Trailer length and sway

[hs4816]

Looking for unbiased advice from experienced towers. Buying both a TV and TT.

Will likely be going with a RAM1500 Laramie. No plans to push the limits on payload or towing capacity, but are worried about sway relative to the trucks wheelbase and the trailer length.

I’ve seen the “rule of thumb” math formula published, but have also seen people saying it’s an arbitrary **** number.

Curious what you all feel would be a comfortable and safe maximum length for a trailer.

Thanks!

[Terryallan]

Mike Up wrote:

Durb wrote:
Does the wind ever blow in Winnipeg? Since you are buying new gear, I would budget in a Hensley or Pro Pride hitch. This will give you some leeway to get the trailer you want. Bigger is usually better when it comes to trucks. My son has a Laramie 1500 Ecodiesel. Payload is a shade under 1,100#. He doesn't complain about the tow of his 5,000# boat but I know he is overloaded going to the lake.

Boats usually have under 10% tongue weight around 5% - 7%, while a travel trailer averages around 13% tongue weight. That's only about 350 lbs tongue weight from that boat. That is pretty light.

With a factory brochure weight of 5600 lbs for a light weight 30' travel trailer, you'll have far more. Add about 300 lbs for options on top of base weight, then about 1500 lbs to 2000 lbs for water, food, clothes, and other stuff loaded into the camper. Now that 5600 lbs camper is 7400 lbs. With a 13% tongue weight, you'd have 962 lbs. Quite a bit more than a boat.

Can't really compare a boat to a TT. The weight of a boat is at the rear, and usually rides on the axles which are also at the rear. It is completely different dynamics.

[Vintage465]

freetime58 wrote:
When the topic of trailer sway comes up, you see many opinions on the obvious (load it right/use sway control/use WDH set up/increase tongue weight/WB of tow vehicle/single axle or dual axle...you name it)........most often overlooked and hardly ever mentioned is good tow vehicle tires and good trailer tires, stiffer the side walls the better........P rated tires aren't meant for towing/load bearing, they're meant to give a quiet, cushy, comfy ride with soft shock absorbing sidewalls, not what you want at all.....LT rated truck tires like BFG All Terrain KO2's or Goodyear Duratracs (many other good LT tires out there as well) for the truck and Goodyear Endurance radials for the trailer........ and never look back!

Gosh! You are so right about the tires. Can't believe I left that out. Stout tires are indeed the foundation of everything. You can have all the other stuff right and crummy tires will negate most everything. Great Catch!

[Lynnmor]

hs4816 wrote:
Thanks all! Great advice here. We are debating the option of a used 3/4 ton rather than a new 1/2 ton. And maybe whether to just go straight to a 5th wheel. Seems like such a jump:commitment from a tent trailer... sigh

Equipping a 1/2 to get the payload and towing capacity you might want, you will have nearly as much in it as you would have in a 3/4 which needs nothing extra.

[hs4816]

Thanks all! Great advice here. We are debating the option of a used 3/4 ton rather than a new 1/2 ton. And maybe whether to just go straight to a 5th wheel. Seems like such a jump:commitment from a tent trailer... sigh

[Mike_Up]

Durb wrote:
Does the wind ever blow in Winnipeg? Since you are buying new gear, I would budget in a Hensley or Pro Pride hitch. This will give you some leeway to get the trailer you want. Bigger is usually better when it comes to trucks. My son has a Laramie 1500 Ecodiesel. Payload is a shade under 1,100#. He doesn't complain about the tow of his 5,000# boat but I know he is overloaded going to the lake.

Boats usually have under 10% tongue weight around 5% - 7%, while a travel trailer averages around 13% tongue weight. That's only about 350 lbs tongue weight from that boat. That is pretty light.

With a factory brochure weight of 5600 lbs for a light weight 30' travel trailer, you'll have far more. Add about 300 lbs for options on top of base weight, then about 1500 lbs to 2000 lbs for water, food, clothes, and other stuff loaded into the camper. Now that 5600 lbs camper is 7400 lbs. With a 13% tongue weight, you'd have 962 lbs. Quite a bit more than a boat.

[Durb]

Does the wind ever blow in Winnipeg? Since you are buying new gear, I would budget in a Hensley or Pro Pride hitch. This will give you some leeway to get the trailer you want. Bigger is usually better when it comes to trucks. My son has a Laramie 1500 Ecodiesel. Payload is a shade under 1,100#. He doesn't complain about the tow of his 5,000# boat but I know he is overloaded going to the lake.

[Terryallan]

All I can say is to stay under your trucks towing capacities, and GVWR. You should have no problem. Truth is you will run out of payload long before you run out of length. mine is 30' with my 145 WB F150. Honestly. I wouldn't want to go more.

