First time trailer buyer

[mpaulson]

Definetly go with the Max Brake, or Brake Smart, there is no subsitution for these brake controlers. I wouldn't think that you will need air bags or any suspension add ons, just make sure the shocks are in good condition, unless you will be hauling any significant amount of weight in the box. Also make note of your tires, make sure the sidewall ply rating is up there, this makes a serious difference in swaying of the trailer since if the side wall give a little in a sidways motion, the trailer will exagerate that in the fish tailing. Seeing the tires that you mention in your sig, I know nothing about them. Some of those wider tires accually have a higher load rating than regular tires, but I don't know about sidewall quality. Not fun, I had this happen with a dually that has air bags, swaybar and the whole nine yards, the tire sidewalls were the culprit. When it comes time to get new tires, be aware of the load rating and side walls. Don't put heavy things in the back half of the trailer, this will help with the handling on a travel trailer.

 

[BIGNASTY]

Words like Basic stuff and Girlfriend dont mix not saying it cant happen but in my case SHE BRINGS EVERYTHING and the basic stuff! Its all good bud thats what you bought it for enjoy your truck and trailer.

 

[Grizzly]

Words like Basic stuff and Girlfriend dont mix not saying it cant happen but in my case SHE BRINGS EVERYTHING and the basic stuff! Its all good bud thats what you bought it for enjoy your truck and trailer.

Don't feel bad, my wife brings two or three of everything no matter how much I have a fit.

 

[AMink]

Don't feel bad, my wife brings two or three of everything no matter how much I have a fit.

"Stuff expands to fill the available space. "



Same problem here!:-laf We generally eat on paper plates (and burn them in the fire) but we still have all the real plates. I hate that! I really hate it when we dry camp and the dishes need to be washed. It's a waste of water.

 

[Wertles]

My wife packs a coffee maker and no one drinks coffee. I told her that was why I needed air bags and Ricksons. I brought the camper home last week to empty it all out so we could trade it in and made my wife carry all the stuff to the garage. Amazing how much stuff went to the trash can and good will when she realized she needed to pack it back in. On a good note though, found the second set of keys to the truck that have been missing for 5 years.

 

[AABEN]

Grizzly, thanks for the info. Mine is a small one, I got what I considered a good deal on it. Just wanted something with bathroom facilities and a bed to sleep on, etc, as well as room for 1 or 2 bikes. It will make a good "weekender". Anxious to try it out this month. 6000 miles in 3 weeks will tell me how its going to hold up!!

Check your tires good! The Goodyear ST tires are junk! Look at LT tires as replacement tires. I blow out 4 ST in 4000 miles on my new trailer. Over 4000 in trailer repairers three times. Went to LT and have over 60. 000 miles on them Fire Stone Trans Force LT. Good luck with your trailer.

 

[mrtrombley]

AABEN, thanks for the advice. I went all around Sat morning seeing if any tire dealers would do "takeoffs" so that I ciuld do upgrades. They all recommendes that I keep the ST's as they have stiffer sidewalls for making turns. These are 225/70R15 tires. I checked the air psi in each (I had asked the dealer to put them at maximum) Each one was just over 40psi, so I pumped them all up to 65psi which is what they were all marked. I also checked date of MFG, which was week 20 of 2010. So hopefully they will be ok. The trlr will be less than 10,000 lbs total weight. I'll try not to go too fast, but I hear TX will be increasing their speed limit to 85. Wow!! There will be a lot of big trucks passing me!?!?

 

[RustyJC]

Yep, you'll hear how "special" the ST tires are, but having towed 5th wheels for 15 years and TTs before that, I wouldn't give you a plug nickel for any of them. I've had 15" Goodyear Marathons come apart due to tread separations (all 4 tires replaced by Goodyear), and the Chinese tires are even worse. Of course, all ST tires have a maximum speed rating of 65 MPH, but most won't even stand up to that.



Where I could, I upgraded to Michelin XPS Ribs. Due to the weight of my current 5th wheel, I use 17. 5" Michelin XTA load range J tires rated 4805 lbs @ 120 PSIG to replace the OEM Goodyear G614 RST load range G tires (3750 lbs @ 110 PSIG) after 2 of the Goodyears failed due to (guess what!) tread separation. I've never had a problem with any of my Michelins.



Good luck... ...



Rusty

 

[HBarlow]

AABEN, thanks for the advice. I went all around Sat morning seeing if any tire dealers would do "takeoffs" so that I ciuld do upgrades. They all recommendes that I keep the ST's as they have stiffer sidewalls for making turns. These are 225/70R15 tires. I checked the air psi in each (I had asked the dealer to put them at maximum) Each one was just over 40psi, so I pumped them all up to 65psi which is what they were all marked. I also checked date of MFG, which was week 20 of 2010. So hopefully they will be ok. The trlr will be less than 10,000 lbs total weight. I'll try not to go too fast, but I hear TX will be increasing their speed limit to 85. Wow!! There will be a lot of big trucks passing me!?!?

Your ST tires may have stiffer sidewalls than some cheap passenger car tires but certainly not stiffer than 16" LT tires. If you're going to use the 15" ST tires make sure you pay the premiums on your comprehensive insurance policy and set aside the amount of the policy deductible. You'll probably be making a claim for damage when one or more of your trailer tires sling a tread and tear out the side or fenderwells of your trailer. It is a common occurrence with cheap tires.

