Checking In from OHIO!

[OfcMav254]

Hello all! Just wanted to introduce myself, my name is Ryan and my wife is Holli. We, as of today put a deposit on a 2017 Bullet 330BHS! We are beyond excited to make the jump from a Viking pop-up to the real deal! We have 2 kids, 4yo girl and 2yo boy that we will be making memories with in this monster of a TT.

To be completely candid, when we went to the dealership I did not anticipate getting the 330BHS, I was leaning more towards the Bullet 287QBS or the 308BHS for weight and length considerations. But when my wife went in the 330BHS with that unique floor plan, she said "buy it now", of course this was in front of the salesman (i will make a note not to coach her on things NOT to say in front of the salesman) haha. So after some deliberation, working some numbers we put the deposit down and plan on taking delivery at the end of April. Unfortunately we could not take it immediately, I will be gone from essentially Sunday until April 22nd for work and an already planned vacation with the family.

Soooooooooo here comes the dilemma part...and go easy on me with the "you are an idiot" comments. The Tow Vehicle..........as I mentioned before I was looking at the smaller options because of weight and length because my tow vehicle is a 2016 Ram 1500 5.7hemi 3.21 gears with tow package. I planned on installing the 5000 air bags and I understand I will be pushing the payload capacity of 1400lbs once loaded up. Ram states I am "able to tow" max trailer weight of 8100lbs. I am a little worried it is going to be too much for my tow vehicle, I know with the 3.21 gears it will be a chore if we plan any mountain trips but that will be very rare. My wife says I worry too much lol I respond with I only worry about our safety! haha so we typically will not be towing with full family on board, I usually head to the campground and get everything set up on Friday afternoon and she brings the kids in her car in the early evening time. BUT it still concerns me. Any constructive suggestions or advice? My other thought was to sell her car and get an older 2500 but I haven't suggested that option yet.

THANKS and can't wait to share my experiences and learn from this community!

[cardinal96ss]

Welcome to the forum from eastern NE. Enjoy your new rig. I don't know anything about the Bullet so I'll let the knowledgeable members weigh in on your TV, but my guess is they will all say you need more truck.

[captcolour]

Welcome from Northern Kentucky. I'm a newbie too. We started the search planning on using our 2016 F-150. Things kept escalating as we looked at bigger and bigger trailers. Trailer we decided on weighed 8,800 lbs. That would have been too close for safety in my opinion. That drove the decision for a new tow vehicle. Safety first including a safety margin on towing capacity and payload. You will never say "I wish I had less towing and payload capacity!"

Don't necessarily follow our model because things really got out of hand. Bought a 39' 5th wheel and ordered a F-350 diesel dually!

[chuckster57]

Welcome to the forum!!

Congrats on your new purchase. You have done what many before you have in buying maybe too much trailer for your truck. This is the WELCOME forum, so if you would like to start a discussion on weights and such feel free to start another thread.

[PARAPTOR]

to The Forum From Western PA

Hi neighbor, just made reservations in the Salt Fork Park area. We spend a lot of time in that area.

Boy i guess us northern people come in with a bang . "TOWING"

Seriously you are right on by asking before purchase. There is lot of good information on the forum pertaining to weight calculations including a previous post that is still active, In one of the posts there is a video describing matching TV and rig. A search of say weights, towing, etc will bring up many references to previous posts

Now its time ............

Be Safe and Happy Camping

[busterbrown]

Welcome and congrats on your new Bullet. I purchased our 308BHS last year and it has been a great trailer so far. The 330BHS is new for the 2017 model year. I've done quite a few mods to our coach as you'll find you'll want to personalize and tweak many things. MAXXAir fan, trailer mounted receiver hitch, new faucets, interior RV door grab handles, memory foam cushions for the bunks, new TV's, and new interior speakers to name a few.