[thomasmnile]

Reading responses, doesn't appear anyone really answered your question. My real world experience:

Owned a 2005 Dodge Ram 3500. Started out with a fifth wheel, but traded for a Jayco WhiteHawk 27 DSRL, tongue to bumper length was 31' 6". The truck was a quad cab longbed on a 165" wheelbase. Some would say a truck that big doesn't require WDH and sway control, but I READ THE TOWING SECTION OF THE OWNERS' MANUAL, before buying the TT. Even for a mighty one ton diesel, Dodge stated if the GVWR of the trailer to be towed was 60% or more of the truck's GVWR, a WDH with sway control is recommended. So I used a WDH with sway control and towed the trailer many times without incident.

Not advocating you buy a one ton truck at all, we used the truck because it was paid for. I towed the trailer only once without the trunnion bars installed when we sold it. It got a bit squirrely on the highway when passed by large vehicles, so yes long wheelbase is of some value for towing stability, but a WDH and sway control is the way to go IMHO, irrespective of wheelbase.

[freetime58]

When the topic of trailer sway comes up, you see many opinions on the obvious (load it right/use sway control/use WDH set up/increase tongue weight/WB of tow vehicle/single axle or dual axle...you name it)........most often overlooked and hardly ever mentioned is good tow vehicle tires and good trailer tires, stiffer the side walls the better........P rated tires aren't meant for towing/load bearing, they're meant to give a quiet, cushy, comfy ride with soft shock absorbing sidewalls, not what you want at all.....LT rated truck tires like BFG All Terrain KO2's or Goodyear Duratracs (many other good LT tires out there as well) for the truck and Goodyear Endurance radials for the trailer........ and never look back!

[Mike_Up]

hs4816 wrote:
Looking for unbiased advice from experienced towers. Buying both a TV and TT.

Will likely be going with a RAM1500 Laramie. No plans to push the limits on payload or towing capacity, but are worried about sway relative to the trucks wheelbase and the trailer length.

I’ve seen the “rule of thumb” math formula published, but have also seen people saying it’s an arbitrary **** number.

Curious what you all feel would be a comfortable and safe maximum length for a trailer.

Thanks!

*Edited*

First of all if I were to do any travel trailer towing, I wouldn't select a 1500 Ram especially a loaded Laramie Ram. Being they have some of the lowest payload I've ever seen. Worse than many midsize trucks.

If I were going to buy a truck and travel trailer, it would be a 1/2 ton F150 or Silverado in a modest trim, not luxury, so that you have good payload. Even better would be a 3/4 ton truck for good payload. I also would upgrade to LT Tires on the 1/2 ton trucks. Preferably to a E Rated tire for stiffer sidewalls. I had BF Goodrich T/A All Terrain KO2s but they were terrible for wet roads. I'd advise against them and choose a different tire as Michelin or Bridgestone.

If I were buying a large Travel Trailer, that's heavy and very long, I'd be looking at 3/4 or 1 ton trucks for payload, tow rating and stability. Then again I don't think I'd want to tow over a 32' travel trailer. Going that long I'd start looking at 5th wheels. I have a friend who refuses to tow travel trailers because he said they tow so bad. He only will have 5th wheel campers. But 5th wheels usually require a 3/4 ton truck. A HD Payload package F150 can be optioned for smaller 5th wheel campers.

I also used a Blue Ox Sway Pro hitch system. It controlled sway excellent and better than my previous Reese Strait Line System (HP Dual Cam System). You just have to adjust so that you get enough tension on the spring bars or the sway control won't be what it should. The system is very very simple and is pretty much idiot proof as long as you get the spring bar tension that's required for sway control as I said. I used 1000 lbs bars for my previous 29' bunkhouse, the Jayco Jay Flight 26BH.

[Vintage465]

With properly set up W.D. that includes sway control....either integrated or friction, you won't have any sway issues. It does take some time to get the right "recipe" for a good set up. Tongue weight and bars to match that. Proper tilt of the head. Ball height and weight/load distribution in the coach. Main thing is don't throw the towel in just because it wasn't right the first go-round. I pulled a pretty "lardy" meaning heavy, 25ft. Nomad all over the U.S. with a 1999 GMC 4X4 Suburban 1/2 ton. Never once had a sway or control issue. The current breed of 1/2 ton-ers are way better than my 1999 Burban for sure.

[pigman1]

Load the tongue, reduce the sway.

[Mike134]

I have a '19 F150 145" wheelbase, pulling a 6000lb TT (from cat scale) 28' coupler to bumper, with 900lbs of tongue weight (from sherline scale)trailer. Using an equalizer 4pt hitch and it tracks behind just fine. Had some 25-30 mph crosswinds last trip and was still able to enjoy a cup of coffee while driving.
So to answer your question 28' of trailer for a 1/2 ton setup properly is fine.

[nickthehunter]

Worry more about tongue weight - both as far as payload of the truck and keeping it close to 12% of actual trailer weight when loaded and ready to go camping.