What are advantages and disadvantages of travel trailers

[newatrvinginohi]

Hello everybody, we are new to this site and exploring rving. We are pretty sure we want to get a travel trailer and have some questions.

We are not rushing into this decision as we are planning on renting a travel trailer this spring or summer and taking it out for a week. We will then be renting a fifth wheel and also taking it out sometime. We have actually been looking into this for 3 years and will not purchase for at least 18 months. So, we plan on getting a lot of practice in before we purchase.

We are also a family that has extensive camping experience as we are the proud parents of two Eagle Scouts and got to do plenty of camping while they were growing up (tents, bare ground, cabins).

1. How do you secure the travel trailer when you want to take your truck and drive somewhere else and would you say it is pretty safe to leave your travel trailer once secured?

2. Can you park travel trailers in Walmart, Target, etc. or non-rv camping sites? I am asking this because I assume that Walmart parking lots, Target parking lots, etc., don't have a hookup to hook your travel trailer up to and I assume it wouldn't be real secure sitting in a non rv park. Is this correct?

3. What do you think are advantages/disadvantages to having a travel trailer versus a fifth wheel or other RV?

Thanks!!

[gmw_photos]

To the OP, regarding "payload" ( which is defined as GVWR minus curb weight ), I recently saw a good post on another forum, penned by a mechanical engineer. I saved it, since it was one of the best thought out and logical explanations I've seen:


"As an ME/PE and working 20 years in designing and operating equipment I am not sure you understand what drives payload and GVWR.
The same rigs get different ratings in different countries.

Safety procedures and GVWR are not directly related. Wear your seatbelts, follow your tires ratings. Don't exceed your hitch or axle ratings.
There was no SAE rating until very recently on towing. Payload/GVWR is still about aligning with tax/DOT laws. No relation to engineering. "
====================

Now then, also consider this: there are folks on this forum that will tell you "payload number" on a 2500 series truck may not even be adequate for your intended towing and load application. This is based on the fact that most 2500 series trucks have a 10000 pound GVWR.
Ok, so consider the following, which I pulled from a government website. We all know the gvmnt....that would be those pesky bureaucrats that write the regulations, etc:

========

"Vehicle Regulations
If a vehicle has a GVWR of over 10,001 pounds and is used for a business, which includes non-profit businesses, then they are subject to federal and state safety regulations. Even though a driver does not need a commercial driving license for Class 1 through 6 vehicles, every vehicle that has a GVWR over 10,001 pounds has to be identified with the name of the company and the US DOT Number.
The driver has to operate under the regulations concerning hours of service and medical examinations are required for drivers. Any vehicle over 10,001 pounds is required to stop at state weigh and inspection stations.

Summary
Truck classification is determined by the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) and this determines the regulations that should be followed. A vehicle over 10,001 pounds means that the company and driver are required to follow regulations for the safe operation of commercial motor vehicles on US highways."
==================

My point is, dear original poster, as is usually the case, there is more to the story than what some internet experts might type into a forum post. I say it again, to really understand subjects such as payload, GVWR, axle ratings, one might need to do some digging and reading.

Many posters simply like to say, "you need a bigger truck". That's real easy for them to say, and type, but it may not tell the whole story.

I sure wish you, OP, were here at the resort I am staying at right now. If you were, we'd go for a walkabout here and talk to a dozen or so 1/2 ton truck owners that pulled their lengthy/heavy travel trailers here from far away places. You could in fact get info, straight from the horses mouth. Real world out here is a very interesting place.

But then as scout leaders, I know I don't need to tell you to really do your homework. You already know to do that.

EDIT: there are some folks whose default answer is "you need a bigger truck, or a smaller trailer".
It's the easy way out and does not require any reading or understanding of how all things work.

Expect someone to come along in this discussion and say : "one ton dually".

( not that I have anything against one ton duallies..... I have one )

[SoundGuy]

newatrvinginohio wrote:
Just curious, do most people buy pop-ups before advancing to other RV types?

