Class A vs Travel Trailer

[Mudfrog]

My Dad in law is 81 years old and has a trailer. He is in good health but even so, now needs help with the hook up of the trailer. That equalizer hitch not only weighs a lot but also requires the extra steps to hook the trailer up.

It's not hard for me to crank his four corner stabilizers up, raise or lower the tongue, install the equalizer hitch, back the truck up straight to it, lower the tongue onto the ball mount, latch it, set the equalizer bars, dial in the anti sway, plug into the trailer connector, and then make sure the lights and brakes work. However, having to do all of that routinely would make it the last choice for a rig I'd want to own.

A 5th wheel is a bit easier to manage and from my limited experience, is easier to tow and maneuver.

For us, a motorhome is the way to go because we usually have our bass boat trailering behind. I'm not interested at all in hitching it up it behind a truck and travel trailer.

[tuffr2]

One thing I have not seen mentioned. Hooking a 5th wheel I did standing up. Hooking up my travel trailer I am now in the ground, not standing up.

[Parks]

Originally Posted by tfryman

By the time you buy a new trailer and new truck($$$) you could have spent the same amount on a new, more capable class A and used Truck toad.

I'd like to see this. I don't have the experience of many on here but don't see how this is possible unless you are going with a cheaper, bottom of the barrel gasser class A in the $150K range. At which point the quality of the $150K Class A is no where near the quality of an $80K 5er.

Prove me wrong.

[tuffr2]

You can discount any RV by 30% and any truck by 10k.

In 2012 a 3 year old diesel pusher was $150,000. I bought a new King Ranch F-450 and very nice 5th wheel for $110,000.

[ScopesNC]

My 0.02 cents worth .

Were on our 3rd travel trailer. What I have not read yet is about the T V having extra storage . With out a 5th wheel hitch you still have tons of room for storage in the truck bed. Grand Design ( I'm Not Selling anything here ) has TT's with a lot of storage and the tanks are very large also. Get a nice 3/4 or 1 ton and a good weight distribution / sway hitch and your set.

If winds are that bad just slow down like everyone else does. Set up can be just about as easy anything else. Example. Get a 18 volt drill with the right socket and the leg stands are up and down in seconds. The hookups on some are just as easy as any 5th wheel. You can become very fast wih the set up if you have a sytem for doing everything and stay with it. It is not all that much more than anything else.

Again look at the Grand Design brand of TT's. They do offer a lot of 5th wheel type items. Another example is the much larger storage area their TT have.

Not a sells person ,but I do own a Grand Design Imagine TT. I can say they offer more basement storage and tank storage than most TT out there.

[oilman51]

Thanks for all the responses. All were intelligent and thoughtful. We are in the gathering of information stage. The nice part is it costs nothing. In a few years who knows what might happen. We just want to be prepared. Our dream is to keep rving as long and comfortably as possible.
Thanks

[jarata]

5th wheel problem solved

[T Money]

We have an Outdoors RV TT. I find it to be very stable in the wind (we live in Utah). Ample storage. We also have a very nice Blue Ox WD hitch. I think you'd like their larger TTs paired with an f250 or f350.

[winniman]

Unless you are full time, and have no home, why not just buy a small utility trailer. Whatever you planned on putting in the truck, could go in the trailer, and you don't need to change anything.

[bry899]

Originally Posted by winniman

Unless you are full time, and have no home, why not just buy a small utility trailer. Whatever you planned on putting in the truck, could go in the trailer, and you don't need to change anything.

I agree, a utility trailer is a great substitute for a truck.
My 4' x 8' trailer has a 1200 pound capacity and can be towed by just about any car.