opinion please

Huntindog wrote:
4500# and 29 ft does not compute.

If Scout dad was to fill out his profile, and/or tell us what his TT is... The answers could be based on facts, rather than generalities of what is normal.
IOW, I am not say it isn't possible that his TT only weighs 4500#, just that it would be very unusual.

As an aside, I am not sure I would want a 29' that light. It wouldn't take much side wind to affect its tracking.

Having my info on my profile does not mean that I will be pulling the trailer on my profile. Given that I have a 2006 Zinger ZT-2710 BH it states the Dry weight is 4479, so the estimated I believe is close.
Like others have stated my truck is 1500HD does have the 8 lug axels and lt tires.
The route I will be coming from up I-35 to I-70 and accross.
I made this trip before in a car, yea I know big difference, but I don't recall any steep inclines, that is reason for question.

dodge guy wrote:
4500 loaded will be at least 5500 ready to travel. A 1500HD is essentially a 3/4 ton with 1/2 ton badging. It doesn't have a full floater in the rear but does have a semi floating axle with larger axle bearings than the standard 1/2 ton axle. It also has 8 lug axles and larger brakes.

Again, have a good trip.

Good points;
Many folks have no idea what the '00-'06 1500HD Gm truck is. They see the 1500 and make the usual assumptions.

The truck has a 8600 gvwr and 6k RAWR with load E tires and wheels. With the 3.73 or 4.10 gears and the 4L80e tranny 6.0 engine it can have a 10k+ tow rating and 3k payloads.

The OP won't have any issues pulling that size trailer. Have fun dad.

You will lose about 3 percent of HP per 1000' of elevation you go up. So, remember, at 10000', you are down upwards of 30 percent HP. You will be down a gear, slower, revving more with motor etc.....Is it a problem? Only if you let it be. Frankly, I would drive what I/you got, and enjoy the trip.

For what it is worth, my old 24' TT that was 4500 total empty, was usually at or about 6500 on the axels, and 750-800 of TW loaded for a family of 6 on long trips, a bit more for weekend ski trips, and double normal if it snowed 3' that weekend with snow load on the roof of trailer and in the bed of truck! Weights can certainly vary ie YMMV!

Marty

Desert Captain wrote:
Terryallan, my comments were just general observations I have used when evaluating the quality of RV's. Yours has some impressive numbers but I'll wager that in support of my theory it wasn't inexpensive to purchase.... the good ones seldom are.

Having owned a quality Class C, my Nexus Phantom 23P for nearly 4 years and 36,000 miles I have come to appreciate the difference a quality build makes. Along with Lance, Nexus was one of the first to use Azdell exclusively. They also frame their coaches in steel which is 72 per cent stronger than conventional aluminum and wood framing found in most coaches.

Our 13,5000 AC is fine for us in a 24' C but I have seen them in much larger units and living in Arizona you tend to notice things like that. Our furnace e is 35,000 BTU's which clearly is overkill but the way we travel it gets a workout for at least 6 months of the year and really makes life pleasant when the temps start dropping.

Everyone uses their rigs differently, we spend about 65 per cent of our time off of the grid and rely on all three of our tanks on every trip. Not many folks tow a 700# Harley for the fun of it but for us it works very well. I've never been a fan of slides but most folks just can't live without them... guess that's why they make chocolate and vanilla. :B

Yeah. I ain't wild about slides either, but DW wanted one. End of that story. and yes it could use a 15K AC in the late afternoon sun of MB, and I suspect IF I lived where you do, I'd want one. But no longer than it lasts. It's fine. We do most of our camping in the Mountains, and 95% of the time AC is not needed, and IF you stay in the NP on the BRP since electric is not available, AC isn't either.

We camped for more than 25 years in pups, in the NP CGs on the BRP, and still take the TT there as well. That is one of the reasons I'd like it to be smaller. Don't fit good on most of the sites, as they were designed for tents. When we go to the BRP. It is all primitive, and we are setup for it. The restrooms are clean, but no lights, or showers. I have a large water container I fill and sit on the picnic table. We use that for cooking, washing dishes, and sink baths. Again. We walk to the restrooms night, and day because I just don't do dumpstations. See sig. We have lanterns, outdoor stoves, and grill, and cook on the fire.

