Need help understanding (towing)

[TheLostOne]

I am looking to purchase my first 5th wheel as i do research some of them say 1/2 TON SHORT BED TOW-ABLE. Does this mean i can use a Ford F-150 or something similar?

[C_Schomer]

My first TV was a 1/2t sb and it did great with the 25' 5er we had. All the weights were well under the trucks ratings. Craig

[Buck50HD]

Not many 1/2 tons will be within manufacturer ratings with "1/2 ton towable" 5ths but a HD payload F150 can get you well within range. The example above is not really a good one because most 1/2 ton towables don't have a dry pin wt of 2000 lb. Most are 1100-1400 and reach about 1500-1700 loaded, and handle very well, as I've found in the last 2200 miles. It might be at 90% of the axle rating but only 70% of the E tire rating. I'd rather be at the limit of a bearing that will give a little notice when it fails than a maxed tire that will blow unexpectedly. You're rolling the dice either way you tow. If you're concerned, you could always tent in the back of a dually.

[lococoin]

You can tow a fifth wheel and bumper pull with a half ton if you want lol

[96Brigadier]

1. Determine the GVWR of the 1/2 ton truck.

2. Weigh the truck as it would be for travel (full gas, you and the wife, etc.). Subtract that weight from the GVWR of the truck to determine your available payload. Put another way, the payload is what your truck can CARRY. A fifth wheel's pin weight is CARRIED by your truck and therefore comes out of the available payload.

3. If the pin weight of the trailer exceeds your available payload from point 2 above, your truck likely** can't handle it. Don't go by the pin weight that the manufacturer says in their sales brochure, that will be low. What weight you want to take is up to you... to be on the safe side, take 15% of the GVWR of the trailer.

**Wait wait some people will say, your truck MAY be able to handle it even if you are over your payload (and therefore over your truck's GVWR). Look at the axle weight they'll say. While that is true, when it comes to a 1/2 truck I wouldn't push it. If you were talking a 1 ton truck then I'd be giving you slightly different advice (slightly different but not a whole lot different).

4. Make sure the GVWR of the trailer + GVWR of the truck does not exceed the GCWR of the truck.

Bottom line, if you are talking a small fifth wheel you MAY be able to tow it with a 1/2 ton truck. Do yourself a favor though and make sure you fully understand the following, if you do you will be able to decide yourself if the truck can handle it.

a. GVWR (truck)
b. Payload (truck) - not what is in the brochure, the REAL payload.
c. GVWR (trailer)
d. Pin weight (trailer) - not what is in the brochure, a more realistic value.
e. GCWR (truck)

[rhagfo]

Well might depend on haw far you wish to push a "Half Ton" to its limits.

You can even tow something like this if you really want to push the limits, of the single bearing "Semi-Floating" rear axle on the half tons.



This issue is even this Max, Max, is over GVWR, and Very, Very close to the GAWR both front and rear.

Max combined weight sticker: 17,100
GVWR: 8200
Max payload: 2390
GAWR
Front 4050
REar 4800

CAT SCALE:

Loaded 5th, included 50 gallons of water:
CAT scale results: Steer axel 3950
Drive axel 4710
Trailer axel 7810
Gross weight 16470

That included full tank of gas, myself, my wife,
Chloe our 13 lb Westie and a stocked trailer.

The 5er has a dry weight of 9,741# with a pin of 1,980# and an axle weight of 7,761#, based on that they have only added 50# to the axles, so the rest must be on the pin. all 410# before exceeding GVWR.

Bad case of a very nice looking 5er, and a very nice looking TV, but the TV not really up to the job.

[The_Texan]

Again, all of the ¾t and 1t people refuse to acknowledge that the ½t trucks have changed BIG time in the last 3 or 4 years. A properly equipped Ford or GM ½t can and will safely tow a heavy trailer or 5th wheel. The payloads in the newer ½t are above 2K and tow ratings are above 10.5K so tell me why a properly equipped ½t would NOT do the job........

