Pulling with half ton!

[Alberta_Born]

Hey gang. New to the site, and surprisingly for being Canadian, new to RV'ing. Just buying a 2007 Jayco JayFeather 29D. GVW is 7050 lbs. My question for you experienced towers is this: I have a 2006 Chev Avalanche (don't judge me, normally I'm a Ford guy), it is the 5.3 V8 1500 and I am almost certain the gear ratio is the 4.10. What can you tell me about using this truck to pull my about to purchase 29' featherlight TT? Thanks for your wisdom!

[chiefcamper]

Alberta Born wrote:


I have more towing ability and weight capability than I will ever need

At least until the next camping show! 😉

Enjoy the new truck!

[jerem0621]

Alberta Born wrote:
Well, I caved and we traded in the half ton Avalanche. I now have a Dodge 3500 with the 6.7 Cummins Diesel. Really happy with it, I have always loved the Cummins engine, and now it sits in front of me for towing my TT.

I have more towing ability and weight capability than I will ever need (the most available), but the peace of mind is now priceless. Before the trade in, I bought a second hand Reese 14,000lb equalizer and dual anti sway bar system, so I will go ahead and use that anyway with the 1 ton Cummins. So now, instead of limiting to slowly towing to nearby campgrounds this summer, we're planning a trip to the Coast.

I think the many threads and messages here on this board brought the reality of this home for me. I would have put too much expectation on my half ton. So, here's to hoping for a good camping season... Thanks for the guidance and advice everyone!

Great decision! One you will not regret when it comes to towing.

Set up that WD hitch correctly and use both sway controls and you will be towing with ease.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

[travelnman]

You will probably be happy until you encounter a strong head wind, this is
the real enemy not even hills can slow you down as much as wind. I start out
in the morning and quit after a few hours if the wind picks up if not we
keep going. Keep all tanks on the empty side, water weighs a lot. Hills cause
more nail biting going down especially if you see truck run away ramps, lite
weight trucks with undersized brakes can get you into trouble. You can pull the trans down but then the RPM's jump so your left with the brakes which can get really blazing hot especially if you stay on them constantly, pumping allows things to cool a bit. If you get into trouble be prepared to use the run away ramps. A sure sign is smoke coming from the wheels, I saw semi's smoking ahead of me, wife thought it was his engine but I knew it was his brakes. It happens to them also and you may be next. This picture can be prevented using a bigger truck, yes size matters pulling RV's also or a smaller RV. Many of us starting out think the only thing to consider is "will this pull my rig" and never think will this tow vehicle be able to stop all this weight going down hills. I talked to some folks in Branson, Mo. who witnessed an RV crash on one of those hills going down. They thought the driver was going way to fast, could be he lost control from brakes burning up as he tried to slow down. I don't see many RV's in accidents probably because we slow down and stay awake watching for possible trouble down the road. Now that you saw this I'm sure you will do the same.

[PAThwacker]

tigertail34 wrote:
Reading all of this is making me nervous... I pull a 33' north trail 33bkss (dry 7595) with a 2007 suburban 1500. It pulls fine using an equalizer wdh setup. I typically tow it within 15 miles of the house. I will be making our 2nd trip to Disney this week, New Orleans to Orlando with a family of 6.

I could not even tow that with a 2500 sub.


Empty!

[tragusa3]

Wow! You won't have to think about weights any longer! Congrats on the new truck.

[Atlee]

If it fits, get a 3500# jack. Next choice is 3000# jack. I wouldn;t go as low as a 2500# jack.

You use the jack to lift up the tongue and rear of the truck, in order to attach the bars for your WDH bars.

Alaskan Fly Guy wrote:
Do I need a 2500 or a 3500# electric jack for my 23' Keystone Bobcat?

[Alaskan_Fly_Guy]

Do I need a 2500 or a 3500# electric jack for my 23' Keystone Bobcat?

[Jpbeck1]

afidel wrote:

Jpbeck1 wrote:
I tow with a half ton, and I'd run out of CCWR long before I'd run out of tow ability. I think my cargo capacity is only 1700lbs or something like that, but I can tow 10,000. Once you get that 500-600 hitch weight on the back, you are creeping up to that limit. It's deceitful the way these truck companies advertise.

Add up how much everyone weighs, and what you put in the truck bed, you'll see what I mean.

