1/2 ton towable 5th wheel

[longhaul]

Good point.
Another one is Fords advertising their max tow package which has nothing to do with the max load carrying capacity  or max tow rating. Many F150 super crew 3.5 eb 3.55 gears 6800 gvwr and small 3800 rawr P tires  can have a max tow
With around 18 different gvwr packages and 5 different rawr packages one needs to look at all the options if he wants to pull a 5th wheel trailer.

 

[Hanr3]

an 8000 lbs 5er at 20% pin is 1600lbs - plus 200 for the hitch is 1800lbs so your saying you, plus passengers, and cargo  are less than 228 lbs you said your pay is 2078  in total  WOW my 3 dogs weight more than that 228lbs lol (3 boxers at 80lbs ea) !!!!!! throw in a tonneau cover 50lbs wood 100lbs spare tire 60 lbs tools 40lbs tool box 40lbs

repectfully Hanr3 you need to redo your thinking you cannot pull an 8000lbs 5er plus a 2300lbs boat behind that little 150 sorry thats 10300lbs and i will bet that your cargo cap with that load is way over your 2078

You missed the part where my truck weight of 4,800 pounds includes me, the dogs, and gas. Aluminum engine and aluminum body does amazing things in weight reduction. How about this, truck GVWR is 6900 - (ME, MY Dogs, A full tank of gas and the truck weighs 4,800 pounds. That is total weight). Leaves me 2,100 pounds for a hitch (200), the wife(?), and pin(1,600). Plenty of capacity. I don't have a truck box, tools, tonneau cover in the truck. Why would you put them in the truck when you can put them in the 5er? We are set up differently. I don't have excess weight in the bed of my truck like you do. 
As for the load, I can tow 10,600 on the ball. No problem pulling an 8,000 trailer, plus a 2,300 boat. Total is 10,300. In Illinois, I must have a 5th wheel to be legal triple towing. Even then, 4,800 + 8,000, + 2,300 = 15,100 + the wife and hitch. Again, under capacity. This all assumes one thing, the trailer is maxed out at 8,000 pounds. Every 100 pounds shaved off the 8K, is 20 pounds shaved off the pin and 100 of GCWR. Not sure how you camp, but I have been tent camping for over 4 decades. I barely carry 200 pounds of gear for a weekend, food and beer included. When I backpack, I carry about 35 pounds for a week, total pack weight, including food. The only difference between car camping and the 5er is I will drop the 30 pound tent and pick up 5,500 pound camper. Nothing else changes. I find it hard to believe you need 2,500 pounds of camping gear. Realistically, if the 5er is 5,500 off the lot I will add about 300 pounds of gear and food for a week long trip. 5,800 is well below 8,000.
Let's assume 500 pounds of gear. At 6,000 pounds for the 5er, I drop 400 pounds on the pin. 1,200 pound pin weight is something most modern 1/2tons can handle. Which is what the OP is after. I'm pushing the limits. My trips will be limited to 8hours or less for camping and fishing. I know I'm pushing the limits and I'm Okay with it. I'm also not going to buy a 24' or longer 5er. I need a 20' 5er and that will drop my total weight even more.

 

[Oldgator73]

