Just bought a '17 Chevy Silverado 1500

I believe the combo is acceptable. The newer 6 speeds are more capable than the 4 speeds but you need to look closely at your payload numbers. I have a neighbor that pulls a 6500 lb camper with a 2016 1500 Silverado crew; I'm sure he's over payload but says it pulls fine.

I had a 2007 1500 crew with the 5.3/4 speed /3.42 gears at it was a dog pulling our 26BH. I love the increased power of the 6.0 engine I have now but the towing stability of the 2500 is what really stands out over the 1500 when towing heavy loads.

CherylH wrote:
2017 silverado 1500 LT crew cab**
EcoTec3 5.3L V8 Flex Fuel, 6-Speed Automatic, 3.42 Rear Axle Ratio w/5.3L V8 engine, Color-Keyed Carpeting w/Rubberized Vinyl Floor Mats, Custom Convenience Package, Electric Rear-Window Defogger, Heavy-Duty Rear Locking Differential, Integrated Trailer Brake Controller, Rear Vision Camera, Remote Keyless Entry, Remote Locking Tailgate, Trailering Package

I am looking at getting a Grey Wolf 26BH
GVWR W/brakes 7402
Cargo Capacity 2823
Do I add those 2 together ?
the way they break down, in this catalog, confuses me.
axle weight, ship weight, unloaded vehicle weight and dry hitch weight..

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Me thinks sometimes folks consider equipment bassacwards. They minimize the purposes of the horse then try to figure out if it will handle the wagon. My first TT was a 24 footer. My old faithful 1/2 ton handled it across the US and back. I then bought a 26' fiberglass cabin cruiser that it towed but no way handled it. The tail wagged the dog..Scary. I was lucky enough to find a 1997 F-350 long wheel base that looked ridicules hooked to the 24 footer but didn't know the boat was behind. IMO. I don't think a 1/2 ton is strong enough, despite mfg claims to start RVing. Sorry. Our Son bought a GMC diesel 3/4 ton to tow his heavy Formula boat. Truck enough for anything.. Right ?? he now upgraded to a cruiser that he needs permits to haul. He thinks the 3/4 GMC isn't enough. I know this isn't any help for the OP and I apologize but maybe some one else will consider their purchase. It's expensive enough to upgrade a trailer but an upgrade of the ruck is prohibitive.. IMO..

Here is the goal in setting up your WD Hitch system (I like BlueOx sway pro BlueOx SwayPro and is one of the easiest to setup)

Of course that the both TV and Trailer are within their respective ratings. Especially the TV's manual in reference to the finished setting...some say all the weight brought back to the front axle, some say bring the TV's front back within X inches when it was empty, etc, etc

The trailer tongue is level at its highest pointing and prefer pointing slightly down

The trailer tongues actual weight should be in the 12%-15% of the trailers actual weight. Too many advertise them 'towable' using a 10% tongue weight (ditto for the TV's advertised max trailer weight rating...MTWR). I prefer closer to 15%, but that is tough for a half ton, as it will load up the TV's rear axle to the limit or over

The two above (tongue weight percentage and pointing) alone contribute to many/most of the sway issues I've come across and fixed for buddies and/or church folks trailers

BlueOx SwayPro because it is much easier to setup, tension and quieter than most others. You will hear reference of 'number of chain links', 'number of washers', 'head tilt' and many other adjustments (dials and knobs) and the BlueOx SwayPro has NONE of those adjustments. As the head angle (tilt) is cast in.

Others/some have cams you have to mount onto the trailer tongue (drill/bolt, weld, etc) and adjust the cam tensioner/extensions. Others do not have cams, but tension/friction on the spring bar (trunion bar) on the chain latchup bracket...they make noise too and not the popping from cam's...squeaking is more like it

Then the very expensive HA types where they have mechanical assemblies to 'project' the forces forward closer to the TV rear axle. They cost in the thousands of bucks and are some of the heaviest in weight. I do not have one of these and again, prefer BlueOx SwayPro

Noting wrong with any of them...just what you want in price, setup, resetup each time hooking up, etc...though you will find staunch support for/against anyone vs the other

Have not looked at the new GM receiver (the part bolted to the TV's rear that has a 2 or 2.5 inch square receiver for the hitch shank/head). In previous generations, thought they were/are very, very poor in design. Post a picture if you wish my comments...note gotta study that thing before I'll write anything

