newbie help plannig the trip

[dammitynow]

Aloha
my wife and I are planning to quit our jobs next year 2nd quarter we want to ship our truck f1502WD to the west coast( we are on Oahu) head east across the top of America (pick up north San Fran/ Org /Wash and just turn right before you hit Canada) with a destination of Tennessee to set up a base near family
we lived in our boats and sailed the islands for 20 years so a 24' TT looks like lux to us been outdoor in a tiny space a lot want to check out all the state and federal parks we can want to dry camp 3-4 days and in a camp with hookups 2-3 days to recharge
been looking at ultra lites don't know what my truck will tow ?
don't really want to do more than 300 mile legs (if I drive for more than 5 hours I start getting snappy according to management )
do I have to register the trailer in the state I bought it cause at this point I will be houseless how can that work
any advice now will help me keep out of trouble in the future
but we are going come hell or high water this is a trip I can't regret not taking when i'm old

[handye9]

dammitynow wrote:
thanks for the tow advise I looked the rateing is 1440# max cargo so if I understand correctly that is all the people ,gear trailer tounge weight
we thought about a popup and camper shell on the truck be we are moving toward the wet and I don't want to dry out canvas
is there a larger style teardrop with a camper shell we could get away with
my wife and I are both ex military we don't need much a warm dry place to sleep a hot meal every now and then and a memorable adventure

Your understanding of what eats up payload and towing capacity, is correct. Everything and everybody, in or on the vehicle, that wasn't there at the factory, is eating up payload and tow capacity.

You shouldn't need to scale back to canvas or teardrops, as long as you are aware of your payload limitations and select a travel trailer that fits within your ratings.

Some averages that may help with your planning:

Average trailer tongue weight is 12 - 13 percent of loaded trailer weight.

Average load of dishes, pots and pans, camping gear, tools, BBQ, bedding, groceries, and water, etc, weighs 800 to 1000 lbs.

Weight distributing hitch will weigh about 100 lbs. This and tongue weight will eat up tongue weight.

A fiberglass bed cap weighs about 175 lbs.

Using average numbers, a 6000 lb loaded trailer, would need approximately 850 lbs of available payload.

With 14XX lbs of payload, that would leave 550 to 600 lbs available for a bed cap (if you wanted one), people, and cargo in the truck.

If you look for travel trailers with unloaded weights, at or below 5000 lbs, you should be OK. Very likely you'd find some in 20 - 24' length.

[rbpru]

Our F-150 has a max cargo of 1400 lbs. With our 5000 lb. dry weight 25 ft. TT and camping stuff, we are at the cargo limit. It does however tow quite nice.

Route #2 across the States was very nice between MT and MN except for the oil boom near Williston, ND it was a traffic mess last August.

I do not know how full time RVers establish residence but I am sure the board can help.

[OutdoorPhotogra]

Look at the sticker in the door and see what the axle code is. That combined with your will tell you what your tow rating is. Also, if you have the tow package, it should have a class IV hitch (Pretty sure it's class IV, not III). If you look under the hitch, or better yet if you have a smart phone, you can reverse the camera and use it to read or take a picture of the label. Mine says 500 lb tongue weight/5,000 lb tow limit or 990 tongue limit and 9,900 tow with weight distribution hitch.

If you google the ford truck forum, there is a guide for the codes on the door. Also, there is a window sticker locator based on VIN that will give you original specs on truck per window sticker.

[Slate_CM]

cbshoestring wrote:

kknowlton wrote:
... but it is true that there is a wide variation in 1/2-ton truck towing and payload abilities. Good luck with your plan!

Never could figure out how manufactures rate things. My 1999 Dodge Dakota had a payload of over 900#, almost a 1/2 ton. The 1/2 ton Ram 1500 I currently have...payload slightly over 1700#. Last time I checked, a ton was 2000#. 1700/2000= 85% of a ton. Put another way, more than 3/4 of a ton.

Payload on many (not all, read above) trucks has gone way beyond what the standard 1/2, 3/4 or 1 ton use to represent. :h

Yes ^^ and I had a new Ford Raptor in my shop last week. Big and tough looking with a 6.2 motor. Payload: 1,095

[dammitynow]

thanks for the tow advise I looked the rateing is 1440# max cargo so if I understand correctly that is all the people ,gear trailer tounge weight
we thought about a popup and camper shell on the truck be we are moving toward the wet and I don't want to dry out canvas
is there a larger style teardrop with a camper shell we could get away with
my wife and I are both ex military we don't need much a warm dry place to sleep a hot meal every now and then and a memorable adventure

[cbshoestring]

kknowlton wrote:
... but it is true that there is a wide variation in 1/2-ton truck towing and payload abilities. Good luck with your plan!

