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Old 05-15-2022, 11:03 AM   #21
sourdough
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Originally Posted by jsb5717 View Post
Somewhere out there I'd like to think that there are RV and truck sales folks who actually do understand how to safely match a truck to a trailer. They can't ALL be ignorant. It sounds like it's possible that the OP got someone who attempted to do it right. And given the data available at the time of the purchase of a new trailer it sounds like the truck is a decent match and should safely handle real-life towing.

I think there are some (very few) RV and truck sales folks out there that "hope" or "try" to keep a potential sale within safe weight guidelines. Don't know that I've ever talked to one that could go into detail about it. I have had a couple ask what my TV was but never had one tell me I needed more truck (even when I did). I had one ask about payload but had no idea what you would use that for until I asked him to show me the sticker on the side of the RV we were looking at. Had one in FL, as we were looking at a Solitude, walk by my 3/4 Ram with 6.4 and tell me it was plenty of truck after I told him I was concerned about it being enough truck (it wasn't nearly enough truck - gvw was 16k+). He was trying to help, just didn't know what he was talking about.

Bottom line, the incentive for a salesman, their JOB, is to sell, not keep the buyer informed or educate them - SELL them what they want and let the buyer sort it out. If they tried to steer folks away from a sale because it might endanger them....they'd be back at Mickey Ds the next day.
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Old 05-15-2022, 11:16 AM   #22
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Originally Posted by sourdough View Post

What a wdh does or doesn't do really has no bearing in trying to determine what combination may or may not work for a new person. The weight does not go anywhere outside the combo when it's hooked up....it's simply moving numbers within a confined box.
Yes and no. First, the OP has the truck and trailer so he can get actual weights and doesn’t have to calculate/guess what they are. Yes, the weight is all part of the combo, but WHERE the weight is, is important. Every piece of equipment has rating, tires, wheels, axles, springs, receiver, hitch, ball. Just saying throw it all together and see what total weight is and making sure your under GVWR isn’t good enough. The only way to make sure everything works is to have the WDH properly set up and the weights distributed to where they will actually be applied while towing.
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Old 05-15-2022, 11:19 AM   #23
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Originally Posted by jsb5717 View Post
Somewhere out there I'd like to think that there are RV and truck sales folks who actually do understand how to safely match a truck to a trailer. They can't ALL be ignorant. It sounds like it's possible that the OP got someone who attempted to do it right. And given the data available at the time of the purchase of a new trailer it sounds like the truck is a decent match and should safely handle real-life towing.
There are many RV and truck sales folks who actually understand how to safely match a truck to a trailer. Most of them have been "in the business for a number of years" and are either "owners of the dealership and off sitting on their yacht" or are "buried in paperwork trying to stay afloat and pay everyone's salary on Friday"... They have very little time to "go over the numbers with every customer" and the busier they get, the bigger the business grows, the further from those "simple things they intimately know" move away from their control.

Yes, there are some that care, some that know how to match rig components and some that do a superb job keeping "noobies out of trouble"... Unfortunatley, for every one of those kinds of salesmen, there's as many or more that were selling water softeners or ATV's last week along with all those who were flipping burgers or trying to break into insurance sales, but didn't have the savings to buy into a State Farm or Allstate agency. And then we've got the "party animal" home from college and wanting to make drinking money for the summer, so his dad's buddy hired him to sell trailers. Great summer job for a college fine arts major.....

Many do care and do a great job.... It's the others that get people into rigs that just don't work after the ink dries on the financing contract.....
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Old 05-15-2022, 06:06 PM   #24
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Here's a great website with a lot of information. I spent many evenings reading the threads posted on this site. Good luck drinking from the fire hose. We all do when we first start pulling trailers.

https://www.irv2.com/forums/f45/
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Old 05-19-2022, 07:30 AM   #25
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Here is a link to a website that I used to ensure my WDH was set us correctly. Perhaps you will find it useful: http://www.towingplanner.com/ActualW...ailerCatScales



Also, having driven commercial vehicles, I considered not approaching my TV tow weight limit beyond 90% in order to have some cushion. In addition, consider the TV CGVR (Combined Gross Vehicle Rating) in order not to exceed your vehicle's legal capacities. If DOT ever stopped you, they would consider this and if you were ever involved in an accident, it might be a consideration for liability issues.



