Dually or not

[jakenjulie]

Hey guys, we're new here and trying to get some info on trucks. We are probably buying a Sandpiper 355QBQ or similar in the next month or so and are looking for a tow vehicle. I'm really leaning toward the diesel Sierra/Silverado series and have been looking at the 2500 crew cab long beds (which are like hen's teeth). But recently a friend who tows horse trailers said the dually (3500) was the only way to go because of the added safety in case of a rear-wheel blow-out at highway speeds. Anybody have any experience with this or care to comment? I prefer the single rear wheels if possible.

Thanks,

Jake

[jaxfl]

dually (3500) is the only way to go because of better handleing, weight control, milage, safety issues and trade in value later down the road.

[EdJunior]

Well, I haven't towed with a dually, but the things mentioned by both your friend and Jax above are obvious "benefits". But as far as "the only way to go"...well, that is certainly a stretch. For a trailer as big as your looking, I would give it a lot of good thought, but would not rule out a SRW either. I had a blow out, well, let me rephrase that...I threw a tread off my rear wheel on a trip back from Tennessee, with a 600 pound motorcycle in the bed and my 26' TT hooked up. I will say I was probably pretty lucky in that the tire maintained its air pressure. It was just a rough handling and very bumpy semi-emergency stop. And it scared the crap out of us. And what if the blow-out happened on the front tire? A dually isn't gonna help there.

Anyway, the main thing to look for is to be sure the truck is capable of handling the trailer. If it is, then the dually is there for peace of mind. In my mind.

[powerboatr]

we always towed our fivers with duallies
single wheel truck just doesn't have the stability for a heavy pin and trailer

especially in windy conditions, and our great national highways

[EdJunior]

Hey powerboatr...you're in one of my favorite places there at Lake Fork! I graduated from Grand Saline HS. Love the whole East Texas area. Anyway, had to get that in...sorry for the hijack!

[aintgotnun]

I'm partial to duallys myself.

[powerboatr]

Originally Posted by EdJunior

Hey powerboatr...you're in one of my favorite places there at Lake Fork! I graduated from Grand Saline HS. Love the whole East Texas area. Anyway, had to get that in...sorry for the hijack!

its Alright
we love it here cept for the coooooollllld this year


we now return the post to its basic subject

dually or not to dually

always buy more than you think you'll need......because before you know it....YOU will need the extra

yes you will spend more for tires, but....good rotation all around will gain long tire life

[flyrotor]

I have pulled heavy goose neck utility trailers thousands of miles, (we wore out several trucks over the years), we always had two trucks and two trailers traveling nearly every day with a delivery route, the TV's were dually flat bed trucks, our back-up TV was our 3/4 ton p/u and we would use the same trailers, but there was absolutely no comparison in handling, the dually hands down are the work horse, paired with a drive train, you will never regret buying the dually.

Tire cost and wear and tear is a wash, it's all about weight distribution and surface contact with the road, the 6 tires will last at least 150% longer or more on a dually than the 4 tires on a single rear axle.

Yes, that day you do have to go to the tire store, it will cost you more, but you definetly will not go as often.

I now work for an ambulance service, there again, we have had ambulances with the dual rear axles and smaller lighter ambulances on the single rear axle, again, tire wear and failure was high on the smaller ambulances, stability was poor, even patient's noticed the difference, our fleet now consists of only the larger, dually axle, tire failure is almost extinct as long as tire pressure is correct.

I appreciate your interest in staying with a single rear axle if possible, but do consider the advantages of the dually.

Good luck

[EdJunior]

Originally Posted by powerboatr

dually or not to dually

always buy more than you think you'll need......because before you know it....YOU will need the extra

yes you will spend more for tires, but....good rotation all around will gain long tire life

No argument with that either. Just with the "only way to go" part.

[flyrotor]

Just looked at the specs on the 355, whoa, that's a ton on your dry hitch weight, definately go with the dually

[jakenjulie]

Thanks, guys for your replies. I'm convinced. Looks like we'll be concentrating on finding a dually. It'll make my friend with the horse trailer happy too. He always thinks he knows best. (And I have to say, he usually does)

Thanks again, and if anyone has any more feedback, keep it coming!

Jake and Julie

[Grey Stray]

I actually just bought a Forest River Sierra 355QBQ (which is exactly the same as the Sandpiper just different stickers). I have a 2006 Dodge diesel dually, I have not picked my camper up yet, but I am curious to see how it pulls and how the Rancher gooseneck attatchment works out. I traded in my Salem 312QBBS 34ft TT and it towed terribly!

[MightyMike]

Been towing 5er since 2001. Had srw short bed. Towed from Maine to S.Carolina. Put air bags on truck, and with them inflated, didn't feel the 5er back there at all. (20 year old daughter towed it from SC twice with no problems) Got bigger trailer and needed bigger truck. Have 08 F350 dually. (Also short bed).There is definetly more stability. When I had the bigger trailer on the old truck, definetly knew it was there. My trips tend to be longer distanc 250- 700 miles. I wouldn't have minded towing with the old truck on shorter trips, but on longer trips the dually is more comfortable. Now, there are also drawbacks to the dually, depending what you use it for. As a daily driver on coutry roads, you have to pay attention to traffic, as it takes up the WHOLE lane your in. And some drive thrus (banks, fast food, whatever) don't acomodate a truck that wide. Parking in the smaller strip malls can sometimes be a challange, too. I think the answer to this really is how often you plan to use it, how you plan to use it (daily or just towing) and how far are you going to travel.

[aintgotnun]

When we bought our current truck in 2001 a 2000 F350 dually I didn't want a dually. No way no how. After getting out of the army and driving the duce and a half and 5-ton and the HEMMITs I was tired of the "big fill up the flippin lane" trucks. I did however have some requirements that I absolutely wanted.

