Hello all. Been a while since I was in the camping business, but after 36 years in the military I'm making my retirement plan and it includes some trailer traveling. I just picked up a project 27 foot Wilderness 5th Wheel that needs some TLC, not a lot, and it looks like a great unit. The previous owners obviously took good care as much as they could, but some water damage to the front corners was too much for them to pay for repair, so I ended up with a great deal. What I need help with is documentation on this trailer. Does anyone have a manual for a 27-5J? Been looking online with no success so far.
I currently have a 98 K1500 Silverado and plan on pulling this trailer on a Pullrite 3100 superglide hitch. They don't make mounts for my year truck so I have to get the welder out and make a set up using the frame mounts I got with the hitch for an F150. I am a fabricator, weld a lot, so it's not a big deal to me to work with steel and do some engineering. I have to find a capture plat that will fit the pin box on this trailer and I think I will be good to go on the connection. I've never pulled a camper on a 5th wheel before, done a lot of tractor trailers on 40 and 53 foot wagons, is there a lot of difference in how they track?
Looking forward to any feedback ya'll can provide. What is a good source for a capture plate on a 12 1/2" wide pin box?
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I currently have a 98 K1500 Silverado and plan on pulling this trailer on a Pullrite 3100 superglide hitch. They don't make mounts for my year truck so I have to get the welder out and make a set up using the frame mounts I got with the hitch for an F150. I am a fabricator, weld a lot, so it's not a big deal to me to work with steel and do some engineering. I have to find a capture plat that will fit the pin box on this trailer and I think I will be good to go on the connection. I've never pulled a camper on a 5th wheel before, done a lot of tractor trailers on 40 and 53 foot wagons, is there a lot of difference in how they track?
Looking forward to any feedback ya'll can provide. What is a good source for a capture plate on a 12 1/2" wide pin box?
.
Good day all. Finally getting to work on my project trailer as I get ready for retirement. So far i have new backing plates and tires and wheels, electrical has been repaired with some new lights, and I am now preparing to do a full roof replacement. Going to strip off the rubber/EPDM what ever it is on there, repair rotten spots and cover with new plywood and coat with a new rubber roof. Hope to have the 27J on the road by summer for shake down trip. Need to find a way to get that Norcold frige working.
Update on my truck. I gave up on trying to pull with a half ton, now have a 2500HD with Duramax. Truck don't even know this trailer is back there.
Update on my truck. I gave up on trying to pull with a half ton, now have a 2500HD with Duramax. Truck don't even know this trailer is back there.
tomkaren, Thanks for the input. I am not a rich person by the least. This camper came to me by luck and blessing. Luck as I( was the first person to call, and blessing in I am a firm believer that a family should have a back up plan. This trailer is no jewel, it needs a lot of work, but being back in school for the military right now is leaving me to just cover it up and hold it until the tim is right in about 9 months to start rebuilding the bad parts. The front has water damage as does the rear section of the roof. I just can't seem to find any paperwork on these trailers. I found out that Fleetwood went out of the trailer business a while back and now only manufacture motor homes, but they left no trace on providing support information. I was hoping to find another owner of one of these trailers that might give some insight to what I have and how some of the systems can be wrung out. Otherwise it is going to be a fun experiment figuring out how it all works, how well my truck will pull it, and if I have to do a big upgrade on the TV. Right now I am planning on upgrading the powerplant to a 6.0, trans to a 4L80E,a and shoving a 14 bold rear under it for a rear axle. I have the same frame as a 2500 chevy and I should be able to handle at least 11000 pounds with that combo. Any input out there? Buying a $35,000 truck just is not in my retirement picture.
