Don't think it's gonna work?

[dannyabear]

Never mind being over weight, that poor little 4.7 will stay 'wound up' trying to pull it.

[aeblank]

Dry weight is what determined my license plate fee.

[TonyShope]

You will be disappointed I think if you go to hill country. I have the newest of the new 5.7L and will be adding back end reinforcement for lift. Mine is a $50K truck meant for this and It needs some enhancements. It pulls fine and I can pass folks uphill etc. But I would like more power. The truck is 7 weeks old and I am pulling a 2017 FR 117KL Ice house . I have power but it could tow better. So going to do some upgrades. Just my $00.02

[doc73]

Originally Posted by aeblank

Dry weight is what determined my license plate fee.

Your lucky ours is determined by GVWR. But it is $25 for a trailer.. Gets pricey for the TV.

[keeprr]

After pulling with a 1/2 ton and now having a 2500 I can't imagine towing with anything less. Bigger brakes, bigger rear end, stronger frame and suspension it's the only way to go. I personally chose the diesel but either gas or diesel, do yourself a favor and step up to a 3/4 ton.

[drittal]

I wouldn't. The 4.7 isn't a powerhouse. You won't be happy.

[aeblank]

Originally Posted by doc73

Your lucky ours is determined by GVWR. But it is $25 for a trailer.. Gets pricey for the TV.

That might be the intent. I was more than 1200# and less than 10,000#, so it was $200. Dry or GVWR falls in the same range.

Don't get me started on the TV registration. $232 is a pretty big pile of.........something smelly.

Originally Posted by keeprr

After pulling with a 1/2 ton and now having a 2500 I can't imagine towing with anything less. Bigger brakes, bigger rear end, stronger frame and suspension it's the only way to go.

No doubt! Do note the above added cost(s).

[doc73]

Originally Posted by aeblank

That might be the intent. I was more than 1200# and less than 10,000#, so it was $200. Dry or GVWR falls in the same range.

Don't get me started on the TV registration. $232 is a pretty big pile of.........something smelly.



No doubt! Do note the above added cost(s).

Yeah I am in the $200 range for a class 4a registered weight.

[aeblank]

That $200 was permanent, at least.

[doc73]

Yearly here for truck and trailer.

[Kimber45]

I usually chime in against the weight police crowd and think a 1/2 ton truck can pull a 7-8k camper no problem if it has a 10k plus rating. Dont think your older truck with the smaller engine is going to cut it. Get yourself a new 1/2 ton with a 10k plus rating and have at.

[Tom48]

Originally Posted by jvahicks

Thanks for all the input and opinions. I couldn't get the payload info off the truck as it is still at the dealership. Unless they come in with a great price I will probably pass. It would probably do the job here in the flatlands we live in and none of our trips are over 150 miles usually a lot less. So again thanks for the information.

There we are at the root of the problem. THE DAMN SALESMAN WILL SWEAR IT IS ALK THE TRUCK YOU NEED.. HE IS PROBABLY WRONG OR OUT AND OUT LYING TO YOU.

ALSO, I note our 04 does not have load capacity clearly stated in the door panel sticker. And 05 might not either. Take the truck for a test drive straight to the cat scale. Wiegh it. Allow an add on for your full fuel, about 7lbs a gallon, your people and junk, then subtract that total from the trucks GVW. What's left is your load capacity.

Don't cheat or lie to yourself. Your safety and that of your family and maybe one of our families is at stake.

[Edmund]

Originally Posted by OldCoot

You forget the trailer is supposed to stop itself with its own brakes.

I would never bet my life on the trailer brakes being able to stop it. After 22 years of fulltiming I want good truck brakes first.

[rat4spd]

Originally Posted by Edmund

I would never bet my life on the trailer brakes being able to stop it.

Then nobody should tow.

[Philos3]

Pulled this off airforum.com today:

"We hit the "perfect storm" and rolled our beloved 2003 Airstream Classic (thankfully we were not injured). A cold front coming in with wind gusts, down steep hill and tractor trailer going to fast by us caused the trailer to sway and tip both trailer and TV (Ford Excursion V10). We pulled our '75 Airstream Excella for 10 years without sway problems."

Unfortunately, I don't know the length of the trailer or its weight, nor the capacity of the Ford Excursion V10, though it could easily be researched. Obviously, the owner successfully "pulled" that trailer for many (10) years.

My first response would be that the minimum tow vehicle should be a 3/4 ton diesel truck. At least that is what I would pull a 30 foot Airstream Classic 10,000 pound trailer with. And yes a 2017 F150 is rated to pull it, but that truck is around 2,000 pounds lighter than a 3/4 ton truck.

As previously discussed..."pulling" is not the only issue.

Fortunately the owners are still alive, but in that forum seem to be focused on a better anti-sway hitch. Maybe they are right, that is all that they needed??? Don't think they want a do-over.

I think it is fair to say the trailer controlled the tv...which is back to should you pull a heavy trailer with a light truck even if within the legal rating??? Myself, I want lots of extra tv capability. I bet that a 3/4 truck would have held onto that trailer and not rolled with it...but can't prove it.

==============
As to trailer brakes, my understanding is that it is not tow savy to rely on them, particularly going down a steep mountain. Can't imagine anyone believing that.

[timfromma]

Trailer brakes should be viewed as something nice to have but not required. In the absence of a trailer braking system, the TV should be capable of stopping the trailer on its own.

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by timfromma

Trailer brakes should be viewed as something nice to have but not required. In the absence of a trailer braking system, the TV should be capable of stopping the trailer on its own.

I guess OTR semi's need to be able to stop the their 40-50,000# trailers also without trailer brakes. Never happen. Your reasoning is a little off. IMHO

[rat4spd]

If I had to think of betting my life on every variable out of my control, I could never leave the house. A dually should be able to stop upto 30,000#? It's okay that a 3/4 ton must be able to stop up to 18,000# give or take, but a 1/2 ton isn't capable of stopping 9000#? Or the millions of OTR truck maxed out at 80,000# with a 65,000# trailer. Those tractors are stopping that?

If you think your trailer is incapable of stopping itself, maybe you should be concerned about your trailer.

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by rat4spd

If I had to think of betting my life on every variable out of my control, I could never leave the house. A dually should be able to stop upto 30,000#? It's okay that a 3/4 ton must be able to stop up to 18,000# give or take, but a 1/2 ton isn't capable of stopping 9000#? Or the millions of OTR truck maxed out at 80,000# with a 65,000# trailer. Those tractors are stopping that?

If you think your trailer is incapable of stopping itself, maybe you should be concerned about your trailer.

X2

[drittal]

Originally Posted by Philos3

Pulled this off airforum.com today:

"We hit the "perfect storm" and rolled our beloved 2003 Airstream Classic (thankfully we were not injured). A cold front coming in with wind gusts, down steep hill and tractor trailer going to fast by us caused the trailer to sway and tip both trailer and TV (Ford Excursion V10). We pulled our '75 Airstream Excella for 10 years without sway problems."

Unfortunately, I don't know the length of the trailer or its weight, nor the capacity of the Ford Excursion V10, though it could easily be researched. Obviously, the owner successfully "pulled" that trailer for many (10) years.

My first response would be that the minimum tow vehicle should be a 3/4 ton diesel truck. At least that is what I would pull a 30 foot Airstream Classic 10,000 pound trailer with...

The excursion is built on F250 chassis. Over 7,000lb empty.