Fifth Wheel Delivery

[jollyjam68]

I've just purchase a 2015 Avalanche. I'll be using it to live in while i'm working at various client sites. I'm a computer consultant. My projects last 3 to 24 months. I'm split between purchasing a truck to tow it myself or having it delivered for me. I've contacted several rv delivery companies the cost seems to be between $1.30 and $2.00 per mile. Are there any other fivers that have faced this choice?

~ JL JOlly

2015 Keystone Avalanche
no tow vehicle (yet, maybe)

**Live today as if there's no tomorrow and treat mistakes of yesterday as lessons for today**

[Tbos]

If you don’t own a tow vehicle you will always be at the mercy of someone else or a company to move your rig. In the event of an emergency it will be the same way. Let’s just say you have a job in a town on the southeast coast and a big storm comes along. It would be nice to have a way to get it out of harms way on your own. JM2C.

[jollyjam68]

Thanks for the feedback. Great point!!!

[chuckster57]

Welcome to the forum :wlcm:

First off congrats on your new to you home. With that said Tbos makes a very good point about being able to move it yourself. You don't have to "schedule" a pick up or delivery and as said if "something" comes up that requires you to skedaddle, you can. NOW FOR THE RUB

You will need a truck with enough capacity to tow that big trailer. IF/WHEN you buy a truck, make sure its rated for the GVWR of the trailer and about 20% of that weight for the king pin. Without knowing the specific model, I'm guessing your in 1 ton DRW range. You don't have to buy new, just buy big enough.

[wiredgeorge]

Depends on whether your daily rider is also available somewhat as far as buying the truck. Those Avalanches are BIG and HEAVY. A 1 tone dually is needed to drag one of them but if you are not going to move it for extended periods, maybe rely on a transport service as a 1 ton dually can be expensive. If you buy used, you can save a bucket of money but be prepared for TRUCK ISSUES. At some point all the heavy trucks need all new steering components and many brands have brand specific issues that take money to keep the truck on the road. A used diesel may not be cheap to make 100 percent. If you have another vehicle for running around, perhaps have it transported then live large until the next move/transport and drive your hybrid and save money.

[sourdough]

One of my life guidelines is don't depend on anything for anything you could/should do for yourself. If the RV is your home and then you have work commitments that require you to move that home there is no way in this world I would put myself at the mercy of anyone/anything that would deprive me of either my home or my job. Case in point: Hurricane Michael in FL last year. The storm hit Oct. 10, we arrived Nov. 1 - we stay all winter.

Many, many live as you propose; big RV, no TV. When we arrived there were LOTS of trailers sitting around the area that had all the insides pulled out; furniture, flooring, cabinets etc. just sitting outside (homes too). I asked a friend we have there what the deal was; she said that many, many folks live without a TV. When it was decided the storm was going to hit everybody decided they needed to get their RV out but unfortunately there weren't any "commercial" folks to do the job. Those that had friends with adequate trucks and hitches were able to move north, the rest, had to leave the RVs sitting and ride out the 6' surge that came into town.

Just something to think about. RV=TV to me.

[JRTJH]

My dad was a sharecropper. We had 40 acres and a mule named Salley. My dad's favorite saying was, "If you don't own it you don't control it.".... Every spring, the owner told dad what he needed to plant, how much and when. Even if it was the wrong decision, dad was obligated to do it "somebody else's way".... Often times, we "lost the farm" when crops didn't come in like planned. Even when dad "knew it was the wrong thing to do"....

So, if you own a trailer and plan for it to be mobile, you need the tow vehicle to make it happen. If you don't have the means to move it, it's not a travel trailer, it's an expensive anchor with a tremendous maintenance plan.........

If you're going to own it, you need the means to control it......

[davidbow43]

With that big of an investment you need to be able to move it if needed. Otherwise your looking to lose your investment. Yes you should have it insured to replace it if something does happen to it but why go through all that trouble.

[+Ruff Rider]

I wouldn't have a problem pulling that with a F350 with the 11,500 tow package.
You don't need a dully to haul that trailer around.
Bet then again the old guys think you never have enough truck unless it says Peterbuilt on the grill!!!

[hornet28]

Bet then again the old guys think you never have enough truck unless it says Peterbuilt on the grill!!!

Some of that comes from real life experiences. We didn't get old by not paying attention to lessons learned

[chuckster57]

I wouldn't have a problem pulling that with a F350 with the 11,500 tow package.
You don't need a dully to haul that trailer around.
Bet then again the old guys think you never have enough truck unless it says Peterbuilt on the grill!!!

Without knowing the actual weights, you can’t really say with any certainty. And there’s more than just “pulling” it around. Just sayin....

[hankpage]

I wouldn't have a problem pulling that with a F350 with the 11,500 tow package.
You don't need a dully to haul that trailer around.
Bet then again the old guys think you never have enough truck unless it says Peterbuilt on the grill!!!

:hornets: :popcorn:

[gearhead]

Sorta depends on you and your future plans. If you will only have the 5th to live in for your job, or if you want to use it for travel as well.
I would sit down with my insurance agent and talk about what would happen if you had to abandon it in the face of a storm. Think about depreciation values and gap insurance. If you have a fun car for commuting and no need for a heavy duty truck, I could see using a hauler to move it. Put a pencil to it. How often would you move and guess at how far.
Do you have a sticks and bricks house that you use as a home base, or is the RV "it"?
Typically how long do you have between jobs to move it?