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Old 05-27-2012, 07:29 PM   #1
LC Hauler
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New toy for the truck

Just brought home our new 2013 Passport UltraLite 5350BH 5th wheel yesterday.

Already made a few minor changes.

- we swapped out the queen foam mattress to a high quality bed mattress,
- swapped out the 2 room divider curtains to accordian folds for the master suite and the bunk house.
- added 2nd tv to the bunkhouse for the kids

looking at adding shocks to the axles to smooth out the ride.

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Old 05-27-2012, 09:11 PM   #2
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Looks like another 33' 8,000#= 5th wheel being tow by a half ton pickup.
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Old 05-28-2012, 03:58 AM   #3
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actually it's more of a 33' 6,360# = 5th wheel , so I'm under the towing specs for the truck. Did some homework before buying it.
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Old 05-28-2012, 04:01 AM   #4
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A trip to the scales I would take.
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Old 05-28-2012, 04:11 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LC Hauler View Post
actually it's more of a 33' 6,360# = 5th wheel , so I'm under the towing specs for the truck. Did some homework before buying it.
Dry weight or GVWR????? (And, yes, it matters, a lot.)
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Old 05-28-2012, 05:01 AM   #6
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GVWR is 8300#
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Old 05-28-2012, 05:38 AM   #7
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Gross weight wouldn’t be my problem. It’s the pin weight. Some half-tons have pretty high payload numbers. Mine isn’t one of them. I could only pull that one if it was just me and the trailer was empty…and the fifth wheel hitch weighed 50 lbs. Nevermind.
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Old 05-28-2012, 07:19 AM   #8
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Very nice

Very nice, congrat's on your new unit! For the life of me, I can't figure out how they are getting these off the line at that weight!
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Old 05-28-2012, 05:54 PM   #9
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I can appreciate the concerns from everyone here, trust me I spent 2 days online, at my dodge dealership and on the phones with several rv dealerships, Keystone directly and even had my brother (D.O.T officer) do homework before we committed to this thing, i would have never put myself, nor anyone else in any danger nor risk a new 2011 Dodge Ram truck over a fifth wheel.

The other thing to keep in mind is the truck is an 11', which means it has the coil independent suspension,

here are the ACTUAL specs on my truck direct from Dodge:

2011 Quad Cab 4x4 - SPORT
Tire: P275/60R20
Engine: 5.7L V8 Hemi (EZH)
Transmission Type: A5
Transmission: 545RFE (DGQ) 5 SPD AUTO
Axle Ratio: 3.92
GVWR: 7,200
Payload: 1,610

Base Weight:
Total:5,343
(Front:3,107)
(Rear: 2,235)

GAWR
(Front: 3,900)
(Rear: 3,900)

GCWR: 15,500

MAX TRAILER: 11,950

now with everything there, i have gone further to ensure the saftey of my family and my rig, I have a Total Load Control system being installed this week as well.
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Old 05-28-2012, 06:06 PM   #10
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Will you post an ACTUAL weight slip when you get one..?
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Old 05-28-2012, 06:27 PM   #11
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You have yourself a very nice unit there, it looks great. However Keystone shows the hitch wgt (pin) at 1120lbs, you state your payload is 1610lbs. You subtract the pin wgt from the payload and you get 490lbs. Then you need to subtract fuel, people and cargo in truck. Bottom line your right at or over max cargo wgt and that's for an empty trailer not loaded. The truck will pull it but it's not safe, it's over loaded.
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Old 05-28-2012, 06:54 PM   #12
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Will you post an ACTUAL weight slip when you get one..?
sure, we head out next weekend, I'll see if I can stop in and get it weighed, I will post it. Why would both dodge and Keystone tell me I can do this when I'm close or over any weight points?? That doesn't make sense to me. Anyways topis aside, I have a great fun unit that my family can enjoy.


not sure what the fuel weighs in at, but total weight for occupants will be 267lbs, as for cargo in truck, basically 0 I don't keep anything in the truck of any weight value, a flashlight, CD and carseat. (I hate clutter in vehicles)
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Old 05-28-2012, 07:08 PM   #13
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Dodge and Keystone will gladly tell you “sure, it’ll tow.” Just for kicks, ask them to put it in writing.

