The never ending debate..SRW vs DRW

[svt440]

So I've been reading for days about this and have read mixed reviews on the topic all of which don't directly relate to my situation so I thought'd I'd ask someone with some experience towing.

I just bought my 2014 Rockwood 8289ws which is 8408lbs dry, with a GVWR of 9878lbs. Currently I tow it with a 2003 2500HD Duramax. The truck is a short bed, extended cab, so about as short as one can get. It handles fine when its not windy at 70mph, but in turn on a windy day it makes me a bit nervous. To answer the question, is the fifth wheel set up properly and weight distributed properly? Yes. And please don't say I shouldn't be towing over 65mph. I know I know. I just feel like the fifth wheel owns the truck when I'm driving, and I don't like that feeling.

At the moment I'm considering a dually. Overkill? Most would say yes. But I like the idea of being "over trucked". I like being able to sit back for ten hours and cruise and not have to constantly be paying attention behind me.

That being said, I hate the idea of a dually. 6 tires, worse fuel mileage, and wider. I'd really love to go with a SRW because I love the way a four door long bed SRW looks, amongst other benefits. Regardless I'll do a 1 ton truck, and regardless it'll be a long bed four door (I just feel the longer wheel base is best). Just can't decide if I want a SRW or DRW. If its true that I'll notice zero difference in stability because my fifth wheel is so light, then I'll go SRW. But if a windy day comes and I will in fact notice a difference between the two and feel better with a dually with a 9000lb fifth wheel, then I want to go dually. I'll sacrifice 2mpg for comfort and stability.

Everything I've read is on 13,000lb and up fifth wheels. Sure a DRW is the way to go in that case, but at under 10,000lbs, I'm wondering if I'll benefit at all with DRW.

Last note, the truck is not a daily driver. Its only purpose is camping. I'm not retired, and wont be for about 35 more years lol, so I don't camp all the time. I'm making a couple large trips this summer however, and planning on a few two week 'out west' trips next year, as well as the years to follow, so I want a comfortable truck since I'm spending the money! Also I live out in the country so a dually is more than manageable plus I've grown up operating large machinery.

Hoping to hear that I wont feel a difference between the two given the fifth wheel I have, but I'm afraid thats not true. Thanks guys!

[Cummins12V98]

" When you say you tow 14K with ease, is that at 70mph freeway speeds, or 55mph county road speeds?"

A 3500 SRW RAM will tow 14K with ease in above conditions.

[burningman]

Valid points all around... but after countless SRWs and three DRWs, I'll tell you the same thing everyone else tells you. Once you haul your rig with a dually, you won't want to degrade back down to a SRW again!
It's not because they have heavier springs. You can put any springs in any truck.
There is nothing you can do to a SRW that makes it equal to the task. I tried springs, sway bars, shocks, big tires....

I'm not saying a SRW won't work fine and won't tow a big trailer. It will. Just not as well.

[Old-Biscuit]

IdaD wrote:
Some of you guys seem to be compensating for shortcomings elsewhere...

There's no need at all for a DRW for OP's trailer, especially if you're talking about a newer diesel SRW truck. If you want one just because or you expect to up-size in the future then by all means go for it, but don't do it out of some perceived need.

Ding, Ding, Ding!

[IdaD]

Some of you guys seem to be compensating for shortcomings elsewhere...

There's no need at all for a DRW for OP's trailer, especially if you're talking about a newer diesel SRW truck. If you want one just because or you expect to up-size in the future then by all means go for it, but don't do it out of some perceived need.

[Stefonius]

mkirsch wrote:
It's been my experience that the dually intimidates other drivers.

The dually also inspires quite a bit of "truck envy" in parking lots and campgrounds. One of the nice things about having an F450 chassis cab with custom hauler bed is that I almost always win the "who's truck is bigger" contest. 😄

[mkirsch]

It's been my experience that the dually intimidates other drivers. I am driving straight and smooth perfectly centered between the lines in the center lane of a 3-lane highway doing 5MPH over the speed limit. When people pass they are hugging the lines as far from my truck as they can get. On a two lane road the oncoming traffic takes the shoulder.

[svt440]

JIMNLIN wrote:

I just bought my 2014 Rockwood 8289ws which is 8408lbs dry, with a GVWR of 9878lbs. Currently I tow it with a 2003 2500HD Duramax. The truck is a short bed, extended cab, so about as short as one can get. It handles fine when its not windy at 70mph, but in turn on a windy day it makes me a bit nervous. To answer the question, is the fifth wheel set up properly and weight distributed properly? Yes. And please don't say I shouldn't be towing over 65mph. I know I know. I just feel like the fifth wheel owns the truck when I'm driving, and I don't like that feeling.