It's a pretty common pathway for sure. Many do so as a popup is a quantum leap up from sleeping on the ground in a tent but very often can still be towed with an existing family vehicle. Of all the various types of RVs a popup is the most inexpensive, with minimal commitment, especially if one buys used to first "get their feet wet" before moving on to some form of hard side trailer, which I'd say is what the vast majority of us eventually do. That said, if this isn't for you then it isn't for you BUT that doesn't change the fact that the advantages for a newbie with a lot to learn are undeniable. Your choice ... good luck! :B

[SoundGuy]

gmw photos wrote:
if under 7500 or so pounds all up loaded, can be towed by 1500 truck

Simple math shows that any travel trailer grossing 7500 lbs loaded & ready to camp translates easily to an average gross tongue weight of at least 1000 lbs ... subtract that from a 1/2 ton's real world payload capcity and there won't be much left. For just an adult couple and not much else in the truck one might make this work, anything more and it's not difficult to exceed the truck's payload and most like it's gross rear axle weight rating. 😞

[newatrvinginohi]

I am going to respond to each of your comments on this reply. We again appreciate all of the feedback. I love this site so far as it is very active with a lot of diversity in the comments, thoughts, etc. We also totally appreciate all the straightforwardness as well.

**Donn0128---You are absolutely right that we would never want to leave the tt unattended. Thanks for letting us know about how trailers are best left parked for a few days and motor homes best left moved every couple of days. Also, we appreciate knowing trailers are overall less expensive. Thanks.

**Azdryheat---This is very good to know about the wind. We actually are now starting to watch trucks on the road while pulling tts or 5th wheels to see if we can note any swaying. We passed a truck hauling a 5th wheel today and were paying close attention to that. Thanks for the info.

**Profdant139---very good points in tts versus 5th wheels. We didn’t think about traveling in back country off pavement, verus roads…great things to consider. Thanks.

**Jim1521----Thanks for your thoughts and it makes a lot of sense. I guess technically if somebody wanted in our house bad enough, they will get in, just like you said about the trailers. Thanks for the input.

**jbrowland---That is great to know about how you find that driving with the 23 foot TT is easier to drive. We can’t wait to check this out this spring when we will rent one that we have already picked out ahead of time to rent. Thanks for the input.

**MitchF150---Yes, my husband corrected me about Walmart and stated we would only be staying there if we were not able to find a RV park while traveling. So hopefully, that will be few and far between during our travels. We are definitely exploring this and have been exploring for 3 years. We will rent a tt this spring and take it on vacation for a week and test it out. We then plan on renting a 5th wheel also. We will not be purchasing anything for at least 18 months. Youtube is a great research option as well. Thanks for the info.

**Owenssailor----This is great information and we definitely appreciate the diversity of comments on this subject. We can’t wait to test this out ourself when we rent a TT this spring. Thanks for the input!!

**Isaac-1---This is great information and we definitely want to make sure we have the proper vehicle to tow the TT as we don’t want this to be a source of problems for us. This makes a lot of sense. Thanks!!

**valhalla360---You are absolutely right and as I posted earlier, I found this site and as a very excitable woman, I wanted to post on this site right away. And although, I have very broad questions, the 5 pages of responses on here have already been immensely helpful to my husband and I. Thanks for the reminder that TT’s are cheaper than fifth wheels…just knowing that information is very helpful. Thanks for the reminder about Walmarts, campgrounds, etc. We only would do a Walmart if there is not a campground available during our travels or if we are absolutely too tired to travel any more. Great insight. Thanks.
**westend---Thanks so much. We have many friends who do rving and have recommended to us to rent first before we buy so we like that idea. Thanks for the insight about leaving the trailer at a campgrounds and yes, it would be stupid to leave in any area outside a campground if there were no secure locking mechanisms in place there like campgrounds have. We are looking forward to having the experimentation of driving the rented unit this spring so we can have that learning curve. Thanks.