It's not deceitful, it's just your use case doesn't match what is being tested, which is a single contractor towing a heavy load to a job site. Unfortunately what the engineers tested and what the salesman at the stealership thinks it means is often very different.

After I posted it I thought the same thing.

[afidel]

Jpbeck1 wrote:
I tow with a half ton, and I'd run out of CCWR long before I'd run out of tow ability. I think my cargo capacity is only 1700lbs or something like that, but I can tow 10,000. Once you get that 500-600 hitch weight on the back, you are creeping up to that limit. It's deceitful the way these truck companies advertise.

Add up how much everyone weighs, and what you put in the truck bed, you'll see what I mean.

It's not deceitful, it's just your use case doesn't match what is being tested, which is a single contractor towing a heavy load to a job site. Unfortunately what the engineers tested and what the salesman at the stealership thinks it means is often very different.

[Jpbeck1]

I tow with a half ton, and I'd run out of CCWR long before I'd run out of tow ability. I think my cargo capacity is only 1700lbs or something like that, but I can tow 10,000. Once you get that 500-600 hitch weight on the back, you are creeping up to that limit. It's deceitful the way these truck companies advertise.

Add up how much everyone weighs, and what you put in the truck bed, you'll see what I mean.

[SoundGuy]

Alberta Born wrote:
Well, I caved and we traded in the half ton Avalanche. I now have a Dodge 3500 with the 6.7 Cummins Diesel. Really happy with it, I have always loved the Cummins engine, and now it sits in front of me for towing my TT.

CONGRATULATIONS! :B

[Alberta_Born]

Well, I caved and we traded in the half ton Avalanche. I now have a Dodge 3500 with the 6.7 Cummins Diesel. Really happy with it, I have always loved the Cummins engine, and now it sits in front of me for towing my TT.

I have more towing ability and weight capability than I will ever need (the most available), but the peace of mind is now priceless. Before the trade in, I bought a second hand Reese 14,000lb equalizer and dual anti sway bar system, so I will go ahead and use that anyway with the 1 ton Cummins. So now, instead of limiting to slowly towing to nearby campgrounds this summer, we're planning a trip to the Coast.

I think the many threads and messages here on this board brought the reality of this home for me. I would have put too much expectation on my half ton. So, here's to hoping for a good camping season... Thanks for the guidance and advice everyone!

[Alberta_Born]

SoundGuy wrote:

Alberta Born wrote:
Either option allows me to keep the Avalanche 1500 for what it's meant for which is GM's claim to fame for trucks as a good vehicle for a date night and little more.

Ha Ha! I guess for me that means "date night" at Home Depot, for which I find my Av invaluable! :W

Ha! Soundguy, I'm with you. How many times I've come from Home Depot with 6 2x6's 14 foot length in the Avalanche with the back window out and the girlfriend in the front seat!

It's the only time I am not embarrassed around my friends or my Dad who are ardent Ford and Dodge guys.

[SoundGuy]

Alberta Born wrote:
Either option allows me to keep the Avalanche 1500 for what it's meant for which is GM's claim to fame for trucks as a good vehicle for a date night and little more.

Ha Ha! I guess for me that means "date night" at Home Depot, for which I find my Av invaluable! :W

[Alberta_Born]

Thank you everyone for the input. behind the scenes of all this I had long been wanting to do a restoration project and now with towing a TT in mind I have found myself wondering. I have two projects I have been fantasizing about... The first is I have a line on a 1969 Ford F250 2WD camper special with a blown engine sitting on a farm. It has a 1 ton rear end. I want to put a Cummins 5.9L 24 valve in it and pull with that, or just show it off.

The second fantasy is to take my 2003 Ford f150 King Ranch I have sitting with the 5.4 triton blown, and apparently I can put a Cummins 3.9 (called a 4bt) into it as it makes for a nice fit. This will give me better towing, mileage, etc, and allow me to keep my beloved king ranch which other than a blown engine is a great truck.

Either option allows me to keep the Avalanche 1500 for what it's meant for which is GM's claim to fame for trucks as a good vehicle for a date night and little more. (that's my GM opinion sneaking out).

All the above of course costs money, but I have wanted to do a project for some time, and I also have my f150 king ranch just sitting there... Guess I'm back to square 1