Swiching from a motorhome to a 5th wheel trailer

[Philip Saran]

I am selling my motorhome and going back to a towed unit. I am looking at a 2011 3500 Mega Cab 4x4 with 3.73 gears to tow a 34 foot long
5th wheel trailer.
I know I will need the sliding hitch, but wanted to ask those that tow would you have been happier with a long bed or a dually or both over a
single rear tire short bed??

Phil Saran
Colorado

 

[GAmes]

I've only towed heavy with a long bed duelly. If I were to buy another towing pickup it might be a SRW, but would still be a long bed.

 

[Tuesdak]

Long beds don't need trick hitches to avoid hitting the cab. I recall a happy review of a slider hitch short bed followed by pictures of the 5er hitting the cab.

SRW is $450.00 less of tires on the ground that need replacement, for me, every 30K or 5 years. 2nd is better ride unloaded. Whatever works for you is what matters deciding on trade offs.

You can get a custom shop to put a long bed behind a MegaCab. Yes, one of my few regrets is not getting the "School Bus" MegaCab and that's due to more long trip rear seat passengers than I expected on a regular basis.

 

[p-Bar]

Remember how many dually fenders you've seen beat up. Long bed all the way. Iv'e been talking about a new used truck and have consulted BOB4X4 he recommends 13 and up as the smog setup is a lot better and if your pulling a heavy weight you should think about Aisin trans. Food for thought

 

[Larry Willard]

I wouldn't tow a fiver with a short bed, actually it is only a 8' bed for me regardless of towing or not. '13 or newer you don't get any choice in gearing if you don't get the dually. 1/2 million miles with a dually and haven't done any damage to a dually bed yet.

 

[Slow Six]

I have towed a lot of years. My first fiver was towed with a long box SRW. It was an okay set up, fortunately I had no wrecks. After a couple of years I went to the long box dually and what a difference. I don't have any problems in wind or buffeting from meeting big rigs. It is most definitely more comfortable towing. The tow ratings only consider weight. That little short box SRW may be rated for that 34 footer but does not allow for a 34 foot wall 13 feet high catching wind. Yeah the little truck is easier to park but I just look for room to park. A little extra walking is good exercise. The longer wheel base rides better as well. If safety is a concern go long box dually.

 

[JR]

I've been a long bed guy my entire life, up until this one. There are still days where I wish I had a long bed but none of those days were when I was towing my 5th wheel. I've also never had to use my slider to date and I've had it turned pretty tight. I just plan ahead. Look the camp site over before committing. That being said it's a piece of mind knowing it's there if I get in a bind.
For me my decision to go short bed was over all length of truck and wheel base, and subsequent turn radius. Difference in wheel base between CC LB and CC SB is 20" difference in turn radius is 6-8 ft. I'm on a lot of tight access roads so this is important for me. I believe a mega cab is very close in length to a cc long bed so make sure it's something you can live with.

 

[Jim W]

I am selling my motorhome and going back to a towed unit. I am looking at a 2011 3500 Mega Cab 4x4 with 3.73 gears to tow a 34 foot long
5th wheel trailer.
I know I will need the sliding hitch, but wanted to ask those that tow would you have been happier with a long bed or a dually or both over a
single rear tire short bed??

Phil Saran
Colorado

Hi, Phil

I have towed three different 5er's with my 2008, 2500 Ram Mega Cab short bed truck. I use a manual sliding Reese hitch since the truck was new. The only time I release the hitch to the maneuver position is when I am in campgrounds and backing up. Otherwise the hitch is in the tow position. I have had no issues with this hitch when towing in towns or on the highway.

In my very humble opinions dually do have there place but I will never use a dually truck. One reason; I want my truck parked in the garage over night and a dually will not fit with my wife's car in the garage. Another reason is I have taken the truck into the city (Chicago IL) and the SRW truck is much easier to park and maneuver.

I do tow heavy with my truck I tow a 34RL Cedar Creek 5er. My truck is equipped with Nitto Dura Grappler Tires LT285/70R17 126S and Mickey Thompson Sidebiter II rims. The tires are rated for 3750 LBS at 80PSI, I run the rear tires at 70 PSI which will support a load of 3415 LBS and the fronts at 55PSI which support a load of 2890 LBS. The truck also has air bags to level the load when needed.

I would not hesitate in buying another SRW truck either a Mega Cab or a Crew Cab with a short bed if I was in the market for a new truck.

 

[6V92TA]

long bed dually.. is the best choice for anybody hauling a fiver, not that everyone goes that route, but its the best when you mean business..

 

[Hootguy]

get the dually,you won't regret it.as for short box to long box,i've used a slidding hitch in my 2007 Megacab dually,for years,i might have used the slidder a few times for really tight spots,but mostly it stays in the regular position,if you know what you're doing,you shouldn't be hitting the cab unless you're really not paying attention,as for dually debate,the dually is way better planted and stable on the highway,it just makes sense,you have double the contact patch,if you want a REALLY relaible rig,well,*** much as a electronicaly injected Cummins can be versus the dead nut reliable mechanicals,you might find an 2000 megacab dually with the last of the 5.9,without all the crap added to the 6.7,not to mention the 4'th Gens seem to have the most amount of issues,seems endless,good luck,

 

[SnoKing]

Not everyone wants or needs a dually. 16K 39'4" 5th wheel at 24,500 combine weight. Have towed in the middle of Nevada in wind without a problem. Always slide B&W 3270 manual slider, as handle will not clear front box in the forward position. Works for me.