Never could figure out how manufactures rate things. My 1999 Dodge Dakota had a payload of over 900#, almost a 1/2 ton. The 1/2 ton Ram 1500 I currently have...payload slightly over 1700#. Last time I checked, a ton was 2000#. 1700/2000= 85% of a ton. Put another way, more than 3/4 of a ton.

Payload on many (not all, read above) trucks has gone way beyond what the standard 1/2, 3/4 or 1 ton use to represent. :h

[kknowlton]

Good advice from handye9, to check on your truck's capacity before choosing a camper. Payload limitations may also preclude a truck camper, even more so than a trailer; your best bet - do your homework on what you have already.

Another alternative to consider: sell the truck you have in Hawaii, save the shipping cost and buy one on the mainland when you arrive. (For various reasons, I don't necessarily recommend buying a vehicle in California. 🙂 )

It's not true that every 1/2-ton (150 & the like) pickup is not capable of pulling a trailer, but it is true that there is a wide variation in 1/2-ton truck towing and payload abilities. Good luck with your plan!

[OutdoorPhotogra]

As an 2007 F-150 owner with tow package and cargo package, it is still easy to overload with a travel trailer. We've been popup campers and are looking to move to a TT and I need a TT that is under 7,000 even if I'm loading light. If I was doing a cross country, I couldn't tow 7,000 lbs.

On the other note, we made that cross country journey last year in our pop-up as part of a military move. Would be glad to answer any questions I can. We went from CA to RI a week stop in Yellowstone/Grand Teton and any National Park we could manage. Unfortunately, time didn't let us get up to Glacier.. We zigged and zagged to hit all of the northern states. Other landmarks were Rushmore (overrated), Wind Cave (nice stop no one has heard of), Badlands, Walnut Grove, MN (of LIttle House on the Prairie fame), Notre Dame University, Niagara Falls, and Vermont mountains.

I would not want to take that route pulling any TT with my F-150. No issues with a popup. Love the popup when we lived in CA but when we hit Minnesota, the "rain switch" got flipped and the pop-up becomes a pain to deal with setup and takedown. Easy to haul though and we are efficient at set up if the weather is good.

Bear tooth pass is an amazing drive on WY/MT border but I wouldn't cross it with a camper period between elevation and switch backs but it's worth unhooking at the base and driving to the peak and turning around or even all the way over and back.

You didn't say where you are starting on the West Coast but Yosemite and the Red Wood Coast are amazing if you have time. DItto Pacific Coast Highway.

I wish I had signed up for Good Sam earlier in the trip although their free campground finder is great as well. We stayed in everything from $12 municipal campgrounds to KOA's depending on where we were and what we wanted for the night. Both have a place. The pop-up doesn't dry camp well or we would have opted for more municipal campgrounds.

Have fun and good luck!

[wanderingbob]

You will probably need a land based address to do all the paper work , insurance , registration . Do you have any family on the mainland that you can use their address ? You may be able to claim a domicile in Tenn without being there ! We also lived and sailed a sailboat in the Carib for 14 years and filed a " Proclamation of Domicile " in Volusia County Florida .

[handye9]

You may want to do your homework on that F150, before shipping it. F150's are not all created equal. They were built with varying levels of payload and tow capacity. Some as low as 750 lbs of payload, and some with as much as 3200 lbs. Some have max tow rating of 11,000 lbs, and some are only rated to pull 5000 lbs. A 24' trailer could easily exceed 5000 lbs.

Payload is the truck's capacity to carry the weight of aftermarket accessories, people, cargo, weight distribution hitch, and trailer tongue weight, combined. Payload is normally the first weight rating to run out of.

If your F150 is one of those on the low end for payload, it could be near max weight before you hitch up any trailer.

The route you're looking at traveling, is going to have a lot of hills, mountains, and wind. You'll really appreciate having some cushion in the trucks ratings.

[naturist]

Hey, sounds like a great trip to me. I assume you are talking about going across US 2, the northernmost "major" highway in the US of A. (Even though it is 2-lanes most of the way. Be sure to visit Glacier National Park, and be aware that Going To The Sun Road might not be open until July, depending on snowfall next winter. I made the drive going the other way in 2009, and had a great time.

Good luck, enjoy the heck out of the ride, and be sure to wave when you get to the east coast.

[DutchmenSport]

More than likely, wherever you have your truck registered is where you will need to register and title the camper until you get relocated. That might be difficult, purchasing the camper then having to return to Hawaii to register and get tags - title - insurance, and then return back to the lower 48.

You did not indicate what your intentions are after you reach your final destination. Will you be wanting to keep the camper and continue using it, or is it your plan to sell it, or liquidate it once you finally "arrive?"

If your plan is is to "liquidate", you might consider rentals. If you can find a company that will rent a trailer one-way.


The other option you may consider is a small truck camper. Depending upon your state of residence, you may not have to have a separate license plate for it. It's consider "cargo." Just an idea!

Good luck in your endeavors and I enjoy your excitement! Don't get discouraged. You can make it work!