It just seems like too much trouble to fill the fresh tank, and then empty it when we leave. I'm just lazy thru, and thru.

as for the price. Not so bad as you may think. It MSRPd for a little less than 30K, and we didn't give near that for it. around 19 or so. It is a 2013, bought in 2012. I'm thinkin the model was a new one, and they wanted it out in public, OR it is not as good as I think it is. But it does what we want. Tows great, and the 150 takes it up the hill with no sweat, and I'm not talking interstate. its the real grades 8 , and 9% off the main roads. That is where the CGs are. Course the speed limits are 25 to 45 MPH because of the twistys. Does it easily.

we could have a ball together I bet.

Terryallan, my comments were just general observations I have used when evaluating the quality of RV's. Yours has some impressive numbers but I'll wager that in support of my theory it wasn't inexpensive to purchase.... the good ones seldom are.

Having owned a quality Class C, my Nexus Phantom 23P for nearly 4 years and 36,000 miles I have come to appreciate the difference a quality build makes. Along with Lance, Nexus was one of the first to use Azdell exclusively. They also frame their coaches in steel which is 72 per cent stronger than conventional aluminum and wood framing found in most coaches.

Our 13,5000 AC is fine for us in a 24' C but I have seen them in much larger units and living in Arizona you tend to notice things like that. Our furnace e is 35,000 BTU's which clearly is overkill but the way we travel it gets a workout for at least 6 months of the year and really makes life pleasant when the temps start dropping.

Everyone uses their rigs differently, we spend about 65 per cent of our time off of the grid and rely on all three of our tanks on every trip. Not many folks tow a 700# Harley for the fun of it but for us it works very well. I've never been a fan of slides but most folks just can't live without them... guess that's why they make chocolate and vanilla. :B

Desert Captain wrote:
"YMMV" = Your mileage may vary :B

It is close to impossible to find any trailer that does not incorporate the word "Lite/Light" into its marketing. Lite/light? being relative terms the practice has been taken to extremes. If a TT is in fact manufactured very lightly it will come at a cost either in terms of structural integrity or the lack thereof or a serious cost increase to reflect the use of Azdell and other high end more efficient materials.

Along with weight numbers length numbers share a great deal of ambiguity. A 29 {like the OP described}, might be 33' - 34' overall or 29' overall marketed as a 26 - 27'. Payload of a TT often referred to as OCC/ROCC is another dead give away as to the quality that may or may not be present. If a 29 footer has 1,200# of payload or less something is seriously wrong.

A 29ish' TT is rapidly approaching the point where a single 13,500 BTU AC is simply not going to get the job done. Is the furnace less than 20,000 BTU? They are on the cheap models. Does it come with two Group 27 or larger batteries? Two 20# {minimum}, propane cylinders?

Can you load the TT for a normal camping trip and come home with full black and gray tanks without going over GVWR? This should be no issue for a well built trailer as dump stations are often backed up {no pun intended}, at the end of a weekend.

Frankly if I ever go back to a TT I would be looking g for something built like the proverbial tank like an Arctic Fox just to name one and mating it to an adequate tow vehicle. If you have enough truck there really is no reason to go super, uber, ultra, very, trail or any other form of "Lite/Light.

Once again...

As always.... Opinions and YMMV.

:C

But every now and then you find one light, and well built with plenty of carrying capacity. Mine has 2589lb of carrying capacity. Yellow sticker 4811, and GVWR 7400, And because of the greater R value of the Azdel sides. the AC actually keeps it cooler than the previous 27' TT. Only time it ever seems to run all the time is late in the afternoon on a sunny 100F Myrtle beach day.

BTW. AZDEL is great. light strong, and won't rot. also because of it's more popular use. the price is coming within reach of folks like me. Once it was only used on higher end MHs. But now it has become affordable to be used on mid range TTs.

As for the black tanks. I don't use dump stations. Just don't want to. IF I don't have full hookups. We use the CG facilities, and the black tank stays empty. So I don't know how it would tow with full tanks. they have never been full on the road. The fresh tank hasn't had water in it since it was filled at the factory, and I drained it after the first wintrerization.