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De-winterizing and loading for a shake down trip to Tombstone before heading North for the summer.

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[SnoKing]

long bed dually.. is the best choice for anybody hauling a fiver, not that everyone goes that route, but its the best when you mean business.. View attachment 102279

Not enough trailer for that size truck. :-laf :-laf :-laf

 

[SnoKing]

Hi, Phil

I have towed three different 5er's with my 2008, 2500 Ram Mega Cab short bed truck. I use a manual sliding Reese hitch since the truck was new. The only time I release the hitch to the maneuver position is when I am in campgrounds and backing up. Otherwise the hitch is in the tow position. I have had no issues with this hitch when towing in towns or on the highway.

In my very humble opinions dually do have there place but I will never use a dually truck. One reason; I want my truck parked in the garage over night and a dually will not fit with my wife's car in the garage. Another reason is I have taken the truck into the city (Chicago IL) and the SRW truck is much easier to park and maneuver.

I do tow heavy with my truck I tow a 34RL Cedar Creek 5er. My truck is equipped with Nitto Dura Grappler Tires LT285/70R17 126S and Mickey Thompson Sidebiter II rims. The tires are rated for 3750 LBS at 80PSI, I run the rear tires at 70 PSI which will support a load of 3415 LBS and the fronts at 55PSI which support a load of 2890 LBS. The truck also has air bags to level the load when needed.

I would not hesitate in buying another SRW truck either a Mega Cab or a Crew Cab with a short bed if I was in the market for a new truck.

We looked at the CC 34RL as it had a low dry pin weight, but ended up with a Bighorn that also started with a low pin weight. Found that all the Montana except the smallest one had high dry pin weights. Same with Cardinal's, we had a Cardinal for many years and wanted another, but pin weight stopped us. SnoKing

 

[6V92TA]

Not enough trailer for that size truck. :-laf :-laf :-laf

\

learned a long time ago its better to have too much truck than be the guy at the limit.. LOL

 

[6V92TA]

\

learned a long time ago its better to have too much truck than be the guy at the limit.. LOL

other day we were on I 85 east of Hotlanta and I came across a guy pulling a huge Montana with a 3500 SRW and he was struggling and swaying... better him than me..

 

[Tuesdak]

\

learned a long time ago its better to have too much truck than be the guy at the limit.. LOL

You are both correct.

Difficult, but, I kept the 5er length down to 27'. It's not exactly a small 5er being tall vs. some smaller ones out there. Mainly for the North Rim Grand Canyon's (pictured) smaller space length limits of 27' before the largest and unobtainable 40' spots. Even a 27' takes months of advance for a reservation. The length is a comfort trade off with ease of manoeuvring. Already been in a poorly laid out "full time trailer park" falsely marketed as having overnight or short like 3 day stays where 27' was too big. 4 parked cars moved, clearing the wall and light poles with 3 spotters, visitor behind me with a TT has to pull through my spot to park his trailer then disconnect. And after all that couldn't put one slide all the way out because it would hit the long term resident's outdoor swing set. I will be more careful of that in the future.

 

[BoRan]

I am selling my motorhome and going back to a towed unit. I am looking at a 2011 3500 Mega Cab 4x4 with 3.73 gears to tow a 34 foot long
5th wheel trailer.
I know I will need the sliding hitch, but wanted to ask those that tow would you have been happier with a long bed or a dually or both over a
single rear tire short bed??

Phil Saran
Colorado

Looks like you have plenty of input, but I'll add my CND two cents. I've towed four different fivers, most recently a 35 footer, first with a Ram 2500 gas long box, SRW, with no issues towing . Currently have a 3500 6.7 Diesel, SRW, short box and have yet to need to use the slider hitch, like the others, plan ahead. Lately I've been towing a 16 ft aluminum boat behind the fiver as well. I've never experienced any sort of drifting or swaying.
The plan is to move up to a 41 footer, 14,000 lbs using the same truck.
The only issue I have is less storage to carry firewood, generator, or whatever. (with the 6.7, there is no need to worry about additional the weight!) You should get a lower cost buying a short box than a long box. Good luck.

 

[Hootguy]

towing a huge trailer with a single wheel,is kind of like framing a house with a finishing hammer,the right tool for the right job is always the better idea,i've seen so many single wheel trucks towing big trailers swaying in the wind,scary looking,not a big deal with a dually,they are way more planted,but to each his own,i realize duallies are more expensive to buy and keep tires on,i just fell it's money well spent and cheap insurance,sometimes just because something works ok,doesn't mean it's the best idea,

 

[ringneck]

blow a back tire towing,and you will be happy to keep on trucking with a dually.some roads arnt made to stop and fix.done that and drove to the next town at dark.long bed dually,you cant never have enough truck.2005 3500 dually 015 artic fox 36 foot and heavy.good luck