250 or 350 to tow 334QB?

[Ford Idaho]

I went with the 8 foot bed because I gave up near to two feet for the chest toolbox plus I got a bigger tank than what comes with the shorter bed.

Never had a full size PU with a short bed, I see no reason to start.

[j free]

I have a 2014 and dully only comes in long bed for ford.

[DickiedooFlagman]

Originally Posted by OnSabbatical

Sounds to me like a 350 DRW is what I will want.

Do I also need a long bed or is a 6 3/4 enough or better?

What about cylinders? 6 or 8?

You will have to check the Ford brochures (I say Ford bc you are talking 350, not 3500 which are Ram and GM.)
DRW will be diesel and that is 8 cylinders. Also I think it will be 8' bed and no choice. Again, I am not sure and defer to the latest brochures.

[Rookie19]

I believe anymore all drw have a 8ft bed unless you get a "dodge:ram" 3500 in a mega cab.

And if I recall correctly none of the big 3 put a v6 in their 2
3/4 ton and up. So just need to pick diesel or gas. My vote is for diesel. One downside though is how expensive they can be to repair out of warranty. If I had the $$$ I would buy new and trade in once the warranty expired for a newer model. With all the emissions BS on diesels now they are expensive to fix....

[grandpacsf]

Another thing you may want to think about if you choose DRW for your travels around the country will you hit snow or ice? If that possibility is there, would you go for 4X4? Without it DRW has limited traction vs SRW drive. We leave Saskatchewan just after Christmas for AZ via Great Falls and I15. We have had snow and icy roads on different stretches of the road and run in 4X4 for quite a few miles. My choice still remains a 4x4 SWD. We have a 3007 Ram 3500 6.7 and 2013 33RL Silverback.

[Mojojojo]

I have an F350 and love it! All be it, it is a 4 door and built in 1986,has a 460 gasoline engine (has 1000miles on a rebuild) a hd built auto trans with an oversized cooler and an aftermarket over/under drive attached to the output shaft, I haven't found that I can't tow anything that I have tried ,and that includes a set of portable bleachers the size of a single wide MF home. From Salem to Portland. As for parking back it in and you should be good duals and wide mirrors keep cars farther away , I park farther out in smaller spaced lots and just use two . Don't knock the gas burners.

[DickiedooFlagman]

Originally Posted by Rookie19

I believe anymore all drw have a 8ft bed unless you get a "dodge:ram" 3500 in a mega cab.

And if I recall correctly none of the big 3 put a v6 in their 2
3/4 ton and up. So just need to pick diesel or gas. My vote is for diesel. One downside though is how expensive they can be to repair out of warranty. If I had the $$$ I would buy new and trade in once the warranty expired for a newer model. With all the emissions BS on diesels now they are expensive to fix....

None of the big 3 manufacturers have a V-6 in their 3/4 ton and 1 ton HD trucks. The Ram diesel is a straight I-6 however. Ford and GM are V-8 diesels. The Titan will have a V-8 5.0L Cummins diesel later in 2015. The payload and towing ratings are unknown yet.

[NOLE-FAN]

My $0.02 is to check the yellow sticker on the door jamb before you buy and look at the true remaining cargo carrying capacity after the actual weight of the truck has been deducted from the GVWR. What options the truck comes with will have a huge impact on the remaining CCC. Such as a loaded F250 king ranch, diesel, 4x4 can only carry 150 lbs more than a F150 XLT 2x4 regardless what the sales brochure says.....at least according to the door stickers.

Get the F350 and don't back...that extra 1500lbs of CCC will come in handy.

[jevanb]

we have the 2012 344QB and loaded ready to camp,with the basement full of chairs, tools, ect... and bed with firewood, 2 80 lb kids in the back me and the wife, full tank of fuel, we also put in a queen double pillow top bed in place of the crappy mattress. this is my weights and I pull it with a 3/4 ton. But I am on the upper limit of the truck but under all the axle weights. I also have a 250lb superglide hitch in the bed

[asquared]

The weights on that trailer are very similar to my sabre. I have a 3500 srw and it is a perfect match. With the towing are talking a srw diesel is your best bet. Get a diesel with the exhaust brake in it and you will be in love with towing! If you get a short bed truck you will want a slider hitch, if you get a long bed, then you don't need it. We went long bed and have room in front of the hitch for a box of firewood and a few other items. We are also able to have a trifold tonneau cover that doesn't need to cone all the way off the truck when towing.

[jevanb]

yes... get a exh brake, but since I have 2 turbos I dont have one now, when I did have a factory then a VGT4094 is was really nice to activate and it slowed me down really fast

[whj77372]

I just got a 2015 Wildcat 327CK and the weights are almost the same. I am using an F250 XLT CC longbed diesel RWD. Good Luck

[Islander]

My 2 cents...
I won't get into 'weights' , as it pretty much has been covered.

However, from experience towing with a F350 4x4 Dually I would add ...

..having towed a 26 ft 5th wheel, for 5 years, with this truck it was very reassuring having ample power and stability with this size of trailer.

...now with a 30rlbs Wildcat the (same) truck notices the additional weight but on the highway the truck handles it with exceptional stability and reliability in comfort...even a more stable, straight line driving, than with the smaller trailer....the added weight of the larger trailer puts the truck down to just touching the overload spring leaf....The truck sits nice and level when hitched up.

I couldn't afford a 'new' F350 so I chose to get a low mileage ,good condition, comfortable used one.
Depending on conditions and terrain...I average 13 to 18 mpg .

True diesel repairs are not cheap but (IMHO) the $45,000+ dollar difference can pay for a lot of repairs.(if need be)

Regarding the 4x4 or not... other than the obvious reasons, to have a 4x4,
The 4x4 is very useful for backing up the rig, by putting it in 4x4 low it is way better for the tranny to back up any inclines and 'super' great to back into camp site positions ...it will just idle at a slow walking speed as you concentrate on driving, but note, to do this comfortably the front wheels (4x4) should be disengaged. This can be done by disconnecting the air hoses (and plugging them) from the 4x4 on the fly switch. I can still manually engage my front wheels should which to.

Side note, I have now added a TrailAir Tri-Glide PinBox to reduce the stress on the Truck and Trailer Frame ...resulting in a more comfortable ride over all.

Good luck in your choice and Happy Camping!
~Islander~

[htwomiller]

I believe you can get a short bed with the 250 but not the 350. Shorter wheel base may be a concern. If you go with a short bed make sure you have to proper hitch for a good turning radius.

[DickiedooFlagman]

The short bed towing a 5th wheel increases concerns with possible trailer contact with the TV cab and back TV window.

[leland1950]

The newer f550's have a detuned 300hp engine instead of the 400 in the 350 and 450. Thy also have ridiculously small fuel tanks. I have an older 550 DRW and plenty of fuel capacity, 59 gals and 17500 GVW. Don't even know the trailer's there. Remember DRW's don't fit a lot of places, but I'd never go back to SRW.

[MeepMeep]

Originally Posted by DickiedooFlagman

The short bed towing a 5th wheel increases concerns with possible trailer contact with the TV cab and back TV window.

Reese Revolution hitch lets a short bed tow fifth wheels without the cab clearance issue since it move the point of rotation to the pin box, as opposed to rotating at the hitch. Towed my IWKS with a RAM 1500 Hemi, 5'4" bed for two years without issue....