Sure there are other light campers. and there are more conventionaly built heavy camper. This is just the one that fit my needs the best. Sleeps 10 comfortably, and has plenty of room inside. I didn't want a deep slide. I don't like a slide that takes up most of the site. This one only has a 18 inch deep slide. It is the length of the side, but not deep. It has a door that enters into the bathroom from out side. Which took some getting use to, but we now love, and a manual awning. which I also love.

Honestly though. It is bigger than I want at this point in my life. I would like to shrink it by 7 or 8 feet, and have it sleep only 2 / TWO.

scout dad wrote:
Hi would like to ask more experienced rvers this ,
I am thinking about going to Colorado Springs this summer I will be pulling a 29ft tt weighing about 5800-6000lbs loaded.
Driving a 2003 chevy 1500hd with 6.0l 3.73 gears, will be driving I-70

Elevation is about 6,000 feet, should I be concerned with anything?
Have not done any pulling in that range, mainly lot lower range.

Thanks

If you are doing I-70 to I-25, then I-25 south to the Springs, you will have one significant hill... Monument Mill about 40 miles south of Denver is a good pull over the Palmer Divide. Not really high for Colorado, but still a good climb and descent. You may or may not find that you have to go a bit slower up that hill, but it really isn't an issue. Just didn't want you to be surprised by it.

My 24' Jay Feather (dry weight 4219) is a bit under 5300 the way we load for a trip. That's more than 1000 lbs of propane, battery, water and cargo. Dry weight does not include any LP or battery.

"YMMV" = Your mileage may vary :B

It is close to impossible to find any trailer that does not incorporate the word "Lite/Light" into its marketing. Lite/light? being relative terms the practice has been taken to extremes. If a TT is in fact manufactured very lightly it will come at a cost either in terms of structural integrity or the lack thereof or a serious cost increase to reflect the use of Azdell and other high end more efficient materials.

Along with weight numbers length numbers share a great deal of ambiguity. A 29 {like the OP described}, might be 33' - 34' overall or 29' overall marketed as a 26 - 27'. Payload of a TT often referred to as OCC/ROCC is another dead give away as to the quality that may or may not be present. If a 29 footer has 1,200# of payload or less something is seriously wrong.

A 29ish' TT is rapidly approaching the point where a single 13,500 BTU AC is simply not going to get the job done. Is the furnace less than 20,000 BTU? They are on the cheap models. Does it come with two Group 27 or larger batteries? Two 20# {minimum}, propane cylinders?

Can you load the TT for a normal camping trip and come home with full black and gray tanks without going over GVWR? This should be no issue for a well built trailer as dump stations are often backed up {no pun intended}, at the end of a weekend.

Frankly if I ever go back to a TT I would be looking g for something built like the proverbial tank like an Arctic Fox just to name one and mating it to an adequate tow vehicle. If you have enough truck there really is no reason to go super, uber, ultra, very, trail or any other form of "Lite/Light.

Once again...

As always.... Opinions and YMMV.

:C

YMMV = Your Milage May Vary
Barney

Desert Captain wrote:

Terryallan wrote:
Well guys. My 30 foot Apex is 4811lb dry, and a little less than 6000lb loaded ready to camp. It is now 2017. Not all RVs are made with heavy wood laminate or Metal sides. SOME of the better units are made with light weight composite material, that is not only stronger, has higher insulation values, is lighter, and won't rot.

So it is more than a little possible the op has a 6000lb loaded TT. Also he has a 1500 HD which has a higher GVWR than a regular 1500, and with the same engine, and rear gear as a 2500. He will be fine.

The current Apex website shows their current 30'model at 5,977# "Dry" and 7,600# GVWR. This is in line with most of the 29/30' TT out there, hence my earlier post. My 22' Fleetwood TT was a middle of the road model and came in at 5,600# fully loaded.

As others have noted until the OP gets his to a scale, loaded for a normal trip, all of our opinions are speculation at best. A heavy duty 1500 is a fine truck but at higher elevations where they {like all naturally aspirated gas engines}, give up significant power due to the thinner air he may in fact have his hands full but will probably be fine.

As always.... Opinions and YMMV.

:C

Don't know what YMMV is?

However I also looked it up, and the 2017 Apex 2880BH like mine is still 4865LB And is 31' long if you measure it. Didn't say they all were. just it is highly possible. Wondered what that 5800lb one had to make it so heavy. then I saw the other slide. That would be the reason.