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Old 02-25-2018, 07:06 PM   #1
ctbruce
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Before You Buy That New Trailer

You have a truck. Doesn't matter what size, shape, color or manufacturer it is. At some point in time you are going to match the weight of the trailer and the payload capacity of your truck.

The Time To Do This Is Before You Buy The Trailer!!

Why is this so? Well, despite what Tommy Truckdriver said to you ("Sure!!!! Go ahead, and pull the trigger! Your rig will pull a house!) that may not (absolutely, positively, is not) be true. You, the purchaser are responsible for your actions and what you are pulling. It does not matter what Tommy says. It most definitely does not matter what the salesman says. He's there to move inventory, make a paycheck, look good to the sales manager, all in that order. Note that your safety, knowing anything about tow ratings or being honest is NOT on his 3-point job description.

The good folks on this forum will be glad to help you make a good decision. They are not paid enough to thumbs up a bad decision you have already made (Ha, Ha, Ha. If they doubled our salaries they would still be $0.00). So, if you come looking for help before the deed, great. If you come after the deed, be prepared to get advice. Lots of advice. Lots of very direct advice. Lots of very direct, pointed, opinionated advice. But, keep in mind, all of that advice is from people did the same thing at some point in the past. We just hate that the size of that group keeps growing after every RV show.

You need to do the math yourself. Here are some things that will help with that daunting task:
1. Do NOT use the numbers in any of the advertising brochures. They are for a stripped down truck version that NO ONE owns. Go out to your truck and open the door. Look at the stickers there that list the official payload for your truck and your trucks axle weight ratings. These are YOUR numbers to use to make the calculations.

2. You should strive to be under all of the numbers. Not some of the numbers. Certainly under just one number. All the numbers. These numbers are how your truck with your numbers (see #1 above if confused on this) is designed with maximum safety in mind.

3. If you say, "the dealer told me I could pull anything on the lot with my truck!" Not surprised. Did you see their 3-point job description above. Here is the gospel on this. You probably can move anything on the lot....for a short distance, with no margin for safety and absolutely no regard for the wear and tear on your $70K truck. We do not talk about moving on this forum. (See Atlas Movers forum for that info) We are talking about towing, maybe long distances, safely, with optimal mileage and reduced wear and tear leading to maximum enjoyment, smiles and high fives all around for a trip well done.

4. Don't come here and start off with, "I was over on the Ford/Dodge/Chevy/Toyota forum and lots of guys over there said no problem. Really. You took advice from this guy (see below).

5. Put your big boy/girl panties on. You will get honesty. Straight in the eye, no fluff, unadulterated honesty. And you will hear all sides. Guaranteed.

I hope this helps you in your quest to match a truck and a trailer. And that you have an absolute ball once you accomplish your task.
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Old 02-25-2018, 10:11 PM   #2
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^^^^^And there you have it! Excellent summary!


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Old 02-26-2018, 12:05 AM   #3
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Hey Chip.....Great Advice.........Now make it a Sticky at the top of the page!
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Old 02-26-2018, 02:33 AM   #4
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Chip, it must have been a slow night in Kansas City..... Nice post, I especially like the part about members being very smart AND opinionated! You might look at your sentence " Note that your safety, knowing anything about tow ratings or being honest is on his 3-point job description." Maybe change the note to not.
Our friends just pulled into our RV park with a new Montana High Country, triple axle, toy hauler about a mile long. They pull it with a 3/4 ton Dodge and when I kidded him a little about it he told me that the Dodge salesman told him that Cummins would pull any RV they might buy. So far they have managed to make it through the state of Florida. And for those of you wondering, he already is in the market for air bags.
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Old 02-26-2018, 03:28 AM   #5
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Just something to keep in mind......

"Most Car/Truck/RV salesmen do NOT Lie to you"..........


















Unless they are breathing!
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Old 02-26-2018, 04:03 AM   #6
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Jim,. Thanks for the find. Getting old sucks. Not slow here, just been stewing this one for a while and someone who will remain nameless gave me motivation to put it all down in bits and bytes.
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Old 02-26-2018, 05:14 AM   #7
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Well said ctbruce. I agree with xrated, trim the fluff down here and close it and stick it before it becomes a **** show
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Old 02-26-2018, 07:38 AM   #8
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Well written, except the typo that got noted. Now, will anyone read it? Will it help? But, maybe, just maybe, it will help one.












Now I need to go find some air bags.
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Old 02-26-2018, 08:18 AM   #9
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Remember if the rv/truck salesmans lips are moving!!

The majority of either of those know absolutely nothing about what they are selling other than to get it off the lot.
Unfortunately I've heard "the salesman said" way more times than I can remember.
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Old 02-26-2018, 09:28 AM   #10
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While I generally agree with you, and feel like everyone should do homework before purchase . . . . This is often just nanny state my sticker says nonsense. It is one thing, if you tongue weight is 500lbs over the hitch rating. It is another if you are 150lbs over GVWR. Before payload stickers, NO one cared. We towed to campsites, setup, camped and returned home without loss of sleep over any of this.