I wanted a diesel, period. It also had to be a Ford because of the IH Navistar motor. I'm an IH nut, owned a few Scouts and trucks in my day and all of our tractors on the farm were IH. It may have had something to do with my Opa (grandfather for you non-German type folks) having owned the IH dealership in my home town. Go figure.

I wanted 4 doors and a split 60/40 front seat. We have 2 little ladies and I wanted to get the whole family in plus a set of grandparents if needed. I can't stand having to take 2 vehicles to go out to eat either with my parents of my wife's.

I wanted a full long bed. I'm a DYI kinda guy and when I make a run down to the lumber yard and pick up some plywood I wanted to be able to haul it without dropping the tailgate.

Those were my requirements and I was in no hurry to buy a truck. I was perfectly happy with my full-size late 80's king cab F150. Ya know back when an F150 was a full size truck not the cut down little things they are today.

Well as luck, fate, alignment of the stars and planets would have it... My wife and little ladies were back home visiting her family while I was working and living the bachelor life. I was at work on a Thursday and "She Who Would Be Queen" gives me a call and says "Honey I found your truck". Ok I'll bite what did you find? She then proceeds to tell me it has all the requirements that I wanted plus a leather interior, only 16k miles on it, looked great, and was a dually. What??? I don't want a DUALLY! She then tells me she took it for a test drive and fell in love with it. Crap. So I bug outa work early and drive my late 80's F150 3 and half hours to go have a looksee. Dang that was a BIG truck. I didn't want a BIG truck. The salesman just happened to have sold my father a truck about a year earlier and is a good guy. Redneck rodeo type with the pressed Wranglers (never quite understood the whole starching blue jeans thing) and the hat and all. Anyways he tosses me the keys and says "let's go for a ride". Well crap ok. I get in and danged if it wasn't the nicest truck I had been in. My old F150 was really starting to look crappy. We get out to some back roads and Zunker (yeah that's his last name) tells me to "hammer down on her". Well I can't resist mashing the throttle and when it took off I was hooked.

Since I've had the truck I've done a few mods to it. Superchips programer, Airaid intake, Amsoil dual bypass oil filtration, and my latest a 50 gallon auxiliary tank in the bed (no more hauling plywood with the tail gate up now). It's got over 144k miles now and has been a great truck and my next will be a diesel dually in another 8-10 years or so.

We are on our second 5'er now, the truck tows great and my wife has no problems with pulling for hours at a time. She also takes it to the store, will drive it to work, haul kids around since it's bigger than our car, and just generally use it as another vehicle.

Originally Posted by MightyMike

Now, there are also drawbacks to the dually, depending what you use it for. As a daily driver on coutry roads, you have to pay attention to traffic, as it takes up the WHOLE lane your in. And some drive thrus (banks, fast food, whatever) don't acomodate a truck that wide. Parking in the smaller strip malls can sometimes be a challange, too. I think the answer to this really is how often you plan to use it, how you plan to use it (daily or just towing) and how far are you going to travel.

I like these comments but I'll give you my take on them and again it's only my take.

When you first get a dually you are PARANOID about where you are in your lane. Where are my duals in relation to the strips. Am I hanging over in the other lane, and on and on. This subsides the more you drive it.

As far as taking up the whole lane goes well that's subjective. The truck is 8 feet wide and most lanes out there are 10 feet. Country roads are usually smaller and most don't have stripes and are only about 18-20 feet wide total if you're lucky. BUT folks on those roads are used to big trucks and most of those roads don't have a deep ditch and you can hang your right dual off of the asphalt and then there's plenty of room for 2 dually's passing in the night.

Also the comment of "drive thrus (banks, fast food, whatever) don't accommodate a truck that wide". Again that's subjective. No they don't if you like to have a foot of clearance of either side of your truck. But there is plenty of room if you are used to your vehicle and 4 inches or less of clearance doesn't bother you. I always drive with my mirrors fully extended (preference) and the mirrors stick out a schosh more than the duals. So if the mirrors fit the truck will fit. I've never had a problem at ANY drive trough including the regular car lanes at DFW airport (they have lanes specifically for wide vehicles), banks, or anywhere. Tight maybe but it'll fit.

Parking sometimes is a challenge and I like a challenge. With practice you can get a 4 door long bed dually into a compact car space in front of your local Chilli's. I ALWAYS back in to any parking space. It's easier to get in and a heck of a lot easier to get out.

So here I will end my ramblings with this: As with anything practice, practice, practice.

[jakenjulie]

Some great info guys, thanks.

I think we may have found us a TV, but I'm pretty leery since I've been looking on the internet and have found very little and then lo and behold I'm driving down the road right here in town and there's a '07 Sierra SLE 1-ton with a Duramax LMM and an Allison trans right there for sale. Its in great shape cosmetically, no dings or paint work, very clean interior, and seems to have no visible leaks anywhere. I drove it and it seems to drive very good. I've had a couple of friends look at it and they have found nothing wrong yet. It has 80K and they're asking $29K. I think they will take less but wanted to get some of you guys' opinions. It was apparently used as a work truck because had a fuel tank in back but no 5'er hitch. It has the "tow package" with built-in brake controller, etc.

Any comments appreciated.

Thanks,

Jake and Julie

[TulsaSteve]

No opinion on the truck, but don't forget that with a dually you'll want to get a nice tire thumper to check for a flat on in the inside tire... And of course you could store it next to your bed in case something/someone needs a thumpin... Just another reason to buy a duallie..

[aintgotnun]

I don't know much about the Chevy's but I'd goto kbb.com and check out the values there.

[CamperFan]

If you're going to be using the truck primarily for towing the camper, I'd say go with the dually. If you're going to be using the truck a lot as a daily driver, I'd say go with a SRW 1 ton.