Another towing question

[rtaylor0830]

I have a long bed 2015 f350 4x4 srw diesel truck. I just recently sold my fifth wheel and am thinking of getting a keystone impact 361 toy hauler with a gross weight of 17000. Is this truck good enough for that and can someone tell me how when you look at the weight ratings of your truck you figure this out in laments terms.

[lawnspecialties]

Cummins12V98 wrote:
"A toy hauler usually has a heavier pin wt, closer to 25 percent. If you loaded the toy hauler to 17K, you may have a pin wt of 4,250. After weighing the truck rear axle, do you have enough left to cover 4K+ pin wt? It may be close, the only way to know is use of scale."

YEP! Ain't what ya can tow, it's what ya can carry!!!

Maybe they're moving the axles further up these days but I got to disagree with this for the most part. Mine easily surpasses 17K and I'm in the low 3000s on the pin. That is becoming more and more common from what I can tell.

But you're right on about the scales. That's the real test.

[lawnspecialties]

I have the same truck. I tow a larger toy hauler and its fine. 3184 miles so far towing and no issues at all.

Keystone website says the tongue weight is 3115 lbs. As long as that's correct or close, I don't think you'll have any issues at all.

[Cummins12V98]

"A toy hauler usually has a heavier pin wt, closer to 25 percent. If you loaded the toy hauler to 17K, you may have a pin wt of 4,250. After weighing the truck rear axle, do you have enough left to cover 4K+ pin wt? It may be close, the only way to know is use of scale."

YEP! Ain't what ya can tow, it's what ya can carry!!!

[tinstartrvlr]

I have the same truck and depending on what rear end ratio you have, according to the manual, GCVWR is ~23,500. My truck loaded with fuel etc is about 8500 lbs. Add in your 17k trailer and looks like you would be over a safe limit. Plus you have to consider tongue weight and hitch capability.

If you still have the manual, there is a whole section that explains weight limits etc for different rear ends, motors, etc.

[JIMNLIN]

rtaylor0830 wrote:
I have a long bed 2015 f350 4x4 srw diesel truck. I just recently sold my fifth wheel and am thinking of getting a keystone impact 361 toy hauler with a gross weight of 17000. Is this truck good enough for that and can someone tell me how when you look at the weight ratings of your truck you figure this out in laments terms.

Have you weighed your trucks front and rear axle separately. Start there.
Many F350 SRW trucks rear axle can weigh in the 3300-3500 lb range. Now subtract that from your trucks RAWR (7000 ??) on the door post certification placard. 7000 lb minus 3500 = around 3500 lbs for a payload it the trucks bed.
Actual scaled weight numbers will tell you the actual numbers.....but a 17000 lb trailer doesn't look like a good match for the trucks OEM RAWR.

If you choose to go with a 17k lb trailer you might consider rear suspension upgrades to air bags and higher rated 19.5 " wheels and tires.

[oilcan1001]

This should help you understand what to look for.
Then you need to get to the CAT scales and check your actual weights.
Hope this helps

---------------------------------------------------------------
On Vehicle Ratings:
Weight ratings is a complicated subject, but needs to be understood. There are several ratings, most of which do not add together. They are actually different ratings and are limited by different conditions. Here is my understanding of the ratings:
GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating): This is the weight limit of your vehicle. It includes all passengers, gear, fluids, fuel, everything (called gross weight). It does not include the weight of a tow vehicle, but it would include the pin weight of a fifth wheel, since that weight is a load in the truck bed. I'm not sure what design aspect of the vehicle limits this, but my guess is that it is suspension and handling related.
GCWR (Gross Combined Weight Rating): This is the weight limit of your vehicle plus any towed vehicles. It includes the gross weight of the tow vehicle and the gross weight of the towed vehicle. Note, gross weight is the actual total weight of the loaded vehicles, not the gross weight limit. This limit is usually related to either the drive train capability or the breaking capability of the tow vehicle. Since the trailer has its own brakes, my guess is the limit is related to the drive train of the tow vehicle.
GAWR (Gross Axel Weight Rating): This is the weight limit that is allowed on any axel. Your vehicle will have one rating for the front axel and another for the rear axel. As with GVWR, GAWR includes all weight loads such as passengers, gear, and fuel. If you have a fifth wheel hitched, it would include the pin weight load. This limit is to keep the respective axel from being overloaded, it is usually limited buy the ability of the tires to support the total axel load.
Tow Rating: This is the limit of the tow hitch at the rear of the vehicle. It is a limit to the gross weight of the towed vehicle. This limit is normally related to the strength of the hitch. If you are towing a fifth wheel, it is of no concern to you because the fifth wheel is not connected to the tow hitch.