I have a '03 2500 Dodge/Cummins Quad cab short bed and pull a 11200 lb 5th wheel trailer. This combo tows like its on rails.
My son had a '02 2500 Z71 chevy Dmax/A crew cab short bed and now a new '16 same truck. Both trucks pulled a 12860 lb 3 slide 5th wheel trailer. Both trucks/same trailer also tows like its on rails.

Some thing isn't right with the truck or trailer especially that lightweight trailer.
In some cases tires can cause a tracking issue...or the wrong width wheels for the tire....or a tire with large lugs and voids...or just big way over size tires.

Also bias ply tires on the trailer won't track the tow vehicle with radial tires and can cause handling issues. And of course wrong load range tire on the trailer such as a E tire in place of a C load range tire. Too much pressure can balloon the tires tread and not enough pressure can cause the trailer to sway like a drunk hog on ice.

Now if you just want a DRW truck then by all means get the white one.

Interesting comments! As for tires, the fifth wheel has the stock tires from Forest River I believe (its only two years old). Although I found it interesting that the front axle load range varied from the rear axle load range. The truck has E range tires (just got these new last year, BF Goodrich A/T) with a 3ply sidewall. I run like 60psi up front and 75-80psi in the rear. The stock wheels for my truck are 16x6.5. Stock tire size is 245/75R16, but the tire shop highly recommended me to go 265/75/16 so I did. Are there any issues here that jump out at you?

[JIMNLIN]

I just bought my 2014 Rockwood 8289ws which is 8408lbs dry, with a GVWR of 9878lbs. Currently I tow it with a 2003 2500HD Duramax. The truck is a short bed, extended cab, so about as short as one can get. It handles fine when its not windy at 70mph, but in turn on a windy day it makes me a bit nervous. To answer the question, is the fifth wheel set up properly and weight distributed properly? Yes. And please don't say I shouldn't be towing over 65mph. I know I know. I just feel like the fifth wheel owns the truck when I'm driving, and I don't like that feeling.

I have a '03 2500 Dodge/Cummins Quad cab short bed and pull a 11200 lb 5th wheel trailer. This combo tows like its on rails.
My son had a '02 2500 Z71 chevy Dmax/A crew cab short bed and now a new '16 same truck. Both trucks pulled a 12860 lb 3 slide 5th wheel trailer. Both trucks/same trailer also tows like its on rails.

Some thing isn't right with the truck or trailer especially that lightweight trailer.
In some cases tires can cause a tracking issue...or the wrong width wheels for the tire....or a tire with large lugs and voids...or just big way over size tires.

Also bias ply tires on the trailer won't track the tow vehicle with radial tires and can cause handling issues. And of course wrong load range tire on the trailer such as a E tire in place of a C load range tire. Too much pressure can balloon the tires tread and not enough pressure can cause the trailer to sway like a drunk hog on ice.

Now if you just want a DRW truck then by all means get the white one.

[rickeoni]

I have both, and would be never go back to a SRW for towing. The stability of a DRW is worth the price of admission. Last trip my buddy was behind me coming down a mountain pass and his first remark was how stabill my truck looked.

[svt440]

Bergy464 wrote:
donn0128 and Stefonius are very accurate in my opinion. I pulled a 24' bumper pull toy hauler with a crew cab long bed one ton SRW, pulled very nice. I now pull a 42' toy hauler with a one ton dually. I will say the dually is more stable with a bigger camper then the smaller with SRW.

That said, if it's a daily driver for your set up I think I would go SRW, if not a daily driver I would go DRW for stability. I love my dually and love the way it handles what it pulls. As others have said, the longer the tow vehicle the more stable you will be, especially with SRW.

Hope you find a good fit.

Good points. Definitely not a daily..so maybe dually?.. I'm going to have to close my eyes and point at one I'm afraid haha. So many great points guys!

[svt440]

Stefonius wrote:
SRW trucks are so friendly! When I'm out with the RV in even moderate winds, all the SRW trucks wag their tails at us as though they're happy to see us on the road. My DRW doesn't acknowledge them. No matter how windy it is, my dually refuses to wiggle its butt even a little bit in return. I suppose that's mighty unfriendly, but it sure feels safe.

