Travel Trailer Length

[rancherwillie]

Hello, Newbie here with first rookie question. We are coming from a small class c and looking seriously at the longer (28-34) Rockwoods. Several of my friends are warning me about the difficulty traveling with such length.
Years ago we pulled a 32' 5th wheel. I would appreciate any comments on handling the big stuff. Thanks, Bill

 

[donn]

Remember, coming from a MH to a TT you will find tons more interior room in the TT for a given length. Personally I would not again consider pulling a TT longer than about 25 feet. Just too much sway unless you can find a really long wheel base TV to handle it. I am always reminded of the picture of the tail wagging the dog.

 

[bikendan]

a lot has to do with how you're going to use the trailer and what you'll be towing with.
if you want to "camp", instead of "RVing", a shorter trailer is a good idea since camping usually means in state/national parks that have smaller sites and you're taking shorter trips.
if you plan on RVing or full-timing, a larger trailer will be more suitable, since you'll primarily stay in RV parks/resorts and be living in them more. these places will have pull-thru sites and be longer for bigger rigs.

and having an adequate tow vehicle is a huge factor. if you've had experience with a 5th wheel, a bigger TT shouldn't be that hard for you to handle. but you won't have the high ceiling that the 5th wheels have, with a TT.

 

[rancherwillie]

We plan to travel less and shorter distances but stay much longer thus the need for more floor space. Our destination will be 99% full hookups in common rv parks. We are hoping to use our 06 F150 5.4 V8. Mountain roads and passes will be very few in our plans.

 

[stevengb]

I disagree with Donn. We went from a popup to out surveyor sp295 which has a total length including tongue of 33' and I have had NO problems pulling, backing, or swaying. I have a half ton chevy crew cab and EZ LIFT equalizer hitch with sway control and pulled it home last weekend in 15-25 mph wind gusts with no scary moments. Our trailer weighs 5100 lbs empty. Don't let length scare you from having enough room to be comfortable.

 

[stevengb]

And we have stayed totally in state park and corp. of engineer campgrounds only one having full hookup.

 

[bikendan]

We plan to travel less and shorter distances but stay much longer thus the need for more floor space. Our destination will be 99% full hookups in common rv parks. We are hoping to use our 06 F150 5.4 V8. Mountain roads and passes will be very few in our plans.

then i think a larger ultra-lite TT would be perfect for what you plan to do. be sure to get one with at least one slideout, really opens up the floorspace.

just as long as your Ford has the factory tow package and you stay within 80% of its tow capacity.

 

[softwarejoe]

I disagree with Donn. We went from a popup to out surveyor sp295 which has a total length including tongue of 33' and I have had NO problems pulling, backing, or swaying. I have a half ton chevy crew cab and EZ LIFT equalizer hitch with sway control and pulled it home last weekend in 15-25 mph wind gusts with no scary moments. Our trailer weighs 5100 lbs empty. Don't let length scare you from having enough room to be comfortable.

I disagree with Don too. I Have a 2010 f150 5.4 6 speed supercab with 5.5 box and trailer package and I'm pulling a 35' 7500 lb trailer.
I use equalizers and 1 sway bar and she pulls just fine

 

[toadswife]

This is a timely post. We are about to purchase an Evergreen Everlite 35 ft TT. A big upgrade in length from our 2502s TT. We are a bit concerned about getting into some campsites with the longer TT and our driveway. Otherwise we are good to go with our TV, 2011 Tundra 5.7 with tow package.

 

[rancherwillie]

Evergreen is a new name to me. Are they part of another company?
Are they in the Rockwood quality/cost arena?

 

[Sgt. Schultz]

Evergreen info can be found at Evergreen Recreational Vehicles - Manufacturer of Green Eco-Friendly Travel Trailers and Fifth Wheels a new company started in 2008.
You may want to check out some of the areas you want to frequent to see if they have sufficient numbers of sites that can handle 30' + trailers - in my area they are currently limited so prime times are very difficult to get.
As for brand you may want to check Surveyor Travel Trailers & Fifth Wheels Floorplans they are rolling out a 10th Anniversary Edition with nice feature included

 

[Glenn5995]

Welcome to the forum!

With a good hitch set up, such as Equalizer or Reese Strait Line (aka dual cam), there would not be any problem towing a trailer in the size range you are considering as long as the weights (tongue and total) are within the ratings of your tow vehicle. Although it would tow well on the road, the longer the trailer, the more room you need to maneuver. This can be a problem if you anticipate primitive (aka "boondocking") camping or some of the national forest campgrounds where there may be tight turns and limited space. This probably will not be an issue for you as you believe you will be mostly in established campgrounds with full hookups. These types of campgrounds are well equipped to handle trailers this size and larger.

Be warned - as you are familiar with towing a fifth wheel, pull behinds will not tow as stable as a fifth wheel. They still tow very nicely, but by their nature, you will feel their input to the tow vehicle's steering/stability more than you will with a fifth wheel.

Good luck!

 

[TURBS]

I pulled a 34' tt with my 2500hd short bed with no issues on interstate