**mgirardo---This is great information and love knowing you use the coupler lock. We also love knowing your TT stays at the campground. This also helps us to know about keeping it off the ground with the cinder blocks. My hubby may know that already, but I didn’t. Thanks so much for the info.

**bailer6334----great points. Thanks so much. Yes we thought about the height difference in a tt versus a 5th and figured that would have to be an advantage. I know we will definitely need the practice in backing the TT and another poster had the idea on here about renting a u-haul to practice backing which we think is a great idea. Thanks so much for your input.

**Soundguy---We very much appreciate the comments but why do we want to buy a popup? We plan on renting and trying out TT’s before we actually buy one. I know people with popups who have had many issues. We will try the TT’s out before buying and who knows, maybe after trying it out, we may hate it. But, we are not jumping into this quickly at all as we have been exploring for 3 years and will not even buy for about 18 months. Just curious, do most people buy pop-ups before advancing to other RV types?

**Nickthe hunter---Yes, thank you. We would never stay at Wal-mart and only want to use them in case we can’t find a campgrounds or are too tired to drive any further. Nick, you make so much sense and we think the same thing. A TT is so much cheaper than a Class A RV and I could see being a whole lot more careful paying 200K for something versus 15k for something. We also do plan on buying a used TT when we get to that point in 18 months. Thanks for your common sense thinking.

**Fireballsocal---Wow, this is awesome. Never, ever thought of this before, but this makes total sense. What a great secondary use of the TT’s like you said in case of a natural disaster. Yes, I agree and as a TT is much less expensive than a Class A RV, if we do make mistakes, they are not as costly as jumping in deep and buying a Class A as we know some people that have done and paid $200k and ended up not using or like it. The TT’s we are looking at are about 15k, much different than 200k. Thanks for the feedback.

**kerrlakeroo---Great points. We plan on traveling to each state in the U.S. eventually (not all at once of course) and of course seeing all the parks (Yellowstone, Glacier, etc.). We will not be living in it but plan on using it probably a good 2-3 months out of the year. Thanks for your input.

**Speakeasy----Too funny. I love your comments. You are right this is not brain surgery and I don’t think anybody will die if we make the wrong decision unless of course we wreck the thing. But as one poster suggested, we should practice backing with a u-haul which is an excellent idea and we will do that. Oh, even though some comments were extreme, everybody’s comments have been very helpful. And yes, we definitely know we don’t want a popup trailer as we want to have hard walls on all sides. Thank you so much.

**bobndot---Yes, great points. We definitely are going to rent and the only thing we have really thought out is we eventually want to explore all states and go to the national parks, etc. as well as much other sightseeing in our beautiful USA. That is awesome hearing of all your experience with rving. Not sure which place or campground we will like the best until we do it. If we hate the noise and busyness of some, we may choose the more remote. We want the flexibility of trying them all out to see what we like. Thanks for passing on your experience.

**Downtheavenue---Very great advice. Yes, every year, we attend the huge RV show up here, and we did that yesterday. We end up going thru so many RV’s our heads are spinning at the end of the day. But after yesterday, we are pretty sure we want the TT or fifth wheel. We have too much sightseeing to do is why we want to have the truck we can then use to do the actual sightseeing after the trailer is safely parked and secured at the campgrounds. Yes, I am proud that we did not buy one of those RV’s on the spot yesterday, it was very tempting….lol.

**subcamper---Never thought about some of the points you are making, but they make a lot of sense. Trying to find someone who is experienced with the hook up might be challenging, but it is a great idea. Great points and we are definitely wanting to rent a TT this spring and have tentatively picked out one on RVshare. We also figured starting out rving, most TT’s are much less expensive than other RV’s, so if we do buy one down the road, it is not like spending $200k on a class A RV. Thanks for the RV wisdom.

**NMDriver---Yes, valhalla360 had great points and we are definitely appreciative.
**Soundguy---So do you believe buying a popup rather than renting the tt would be the best option? We are definitely not jumping into this quickly as we are renting the vehicles first and trying them out. It will be a good 18 months before we purchase anything and renting at least a few times first. Thanks.