I like the floor plan of the 330 and 311 but I would be exceeding the limits of our TV. I went with a 308 as it was the lightest trailer in the 30 foot class we could find. And it kept the total length to 35 feet, a good thing when it comes to Michigan State parks.

Also, you do know that the 330BHS has "2" black tanks. For me, this is something I did not want unless I was fulltiming. It can add to your maintenance chores on each trip. Much easier to keep 1 tank clean IMHO.

You're going to get a lot of advice in the next couple of days in terms of your TV setup. Be receptive to it all as it members on here are quite knowledgeable and informative, qualities not found at many RV dealers. My personal opinion is that your trailer is 3/4 ton territory as your 1500 series truck doesn't have the payload, gearing, or drivetrain to support it. I'm a proponent of 1/2 ton trucks pulling trailers when properly equipped. But having only 1400 lbs in payload capacity with a dry tongue weight of 810 lbs will exceed limits after you add your trip essentials, propane, battery, and WDH.

Your rear axle ratio will be limiting too. Truck manufacturers use these large pinion gears to keep MPGs in check with EPA mandates. They really aren't for towing big heavy trailers. RAM (and the other 2 domestic manufacturers) makes a good variant of 1/2 truck that can be a successful tow vehicle. Unfortunately, yours is not one of them. Surprisingly, RAM has the lowest payload and (I think) Ford has the highest.

What ever you decide, make sure you load all your cargo in the trailer equally in front and behind both axles, have a good brake controller, purchase a mid-range or higher quality WDH (with sway control), and drive like your 80 years old.

As far as sway control, I'm an outspoken advocate of 2 premium hitches. Hensley is the one I own. Propride is the other. Pull behinds longer than 30 feet will experience sway unlike any 5er or short trailer. Traditional sway CONTROL is friction based or based on tension on the spring arms. Not with a Hensley. It provides sway ELIMINATION designed on a series of linkages and struts that lock the hitch head in place onto the ball. Both TV and trailer move in tandem when lateral forces are applied in any direction, not independently (the reason for sway). A "must-have" product in my eyes.

As a side note, you may or may not have read about the OEM tires on your new coach. Well, you'll find many of those informed will invest in a new set of rubbers soon after purchase. Bullets are equipped with China bombs (meant to say Trailer Kings) that have a reputation of disastrous blowouts even when new. Just search this site and other RV enthusiast forums and you'll come to the same conclusion, purchase quality tires (Maxxis, Carlisle, or Goodyear Endurance).

Good luck with your new RV. Have fun and play safe.

[OfcMav254]

Thanks for the replies so far, you all are very knowledgable. After much discussion with the wife, she said we can sell our 2016 1500 (which we just bought in September 2016) and get a 2500. I think my wife is a keeper. So until I can make that sale happen, I will at least be able to get the trailer home about 50 miles of highway right? lol! Ford F250 or Ram 2500 here we come!

[sourdough]

to the forum! Unfortunately, you've done exactly what I did and bought too much trailer for the truck. We also went in with a preset size in mind and as we looked it got bigger and bigger as I was trying to rationalize how I was going to make the numbers work. I couldn't. Still tried it out for one trip, came home and immediately bought a bigger truck. One of the best decisions I've made.

It was suggested you start a new thread. Put it in the towing or trucks forum with the info on the trailer in the header. You'll get a lot of good information. I know when I first joined and discussed my trailer/truck I WANTED my truck to be OK and folks here pointed out that it wasn't. I didn't like to think I had made a mistake but in my heart I knew I did. Don't take any comments personally, folks just want you to be safe and have an enjoyable experience. See you in the new thread.

[busterbrown]

Originally Posted by OfcMav254

Thanks for the replies so far, you all are very knowledgable. After much discussion with the wife, she said we can sell our 2016 1500 (which we just bought in September 2016) and get a 2500. I think my wife is a keeper. So until I can make that sale happen, I will at least be able to get the trailer home about 50 miles of highway right? lol! Ford F250 or Ram 2500 here we come!