[Hamops]

I saw a Ford 150 pulling what could be considered "1/2 ton towable" and didn't like what I saw. As the rig passed us, I noticed that the truck box and cab were actually moving. It looked like the truck frame was flexing so much, that the box and cab were moving back and forth from each other over an inch. If that's considered safe operating then somebody is has made some pretty ingenious calculations.

[goducks10]

IMO from looking at 5'ers recently is that the 1/2 ton towable's that are towable by 1/2 tons needs to be empty. Once you start loading them up you start exceeding the weight limits of the 1/2 ton. Take my 5'er for example.
Dry weights are as follows,
Pin 1385
UVW 7185
GVW 4315

Now after loaded up
Pin 17-1800
Loaded 85-9000

So even by getting a 1/2 ton with Maxtow or equivalent that has a payload rating around 17-1800 you will be over the payload since you have still have to add driver and passengers plus 5th hitch.

So while you're under the 1/2 tons tow rating and GCVWR you over on the RAWR and payload. It's mostly a gimmick IMO. Yes there are some 5'ers that will work with some 1/2 tons but you will most likely be limited to what you can pack and your choice of floor plans and manufacture's are slim.

[Norskeman]

You may be able to tow with a 1/2 ton but a 3/4 or 1 ton would be a better choice. Pin weight and GVWR of the truck will always be the limiting factor.

When I went back to a fifth wheel in 2003 I started out with a 2500HD diesel. In 2011 I upgraded to the newer 3500HD and I am finally pulling within the GVWR of the truck.
Previous Diesels
2005 Chevy Silverado 3500
2004 GMC Sierra 2500HD


Done believe the advertised weights of the trailer - Our trailer out the factor was about 300 lbs heavier than the advertised weight of 9761 lbs. I have added slide awnings and a rear hitch - all taking away payload of the trailer.

[TomHaycraft]

TheLostOne wrote:
I am looking to purchase my first 5th wheel as i do research some of them say 1/2 TON SHORT BED TOW-ABLE. Does this mean i can use a Ford F-150 or something similar?

Your choices are limited but yes, it can be done. Be ready to do the research, educate yourself and be ready to challenge the sales person. A year ago I was in your shoes, knew what was being written about on the forums, could do the math myself, yet sales people were insisting my truck could tow more than I was suspecting. I was right.

In the end, I ordered the 5th wheel hitch and hardware to attach from eTrailer.com. Still in their boxes, I headed to the local CAT scales, got my rear axle weight, did the math, knew the pin weight I could handle based on GAWR for my truck. 95% of the time, the limiting factor will be cargo capacity (vertical forces), not towing capacity (horizontal forces).

Since purchasing the trailer in August of 2012, I've spent 33 nights in it, pulled it 7,000+ miles, am 100% happy with my decision. Perfect floor plan for my wife and I.

Good luck!

[JusSayin]

Ditto! Salesman told me (in 1992) that my F150 would handle a 35ft 5'er. Boy was I naive!!! I had to upgrade to a 3/4 ton (gas-hog at 4 mpg.) Two road trips later went and got a 1-ton diesel. Never a problem since. Short-bed's shouldn't cause a problem with all the optional king pin boxes and sliding 5th wheels available. So long as you get the power train and chassis to handle the load.

[time2roll]

TheLostOne wrote:
I am looking to purchase my first 5th wheel as i do research some of them say 1/2 TON SHORT BED TOW-ABLE. Does this mean i can use a Ford F-150 or something similar?

If the F150 has the max payload option and 8200 GVWR then yes you probably can.

[kirklandsc]

There are a lot of things you can pull with a 1/2 ton. Question is will you like pulling it and will it be safe.

[n7bsn]

There are 5ers that can easily be towed with a good "half-ton", I owned two different ones, a 17 ft MeToo and a 21 ft Fleetwood.

That being said, there are few made today that are actually, honestly, towable by a "half-ton".