Big 5th wheel towing opinions.

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Bldrinker

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I’m shopping for a truck right now and want to get a few opinions.

Will be buying 40’ 16,000-17,000k toy hauler.

You guys that are doing it with single wheel trucks any regrets?

Guys with short beds, how big of a pain in the ass is the sliding hitch?

I have towed a Weekend Warrior slc3705 with my 2005 short bed duramax. It only had D rated tires and when the trailer was empty you could feel the rear tires squirm.
But once loaded it was fine. Stopping was decent and power was plenty. 
( only did this once I borrowed the trailer )

I’m not opposed to a dually but finding one that isn’t a piece of Crap for under 45k will be difficult.

ideally I’m hoping to get a f350 long bed single tire.
But we shall see.

 
In before all the CHP officers chime in that you need a single axle semi to tow it and towing with a SRW is against the law and you’ll be banned from driving.
 

With that said, I towed an LE3505 that had a gross of over 15k if I believe with an 04 Duramax SRW short bed all over this county and never has an issue going, stopping or anything between. I put some good E rated tires and some air bags and had a grand ole time. I had a slider hitch but never used it. Just knew to watch the corners and avoid tight u turns. I was able to do quite a bit of u turns without needing to slide. Plus, I never wanted to go too tight for the 3 axle toy hauler. 
 

Would a dually be better. Yes, but I don’t think it’s necessary.

Andrew

 
I have a srw thing it tows great. Others will disagree with me. I tow heavy equipment on a regular basis since I was 18 and know how to do it properly and I have never had an issue. I have seen others get into trouble tho.. 

the slider isn’t a big deal, never have had an issue or a regret. 35’ WW 5th

 
38ft Dune Chaser 18k

Towing with singles last three years. 

2018 Dmax 3/4 ton long bed on bags.

No issues. 

 
wapawekka said:
In before all the CHP officers chime in that you need a single axle semi to tow it and towing with a SRW is against the law and you’ll be banned from driving.
 

With that said, I towed an LE3505 that had a gross of over 15k if I believe with an 04 Duramax SRW short bed all over this county and never has an issue going, stopping or anything between. I put some good E rated tires and some air bags and had a grand ole time. I had a slider hitch but never used it. Just knew to watch the corners and avoid tight u turns. I was able to do quite a bit of u turns without needing to slide. Plus, I never wanted to go too tight for the 3 axle toy hauler. 
 

Would a dually be better. Yes, but I don’t think it’s necessary.

Andrew
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Oh there is always the guy with a friends sisters brothers cousin neighbors friend who got a ticket for towing to heavy. 
 

More interested in first hand experience. 
 

Single wheel trucks just have cargo capacity limitations. 

 
Proper Load Range Tires and Air Bags, like a few have said.

You didn't say Diesel F350..but I'll assume it.

Long bed is better, but so many tow short and are fine.

How you load and drive are a little more critical...just a little. Your a family guy now, so you won't be racing anywhere anyways...

Congrats on the upcoming upgrades :cheers:

 
Bldrinker said:
Oh there is always the guy with a friends sisters brothers cousin neighbors friend who got a ticket for towing to heavy. 
 

More interested in first hand experience. 
 

Single wheel trucks just have cargo capacity limitations. 
Click to expand...
When I got my ford f350 a single wheel had a higher total gross capacity due to reduced weight of dual wheel/tire. This was on my 99 f350 SD, I now have a dually though. more for load stability as I carry a large cabover camper and tow as well.

 
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richard h said:
When I got my ford f350 a single wheel had a higher total gross capacity due to reduced weight of dual wheel/tire
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I just sold my gas 3/4ton it had 3400lb payload. Which is 1,000lbs more than diesels I’m looking at. 

 
Bldrinker said:
I just sold my gas 3/4ton it had 3400lb payload. Which is 1,000lbs more than diesels I’m looking at. 
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Again probable due to the added weight of the diesel motor. From what I see in chassis  rating a 1ton single wheel, regular cab probable will have a higher rating then a crew cab, and the dually even less.

 
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Bldrinker said:
I just sold my gas 3/4ton it had 3400lb payload. Which is 1,000lbs more than diesels I’m looking at. 
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Payload capacity will be fine on any 3/4 truck. 