Cheryl, yes experience plays a role in how much you SHOULD tow with a given vehicle.
First time towing, not mechanically inclined, I'd say a 7500lb TT is a bit more than someone may want to bite off......but in baby steps it's fine. Buy the TT, take some local runs, learn how to back it up and how it handles things when you're not in a crunch situation and then go have fun with it.
Your truck is capable of pulling that trailer, properly set up, period.
Depending on conditions, it may not be the ideal vehicle (long grades, high altitude), but will do it safely.
I have the same truck sitting in the driveway and have towed a 10-12klb equipment trailer a couple times now. It works fine. Springs are a little soft for that, but you'll have no issues with a wdh on yours.

Hi there. I am going to leave the tech stuff to the other dudes.

We have similar sized family and an Exoedition. So similar weight capacity. We have a GreyWolf 23BH. A 17 foot trailer seems pretty small for all those people. Now you may be a lot better at dancing around the inside of a trailer than we are, but I can't imagine any less room.

Maybe bring all of your family to the trailer place and sit around inside the one you like for an hour and see how you feel. Then think about it with all your stuff inside. I noticed that our trailer seemed to shrink two sizes after we got it home. It was the strangest thing.

:-)

JIMNLIN wrote:
Baloney...you have no idea what was on the car 12k car hauler. But just for you...

You post this sarcastic BS in reply to a comment about the comparative wind resistance of a TT vs other trailers, and then want to accuse ME of starting an argument?

Wow... some people.

drsteve wrote:
LOL... to the OP--see above for the guy who thinks the numbers are meaningless.

Now throw in the fact the 1500 chevy had 1020 lb of hitch weight and over 9460 lbs on the axles.

Remind me not to buy a used truck from you.

IMO your just looking for a argument picking at others replies which doesn't help the OP in making a informed decision.
In all my replies above we see the 1020 lbs of hitch weight went on the trucks rear axles and the 9460 lbs was on the trailers axles.

CherylH, how about a Lance 2185 travel trailer? It has a queen bed, 3 bunk beds, a large dinette that can sleep 2 people. The GVWR is 6,000 lbs..

Based on my experience I think you will be fine with this combination. That is as long as you don't fill it with rocks as mentioned above.

We travel for 5 months at a time and carry about 1200 lbs of "stuff". If you load 1400 lbs then trailer would be about 6000 lbs. Tongue weight would be in the 800 to 900 lb range leaving 800 to 900 lb for stuff and people in the truck.

The 3:42 axle is what GM puts in modern 1/2 ton trucks for towing. It works fine with the 6 speed.

The engine has enough power to drag 6000 lb up 6% grades at highway speeds. You do have to let the engine rev to make the power but it won't hurt it.

Use tow/haul whenever you are towing.

The integrated brake controller works very well since it is tied into the truck brake system. It is smooth and proportional to brake pedal pressure.

I am using P tires instead of LT tires. I inflate them to max (44 PSI) when towing and have not felt that they are squirmy.

I find that a high quality weight distribution hitch is important ( such as the Equal-i-Zer brand. This allows getting the front end of the truck back down to have the correct steering geometry.

My comments are based on travelling the last 6 years for 5 months at a time covering around 8000 miles per year.

And - I just ordered a 2017 Silverado. The additional 40 HP will be fun.

Good luck in deciding what to do.

Hi Cheryl.. All I can add to this is that until you tow something heavy, you won't have any idea what it's like.. You will either hate it or love it, or somewhere in between..

Towing a heavy brick behind whatever vehicle you have is going to be different from how it drives down the road not towing anything, obviously..

What are your towing expectations at this point in your research? By that I mean, what do you expect for mpg? What do expect for speed? Handling? Braking? Pushing your truck to it's limits?

I love towing things of all sizes.. But, I have towed heavy, overloaded and just right in the past 30+ years of towing stuff..

So, it's hard for me to say what YOU should do.. ;)

I know what I would do.. But, I'm not YOU, so all this boils down to is of no help to you at all... :)

At some point, you just gotta pull the trigger on something and go from there..

I know that seems like a risk, but that's basically how all of us figure out what works or not in life..

In the end, what works for you might not work for me and visa versa..

Good luck!

Mitch