**Bobbo—Great points and I know my husband definitely appreciates the information on the engines, as I know my husband will definitely appreciate having less engines to maintain. Great points, that I myself may not think of but I know my husband would. You are right about anybody who wants it getting it, but like I guess if someone wanted to break into my home, nothing would stop them. Thanks and great points.

**Kerrlakeroo---Thanks for the info. I found a TT for 75.00 per day in Ohio on RVshare. We are planning on just going to pick it up and will actually be traveling to another state this spring to get a feel for driving it, hauling it and staying in it. We absolutely love your idea about trying out uhauls first and practicing backing them. What awesome ideas that we will absolutely do. Thanks.

**Bobbo---Thank you!! I personally am a daredevil (even as a woman) and have never been afraid to jump in and try something new. Being a military brat and moving constantly and attending 14 schools growing up, I am eager for change. My husband has gotten more used to jumping in living with me for so long…lol. But, we are testing the waters first by renting the TT this spring to see how it will go and plan on having it a week to really test the driving and staying in it.

**Lynnmor—Very great points about the highway system and not seeing anything. We have already planned out some of our road trips and the many, many places we want to see in those states. We pretty much want to go to every state and hit up many things that each state has that represents those states well. We definitely need to think about the hills, mountains, curves as we will certainly need to gain gradual experience with those factors. Thanks for the reminder. Yes, we know now the 1500 truck may not be great and we may need to think differently about the truck. We only want one popup in our TT as hubby says too many popups in the TT present possible problems. Thanks for the great tips.

**donn0128---We definitely appreciate the input about the trucks. We certainly need to keep that in mind as that is extremely important. Thanks!!

**drsteve—Thanks for the information as we would not have known this. We appreciate it. These are things we didn’t know much about.

**TenOC—Thanks for this great information on storage, etc. Something we wouldn’t have really known. Hmm….the hitch information is great to know. Thanks so much.

**Thom02099—Thanks so much for the input. We are definitely going to do the uhaul option of practicing backing with that first. Never would have thought of that. Also, yes, we now know we have to look at the truck size and think about that very carefully in relationship to the tt we will be purchasing. Thanks again.

**drsteve---This is one thing we have not quite figured out. Our sons are grown but they and their girlfriends still travel with us a lot and we are happy for that. We are struggling to figure this piece out…lol……We have thought that if we start off with a smaller TT, less expensive, and we know the family still would like to go on trips, we could move up to a bigger TT eventually. You bring up great points on having more options on site selection. Again, this would not have been anything we would have automatically thought about. And yes, we definitely need to do more exploring regarding the truck option. We don’t have a truck now but since this is all not happening for 18 months or so, we have time to explore the truck option and the TT. Thanks for all your input. Yes, we will love the option of staying warm and dry. Years of camping with boyscouts brought many very soggy, wet, and muddy moments for us. So, having a tt is like a luxury item even if at the campgrounds compared to camping with boyscouts…lol.

**Vintage465—This is excellent information. Thanks so much!! I don’t think we would have any clue on the ball under the coupler information. All of what you have said is greatly appreciated and sounds like you have great experience. Thanks!!

**Toedtoes—Yes, we are definitely looking at used units and will most certainly buy used in 18 months or so after trying out some first. It sounds like you had the right idea and we may even consider doing this as we see a lot of used very inexpensive TT’s that we might also look at. Sounds like you are very wise. We know we don’t want a popup as we did too much camping with the scouts that we want hard walls surrounding us and we plan on hitting many areas with bears, etc. and would rather have the hard walls than not. Thanks so much for your feedback and we definitely are reexploring what we will need in regard to a truck.

**Vvvv101---Storage is a great thing to think about and something we hadn’t really thought about until the comments on here. Thanks for the input.

****It took me awhile to type out all these responses and I know I have had further comments on my thread. I will definitely take time to respond to all of those as well. Thanks everybody. I love this site.

