Size of Tow Vehicle

[Cookie in Texas]

My husband and I have been researching purchasing a truck and 5th wheel for the past 18 months or so.  We just think we get it figured out and then realize we don't.  

We thought we wanted a F350 diesel crew cab long bed, 4x4 SRW.  I'm very opposed to the dually.  We've owned and trailered horses with one.  Yes, it's a great towing vehicle but I really dislike going through the drive through, ATMs, parking in the city, etc, etc.  It's just so darn wide.

Then we thought we'd narrowed down the RV.  We both work online full-time.  So we decided on a bunkhouse model so we can use the bunkhouse as an office.  We'll also end up with a few allowable tax deductions which is always a benefit.  We thought two slides in the bunkhouse would be nice so we wouldn't be literally breathing down each others neck.  So the we really like are the Keystone Montana High Country 358BH which has a GVWR of 15,400.  

Now that I'm looking at the GVWR it looks too close for comfort.  It looks like the truck has a GVWR of 15,700.

Am I correct that we need to rethink this, either go with a smaller trailer or dually truck?  Thanks for your input.

[SWharton]

Way to close. I haven't looked into tow vehicles recently but a single(don't know if they exist) 450 might be the answer. From my "older" knowledge I don't think a dually will give you that much.

[Yarome]

Not sure what numbers you're looking at... Possibly the conventional tow ratings without the optional 10k tow package??

2017 F350 6.7 turbo diesel Crew Cab long box 4X4 SRW with the 3.55 gear ratio is actually only limited by the 5th wheel hitch rating of 18,000 tow capacity (goosneck is 20k) and has a GCWR of 28,200 "on the books".

If the High Country has a GVWR of 15,400, and your F350 has a GVWR of 11,500 for a total of ~27k. 100% maxxed out in your 5er and your rig... that puts you about 1.2k under your GCWR.

You've got 6k GAWR on the front axle... 7.2k on the rear. CCC around 4,970... and you'll have around 3-3.5k (max) with hitch and pin weight so... 1.4k~ish+ in reserve CCC (fuel, passengers, cargo, etc.).

A dually doesn't increase your tow capacity that much.. It will just bump up your CCC, GVWR, and RAWR.

In a nutshell: 15.5k of 18k tow cap. 27k of 28k GCWR. Call it 3.5k on your hitch and pin weight of 4.9k. 6.7 turbo diesel.....

All in all... it looks very doable to me. No real red flags. If anything you'll probably want to have air bag put on your rear end, but I'm the VERY weight contientious and safety type and I would tow with that package.

[Yarome]

Some of the information can be found here if you want to confirm your 5th wheel tow ratings I included above.

[rynosback]

If you do your research on this, you will see many advantages of a DRW has over a SRW.  I researched this when we went fulltime 2 years ago.

DRW are more stable in the wind and around corners.  As a going camping once or twice a year a SRW would be fine as long as you are in your GVWR ratings.  But if you are full time and traveling with it all year, I would HIGHLY recommend a DRW.  Your weight will be higher when going fulltime as you will need to carry a lot more stuff.  I would hate to drive white knuckled fulltime.  To me it is a piece of mind well worth the compromise.

"but I really dislike going through the drive through, ATMs, parking in the city, etc, etc.  It's just so darn wide." 

Just change your habits and walk in and get your food and cash.  As far as parking, if you are getting the same chassis configuration they would both be the same length so parking a SRW crew 8 foot bed will be a pain to park in the city also.  I just Park at the far end of the parking lot and walk a little more to go to the store.

just my point of view.

Best of luck.

[SWharton]

Now that people who are aware of the correct weights have piped in there should be no problems.

[trailertraveler]

Quote

As a going camping once or twice a year a SRW would be fine as long as you are in your GVWR ratings.  But if you are full time and traveling with it all year, I would HIGHLY recommend a DRW.  Your weight will be higher when going fulltime as you will need to carry a lot more stuff.  I would hate to drive white knuckled fulltime.

