Towing number help for newbie

[Lefty59]

IMO there are two important factors to be concerned with...towing capacity...meaning (to me) how much trailer/weight the TV is rated to pull/stop while going down the road by overcoming the tire friction & wind/weight drag etc. of the trailer...

...And payload...or cargo carrying capacity. The TV has to have the payload capacity to carry not only the passengers & their gear...but the pin/tongue weight of the loaded trailer.

When I first started out towing I was focused mainly on towing capacity as stated in the manufacturers' brochures...but now, with further study, I'm much more focused on payload capacity as the TV seems to hit/max out on this stated limit first.

Happy travels!

[mike.t]

Lefty. How does one figure out while going down the road how much tire friction & wind/weight drag is occurring? Also if the TV seems to hit/max out on this stated limit first we have chosen the wrong TV for our TT. Good rule of thumb (which i have learned on this forum) stay with in 75% of capacities.
Just my thought.
Mike

[Lefty59]

Originally Posted by mike.t

Lefty. How does one figure out while going down the road how much tire friction & wind/weight drag is occurring? Also if the TV seems to hit/max out on this stated limit first we have chosen the wrong TV for our TT. Good rule of thumb (which i have learned on this forum) stay with in 75% of capacities.
Just my thought.
Mike

Guess that, when I was referencing payload, I was more focused on 5th wheel towing then TT towing. In our case, the pin weight (& weight of the hitch) of our 5th wheel pushed us closer to the max TV payload (GVWR) much faster than the GVW (or GVWR) of the trailer pushed us towards the max towing capacity of the TV.

Don't think I know exactly how to measure wind drag...but there is a formula to figure it out based on the frontal area of the trailer and the speed of travel...plus head wind. And, again I'm certainly no expert on tire friction, but I'm sure it can be calculated using tire composition, contact surface area, road material and weight applied to both by the TT/5'er. I took the liberty of assuming the engineers designing the TV took that into consideration when they calculated towing capacity. I might be wrong...

Oh...and I wholeheartedly agree on leaving a margin of safety...but believe the amount is up to the person doing the towing.

[fvstringpicker]

I'm not an engineer or physicist but when you're trying to stop six or more tons of additional weight traveling 60 mph in X number of feet, I don't think the pin weight a couple or three hundred pounds over CCC is a critical factor.

[jhpkmr]

Thanks again for all the relies. I understand much better...I think!?! I feel much more comfortable again with my tow vehicle and ratings!

Anyone able to chime in on a shortbed and newer 5th wheels? I have been told by dealers that the front cap on new trailers in convex so that you can tow them with a shortbed without slider. Sounds a little shady to me but did not know actual world. I would rather not use a slider due to weight as I will have to remove the hitch after each use. What are people's thoughts on the sidewinder with turret?

[jhpkmr]

Lefty,

Is your F350 a shortbed? If so, what hitch set up do you use? How do you like your trailer and are there any options you would rethink? Thanks again!

[Lefty59]

Originally Posted by jhpkmr

Lefty,

Is your F350 a shortbed? If so, what hitch set up do you use? How do you like your trailer and are there any options you would rethink? Thanks again!

jhpkmr; We have a long bed with a B&W turnover ball and companion hitch. We towed about 4k miles with the combo last year & we were super happy with it. Towed Vail Pass and several others (at ~60 mph) with no issues.

Can't think of anything we would have changed on our Wildcat other than the vent covers we put on and the TPMS we purchased. We had only minor issues all fixed under warranty.

Guess you could say we are 'happy campers.'