As for fuel economy, two extra tires in the back don't mean a whole lot when the real problem is the giant whale nose of the fifth wheel . It's like towing a sailboat against the breeze.

As for width, if the mirrors fit, the hips fit. Drive-thrus are a bit challenging, but at my age and weight I probably shouldn't be eating any food that has to be unwrapped after shouting the order into a plastic clown-head. I also tend to park in the back of parking lots and walk farther to the store. I guess in that respect, my dually is trying to keep me healthy!

Haha loved this post! If the mirrors fit, the hips fit! Haha. You know, a lot of people mention parking in the back of a parking lot being a con to a dually. But in all reality, any descent truck should be that way. I park my $3x,xxx Z06 in the back of the parking lot because I don't want a door ding, so why would a $2x,xxx-$6x,xxx truck be any different? Lol I wont even let my wife park her new Escape between two cars. Idiots just can't park! I've had two cars slide against two of my old cars while parking and won't ya know, didn't leave any info. I'll park my short $13,000 Duramax at the end of a parking lot lol. I just can't stand it! Post like these though push dually... I wish I could drive each with a fifth wheel before I choose!

[Bedlam]

Although I now have a DRW due to my payload, my SRW short bed extended cab never had stability issues pulling my tag 22' toy hauler or 20' enclosed trailer. The TH was close to 11.5k lbs and the enclosed was loaded at 6-8K lbs. The enclosed trailer was lighter, but it was towed on a 28" extension off the receiver. Neither of these pushed my 7k+ lb truck around when connected directly to receiver, but my truck was closer 12K lbs GVW when I towed with my extension.

I would look at front axle weight when loaded verses unloaded and front end alignment as to why your truck was squirmy when towing.

A DRW will be more stable than a stock SRW for two reasons, yet I don't feel rear track width is one of them:
1. Stiffer suspension in a DRW
2. Twice as much sidewall stiffness in a DRW

Both of these differences can be addressed on a SRW so that it tows as well as a DRW but the cost can only be justified if you already own a SRW and plan to keep it for a number years.

[Bergy464]

donn0128 and Stefonius are very accurate in my opinion. I pulled a 24' bumper pull toy hauler with a crew cab long bed one ton SRW, pulled very nice. I now pull a 42' toy hauler with a one ton dually. I will say the dually is more stable with a bigger camper then the smaller with SRW.

That said, if it's a daily driver for your set up I think I would go SRW, if not a daily driver I would go DRW for stability. I love my dually and love the way it handles what it pulls. As others have said, the longer the tow vehicle the more stable you will be, especially with SRW.

Hope you find a good fit.

[Old-Biscuit]

I tow a 14K 5th wheel (13,873# scaled weight) with a 2007 3500 SRW

I towed it FT for 7 yrs. thru 42 of the lower 48 states.

Never had a 'white knuckle' ride, never felt trailer was pushing truck, never felt that I was 'on the edge'-------NEVER thought 'DANG which I had a Dually'
Had dually and it preformed well but a dually is not always needed.

A newer 3500 SRW (2014 and up) can easily handle a 16K 5th wheel
Heck a newer 2500 can handle a 14K 5vr (now have same ratings as my 3500)

Is a dually more stable......yes it has a wider platform across rear axle
Is a dually really needed. Only when trailer weight exceeds the SRW tow vehicles ability.
A properly match 1/4 ton truck can be a proper tow vehicle----same for 150/1500, 250/2500 and 3500SRWs
Just need to do the math and match tow vehicles real world ratings. Especially RAWR/Rear Tire Load Ratings and GCVWR

YES ---an SRW is Fully Capable

[donn0128]

Stefonius wrote:
SRW trucks are so friendly! When I'm out with the RV in even moderate winds, all the SRW trucks wag their tails at us as though they're happy to see us on the road. My DRW doesn't acknowledge them. No matter how windy it is, my dually refuses to wiggle its butt even a little bit in return. I suppose that's mighty unfriendly, but it sure feels safe.

As for fuel economy, two extra tires in the back don't mean a whole lot when the real problem is the giant whale nose of the fifth wheel . It's like towing a sailboat against the breeze.

As for width, if the mirrors fit, the hips fit. Drive-thrus are a bit challenging, but at my age and weight I probably shouldn't be eating any food that has to be unwrapped after shouting the order into a plastic clown-head. I also tend to park in the back of parking lots and walk farther to the store. I guess in that respect, my dually is trying to keep me healthy!

Amen brother!