Community Forums

tuffr2 · 05-06-2015, 08:52 AM

Forgot to mention also...this is my case. So far in 3 years of towing a 37' 5th I winter in one or two parks in Florida in the winter. Then tow to Va and Pa in the summer. I really only tow 4 times a year. To me that is not really enough towing and maneuvering to get good at it.

If this is your 1st 5th wheel be careful tuning onto a street as the 5th wheel will track way inside of the path of the truck. I watch my mirrors and am really surprised how close I come to hitting the curb.

Cumminsfan · 05-06-2015, 09:27 AM

Like it's been said before when you get to 40' you'll limit yourself to certain CG's. With that being said a 40' would be nice when full timing. It's a trade off. I think the comfort level of the FL and 40' would out way the downside of not being able to get into some CG's. My guess is you'll always be in CG's with full hookups. Out here in Oregon we don't have all that many CG's with full hookups. You have to stay in certain CG's or RV parks. I really don't have any idea what the rest of the country has as far as amenities in their CG's. So you'll have to do some research before you head to the next spot. No biggie in my book.

Racklefratz · 05-06-2015, 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yankeetom

Yea the fw is 16500 gvwr with a 3k pin weight. Pretty well figured on a 3500 drw

I'm in the minority here, since most responders are enthusiastic about long 5th wheel trailers - "the bigger, the better" crowd. But hooked up to our F-350 longbed, we measured about 65' long. That's a pretty long rig - plenty long enough to present maneuvering issues, even at "premium" campgrounds, and it happened way too often.

Our 39' fiver is on the consignment lot today. It's unclear if we'll replace it with anything else - but the 65' combined length turned out to be unacceptable for us.

My $ .02.

Cummins12V98 · 05-06-2015, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yankeetom

Yea the fw is 16500 gvwr with a 3k pin weight. Pretty well figured on a 3500 drw

Sorry but at 20% minimum you are at 3,300# and more realistically closer to 4K.

SkiSmuggs · 05-07-2015, 04:54 AM

The 3K pin weight is dry, but with a 3500 DRW, it should be no problem loaded.

C130 · 05-07-2015, 07:03 AM

We visit one particular state park a lot here in east Texas. My 5th wheel is 35 feet long and most of the spots I fit in would also take a 40 footer with not much issue. I'd say anything over 40 feet might be an issue at this state park though. My biggest issue is the road is very narrow and my front end is usually off the road in a few of the premium spots. There are ditches and usually very wet if it's rained at all. I saw a guy get stuck big time but luckily he had unhooked his trailer and pulled to the side and just sunk in. This issue can also be a factor, it is for me at a couple of parks we visit and usually my biggest fear. We'd love to have a little larger toy hauler but will most likely keep it 40 feet or under.

tuffr2 · 05-07-2015, 09:02 AM

You guys ever notice how much room the truck needs to wiggle a 5th wheel into a tight spot? Seems the try ck needs a wide area to swing into position.

Cumminsfan · 05-07-2015, 09:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tuffr2

You guys ever notice how much room the truck needs to wiggle a 5th wheel into a tight spot? Seems the try ck needs a wide area to swing into position.

Very true. More so than our last trailer that was a TT and longer. We have a short (28') 5th wheel but our truck is a CC LB @22' long. In the tighter CG's we go to I have to have my wife watch the front of the truck as I back in. Almost every time my truck front is swinging into the bushes. Never had the issue when we towed that same TT (31') with a 145" WB F150.

It's surprising what 2' extra feet of WB does to the turning radius. Add to that hanging 40' off the rear. I wouldn't want to narrow down my CG options all that much. Plus having a Res fridge would really narrow it down unless you have 4 6V GC batteries and solar. I would hate to be tied to only needing to go to full hookup CG's.

