Help me pick a trailer

[tjd2003]

Hello all. First post here and it’ll be a long one. I currently have a 2022 F-150 Platinum. It’s a crew cab 4wd, PowerBoost engine, 3.73 gears. Does have the max towing pkg. Max towing is 12,700lbs. Payload from info sticker is 1318lbs. I started with a diesel Gladiator and bought a 25ft R-Pod to stay within its tow rating. Once I towed with it I realized it was too much trailer for that truck. I traded to a half ton and it has been a night and day difference. Now that I’ve got a bigger vehicle I’d like a camper with more room. I like the cougar half ton line, specifically the 30bhs. I’m also open to the 25rds which is similar to the 30bhs just without the bunk. Here’s my question; will my truck handle this large of a trailer? Either is well under my total, I’m just concerned with it being too big size wise and feeling like the Gladiator did with my current trailer. The second issue is hitch weight. The 25rds is 835lbs and the 30bhs is somehow less at 790. We won’t add much additional weight to the truck. Myself, wife, and son are about 430lbs total. We don’t carry much else in the truck besides us. Everything goes into the camper. All that being said, will my truck handle the 30bhs? Or If not, will it handle the 25rds? Thanks in advance for any advice.

[jfk69]

Either one will have a loaded hitch weight north of 1000#. Add another 100# for the hitch, your 430# of family weight, and the answer is no. That is the curse of a highly optioned truck. All of those niceties gobbles up your payload.

[chuckster57]

Welcome to the forum

Forget all about the “tow rating”, as it is a marketing figure based on “made up” tests. Your main concern should be the GVWR rating for your truck. At 1300 pounds you need to take a trip to the scales, weigh the truck with everything you’ll have in it headed to the campground. Subtract that from the GVWR and it will tell you how much tongue weight you can have.

Hitch weight needs to be subtracted from the GVWR also. Then there is tires, does your truck have passenger tires or light truck tires?

These are just off the top of my head, others may have more to say.

[sourdough]

Max tow is meaningless. As for the truck/trailer combo...no. The powerboost is a hybrid that knocks about 700lbs. or so off your payload (carrying capacity) so you can have some batteries. Unfortunately you therefore can't "carry" much.

That is a 9500lb. trailer. By normal computations 13% of the 9500 gvw would give you a tongue weight of 1235lbs. Add 100 for hitch, 430 for folks and nothing else (which you will have to have) you will then be at 1765lbs., well above your payload. And, you don't have tools etc. You can't do it. A 1300lb. payload comes with smaller SUVs. Your truck is just not up for "tow vehicle" status.

A "hybrid" or "battery" truck is not a tow vehicle. You have chosen something that will give you mileage, not towing capacity. I would stick to something in the 6000lb. gvw range, not 9500-10,000. You're truck is just not up for a big trailer I'm sorry to say.

[LHaven]

Fast math answer:
Take your truck's payload figure.
Subtract the weight of your family, pets, food, and gear carried directly in the truck.
Subtract 100 lbs. more for the hitch.
Take the remaining figure, and multiply it by 6.67 (1/15%, the hitch loading).
Don't consider a trailer over that gross (MAX) weight capacity.
The problem with F-150s (especially loaded ones) is that number ends up pretty small.

I had a baseline Ecoboost F-150 with more payload, and I was underwater on my 26' "half-ton towable." You may be more down in the 20' range.

[travelin texans]

You've given good advice on how to calculate a very good estimate as to tongue/weights, heed that advice or you'll have the same towing experience as with the Gladiator.
When head to rv lots realize that rv salespersons doesn't care or have a clue if you can safely tow "any rv on our lot", they are there to sell rvs whatever it takes. They will brag up the tow rating of your truck, yea they read that in the F150 brochure & the dry weight from the rv brochure of whatever rv you're looking at, both of those numbers are absolutely useless to you.

[bsmith0404]

Even IF the payload numbers worked, which they don’t, the 30 is too much trailer for that truck. That’s 30’ of sail and the F150 is too light to keep it in check even with a good WDH and LT tires. The 25’ would be a better choice for that reason, but is still pushing your numbers.

[dutchmensport]

All good advise above. I'll not reiterate it. Just saying, everything said above is spot on. Listen to your head, not your heart.