If within your weight limits with a reasonable safety margin, I would ask myself how much driving will I actually be doing towing the fifth wheel versus driving just the truck? Will I be driving towing to meet a schedule such that I can not sit out windy or rainy days? Do I have to drive 10 hours a day or can I drive a leisurely 4-5 hours a day with a break for lunch? Living fulltime in an RV and even fulltime travelling in an RV does not necessarily mean driving 10 hour days almost every day like an over the road trucker. Evaluate how you plan to use your RV and how you plan to travel and buy what seems to best suit your needs.

[rynosback]

I agree with you completely.  If you are with in your GVWR, then you are good to go.  My point was that a DRW handles much better and is more stable in corners then a SRW.  I always would prefer to have to much truck.  I have seen so many people give the advice of just put bigger, more load capable tires and air bags on the suspension and you will be fine.  

But driving skill and experience also play a factor also when handling/driving loads.

On a side note, how many people do you think weigh there set up once loaded with there stuff to see what the weights really are and if there load is balanced?

[Yarome]

Rynosback is completely correct. I don't know if you would whiteknuckle it all that much in what you're propsoing, but if a DRW is at all open to consideration that would be my recommend as well. If not... you're still good to go.

Calculating your numbers you're always wanting to do so with max weights, but in reality.. 

Hold that thought. I just went to see what the curb weight was on the High Country you mentioned to give an estimate of what your actual two weight might be...

Are you aware that the Montana High Country 358BH only has 2800lbs cargo capacity? For a full-time rig... that's awfully low. I was thinking the dry weight was more around 10.5-11k with 4k cargo capacity. Not so.

[Yarome]

7 minutes ago, rynosback said:

...how many people do you think weigh there set up once loaded with there stuff to see what the weights really are and if there load is balanced?

From the tow packages I see on the road... maybe 1 in 20 on a good day? 

[Ray,IN]

9 hours ago, rynosback said:

If you do your research on this, you will see many advantages of a DRW has over a SRW.  I researched this when we went fulltime 2 years ago.

DRW are more stable in the wind and around corners.  As a going camping once or twice a year a SRW would be fine as long as you are in your GVWR ratings.  But if you are full time and traveling with it all year, I would HIGHLY recommend a DRW.  Your weight will be higher when going fulltime as you will need to carry a lot more stuff.  I would hate to drive white knuckled fulltime.  To me it is a piece of mind well worth the compromise.

"but I really dislike going through the drive through, ATMs, parking in the city, etc, etc.  It's just so darn wide." 

Just change your habits and walk in and get your food and cash.  As far as parking, if you are getting the same chassis configuration they would both be the same length so parking a SRW crew 8 foot bed will be a pain to park in the city also.  I just Park at the far end of the parking lot and walk a little more to go to the store.

just my point of view.

Best of luck.

I completely agree!

Another drawback to towing that 5er with the SRW 1T is; you'll wear that truck out much faster than you expect. A few ESCAPEE members have experience with towing at the trucks maximum ratings, and the long-term results.

[Cookie in Texas]

You've given us a lot to think about.  We're not ready for full-time RV living.  We'd start out with weekends and at the most be gone 2 months at a time.

We really would like to have the truck as a secondary vehicle.  I feel like if it was a dually it would end up being a tertiary vehicle that would only get used when we were towing.  We've owned a dually and I was actually the primary driver of it due to my teenagers, at the time, using our other vehicles.  It did an awesome job of pulling our 4 horse gooseneck slant load trailer but it certainly was a not an enjoyable vehicle for going to have lunch with friends or for a doctor's appointment in Dallas with parking structures, etc.

We've registered for the RV bootcamp in the Fall.  I don't think we'll make any final decision until after that course.  We'll keep doing our homework between then and now.  I'll definitely look at the link mentioned above.  Thank you so much for your input.  

[mptjelgin]

19 hours ago, Ray,IN said:

Another drawback to towing that 5er with the SRW 1T is; you'll wear that truck out much faster than you expect. 

