Travel Trail vs 5th Wheel

[RangeMaggotBob]

Originally Posted by saltyman

When I was with the Carnival, my Gypsy friends always traveled with a TT pulled by a Cadillac car. I have traded my Cadillac for a Truck, that's my only difference.

[RangeMaggotBob]

Bought a RAM 2500 long bed. Love it. Lots of room in the bed, even with the hitch. Bought a 32' fifth wheeler. Love that one, too. That being said, go with the floor plan that suits your needs. Either way, it'll be new, or new to you, and you'll love it!

[abomb]

Originally Posted by SuicideSaints

This was my same thought. I feel like the "younger crowd" has TT's to accommodate the family and gear associated with the family (bikes/toys and what not) and I feel the "older" (no offense intended) has the 5ers.

Im in the younger crowd but once the kids are grown we are going to a 5er.

This is just how it seems to me and I do not mean to offend anyone and if I did I am truly sorry.

I agree with your logic. I have a family of 3 we went with the 5er. My brother has a family of 6. He needed more room in the tow vehicle. So he had to go with the tt. The catch is that his tv has a towing capacity of 7700 lbs. That really limited the size tt he could get. He only had a few choices in the 30' range, otherwise he had to go with a smaller tt. He wanted a larger tt, but could not find one in his weight range. This seems like a common problem with big families. Not sure why manufacturer's don't make more options to match tv capacities. Noone wants to take 2 cars on trips for 1 family, and I don't think there's many tv (other then pickups) that can tow more then 7,700 lbs.....So, I thing your situation determines what type of camper suits your needs, but apples to apples...hands down 5er everytime....JMHO

[tomrob1161]

in response to abomb, we like the additional seating capacity in the tv which is why we use a 3/4 ton Suburban or Yukon XL. We tow a Rockwood Signature Ultra Light, 8315BSS, which is 34'9" long with no problem.

[elchilero53]

Originally Posted by abomb

I agree with your logic. I have a family of 3 we went with the 5er. My brother has a family of 6. He needed more room in the tow vehicle. So he had to go with the tt. The catch is that his tv has a towing capacity of 7700 lbs. That really limited the size tt he could get. He only had a few choices in the 30' range, otherwise he had to go with a smaller tt. He wanted a larger tt, but could not find one in his weight range. This seems like a common problem with big families. Not sure why manufacturer's don't make more options to match tv capacities. Noone wants to take 2 cars on trips for 1 family, and I don't think there's many tv (other then pickups) that can tow more then 7,700 lbs.....So, I thing your situation determines what type of camper suits your needs, but apples to apples...hands down 5er everytime....JMHO

Can he trade in the current TV and get something like the Suburban 3/4 Ton? The Ford Excursion has a diesel option and heavy tow package that might work for them.

[abomb]

Originally Posted by elchilero53

Can he trade in the current TV and get something like the Suburban 3/4 Ton? The Ford Excursion has a diesel option and heavy tow package that might work for them.

I was amazed at the towing capacity of an Excursion Diesel. I had to look it up.

[Major]

I had two of them and loved them; a 2002 and a 2003. The problem with the Excursion is it is outdated. The last production year as I recall was 2005 and with the size of today's TT's, IMHO you really need a 3/4 ton pickup for any TT over about 33'.

Our previous RV was a 38' Open range TT pulled by the 2003 Excursion. Boy, was it a handful with the tractor trailer trucks and strong winds. The Excursion, even though roughly built on the F-250 frame, is not fully a F-250. The suspension is not the same (made more for a smother ride than the F-250) so it does not tow as well.

Plus, it is hard to find a good pristine Excursion anymore as the good ones just don't get sold by the owners. My wife and I really debated about selling our last one and buying a 1 ton pick-up also but finally decided to sell the Excursion. I still miss it but I do like the F-350.

BTW, there was absolutely no comparison with pulling the Open Range with the F-350 vs. the Excursion. Totally different experience. We finally moved to a 5er as well since we now have the truck to pull it.

I guess my whole point is to be careful with thinking that 1/2 ton's or large SUV's can pull large TT's. Depending on the TT tongue weight, it might be a nightmare.