I maintain that to date, I have never been forced to react to an overloaded truck towing a camper. I am forced daily to react to someone texting and driving a Prius. Thus far, I would prefer to be driving next to a 1500 pulling 10000 lbs, than someone trying to corral their kids in the back seat.
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Old 02-26-2018, 11:10 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by madmaxmutt View Post
While I generally agree with you, and feel like everyone should do homework before purchase . . . . This is often just nanny state my sticker says nonsense. It is one thing, if you tongue weight is 500lbs over the hitch rating. It is another if you are 150lbs over GVWR. Before payload stickers, NO one cared. We towed to campsites, setup, camped and returned home without loss of sleep over any of this.

I maintain that to date, I have never been forced to react to an overloaded truck towing a camper. I am forced daily to react to someone texting and driving a Prius. Thus far, I would prefer to be driving next to a 1500 pulling 10000 lbs, than someone trying to corral their kids in the back seat.
C'est la vie, such is life. Your opinion is yours to have. Just a question: You do realize that the posts on this forum are part of the public record and the contents are considered discoverable? It could wind up biting you some time in the future.

Yes we do agree, everyone should do their homework and know what it means. We could not agree more if we tried. And yes, lawyers have spoiled most of the easy good times. The world has changed significantly.

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Old 02-26-2018, 11:58 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ctbruce View Post
: You do realize that the posts on this forum are part of the public record and the contents are considered discoverable? It could wind up biting you some time in the future.
We all have opinions posted here. I personally, could not care less about discover-ability here. And, I will venture a WAG that very few of the actual Keystone owners (low percentage anyway) ever post anything that could "potentially" bite them in the butt. Especially in the one in a million scenario (again my Dilbert math), you present here.

Now, someone catching that lady texting next to me, is just about as possible . . .
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Old 02-26-2018, 12:51 PM   #13
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I have offered this before and I will again. I have an excel spreadsheet that does the math for you when inputting your trucks sticker info and trailer info. It does not form opinions or guess. it simply calculates the numbers for you and tells you whether you are ok or not. I am always happy to share it with anyone who private messages me for it.

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Old 02-26-2018, 01:57 PM   #14
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There is an excellent smart phone app that lets you plug in your numbers and does the calculations and gives the results. If the resulting number is green you are good to go. If it is red you are out of tolerance. The app is called, "Fifth Wheel St." where St. stands for "Safe Towing."

On the Google Play Store the official app title is: RV Weight Safety Report - FWS.

I believe it is also available for iPhones but I am not sure.

If you have this on your phone you can pull it out while you are talking to that salesman and see what the facts are.
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Old 02-26-2018, 02:27 PM   #15
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Sure would be. I looked it up and it is available for iPhone. however it is a paid app around $3. I am certainly to frugal for that. I will keep using my free excel sheet. Cool idea though.
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Old 02-26-2018, 03:18 PM   #16
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YOU GO CHIP!!!, the perfect Rx for people heading out to the "SPRING RV SHOWS", where all kinds of miracles are performed, and everyone wins a trailer they can pull with anything! PERFECT TIMING, THANKS, from all of the newbies!

You can pull a freight train with a F**D, D***E, CH**Y, G*C, TOY**A,
(whatever you drive), with the right gearing, and equipment. etc,etc,etc, Any one else remember the Chevy commercial where a Vega pulled a boat trailer and boat, with the rear wheels removed? (Is my age showing here?) Front wheel drive was great, but no for towing.

Buyer beware... do your homework before you sign the dotted line!

GOOD LUCK,
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Old 02-26-2018, 06:24 PM   #17
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Also remember the Olds Toronado commercial where the car had the rear wheels removed and they pulled a travel trailer across the US. I believe they were also flogging the Reese weight distributing hitch.
As a side note the GMC motorhomes from the 70s used the Toronado drive train.
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Old 02-26-2018, 07:58 PM   #18
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All good points Chip. Thanks.

.
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Old 02-26-2018, 08:04 PM   #19
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I posted these years ago, but they are an interesting concept, so here they are again... And, just to keep the record correct, the Chevy Vega was a front engine/rear transmission vehicle. It was not a front wheel drive.
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Old 02-27-2018, 10:25 AM   #20
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Quote:
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Sure would be. I looked it up and it is available for iPhone. however it is a paid app around $3. I am certainly to frugal for that. I will keep using my free excel sheet. Cool idea though.
Sorry about that. I have had the app for several years. It was, and still is, free for Android.

Since Microsoft has put everything on the "cloud," I would think not everyone has the program to run an Excel spreadsheet. YMMV.
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