You need to look into towing capacity for that 40' TH and its weight loaded,  etc...more important.

 
richard h said:
Again probable due to the added weight of the diesel motor. From what I see the in chassis  rating a 1ton single wheel, regular cab probable will have a higher rating then a crew cab, and the dually even less.
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This.

 
Crusty said:
Payload capacity will be fine on any 3/4 truck. 

You need to look into towing capacity for that 40' TH and its weight loaded,  etc...more important.
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Do you mean the GCWR of the trailer? 
I believe it’s 17k 

or the total gcwr of the truck? 
 

im pretty sure any 3/4ton I will be over cargo capacity. 
will be close with the 1 tons. 
 

Most single axle trucks are not Towing large 5th wheels legally. 
 

im really only worried about tire squirm on the single tire trucks. 
 

the axles, brakes and power train can easily handle the load. 
 

But on the same hand I’m no trying to be stupid either. 

 
Crusty said:
Payload capacity will be fine on any 3/4 truck. 

You need to look into towing capacity for that 40' TH and its weight loaded,  etc...more important.
Click to expand...
So in 99 dually's were hard to get. .Many dealers and individuals, me included did the Arrowcraft dually conversion. After a while I decided it was over kill for my camper and 16' enclosed trailer so I changed it back to a srw. I was fine, until one day a friend asked that me to take his 28' trailer and carry 2 cars to the dunes. No problem, I thought. It was all over the road and I couldn't get over 40mph. We shifted the load and tried adding tongue weight but no, not happening. We ended up going back and getting a sway control (dual) and were finally able to go 55mph with the load. At the time the truck had the Michelin XPS tires with steel side walls. Needless to say I came home and converted the truck back to a dually. Pic's of old and new.

IMG_1476.JPG

IMG_1499.JPG

 
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all i can say is I was looking in the rear view mirror at the biggest rolling house coming down the highway and he locked them up because we all came to a sudden stop.

I was thankful his rig was set up right, all I saw was smoking tires from the trailer and he maintained control until he stopped just behind me. I think anything other than a dually would have been bad news.

I said a prayer because i thought htere was no damn way that guy was going to not plow into me lol. but he had it set up perfectly!

 
I towed a 40' Voltage with a 2020 GMC 2500.... legaly, Your over the weight limit. That is alot of weight and you can feel it when driving. Never got harassed, but you could

I recommend a 1 ton truck with that kind of weight. I towed with a short bed and a Curt Q20 sliding hitch... I never once had to use the slider, but never put myself into the position to have to.

 
When I bought my 40 foot WW I had a F-250 shortbed SRW. Towed it fine, never felt unsafe. I had a slider hitch. I used it once, really just to make sure it worked, and never used it again. It was a pain in the ass. But I found it easier to just be sure I knew where I was going. Never just pulled into a gas station without seeing that there was an easy way out. Read up on the 6.0 and decided to get rid of the 250 prior to having all those problems.

Picked up a F-350 7.3 Dually with the 8 foot bed. Got the dually mainly because I knew it would tow more and I was use to all of the hassles that come with driving a dually as I drove one for a few years in high school. I will say that once I towed with the dually I could tell that it was definitely more stable than with the SRW. Never felt unsafe or squirelly with the SRW, just more stable with the dually. Got myself into a few situations at Glamis where I got stuck and had to air down. That sucked. Then the 20 year old truck started having a few problems and decided it was time to pick up something more reliable.

So last year I picked up a new truck. Got a 2020 F-350 SRW shortbed. Put a sliding hitch in that I haven't had to use yet. Tows like a freight train and comfortable as hell when compared to the 1999. These newer trucks are rated to tow a lot more than they used to be. I wouldn't worry too much about the numbers everyone throws out there. Go get the Non-Commercial Class A if you are really worried about it, it's pretty easy once you find a DMV that know what the hell it is. I also wouldn't rely on any numbers the Rv manufacturer puts on some sticker.

 
Buy the biggest nicest truck that you can afford. Just take it slow and easy and you will get there. Just  look at Glamis half the rigs are over weight for the truck, the other half is over lenght. the other half is to heavy for a c license and the last half is over lenght and over weight

 
I tow my 43ft voltage 5er now and a 42 ft Attitude 5er  with my 2006 Crew cab long bed SRW duramax for the last 7 years with no problems. Go to Idaho dunes every year, Glamis 10-12 times a season, SD, pismo, dumont, the river. 

 
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