[JBarca]

Hi Newatrvingohio,

We may actually be neighbors! By your screen name I’m making the assumption you are in Ohio and we are also. Also by your post, you have been associated with the Boy Scouting program. Great! My wife was with the Girls Scouts as a troop leader and I was with the Boy Scouts as a troop leader. After the kids left the nest, we fell into RV’ing and truly still love it to this day. See under my screen name for a little write up under my profile. You may get a kick out it.

First off, you have the camping in the “woods” thing down pat from the tent days. That is a major step in RV’ing. You enjoy the great outdoors and well, you can deal with some bugs and other inconveniences that come along because all the upsides outweigh the down sides.

Now you are entering the RV world. Last year we helped a friend who wanted to start into RV’ing. She was by herself and wanted to go full time and do cross country RV’ing and had never towed a TT. But she did have a motor home for a short time and a popup long ago. She wanted to find a good used camper and then needed to buy a truck to pull it. It took a lot of helping to get her through a good used TT and truck, but she made it. My wife and I kept saying to ourselves how long it took us to learn what we have and how is she going to do all this by herself? She is also 15 years older than we are… and I am retired… But she is off and running. Point being, the learning will take a good amount of time. Doing good research in advance does help lower the learning and you will learn from your mistakes no matter how much you research. We all made mistakes.

You have had 6 pages now of a lot of very varied experiences. There is much truth in them from many different points of view. Now you have to sort this out for what fits you and your hubby. I will try and not repeat all the good they said, I’ll add some different things about your quest.

Your plan of renting a TT for a week to try it out is a good plan. Here in Ohio we are blessed with a lot of nice State Parks that offer camping that a TT or 5’er will easily fit in. Most all have electric hook up and a few have ele, full water and sewer. Since we came from a tent background we have no issues with using onboard water tanks and just having ele. which we feel is high end camping to us. Find those state parks with campgrounds and fill your week. From the north end of the state to the bottom is about a 6 hour tow, from east to west is about a 5 hour tow. You can do 2 or 3 of state parks across that week and gain a lot of valuable experience. A 2 to 3 hour tow per day starting out is plenty enough to learn from. You’re going to learn, how do I get gas with this camper attached? How do I back this thing up into a campsite, how do I go to the dump station, wow some of those people in cars out there driving with us are nuts… (no one wants to get stuck behind a camper and they do dumb things) and the list goes on.

I would suggest you start renting with a smaller TT (20 to ~27ft) as it is easier in many cases dealing with campgrounds with trees and low bridges. You can learn all the right things in a TT that will easily apply to a 5’er later on if that is what you want or a larger TT. Both the TT and the 5’er have different learnings about turning and backing up. Both will be a learning curve and the length of the truck and camper also greatly affect the learning. Many/most campers today are 8 feet wide in the range I suggested. And since your talking about a 5’er then I’m assuming you are thinking of a larger TT. Not a small 16 foot TT. Backing up has to all be done with door side mirrors. And backing on your blind side is even harder, but there are 2 of you, so one can help spot the other to not hit something when backing into the campsite. Renting the U haul trailer can be a good start, but they are not 8 feet wide at the body of the trailer. Most are 6 ft wide and some less. And they are not as long. But it is a good start if you want to practice before a camper. There will be a good qty of nervousness until the skill of turning and backing becomes natural, but it will come in time. Practice, practice, practice. Find a big open parking lot with no one in it to practice in. Out on the road, keep the speed down. In the state of OH, there is a 55 mph towing speed limit for non commercial which is a camper and the tires on the camper most likely ar not rated above 65mph. Hang out in the right lane and let others pass.

It is really hard to figure out what floor plan camper fits “your” needs and wants before you ever start camping. It is just natural to have preconceived notions about your likes and dislikes. You may want to rent a few campers, maybe different sizes too to get a better feel for the real wants that matter to you. You have to use the camper long enough to know. The smaller camper is easy to get around with and fits in very remote areas easy. The larger camper has more space and room inside. And the larger it is, the longer the learning for backing and turning may take, but in time it will be overcome. However the longer camper can limit you to only certain campsites or campgrounds.