Sounds like you had your mind already made up! Congrats on your future new truck!

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by OfcMav254

Thanks for the replies so far, you all are very knowledgable. After much discussion with the wife, she said we can sell our 2016 1500 (which we just bought in September 2016) and get a 2500. I think my wife is a keeper. So until I can make that sale happen, I will at least be able to get the trailer home about 50 miles of highway right? lol! Ford F250 or Ram 2500 here we come!

Great! Looks like you were posting about the same time I was. Sounds like your wife IS a keeper Good luck with your choice.

If you're looking at a new 3/4 ton I can endorse the Ram 2500 4x4 CC 6.4L for something the size you're purchasing. My trailer is almost 10k (your gvw will be 8600) and the 6.4L does a great job. I am looking at upgrading the truck to a 3500 due to looking at an upgrade to a 5vr. I advocate a diesel for anything over 10k which you shouldn't hit, but, if you think you will upsize the trailer before you wear out the new 2500, get a diesel....and probably a 1 ton because the payload on a 3/4 ton diesel is low. Do your homework, crunch the numbers, read the tea leaves to see what the future holds and buy accordingly Again, good luck.

[OfcMav254]

Originally Posted by sourdough

Great! Looks like you were posting about the same time I was. Sounds like your wife IS a keeper Good luck with your choice.

If you're looking at a new 3/4 ton I can endorse the Ram 2500 4x4 CC 6.4L for something the size you're purchasing. My trailer is almost 10k (your gvw will be 8600) and the 6.4L does a great job. I am looking at upgrading the truck to a 3500 due to looking at an upgrade to a 5vr. I advocate a diesel for anything over 10k which you shouldn't hit, but, if you think you will upsize the trailer before you wear out the new 2500, get a diesel....and probably a 1 ton because the payload on a 3/4 ton diesel is low. Do your homework, crunch the numbers, read the tea leaves to see what the future holds and buy accordingly Again, good luck.

Thanks you all are great!

[Firewall]

I would just leave a picture of what you want with your wife. She can go to the truck dealer and say "I want this!" I'm sure she will get a good deal and you'll have a nice new truck!

[Mikey]

Welcome from South Alabama! Love the floor plan on that camper! Lots of great information and ideas around here. Most important thing is to get out and enjoy it. I really love my Bullet and so does my 7 y.o. daughter. That makes it all worth it!

Happy Trails and Safe Travels!
2017 Chevrolet 2500HD
2015 Bullet 308BHS

[66joej]

Welcome to the forum from Radium Hot Springs BC.
Enjoy your new TT and have fun shopping for that new TV.

[ctbruce]

Welcome to the forum from Kansas City, MO! Sounds li k e you've jumped I with both feet and already heard from several really good folks. Have fun!

Chip Bruce, RPh
Kansas City, MO
2016 Fuzion Impact 312
2017 3500HD Silverado LTZ

[Tbos]

Welcome to the forum from Southern MD. You bought your DW the TT she wanted and she said you can get the truck you need. Have fun with all your new stuff. Enjoy all the new memories you'll be making.


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[OfcMav254]

Well I took her home today. I must say I am very impressed with how my 1500 handled the beast. Wind, semis, no problem. I got a good wdh and didn't really go over 60-65 on the highway and all was well!! Not that my search for a 3/4 ton doesn't end but my rush is much less urgent [emoji4]


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[OfcMav254]

(null)
Definitely used a double negative in that sentence, you can catch my drift haha


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[BuxCamper]

Welcome aboard.

Having towed a Kodiak hybrid with a GMC Envoy and been very close to the Envoy's limits I too went the bigger tow vehicle route. A Chevy Silverado 1500. That is a far better TV for TT's in the 25 foot range.

-- Mark

[CrazyCain]

Welcome from your northern Neighbor up here in Michigan. Enjoy the forum and enjoy that new rig of yours!!