and like it better overall since most of the time I'm not towing and the I prefer the packaging and look of the short bed, but I admit on some trips it would be handy to have that extra bed space.