A question, are you or your husband somewhat handy with ordinary home repairs? Or working on cars? Or any other kind of mechanical anything fixing? There is the reality of owning a RV… While these things cost a lot of money, they all have issues. The required maintenance to keep them from leaking water in over the years is non-stop. Things are going to go out of adjustment or just plain not work. When these times happen, you will need to fix it yourself or take it to a dealership. The cost to pay for all this repair/maintenance at today’s shop rates is high. Some can afford it, others have a harder time hiring all that labor out. If you can deal with fixing most things yourself, the costs will be much lower but the time to spend doing it, higher.

Your comment about towing stability issues with TT’s. Where you heard that comes from someone who does not have their rig setup correctly or does not have a good match of the truck to the camper. There will need to be a learning for you and your husband about what it takes to adjust the trailer hitch correctly and how to find the correct size truck to go with the camper. That is a full topic in itself. If you are going to buy both a truck and a camper eventually, you need to figure out first, what kind of camping are you going to do and what kind of camper? Do you want the luxury of a 30 foot or longer camper with a slide, a 25 foot non slide camper, a 15 foot non slide camper or the larger room and space a 5th wheel can provide? It may take you many camping trips to figure this out. Many may even 2 or more years and 2 or 3 campers along the way to. The truck then has to match the camper needs. We do a mixture of State Park camping, and more remote boondock camping with no electricity. We are after the wood’ie feel of camping. And the wife enjoys her luxury while still being able to enjoy the simple life of tent camping without the tent. We found 30 -32 foot with a slide fills "our" need. This is now our 3rd camper and 3rd truck to get to this… You can see it in our signature. I have other friends who started with a 15 footer, worked their way up to 34' and then sold it and went back to a 15 footer...

Theft in the campground or Walmart. I myself would not unhook my camper in a Walmart parking lot by habit and go for a day trip. Nope, there are way too many things that can happen. Not a good idea. But, at the campground, we always leave the camper at the campsite locked up and leave for the day to explore and have no issues with this. Out of site is out of mind for some kid or other person wanting to get something of value, so do not leave much of value left unattended for hours on end when you leave. I have found 98% of everyone I ever met camping in the CG to be very respectful and will help you with most anything just because you asked. The other 2% usually has something to do with too much alcohol or other affect over them. Our world would be a lot better place if we all went camping.

Good luck, keep researching and most of all, have fun at it.

Hope this helps

John

[gmw_photos]

Advantages of TT:

inexpensive to buy

lower overall height allowing access to more places

if under 7500 or so pounds all up loaded, can be towed by 1500 truck
( advantage of 1500 truck, will have slightly nicer ride when empty, which you may like while out exploring in it solo )

Disadvantages of TT:

none really, if the "advantages" are important to you.

Renting to try out is going to be fairly expensive. Personally I wouldn't do it, but then others think it's a really good idea.
As long time boy scout campers, you probably already have a pretty good and experienced idea in your head what you want.

When it comes to the "capabilities of modern trucks", including 1/2 ton models ( 1500 ) I would strongly suggest you do a LOT of research to suss out what the real truth is about payload, GVWR, etc.

There is good information out there. Internet forums often have a great deal of misinformation though, that keeps getting repeated. I suspect that perhaps some folks believe if they keep repeating something over and over, that somehow makes it "true".

I'm not generally a fan of renting things, unless it's something I only need for a day or two, because as a person who has been the guy "renting it out" over the years, I can say in general, the folks doing the renting are the ones making out financially. But again, others will state some advantages to it.

Some folks are better at thinking their way through what their needs, wants, desires are. Others may to actually do the activity to get a feel for it. No real "wrong" answer to either way.

best of luck. It's a huge amount of fun being out here, and having your own bed, you're own coffee maker, the ability to stay warm and dry when it's cold and wet out is really, really nice.