You missed the part where my truck weight of 4,800 pounds includes me, the dogs, and gas. Aluminum engine and aluminum body does amazing things in weight reduction. How about this, truck GVWR is 6900 - (ME, MY Dogs, A full tank of gas and the truck weighs 4,800 pounds. That is total weight). Leaves me 2,100 pounds for a hitch (200), the wife(?), and pin(1,600). Plenty of capacity. I don't have a truck box, tools, tonneau cover in the truck. Why would you put them in the truck when you can put them in the 5er? We are set up differently. I don't have excess weight in the bed of my truck like you do. 
As for the load, I can tow 10,600 on the ball. No problem pulling an 8,000 trailer, plus a 2,300 boat. Total is 10,300. In Illinois, I must have a 5th wheel to be legal triple towing. Even then, 4,800 + 8,000, + 2,300 = 15,100 + the wife and hitch. Again, under capacity. This all assumes one thing, the trailer is maxed out at 8,000 pounds. Every 100 pounds shaved off the 8K, is 20 pounds shaved off the pin and 100 of GCWR. Not sure how you camp, but I have been tent camping for over 4 decades. I barely carry 200 pounds of gear for a weekend, food and beer included. When I backpack, I carry about 35 pounds for a week, total pack weight, including food. The only difference between car camping and the 5er is I will drop the 30 pound tent and pick up 5,500 pound camper. Nothing else changes. I find it hard to believe you need 2,500 pounds of camping gear. Realistically, if the 5er is 5,500 off the lot I will add about 300 pounds of gear and food for a week long trip. 5,800 is well below 8,000.
Let's assume 500 pounds of gear. At 6,000 pounds for the 5er, I drop 400 pounds on the pin. 1,200 pound pin weight is something most modern 1/2tons can handle. Which is what the OP is after. I'm pushing the limits. My trips will be limited to 8hours or less for camping and fishing. I know I'm pushing the limits and I'm Okay with it. I'm also not going to buy a 24' or longer 5er. I need a 20' 5er and that will drop my total weight even more.

This is what I've been trying to get across for some time now. Just because your unit's cargo capacity is X# doesn't mean you have to load that much in it. We are like Hanr3, we don't take everything we own camping.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I find it hard to believe you need 2,500 pounds of camping gear. Realistically, if the 5er is 5,500 off the lot I will add about 300 pounds of gear and food for a week long trip.

Keep on dreaming.  : Maybe your first trip will be that light, but the list of creature comforts will soon grow and the weight climbs steadily.  Once you have the space & capacity, why would you not bring a BBQ grill, an extra sweatshirt for those chilly nights, and a lawn chair for the wife?  And carry at least a little water in the tanks (and the water heater) ?  Residual water alone (6 gallons in the heater, 3-4 gallons in lines & tank) adds about 80 lbs even if the rig is "empty". Weight adds up fast!

I won't claim that everybody carries the max amount possible, but scaled weight statistics taken at numerous RV rallies have shown that high percentage of the rigs on the road today are at or above their GVWR or at least one axle limit (GAWR).  On this site we see regularly hear from trailer owners with bent axles and overloaded tires.  None of them ever dreamed they would carry enough stuff to do that.

 

[rbrdriver]

Another example is like on our fifth wheel we have later added another a/c for the front bedroom and went from 2 12 volt batteries to 4 6 volt golf cart batteries, etc. etc., things that slowly keep adding up.

 

[Oldgator73]

When we fulltimed we got heavier as time went on. As occasional campers we do not get heavier with every trip. We pretty much take the same thing each trip. We might leave the kayak behind on certain trips or the grandkids bicycles. Or if camping local we will take firewood. If you have been doing this for any length of time you know what you want to take. And we usually take the same amount, except for food, if we are gone for a weekend or a week.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

If you have been doing this for any length of time you know what you want to take.

Sure, but I'm willing to bet that for most people, the "take with us" list they have now has grown since its first iteration. A camp stool becomes a zero gravity chair, the little Coleman stove becomes a BBQ grill, that sort of thing. It's sort of a Parkinson's Law for RVs - "Stuff expands to fill the available space".  I've seen a few rigs with partially empty bays, but not many.

One of the advantage of short term camping trips is that you probably have a good idea of what you need at the particular destination and have a fair idea about the expected weather as well. Those traveling more widely need to pack for a greater range of possibilities. So yes, weekend campers often do travel more lightly. On the other hand, I see weekenders bringing the backyard BBQ, quantities of firewood and both adult & kid toys, so there is another side to consider as well.