One thing that keeps getting skipped over is the weight of the 5th wheel hitch in the bed. That’s gotta add an extra 150 or more. I never know what to believe when it comes to trailer weights, so I hit the scale every few months after I change things around. My last experiment was filling up the fresh water tank. I haven’t dumped all that water yet, but at least I know I’m a few hundred pounds shy of my limits when excessively loaded.
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Old 05-29-2012, 02:09 AM   #14
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sure, we head out next weekend, I'll see if I can stop in and get it weighed, I will post it. Why would both dodge and Keystone tell me I can do this when I'm close or over any weight points?? That doesn't make sense to me. Anyways topis aside, I have a great fun unit that my family can enjoy.


not sure what the fuel weighs in at, but total weight for occupants will be 267lbs, as for cargo in truck, basically 0 I don't keep anything in the truck of any weight value, a flashlight, CD and carseat. (I hate clutter in vehicles)
Despite what Keystone, Dodge or any dealer tells you, it's a good idea to know where you stand.

http://catscale.com/

Get loaded for your trip and full of fuel....

Find a convenient spot out of the way where you can disconnect and get a reading with just your truck. They have 3 weight pads. Drive forward to where your front and rear axle are each on one of the last two pads. This way you know how much you have on each axle without the camper.

Then reconnect and do the same thing. This time your camper axles will be on the 3rd pad. You'll get a precise reading for what the camper weighs and how much the pin places on your truck.

This is also a good exercise if you're close on your limits like you are... You can mess around with how the camper is loaded (how much water, where certain things are stored) to affect load distribution.
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Old 05-29-2012, 04:40 AM   #15
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I was in your shoes not long ago. We bought a new trailer, I knew that the cargo wgt of the truck was close or right at the limit. I thought however that it would be ok. Two trips and both in winds the stability and control was terrible and we didn't feel good about it. We bought a new truck, not everyone can do that. Others are giving you advise and things you can try to help this out. The truck will pull it, however you need to keep in mind that your over loaded and will have control issues. Everything on the truck is being strained and will wear out faster, be very carefull out there and go slow.
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Old 05-29-2012, 11:48 AM   #16
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Unhappy

Ok, similar topic but first, congrats on the new 5'er. Let's see how little clutter ends up in the RV.

Also, I had my first weigh in this past weekend. I am over my limits for rear axle rating. My question is this: on the Avalanche 341TG, everybit of the storage is in the very front of the RV. My father in law says that for every 500lbs I move to the rear (somehow) I can pull up off the axle by at least 50% more. Is that true? Here are my specs:
Scale 1A - 4460
Scale 1B - 6540
Scale 1C - 10660
Total - 21660

My sticker says front is 5000 and rear is 6100 max... I'm over.
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Old 05-29-2012, 03:11 PM   #17
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Ok, similar topic but first, congrats on the new 5'er. Let's see how little clutter ends up in the RV.

Also, I had my first weigh in this past weekend. I am over my limits for rear axle rating. My question is this: on the Avalanche 341TG, everybit of the storage is in the very front of the RV. My father in law says that for every 500lbs I move to the rear (somehow) I can pull up off the axle by at least 50% more. Is that true? Here are my specs:
Scale 1A - 4460
Scale 1B - 6540
Scale 1C - 10660
Total - 21660

My sticker says front is 5000 and rear is 6100 max... I'm over.
What is the GVW of you truck, I add to 11,000# you are likely over on that also.

Yes is you can find a place to put it, that is the bad thing about 5th wheels, the basements add to the pin always. Do you have a rear water tank? If you were to fill it it would add to the total weight of the trailer, but should reduce the pin weight.
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