[theoldwizard1]

newatrvinginohio wrote:
We are not rushing into this decision as we are planning on renting a travel trailer this spring or summer and taking it out for a week. We will then be renting a fifth wheel and also taking it out sometime.

Excellent idea to rent and see if you like it before jumping in with both feet ! Renting a 5th wheel would be a problem because you would have to buy a hitch and they are not cheap !

newatrvinginohio wrote:
1. How do you secure the travel trailer when you want to take your truck and drive somewhere else and would you say it is pretty safe to leave your travel trailer once secured?

The number one rule, is don't carry anything that is expensive. I would also include guns, especially hand guns, unless you carry it on your person when not at the camper or have some kind of a gun safe.

In a typical campground, you are pretty safe. Never had anyone bother anything and we left coolers, bicycles, etc. sitting outside and were gone all day.

newatrvinginohio wrote:
2. Can you park travel trailers in Walmart, Target, etc. or non-rv camping sites?

Most, but not all, Walmart's allow "overnight" camping. You still should check at the Customer Service desk just to be sure there are no local restriction. The Walmart by my house would ask you to park over by the semi-truck which usually leave their engine running all night. And over night means overnight ! Arrive late in the afternoon and leave in the morning, well before noon.

Any place else is up in the air.

newatrvinginohio wrote:
... I assume it wouldn't be real secure sitting in a non rv park. Is this correct?

Correct ! You can walk to the Walmart and should ! Going to an attraction is not a good idea.

newatrvinginohio wrote:
3. What do you think are advantages/disadvantages to having a travel trailer versus a fifth wheel or other RV?

Fifth wheels are easier to tow and give you a lot more space. You can easily go crazy oversized ! The biggest down on a 5er is the expensive hitch and potential length.

[SoundGuy]

To the OP ...

In your first post which you have since edited you said - "...we are planning on renting a travel trailer this spring or summer and taking it out for a week. We will then be renting a fifth wheel and also taking it out sometime."

However, in your second post you said - "We are planning on renting a travel trailer and truck this summer just to really see what it is like."

Then you later said - "We will have a full size pickup truck (1500) and believe if we want a travel trailer, we need to test a travel trailer out versus a pop-up."

I'm confused :? ... are we to assume you don't yet have a 1/2 ton truck but definitely have one in your future plans? If so, presumably you do realize a typical 1/2 ton is really only suitable for towing up to ~ 6000 lbs and with little exception not suitable at all for towing anything but the smallest 5th, if that. No doubt some will disagree and claim towing an 8000 lb travel trailer is no problem but the numbers which can be put together with the use of any trailer towing calculator clearly show that with rare exception just how limited the typical 1/2 ton really is. As one who has been 1/2 ton towing for quite a few years now I'd agree with others - if you have any thought of towing a travel trailer exceeding 6000 lbs gross or any 5th you really need to forget about a 1/2 ton and plan on at least a 3/4 ton.

[TurnThePage]

A bigger truck is never a bad idea, especially if you have a larger payload (family counts as payload).

5th wheels do have built in towing stability with their hitch being right over the rear truck axle. But they have hitch related issues that can pop up too. And they cannot be taken off road as far as a trailer. They have more storage and more livable space per foot than a travel trailer. 5th wheels are typically much taller than trailers, thus restricting where you can take them. They don't track very closely behind the truck, requiring that you swing wider on tight turns. None of that is probably important if you stay in commercial camp grounds or RV resorts. Quite often you can back a 5er into a spot you would never get a trailer.

Travel trailers have some specific requirements, like 10% - 15% of total weight must be on the tongue to avoid sway, which can be very dangerous. That tongue weight counts against truck payload too. An anti-sway hitch should be used in most circumstances. A weight distributing hitch helps spread the tongue weight back to the trailer axles and to the tow vehicle front axle. There are many hitches that incorporate both features. They come in many brands, performance levels and prices. Travel trailer height is usually a foot or two lower and will fit under various obstacles that a 5er can't. Travel trailers have much less outside storage and usually less inside storage. They track pretty true behind the tow vehicle, which will allow you to go on narrower, twisty roads. They often don't have very good ground clearance and can be damaged if you're not careful, all of which is easily correctable in most cases.