I disagree. I have towed with a single rear wheel (SRW) F-350 for over seven years of full-timing. We have a substantial fifth-wheel (15k weight range) and have covered the US pretty well, including a lot of time in the Rocky Mountains. The truck has over 125,000 miles and is running like new. So from my standpoint, as long as you are within the limits of the truck, a SRW truck is a perfectly acceptable choice. 

[Yarome]

6 minutes ago, mptjelgin said:

I disagree.

..as long as you are within the limits of the truck, a SRW truck is a perfectly acceptable choice. 

X2. The 6.7 the OP is considering is no slouch and the F350 drivetrain is pretty robust. The tow package the OP was suggesting wouldn't be pushing max. A little lower margin would be better, and a DRW would certainly be more stable, but they seem to have valid thoughts on the subject so, as long as they keep an eye on their temps, the SRW "is a perfectly acceptable choice."

[TNTryther]

The 2017 F350 is SO much more capable than its predecessor. The 6.7 deisel now  makes 440 hp and a ridiculous 925 ft pounds of torque. The SRW is rated  @ a whopping 21,000 lbs for 5TH wheel towing by ford themselves (dually 28,000), and seriously who's going to haul that much weight for leisure?  I plan to haul about 16,000 fully loaded with mine and have no fears whatsoever. And when i'm not towing i dont hafta deal with all those dually setbacks.  There are plenty of ways one can make RVing dangerous -  just pay attention to the ratings and weigh the thing to make sure.  And especially make sure you have quality tires on the road.  God Bless Texas Cookie!

[Kirk W]

10 hours ago, TNTryther said:

I plan to haul about 16,000 fully loaded with mine and have no fears whatsoever.

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[jjwicklund]

Easy get thr DRW and stay out of drive throughs.  The hips don't bother me as much as the legnth of a CClongbed.

[kingskids]

I'm going to throw in my two cents worth from a woman's perspective.  When my DH started talking about an HDT (heavy duty truck), I had the typical wife's reaction - "I'm not touching that huge thing" and "you'll never get me to drive it".  Well, after we went to our first boot camp (highly recommend boot camp to everyone!!), I learned that my mentality was not quite right.  First, all wives really should know at least the basics of driving the rig (whatever kind you have) in case something happens to your hubby.  Better to be able to at least get your rig safely off the highway and to some place safe than to leave all your worldly belongings on the side of the road.  Get it somewhere safe, then hustle to the hospital...  So then what?  Ok, I guess I need to learn to drive this behemoth - and thankfully the boot camp had a driving class - using your own truck and trailer.  YAY!  Ok, that wasn't nearly as bad as I feared.  I did some very steep winding roads up the mountain, with no guard rails.  I survived that, so now the rest is almost literally downhill!  Fast forward to more time on the road.   There are always more things you want to put in your rv than is safe to do (weight limits that is).  Well, I have developed a great love for our big truck for storage.  You wouldn't believe how much stuff you can store in this thing!!  That one factor has made it worth having the big truck.  The VAST safety features of the heavy duty trucks outweigh any other argument that ever could have been made against it.  The stopping power of it with a heavy rv has saved our bacon and others several time over.  It's no wider than a dually (except that it's that width the whole length of the truck).  You can see WAY better on the road, and it's meant for driver's to be comfortable in them for 10-20 hours a day.  Sorry, didn't mean to go on so long.  Just thought I'd put my $.02 in for the discussion of truck size.  Many who have these HDT's also have a smart car on the bed of the truck as their daily driver instead of the big truck, but I know several who just use the big truck for all driving activities (you can sure put more groceries in it than in the smart car though!)...

Happy days on the road to you all, and safe travels.

Sharon

[mickhoss]

Just to put my two bobs worth in to this discussion , if you can be towing at about eighty percent of  allowable weight  it is probably easier on the driver and the tow vehicle.

mick

[whj469]

I wouldn't hesitate to tow with what you are planning. I do it with a 2011, F250, CC, Long Bed, diesel. My fiver is a 2015 Wildcat with a GVWR of 13,900 lbs. I would think that it is close but it tows very well. Good Luck