 

[Pugapooh]

I find it interesting to see what other campers bring with them.  I've seen big grills,coolers and outdoor kitchen set ups.  Loads of bikes and kid toys.  I try to keep it simple but it can be hard not to take stuff when there is empty space for it.  My point being,you can want more space than you think you will. 

 

[Hanr3]

Like I said, been camping for well over 40 years. My 300 pounds already includes all the creature comforts we need, including camp chairs and cast iron cookware. I'm camping, not living in a house on wheels. Sure I see people dragging almost everything they own. They spend more time dealing with it then they do relaxing. The point, for us, is to leave all that crap at home and get back to nature. If it wasn't for the wife, I'd sleep under the stars. Done it too many times to count?

Why do you need a grill?

 

[ALLOY]

A well built (for RV industry) 5th with a GVWR 5500lbs

http://escapetrailer.com/trailers/the-5-0-escape/

 

[steveblonde]

Like I said, been camping for well over 40 years. My 300 pounds already includes all the creature comforts we need, including camp chairs and cast iron cookware. I'm camping, not living in a house on wheels. Sure I see people dragging almost everything they own. They spend more time dealing with it then they do relaxing. The point, for us, is to leave all that crap at home and get back to nature. If it wasn't for the wife, I'd sleep under the stars. Done it too many times to count?

Why do you need a grill?

Lol Bear Grills has joined the forum

My genny has a 30 gallon fuel tank to power my house on wheels and that fuel weights almost 300 lbs - oh well i guess i wont turn on my fireplace - or maybe i should to lighten the load lol

 

[SeilerBird]

Like I said, been camping for well over 40 years. My 300 pounds already includes all the creature comforts we need, including camp chairs and cast iron cookware. I'm camping, not living in a house on wheels. Sure I see people dragging almost everything they own. They spend more time dealing with it then they do relaxing. The point, for us, is to leave all that crap at home and get back to nature. If it wasn't for the wife, I'd sleep under the stars. Done it too many times to count?

No one drags almost everything they own. However most people do like to bring along a sets of clothes, tools, a cell phone, a laptop, chargers, cooking utensils, golf club, and many other things. 

Why do you need a grill?

The basic reason for needing a grill is to cook on. Sure there are fire pits in most campgrounds, but it is a real pain to collect wood or pay stupid prices for wood at the campground. And many times there is burn restrictions so you can't use dry conditions.

 

[Oldgator73]

I carry a kayak if there is water where we're going. Take the kids bikes. We take a little Weber grill and just enough charcoal for a few cookouts. Food, clothes, water for coffee and drinks. I take few tools, couple of lawn chairs. Pretty much just the essentials. We go camping to enjoy the outdoors not to enjoy all the comforts of home.

 

[steveblonde]

While it may sound like i carry a lot fact is we dont - most times we camp there are no water hook ups thus the 100 gallon tank in the coach we usually dont have power thus  the genny with a 30 gallon fuel tank. Here we have snow most years up to and including the may long weekend and its not uncommon for the nights to dip below freezing from sept to june - thus the fireplace we have a small webber q and 3-4 lawnchairs but i will bet if you add up all the dishes,pot and pans, cutlery and glasses, clothes for inclement weather 2 40lb bags of dog food, 3 kennels for the dogs and  other sundry items the very notion of only packing 300 lbs IN TOTAL IS LUDICROUS

No to mention the fact that dry weights advertised on a trailer dont include options ie awnings or 2 propane bottles at 60 lbs each when full, we purge our trailer every fall of everything unnessasary and only leave a few extra clothes in the trailer come spring somwe dont have to unpack stuff every weekend in the camping season

 

[country]

I know this thread is a week or so over but I was reading the current copy of trailer life and Grand Design has produced the Reflection 150 which they say can be towed by a 1/2 ton truck 7520 with water and lp gas 2000 hitch weight 9495 total loaded. Don't think I would put that on My F 150 Supercrew.It also has the Lippert turning point hitch which allows a 5 1/2 foot bed to tow it.

