Making the change from 5th wheel to TT to gain storage space?

[oldryder1]

we presently have a 31' GD 5th wheel. Like it a lot but are considering going to a TT to gain the storage in the truck bed. I looked at going to toy hauler 5th wheels but they get so heavy I think I'd want a bigger truck. We can store a LOT of stuff in the truck bed with a nice cap on it. I started looking at the TT specs and was surprised to find them so much lighter than the similar length 5th wheels. Truck is a crew cab 3/4 ton with 6.5' box so I'm not worried about sway with a longer TT (unless I should be?).

looking for comments or insight on making the change.

 

[Lou Schneider]

A 5th wheel is inherently more stable than a pull trailer. Not that you can't successfully pull a conventional trailer but you do have to be aware of the inherent differences.

Unless there are differences in the house construction (wall thickness, insulation, etc.) weight savings in a travel trailer are due to it's lighter frame. A 5th wheel puts 20-25% of it's weight on the truck and this has to be carried up and over the truck bed to the hitch. A travel trailer only puts 10-15% of it's weight on the hitch and it's a short, straight shot through the trailer's A-frame to the hitch.

Cargo placement is more critical in a pull trailer than in a 5th wheel. A trailer's center of gravity has to remain forward of the axles for stabiity and this includes the effect of wind pushing against the top edge of the trailer's front wall. If the center of gravity gets too far back (hitch gets too light) the trailer becomes unstable and can develop self amplifying sway. With 20-25% of a 5th wheel's weight on the hitch it's more forgiving of cargo loading than a pull trailer with only 10-15% of it's weight on the hitch.

Side forces also have much more affect on a conventional trailer than a 5th wheel. Since a 5th wheel hitch is directly above the truck's rear axle side forces go directly down to the road through the truck's rear tires with little or no effect on the truck's direction of travel.

A conventional trailer has it's hitch pivot several feet behind the truck's rear axle. This creates a lever that lets side forces on the trailer pivot the truck around the rear axle and push the front of the truck in the opposite direction. You have to counter steer against this and then correct again when the side push stops. There are anti-sway devices you can install to lessen this but these are just band-aids that tighten the pivot so the truck and trailer can't get out of line as easily.

None of these problems are insurmountable, you just have to be aware of them. And be ready to input more corrections into the steering wheel with a pull trailer whenever a truck passes or you're encountering side winds.

 

[rvlifer]

You shouldnt have any issues with the tv as long as you stay within the tow specs. I would think one of the challenges wi be internal rv storage. 5th wheels seem to have a lot more of it than non 5th wheel tow behinds

 

[Derby6]

"We can store a LOT of stuff in the truck bed with a nice cap on it."

Yes, question is what are you loading in the truck? If its heavy stuff may not be good.

I loved my TT's and still love my TT Toy Hauler. When kids were young, I had 550 Quad and firewood in truck bed while the SxS and 450 Quad were in the hauler. Great times.

Fiver we now snowbird in I love as well. Room for my auxiliary/pack tank (50 gallons); cooler; and leveling buckets in bed.

 

[rvlifer]

Unfortunately the caps are expensive and worth nothing on a trade in

 

[Bearcatrp]

You can pull a small trailer behind your fifth wheel for more space. But, if you go out of state, you need to check their laws on pulling a trailer behind a 5th wheel. Do you have a hitch on your RV? If so, you may need it upgraded. If not, you will need to have one installed. Have found 1 place that does this here in Minnesota . They are in Roger’s. Am looking to pull a small trailer myself. Just got the wiring done when I had it serviced last month. I have a small hitch on mine but looking at having it upgraded. A TT has its pluses and minuses. The cross winds can get the butt cheeks to pucker if they are high. I switched to a 5th wheel after getting tired of moving the monster anti sway hitch after each trip. Mine was big but I wanted the best to handle the winds, which most of the time it did. But those 30 MPH plus winds still rock you a bit. Good luck on your decision.

 

[CharlesinGA]

Lucky you have a short bed, they are much easier to find used toppers/caps for. I have a long bed and looked like crazy for a couple of months until I stumbled into one 300 miles away. The guy had paid $2600 new for it and I bought it for $600. My travel buddy found a short bed cap that fit his, in white (the color of the truck) and it was $500 or $600, I don't recall. We drove from Atlanta to Jacksonville to get it.

Charles

 

[old_toys]

the caps and toppers may be expensive and worth less on trade in but the upswept topper on my duramax got me an extra 2mpg compared to pulling the relative flat front trailer with the open bed. if I was traveling with no rain in the forecast I would just raise the rear window and it would act even more like an air foil.