 

[Grizzly]

AABEN, thanks for the advice. I went all around Sat morning seeing if any tire dealers would do "takeoffs" so that I ciuld do upgrades. They all recommendes that I keep the ST's as they have stiffer sidewalls for making turns. These are 225/70R15 tires. I checked the air psi in each (I had asked the dealer to put them at maximum) Each one was just over 40psi, so I pumped them all up to 65psi which is what they were all marked. I also checked date of MFG, which was week 20 of 2010. So hopefully they will be ok. The trlr will be less than 10,000 lbs total weight. I'll try not to go too fast, but I hear TX will be increasing their speed limit to 85. Wow!! There will be a lot of big trucks passing me!?!?

I wouldn't push those ST tires any more than 65 mph because that is all they are rated for.



I can't stress enough the use of LT tires. We all have to fine out the hard way.



Good luck on your trip and check your tires everytime you stop. I use a Fluke Infrared Thermometer gun and I check all 10 tires with every stop. So far I have found one truck tire (inside dually) with a nail.



george

 

[Mark31]

For me, if my finances were so stretched I couldn't afford Michelin, Goodrich, Firestone tires, I would buy some dvd s of the areas I wanted to visit and see them from the easy chair. Finances that are already stretched will be really toasted by the time repairs are made on the road. How much value does one put on one's and other's safety , good memories, lack of stress, etc? If I couldn't do everything humanly possible to take care of the known stuff (in this case, black circular things mounted on rims posing as tires), I would camp in my backyard. Russian Roulette is not one of my favorite sports. There are enough horror stories on TDR to scare sane men and some marginals! Mark

 

[Hillflyer]

Toys are fun!

Hello guys, nice thread and a great forum. I'm new to the site. I read through the posts and saw one thing for the truck I would recommend for towing, especially for first time trailer haulers, an exhaust brake for your truck will make everyone's trip a little more relaxed. It is a little expensive but worth the long term cost.

 

[Grizzly]

Especially if you have 10 to 13K pounds behind you.



Proud owner of a PacBrake.

 

[Grizzly]

Grizzly, the one I just bought is a Work and Play. I understood they are a pretty solid unit, that's why I went with it. What is your opinion from the info you have. I got a 2011 25ULA Toy Hauler. Pick it up tomorrow, will use it for my trip to May Madness.

You must be on your trip right now to May Madness with your new toy hauler. Give an update on how the truck and trailer are performing.



george

 

[mrtrombley]

Sorry it has taken me so long to reply! Had a great trip out to Pahrump and back, well worth it from my point of view. The truck and trailer performed well, 6200 miles basically in 2 weeks of travel time. The ST tires went well, never even got more than warm to the touch. And I really enjoyed having the TT Toyhauler. I pulled pretty well except for a couple days pulling directly into the wind. That really dropped my mileage to between 8 & 9. But otherwise I got from 10+ to upper 11's. Average for trip was about 10. 3 pulling trailer. Went over the Rockies like I was being pushed!



I bought 2 things while in Pahrump. One of Pete Tomka's Cold Air Intake tube setups and Dutch & Diana's Maxxbrake. Cold Air Intake installed quite easily (with Pete's help and direction). Can't really tell if it gave more power or not as my boost #'s haven't changed (max=24). Truck runs real smooth though. Maxxbrake works well, very smooth stopping, no lurching at all. Also easy to set up, initial setting and forget it is there. Dutch did the install in about 15 minutes. So I'm a happy camper after taking and enjoying the trip.

 

[carl07230]

Thanks for all the advice. Girlfriend is looking to buy the Flagstaff V-Lite # 26WRB at 29. 5" long of which tounge takes up 3-4" . She will be towing it with her 1/2 ton Chev. Silverado. She is having to downsize,move, and wants to live in it permanantly. I'll be towing it when going on trips and vacations with my 04 Dodge. We looked at others and liked the way Forest River builds their trailers with all aluminum truses and floor. She almosst bought a very nicely priced 29 ft Puma till we found out about all the wood in it. Her owners manual says that the Chevy can pull 6700 so she should be ok. Brochure says it weighs in around 5293.

 

[aerialimage]

Anyone have any ideas about a 2002 model Crossroads 36' 5th wheel?

Where they good quality? Rated good? I have my eye on one but There's plenty of campers to choose from in this market. It looks like a pretty well built unit to me but I'm a newbie to 5th wheels. Looking to buy soon so any ratings or knowledge will be appreciated.

 

[HBarlow]

Grizzly is the only TDR member as far as I know who owns a current issue of the RV ratings guide book. He often consults the guide and reports but has not posted for a while. He may be on a summer trip.

In my opinion Cross Roads is only a fair to medium quality fifthwheel. Grizzly has previously posted a review of Cross Roads from his book and if my memory serves, it was only fair.

Cross Roads has not been in business very long compared to many brands. A 2002 model might have been one of their earliest years.

A trailer on a Lippert frame using ChiComm running gear is not likely to be a very good trailer.

 

[carl07230]

Grizzly-What does the magic book say about the Forest River Flagstaff V-lite bumper pull trailers?

 

[HBarlow]

I can tell you without the RV guide that any so-called "light" trailer is going to be cheaply built, poorly insulated, and not among the better trailers.

You already know that if you think about it. In order to make a trailer lighter than a similar trailer in the same size requires lighter weight frames, floors, wall and roof framing, and cabinets. This means thinnner materials and fewer frame members more widely spaced.