A travel trailer allows you to use an SUV as a tow vehicle. It also allows you full use of your truck bed, for those larger toys.

I'm still on the fence about which platform is best. When we were younger, a travel trailer was less expensive and was definitely the better choice for dragging out into the woods and crossing creek beds, etc. As we have become empty nesters and are feeling our age, we're starting to lean more toward longer journeys and nicer, established campgrounds and resorts. A fifth wheel might be much more appreciated.

[nickthehunter]

Post deleted by poster - wasn't worth it.

[Vvvv1010]

Please consider storage of your RV when deciding on a TT, 5th, or other. If storing at home or bringing your RV home for maintenance, wash and wax, or loading for trips, this may or may not be a factor.

[toedtoes]

I see no reason for not starting with a TT. What I would recommend is that you buy a used unit at a price that is well below your budget. Then go out and learn. In a few years, you'll know better what you want and can upgrade accordingly.

For this reason, I would also buy a bigger truck than you think you need. You aren't familiar with RVs, so what you end up with can be very different than what you thought you wanted.

I would not start with a popup if you know you don't want one. They are far more like car tent camping than RV camping having to move things around, setup and take down, etc. If you know you want a hard sided, then start with an inexpensive hard sided.

I started with a cheap TT. Under $2000 and it needed lots of work throughout. But, it taught me about the systems much faster than a "quality" TT. And in 3 years, I was able to sell it for what I paid and but the rest of the expenses down as entertainment and educational expenses. Since it was not a brand new expensive rig, I didn't feel worried about trying to fix things myself and messing it up.

[Lwiddis]

1. Hitch lock, pin lock, padlock safety chains after winding around tongue and I am considering chaining and padlocking the tires/rims on one side. Not foolproof but stops the amateur.

2. Don’t stay at these places often. Boring.

3. With a TT I can drive an SUV instead of a truck.

[Vintage465]

OP, as you can see there is a ton of info here from many RVers. For many years my family owned an RV sales and repair shop in California. We were a shop that were square with the customer and always set up rigs correctly. This wasn't always popular. For the most part everyone who posts likes there rig for their reasons. For that reason most here are pretty darn sure the info they are providing you is the best. As time goes on you will get the hang of chewing up the fish as spitting out the bones. I'm kind of the in the live and let live camp.......unless someone is suggesting a lazy attitude toward towing, rigs or lash up. There's a lot of persons here that suggest only 3/4 ton trucks.........I lean that way. Lot of persons are 5th wheel only and why bother with a tail dragger type rig.........I'm a tail dragger rig. A lot of the tail draggers think the only safe W.D. hitch is the super expensive Hensley Arrow type set up.....Again, not me.........but don't get a bargain basement $200.00 Chinese unit. There is so much info out there at dealers and on the internet it's scary. A lot of that info is bad. A lot of it is good and all of it needs to be sifted thru your filter with the assistance of an experienced unbiased counter part. And just a heads up regarding W.D hitch up time. Once the ball is under the coupler.........6 minutes and I'm ready to roll.........including the friction sway. control

[drsteve]

How many people do you need to accommodate in your RV? It sounds like your kids may be grown, and if you have no need for sleeping quarters for multiple people, you can definitely find a trailer that can be pulled with a 1/2 ton truck. Do you already have the truck? If so, determine if it has the factory towing package, and a suitable rear end gear ratio. Knowing what you can comfortably tow is essential before you shop.

A smaller trailer gives you more options for site selection. Since you are already experienced campers, your transition to the RV side will mostly involve the logistics of pulling the trailer, backing in, setting up, etc.

And the first time it rains, you can sit under your awning and watch it fall while enjoying the cold beverage of your choice, secure in the knowledge that your bed will remain warm and dry.