 

[Lou Schneider]

How to adjust an air foil for best efficiency? Look for the smashed bugs on the front of the trailer and adjust the air foil so the bugs are being lifted just enough to clear it. No joke.

 

[CharlesinGA]

The only way to effectively utilize the space in a pickup bed is to have a sliding tray to place stuff on, then it is all within reach without climbing over other stuff. I DO NOT have a sliding tray, and don't want to go drilling holes to bolt one down, but my travel buddy did in his RAM 3500 long bed and I watched and saw how easy it made accessing stuff. If you are traveling on long trips, the slider is invaluable.

The problem is, using the bed for storage is, it eats up a lot of the payload of your truck so you need to carefully look at tongue weight, hitch weight and junk in the bed weight, plus the topper, and see how much payload you have left, I'm betting its gonna be about nothing.

As far as adding an airfoil to the truck to raise the airflow, I considered experimenting with a wing spoiler of some sort on my truck, as I have Thule roof rack rails on the topper that the spoiler could be mounted on, making it removable for non-towing use.

The Youtube channel Slim Potatohead did an experiment using a snow board for a rear wing on his Jeep Liberty (he has since moved up to a pickup) and did a long driving test over the same route with and without it and found it did make a difference.

Charles

 

[Knobs1]

Some of you guys are making it sound like towing a travel trailer is a continual white-knuckle and dangerous experience.

His truck will have no problem with practically any 30-34 foot TT with a proper hitch.

I've been towing a 33.5 foot (ball to bumper) TT with a well-equipped half ton for a couple of years all around the country with hardly any notice of problems with sway, etc. I say "hardly any" because crossing the Galveston Island bridge did keep my attention and hand ready to apply trailer brakes. But, that's it for anything remotely white-knuckle-ish.

Cross winds are a big deal when pulling such a large trailer, for sure. While I have not experienced excessive winds (yet) I do pay attention to the weather and would stop and wait it out if needed. I have driven through fairly strong side winds without major issues. I can feel it, but nothing that can't be controlled. I slow down during such conditions.

18-wheelers passing at high speed both push and pull sideways a little as they pass, but, again, it is minor.

The key is proper weight distribution in the trailer and a proper hitch for the size and tongue weight, adjusted for level travel. Also, educate yourself on sway control.

 

[Lou Schneider]

Some of you guys are making it sound like towing a travel trailer is a continual white-knuckle and dangerous experience.

His truck will have no problem with practically any 30-34 foot TT with a proper hitch.

I've been towing a 33.5 foot (ball to bumper) TT with a well-equipped half ton for a couple of years all around the country with hardly any notice of problems with sway, etc. I say "hardly any" because crossing the Galveston Island bridge did keep my attention and hand ready to apply trailer brakes. But, that's it for anything remotely white-knuckle-ish.

Cross winds are a big deal when pulling such a large trailer, for sure. While I have not experienced excessive winds (yet) I do pay attention to the weather and would stop and wait it out if needed. I have driven through fairly strong side winds without major issues. I can feel it, but nothing that can't be controlled. I slow down during such conditions.

18-wheelers passing at high speed both push and pull sideways a little as they pass, but, again, it is minor.

The key is proper weight distribution in the trailer and a proper hitch for the size and tongue weight, adjusted for level travel.

Having towed both conventional and 5th wheel trailers, sometimes you don't realize how bad something is until you experience something better.

I found the same thing applies to inertia based trailer brake controllers - you don't know how marginal they are until you experience something like the integrated air brake system in a big rig. Or lately, the OEM brake controllers controlled directly by the truck's brake system.

 

[Knobs1]

Having towed both conventional and 5th wheel trailers, sometimes you don't realize how bad something is until you experience something better.

I found the same thing applies to inertia based trailer brake controllers - you don't know how marginal they are until you experience something like the integrated air brake system in a big rig. Or lately, the OEM brake controllers controlled directly to the truck's brake system.

I didn't say it wasn't better; I am merely pointing out that his truck should have no problems and towing a TT is not inherently hazardous or stressful if you pay attention to your setup and to conditions.

 

[Derby6]

I still own both. Both have pros and cons. But I am definitely not in my fiver pulls better that my TT camp.
They both tow fine.

 

[The Village Idiot]

I have found that most people who have issues with how their TT pulls, they are the people who have a poorly set-up WD hitch. Haven't had a TT since our super heavy Work & Play 30WRS with over 1500 lbs of tongue weight. But the Equalizer was set up perfectly and it pulled great and if I needed to, I had tons of room in the bed of my F350.