There is only one way to know if you are operating within your vehicle weight limits, and that is to load up the tow vehicle and trailer and go to a scale and get weights. The trailer needs to be fully loaded, including fluids, so the holding tanks should be full, and all of your gear should be loaded on the trailer.
To do it right, you should get four weights: Front axel (FA), rear axel hitched (RAH), rear axel unhitched (RAU), and trailer axel (TA).
Please note that the pin weight of a fifth wheel will add a little weight to the front axel, because the fifth wheel ahould be a few inces in front of the rear axel, but the amount is so small, I am ignoring it and assuming all of the trailer pin weight falls on the rear axel.
FA + RAU should be less than GVWR
FA + RAH + TA should be less than GCWR
FA should be less than Front GAWR
RAH should be less than Rear GAWR
Your pin weight (PW) is RAH - RAU
PW + TA should be less than the GVWR for the trailer
I hope this helps. I recommend you take the time to check your weights, all of the weight ratings are there as safety limits.

[MFL]

Yes, info will be on door post. The tire loading sticker will tell you how much wt can be added to the truck before going over trucks GVWR. As you know, most FW pin weight is added to the rear axle. You need to be most concerned with the RAWR, and tire max load rating. If you load your truck up, ready to go, everyone, everything, full fuel, and weigh it, you will know your available payload. Most important to weigh just the rear axle, so you will know how much pin wt can be added, before going over RAWR/tire max.

A toy hauler usually has a heavier pin wt, closer to 25 percent. If you loaded the toy hauler to 17K, you may have a pin wt of 4,250. After weighing the truck rear axle, do you have enough left to cover 4K+ pin wt? It may be close, the only way to know is use of scale.

Jerry

[mowermech]

"laments terms"??
Oh, I think I see; "lay men's terms"!
OK, look in the Owners Manual for the GCWR of the truck (Gross Combined Weight Rating). That is the maximum the truck plus cargo plus trailer weight should be.
Go to a scale and weigh the truck, with full fuel and just the driver in it.
Subtract that weight from the GCWR. The remainder is the maximum your trailer can weigh. Your hitch should be rated equal to or greater than that number. Remember that any cargo you load in the truck (spouse, kids, dogs, tools, firewood, etc.) will reduce that weight pound for pound.
A few years ago, we lived in a 32 foot fifth wheel for a couple years. Our tow vehicle was a 1994 Dodge Ram CTD 3500 dually. On the final trip home, I decided it might be a good idea to weigh the rig, so when I stopped at a Flying J in Idaho, after I fueled up I went across the scales.
It was under the GAWR of all axles, under the GVWR of the truck and trailer, under the registered GVW of the truck, but over the GCWR of the truck.
According to the book the GCWR was 18,000 lbs. The total weight of the rig was 21,180. At that point, nothing had bent, nothing broke, nobody had been injured or died, so I didn't worry about it. I kept that truck for a few more years, and when I got rid of it, it was still going strong, with 276,000 on the odometer.

[JayGee]

Check the door or the owners manual but here is a link for a 2017 numbers. Probably not much different. Scroll down for towing capacity.

Clicky

[eHoefler]

Look on the drivers door or the jamb, that is where you find the info for that particular truck.

[jerseyjim]

Owners' manual I would think.

When I went to purchase a towing vehicle, I ordered a 7000 pound "towing package". Therefore, I knew I could tow up to 7000 pounds with this particular F-150.

Loaded the 750 pound Harley in the 8 ft. bed and towed a 4000 pound TT. Never a hint of a problem.

Some dealers (especially those with a good pickup truck section) can be of great help.

But then again, it's up to you to research from any and all sources to figure what engine and "packages" you will need to tow what you want.

g'luck!