New member question

[Rvtravelers1]

New to rv forum. I?m on my second camper and now thinking about getting a third. I think I have the weight issue figure out but have a question on length. I have a 2015 ram with 5.7
Hemi. Any advise on safe length?

 

[Pugapooh]

Length doesn't determine what you can pull.  Weight and pin weight are still the determining factor.  Do you have the info for YOUR truck?  You have to consider any additions to your truck too.  What is the trailer weight?  You have to add in all the stuff you put in there. 

I'm sure someone here will be happy to figure out your capacity.  They'll be along.

And welcome to the forum.

 

[John From Detroit]

As Pug said Length does not determine what you can pull save for your driving skill and I can't help you there. I can tell you that the greater the distance from the HITCH (Be it a 5er or a Travel Trailer) to ther Trailer wheels. The easier it is to back up.. Lots and lots of experience backing trailers both farm and Travel/utility since before I became a teen.

Length again combined with you skill at backing, determines if you can park on a site.. I"ve seen some folks who, when it comes to towing a trailer, are "Forward only" drivers.. Just like I am driving a motor home towing a car 4 down..  But in my case it is because when you tow 4 down. you only tow forward (no backing allowed).. Pulling a regular trailer  I have backed into places where folks swear I don't fit.  Some of the places I had to back into on the farm...  Well they were like that.  But I did it several times a day.. After a while it got easy.

Whatever you tow... Get a set of "Dunce caps" (Traffic cones) and lay out some sample "Campsites" in a big EMPTY parking lot and practice backing in without running over the dunce caps.. (Way cheaper than say backing over the park's electrical or water boxes. or backing into a tree (Done that myself a few times).  ALso drive around a mall's circle drive a few times.. THe idea is to have nothing out there you can hit other than the brakes and gas when practicing.

 

[Ernie n Tara]

The above is somewhat questionable although technically correct. The accepted wisdom seems to 25 to 28 feet long is reasonable for a light truck.

Ernie

 

[Pugapooh]

The above is somewhat questionable although technically correct. The accepted wisdom seems to 25 to 28 feet long is reasonable for a light truck.

Ernie

What is questionable?

 

[RVMommaTo6]

Welcome to the forum

 

[SpencerPJ]

The above is somewhat questionable although technically correct. The accepted wisdom seems to 25 to 28 feet long is reasonable for a light truck.

Ernie

I agree.

Without that debate, honestly you will find that 25' will cap out your weight restrictions and payload restrictions.  If it doesn't then what others have found, the big lightweight 28' TT blow all over the place in winds and weather.

A lot has to do with your plans.  Local weekend camping?  Get what your truck meets spec, slow down if need be.  Cross country, mountains?  You better leave some in reserve or you will be stressed in many situations. Put your truck at 90% ability, start up a long elevation, get some cross winds, have a semi or two blow past you, you get my drift.

And finally, You say you have pulled a few different trailers, there is no magical answer here.  Billy might be fine maxed out, and having the TT he wants, Joey might be more safety conscious and gives a little on the TT for a less stressful drive.



 

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

RVtravelers didn't mention what model of Ram truck he has, but the 5.7L Hemi suggests a 1500 (half ton).  Could be a 2500 as well, though.  And even so, the towing capability could vary substantially with the truck configuration, e.g. wheel base, towing or suspension packages, etc.

There are a few Ram 1500 configurations that can handle 28 or maybe even 30 ft, but most should probably stay under 28 ft. Most 2500's can probably handle at least 30 ft and more on the longer wheelbase models..

 

[Rvtravelers1]

Thanks for the info. I currently tow a 24 ft hybrid that?s dry weight is 5100lbs.  Want to look for one where the beds are inside as on longer trips folding the beds up is a pain. My trucks max towing capacity is around 10000lbs. I have heard if you go tooling the trailer is more likely to sway.

 

[Rvtravelers1]

The truck is a 1500

 

[SpencerPJ]

Thanks for the info. I currently tow a 24 ft hybrid that?s dry weight is 5100lbs.  Want to look for one where the beds are inside as on longer trips folding the beds up is a pain. My trucks max towing capacity is around 10000lbs. I have heard if you go tooling the trailer is more likely to sway.

The Hemi is a powerful engine.  IMO, It can pull more than what you have.  What about the rest of the truck? There is a sticker on drivers door that has your Max Payload on it.  What does that say?

Not sure by what you mean:  Tooling the trailer?  The sway usually comes from improper loading and not enough tongue weight.

 

[Dragon240]

1.  Your beds are not inside ? Or you don't 'fold up' for short trips
2.  "tooling"    regional vernacular?

Just curious

 

[Rvtravelers1]

Didn?t mean to say tooling. Was suppose to be too long. Was concerned to long of a trailer would sway  My payload is 1450. Not sure of the hitch weight as I can?t seem to find it anywhere. Again thanks for all the comments.

 

[SpencerPJ]

Most people plan for the Hitch weight= 12% of the gross weight of the trailer you intend to purchase, NOT the dry weight.  So that, plus you, all your passengers, dog, and anything else in the truck and truck bed, add all that up and it equals payload.

 

[Alfa38User]

Didn?t mean to say tooling. Was suppose to be too long. Was concerned to long of a trailer would sway  My payload is 1450. Not sure of the hitch weight as I can?t seem to find it anywhere. Again thanks for all the comments.

The maximum payload or CCC  for YOUR specific truck as it left the factory will be shown on a sticker on the drivers door post along with tire and other info. It often has yellow highlights. The theoretical payloads shown in advertising and brochures etc  is usually for a stripped down base model truck and seldom applies to your particular vehicle and does not take into account all the factory options that may have been installed.

Hitch weight is best measured by weighing the trailer-truck combo at a public scale when loaded and ready to go camping. The weights published for a particular trailer (when they can be found) are for an empty trailer as it left the factory. The maximum weights for any given hitch itself are usually stamped into the steel of the hitch. We like to recommend using the GVWR of the trailer as a guide for establishing hitch weight and load on the truck as it builds in a safety margin in the calculations.

As mentioned before, swaying is normally caused by insufficient loading on the hitch, and not dependent on the length of the trailer although side winds can have a big effect on a long trailer. In order to tow nicely, a trailer should have between 10-12% of the loaded trailer weight on the hitch. For a 5th wheel trailer that would be 20-25% of the loaded weight on the pin.