[hawghauler]

Our old camper was a Fleetwood Pioneer 28 ft bumper pull that was pulled with a 1997 F250 diesel our current camper is a 33 ft keystone raptor 5th wheel its pulled by a 2010 Chevy 3500 dually

As all these people above me have very eloquently stated you can't pull an ox cart with a chiuaua

Now then I have seen some sketchy stuff in campgrounds one coming to mind was a triple axle 40ish foot toyhauler behind an obs Ford 250 diesel that was last August

The little lady pointed the rig out to me and said see we didnt need a bigger truck that's the same as our old one and look what he's pulling

A week later I passed him on MD 68 side of the road hood up pretty decent grade just east of the Potomac

Not to break your manhood here but bigger truck or smaller trailer is in order you're currently maxed out

[ShotgunZ71]

I have a 30BHS and pull it with a Silverado 1500 CCSB 6.2 and it has towed well. I use a Equalizer E4 and have made a few minor adjustments to it regarding hitch height and L-bracket location. No, it doesn't tow as easily as my 2500 did, but I didn't expect it to. It's been a learning curve, but one I was prepared for.

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by ShotgunZ71

I have a 30BHS and pull it with a Silverado 1500 CCSB 6.2 and it has towed well. I use a Equalizer E4 and have made a few minor adjustments to it regarding hitch height and L-bracket location. No, it doesn't tow as easily as my 2500 did, but I didn't expect it to. It's been a learning curve, but one I was prepared for.

ShotgunZ71, Have you seen the latest forum rule that was just put in place?
https://www.keystoneforums.com/forum...ad.php?t=52977

When another member who has actually noted his payload is informed that he will be overweight for a campers he is considering so perhaps it isn't a great idea to encourage him to tow overweight. There is a safety issue involved. What you do is your business but you are likely towing overweight and since you have a bunk house, perhaps the thought safety should concern you as well. Be safe!

[ShotgunZ71]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

ShotgunZ71, Have you seen the latest forum rule that was just put in place?
https://www.keystoneforums.com/forum...ad.php?t=52977

When another member who has actually noted his payload is informed that he will be overweight for a campers he is considering so perhaps it isn't a great idea to encourage him to tow overweight. There is a safety issue involved. What you do is your business but you are likely towing overweight and since you have a bunk house, perhaps the thought safety should concern you as well. Be safe!

Thank you for the update about the signature. It has been corrected.

Keeping in mind that the main storage is at the rear of the 30BHS, the tongue weight doesn't increase as quickly as when up front. This can help when setting up a WDH to get a good balance, as long as all weights are within specs. Yes, a heavily loaded trailer or truck would likely exceed a high-optioned trucks cargo capacity.

[LHaven]

The downside of "adjusting your tongue weight" by loading the trailer at the rear is that your trailer doesn't tow in a stable fashion. Anti-sway hitches are designed to compensate for the sway of a properly loaded trailer, not a trailer that's more than usually tail heavy.

[ShotgunZ71]

Originally Posted by LHaven

The downside of "adjusting your tongue weight" by loading the trailer at the rear is that your trailer doesn't tow in a stable fashion. Anti-sway hitches are designed to compensate for the sway of a properly loaded trailer, not a trailer that's more than usually tail heavy.

Sorry, not implying adjusting the tongue weight, merely stating that a good portion of storage is at the rear. Similar to a toy hauler, but on a much lighter scale. Thus, not all the cargo weight is upfront. A properly set up WDH should do it's job, regardless of where the weight is concentrated in a trailer. Some setup by scale, some by height measurements and some do both. I use measurements along with having the weights of the truck and camper scaled together. Worked pretty well for 4 travel trailers and a few trucks.

[wegone]

Towing is one thing.....

STOPPING it without stressing your brakes, another thing all together.

I do lots of mountain grades, and they have turns, LOTS OF TURNS....

Being pushed by yahoos behind many folks speed up because they now have excess power going downhill.

If you have to brake once you entered the turn or risk losing control as now that load is PUSHING you..... it's too late, your brakes will heat up so darn fast, you'll soon find they are shot.

If you can even stop.

Flat land, is easier, but you still need to stop without using your brakes to slow until the very last...