 

[Jimdamedic]

Ive posted this before, but we have a Ram 1500 and a 27 foot Keystone Cougar 5th wheel. Both our car dealership and rv dealer said pull it. When we are fully loaded. Wife and I, two dogs, firewood, everything included we are exactly right on the rear axle max. Right on the button. We are about a thousand under max vehicle weight. I have towed that rig thousands of miles around the Midwest and have never once felt out of control. Never have I felt the truck was being overworked.

A caveat, I probably wouldn?t take it into the mountains and we stay within 200 miles of our home. When we buy a new truck we will probably get a 2500. My point is that towing with a half ton is toable.

 

[Hanr3]

No one drags almost everything they own. However most people do like to bring along a sets of clothes, tools, a cell phone, a laptop, chargers, cooking utensils, golf club, and many other things. 
The basic reason for needing a grill is to cook on. Sure there are fire pits in most campgrounds, but it is a real pain to collect wood or pay stupid prices for wood at the campground. And many times there is burn restrictions so you can't use dry conditions.

I carry those items and still stay under 300 pounds. Even includes a 80pound 10x20 portable dining fly.
No need for a grill. I use charcoal and dutch ovens, or just cook on firewood. Then again, with a 5er I will have a stove and oven available. Same as a propane grill, just inside.

Les Shroud is a better example of a true outdoorsmen. Bear Grills showboats and will get someone killed with his antics.
I also laugh at shows like Naked and Afraid- Man has lived outdoors for centuries. Recently we moved indoors, and today we have luxury houses on wheels. To keep the misses happy, I need a camper with a flush toilet and hot water. A 5 gallon bucket and solar shower won't cut it. I asked! She won't tow the boat, and the boat isn't staying home. Illinois requires a 5th wheel to triple tow and here we are. This cavemen needs a 5er to keep the misses happy. I do have to admit, while I don't mind winter camping in a tent, a camper would be nice for deer camp.

 

[steveblonde]

I carry those items and still stay under 300 pounds. Even includes a 80pound 10x20 portable dining fly.
No need for a grill. I use charcoal and dutch ovens, or just cook on firewood. Then again, with a 5er I will have a stove and oven available. Same as a propane grill, just inside.

Les Shroud is a better example of a true outdoorsmen. Bear Grills showboats and will get someone killed with his antics.
I also laugh at shows like Naked and Afraid- Man has lived outdoors for centuries. Recently we moved indoors, and today we have luxury houses on wheels. To keep the misses happy, I need a camper with a flush toilet and hot water. A 5 gallon bucket and solar shower won't cut it. I asked! She won't tow the boat, and the boat isn't staying home. Illinois requires a 5th wheel to triple tow and here we are. This cavemen needs a 5er to keep the misses happy. I do have to admit, while I don't mind winter camping in a tent, a camper would be nice for deer camp.

LMAO  have a lovely day 

 

[toys4dad]

I towed my 5th wheel with a ram 1500 outdoorsman fine.  However I found out that the Jayco HT 1/2 ton towable is an issue when you purchase a ram 2500.  The combination of 2500 and 1/2 towable 5th wheel does not work! Can not level the camper, tried adjusting suspension, pin box and hitch.  so think and plan before buying either one.  still looking for a solution other then trading campers.

 

[Rob&Deryl]

I realize i am a bit late to the party but some recent experience i had may be helpful.
I just traded my ?05 RAM 1500 hemi quad cab for a ?15 3500 crew cab Cummins. Both were upscale trim and standard (ie: short) boxes.
The 1500 got 12mph generally. 6-7mph with a 7000lb trailer. The 3500 gets 17-18mpg generally and last weekend, got over 13 with the trailer.
Yes, the 1 ton rides rougher than the 1500 did. Yes, maintenance will cost more. It barely noticed the 7000lb trailer or the 800lb tongue weight.
Diesel fuel is more expemsive than regular grade gasoline but in some places these days the difference git smaller recently with the gas price increases.