Don't mean to muddy the waters, just some practical issues to consider. Each person makes their choice on how to approach these. Be safe and enjoy your time out.
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Old 05-20-2022, 12:14 PM   #26
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You guys are awesome, sorry I am so dumb, but I have a feeling there are lots more like me out there but just too stubborn to admit it
It's a learning curve.

I tow a slightly longer/heavier TT with the same truck as yours (except I have the long bed) in a Lariat configuration, and I have room to spare.

My TT has nearly 1500lbs of tongue weight and I use a Blue Ox WD system with the Straplok ratcheting setup and it is a dream to tow. Any good WD system will work great if set up properly.

4600 Bilstein shocks all around with Timbren's on the rear axle and I can pull it all day and still feel good at the end of the day.

Have fun..

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Old 05-20-2022, 06:21 PM   #27
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Dang.... I wish I was as smart as you guys

I won't stop trying to understand this, even if I have to grapple all summer long with it
What did it for me was working the spreadsheet at

http://changingears.com/rv-sec-calc-...eight-tt.shtml

First off, it forced me to compile various weights and specs from every label and manual involved, and some real-world (measured) weights, too. (You can estimate the measured ones at first just to see how far inside or outside the ballpark you are, but be harsh on yourself.)

Then it helped me understand what effect altering this weight or that capacity had on my safety margins.

In my case, it showed me almost immediately why my F-150 was never going to work for my trailer, and how substituting the payload capacity of an F-250 made all the problems go away. It helped me develop an intuitive understanding of what specs are most critical (like payload) and which are just fluff (like "towing capacity").
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Old 05-24-2022, 03:42 AM   #28
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As John said, go visit a scale, period. If you have a 10k gvw and it scales less than 10k you're good. As for length I tow a 35 1/2' travel trailer. My truck IIRC wb is 158". The tongue weight on our trailer runs between 1,100 lbs and about 1,250 lbs depending on load and how much fresh water ( tank is up front). I keep a SherLine tongue scale in my truck so I don't have to resvist a scale to know what it is. I use an old Reese dual cam wdh with anti sway built in.

My truck has E rated tires as does the trailer. I usually have no sway issues up to 70 mph. With that said, I keep my speed around 63 mph regardless of speed limit if the limit is 70. Wind or passing trucks is not an issue. Now for the "BUT disclaimer". Depending on the roads the trailer might want to wander a little. Perfect example is the current trip we're on. Currectly in Moundsville, WV at the Grand View Park which just opened last month. I68 thru MD no issues. Crossed into WV and roads are a mess. A stretch of about 10 miles they groved the road in preperation for repaving. Whomever ran the grinder/ grooving machine must have been drunk. The grooves were not straight and the rig wanted to follow the grooves. Brand new tires on truck and trailer and the rig wanted to follow the grooving. I noticed tractor trailers doing the same thing in traffic. Solution? Slow down. I slowed down to 57 - 58 and it was less problematic.

I'm guessing with a dually it would be less of an issue but it likely would not have helped the earthquake feeling from the terrible road surface with pot holes, asphalt drops at the edge of the road etc. Some sections thru PA and WV I dropped down to 50 mph just to keep the fillings in my teeth. I told my DW that there must be an asphalt shortage given the lack of repairs. Sometimes reducing speed is the only reasonable/safe option.

Welcome to PA. We have the highest gas tax in the nation amd are roads prove political corruption
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Old 05-24-2022, 04:04 AM   #29
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Welcome to PA. We have the highest gas tax in the nation amd are roads prove political corruption
Unfortunately, PA doesn't hold the patent rights on bad roads or corruption.
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Old 05-25-2022, 02:51 AM   #30
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Unfortunately, PA doesn't hold the patent rights on bad roads or corruption.

I personally run 81 down to Hagerstown and take 68 west instead of using the turnpike or 30 when we go to north west MD or WV because 68 is a better road and they don't charge me to knock the suspension off the bottom of the truck
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Old 05-25-2022, 03:00 AM   #31
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General RV's website actually has a guide that allows you to input your TV's parameters and then will show you which RV are compatible with it.
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