caissiel · 05-08-2015, 03:02 AM

For me the truck lenght has been more a concern then the trailer.
Our 33 ft 5 th was harder to park and maneuver then the 40 ft due to axle located further back to save on axle weight rating.
But the GM super cab short box made it easy to park. The long box Super Cab F250 was world of difference.
I first noticed when my friend had a longer truck then me. With similar units I always picked the harder lot for parking and left him the easier ones.
My neighbor with mint 2000 CC long box F350 dually found it hard to park his 30 ft TT and traded on a 36 ft 5 th wheel and still finds it equally hard to park. He plans on changing trucks because his short box Ram worked well before with his 30ft TT.
I found that best way to park with along truck is to put the trailer wheels were they line up and straighten the truck going forward and then backup straight. It takes to far to straighten the truck while lining up the trailer going backward.
The shorter truck could do it well though.

biron · 05-08-2015, 10:52 AM

I went from a 28 to 40.6 there is a difference in where an how I go. I also have a long box dually which probably doesn't help for parking however great for towing.

I look to fuel after the trailer is dropped

I miss the flexibility of the 28' but like the space in the 40.5' trailer

IC2 · 05-10-2015, 11:26 AM

For a FT'er, 40'plus is not a bad length, especially if you mostly only occasionally travel from CG to CG. If you are an avid traveler, then that 40+ footer will 'suggest' that you stay on interstates or at least main highways. We went from a 33 footer but with the older style hitch box tucked under the overhang and a short bed truck (156"wb) to a 38 foot 5er with the extended hitch plus a long bed CC (172" wb). That put the actual length out to ~61 feet vs the old which was ~50 feet. Quite a difference when driving the secondary roads or navigating tight CGs.

As far as the front LR - for the next last 5er that for sure will be a consideration. They were just too new last summer when we were looking and the local dealers had way too few choices to show.

Gordon Dewald · 05-10-2015, 11:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yankeetom

Hey y'all loving this forum I have learned so much here and don't even have a fw or truck yet. We are in the process of picking out a truck for the 5er we have chosen. We love the floor plan of the 40 ft.Grand Design front living. We are planning on moving around the country spending a month to 3 months in a location visiting kids and grandkids. We want the flexibility to be able to pick up and go if we want to visit the many wonderful places in our country. Is this size of a trailer ok for that or should we look at something a little smaller. Like I said we are going to plant places for awhile
.

It depends on a lot of things but primarily is how comfortable you are in backing the unit up.

It may take a bit of work and back and forth but a 5er is actually quite manoeuverable.

Here is a website that will help you determine truck size from estimates. I say help because without the actual weights you are only guessing.
http://fifthwheelst.com

Truck manufacturers give towing and load capacities based on the lowest denominator (single cab, bench seat, 150 lb driver). Trailer manufacturers the same. Any options that are added are not included in the dry weight. Neither is water or propane. Figure you will load the trailer to near GVWR and the amount of truck capacity will be less.

There are a number of threads that tell you how to properly weigh your truck to determine the amount of load you can place with the pin of the 5er. As an estimate it is good to take the GVW of the trailer and multiply that by .20 - .25 to estimate the pin weight you will need.

Good luck in your search.

TRNewsom · 05-10-2015, 11:43 AM

We had a 40ft toy hauler and you really had to be careful where you went. We got in a bind a couple times and if my husband hadn't been an excellent driver, it could have been bad. Truck stops only for fuel and always check the campground before you take off through it. Most were not laid out for the length of a 40ft camper plus the length of the truck. One time we got in fine but couldn't get out because not enough room to swing around. That was an ordeal. We intended to do a lot of traveling with it but ended up selling even though we loved it.

taken · 05-11-2015, 04:40 PM

I'll post the opposite of what everyone else did. I'm usually on the other side of the fence on all things to do with RV Forums but counterpoints are productive too no?

Last fall we sold our 40' 5ver toyhauler and ordered a 44.5' 5ver hauler. With the last one we NEVER got into trouble anywhere. Got gas anywhere we liked and found a spot in every campground we wanted to go to. We went back roads, townie gas stations, state parks... everything. Did over 10k miles through the northeast and Canada. Picked up our new bigger rig and all seems the same. Bottom line is it's all based on the end user. I guess some other people would have trouble doing what we've done but I've done it without issue. Many of these questions on the forums can really only be answered by the person asking. Everyone's comfort level, confidence, and driving skill is different. I've seen so many people on RV forums blindly take advice by others who may or may not have the same resources as the person asking the question.