If I to a 5th wheel with these specs:
Dry hitch weight 3,174 lbs
Unloaded vehicle weight 13,811lbs
GVWR 18,000 lbs

I believe I'll be Ok, but want to make sure.

Thanks

 

Did you check the yellpw payload sticker on the drivers door?

 

GCWR 23,500 lbs, so I would be way overweight....WOW.

 

It should also show you max cargo weight

 

suggest you put the truck on the scales to find your unloaded axle wt.

knowing the gross and the current unloaded will tell you that much. i think you will be fine.

your combined is the issue.

 

Your sig say you tow a 5th wheel that comes in around 14K....That is exactly what I'm looking at....I will try to get to a scale next weekend.

 

CAT Scale

Go to the website and find your nearest one.

I'd suggest that so you get steer and rear axle ratings. Be some to be full of fuel and as much gear and people that you would be traveling with so you get as accurate a reading as possible.

My kingpin comes in at 2800 lbs with my rig. So almost dead on 20% gross of the 5th wheel.

 

I just brought a new, larger fifth wheel home last week and scaled it on the way home. Advertised pin weight is 3,015 but actual pin weight is more like 3,350 and that is still with an empty toyhauler and dry tanks. GCW was something like 21,470 with a trailer that weighs around 13,000 lbs. The manufacturers do not allow for a generator or propane in their "dry weights". In my case the generator was an option and it sits right on the front of the trailer. The 279 lbs for the genset plus 60 lbs of propane pretty much account for the difference between the specified weight and my actual weight.

Without the wife and daughter, I am already 400 lbs overweight on the truck. I am under the RAWR by 420 lbs but GVW is over. With 2,000 lbs in the garage of the toyhauler, I should not gain any pin weight and possibly even lose a few pounds in that area due to the cantilever of the garage.

There is no doubt that this trailer is in dually territory, but I can tell you that the SRW F350 handles it with complete comfort. Your experience may be slightly different with 3.31 gears vs. my 3.55, maybe not. The trip home was over 500 miles and crossed about 12 mountains ranging from 500 feet to 3000 feet of elevation change. The slowest I topped any of them was 62 mph in 4th gear. I also rarely used the brakes on the downhill side with the engine and transmission holding the speed to 60-65 mph most of the time. A gooseneck trailer of the same weight would not hold back as well since this big fifth wheel has so much frontal area and takes a ton of power to even maintain highway speeds even going downhill. I even practiced a panic stop and was quite satisfied with the truck's ability in that aspect as well. I only have the brake controller set on 6.5 and that seems to be plenty.

The GVWR of my trailer is 16,500 and I don't expect to exceed 15,000 with everything I will be carrying. A GVWR of 18,000 is definitely dually territory. I will continue to evaluate the performance of my truck with this trailer along with the frequency of use and make a decision in the Spring whether or not I need to trade for a dually.

 

It looks like a trip to the scales is in order...Thanks for all the great input.

 

Yes you will be overweight. My 5th wheel was advertized to be 12500 pounds, and actural weight is about 2000 more pounds. My hitch weight is a tad over 3000 pounds. You have to consider the stuff you put in the trailer. I hope you have a dually.
ken

 

All of the above are the reasons I went from a SRW to a DRW.
It is so easy to "put on some weight" with a toy hauler.
Mine was 12+ when it came off the line and is way over that now.

BTW - the weight "cargo capacity" rating, not the GVW number, is the difference between your listed GVW and what the trailer weighed as built.

Example, if the GVW is 18K and the cargo capacity is 3640 pounds then the trailer weighed 14,360 pounds coming off the line, sans water and propane.

 

mfg dry wgts are meaningless...
almost as meaningless as any gooberment standard of measurement - like mpg, unemployment %'s, etc...

If you are not 1000 pounds over your rear axle weight rating I would be stunned....

You need to look at all your weights and limits, not just the ones you can meet

rawr and gcwr are the kickers and like stated, the only way to know is weigh it - spend that $9.50 @ the cat scale !

 

How are you guys staying within your truck's GVWR? If your truck is 8500lbs and GVWR is 11,500 that is 3000lbs to play with - people, cargo, and pin weight of the trailer. Some of your pin weights are over 3000lbs so I guess I am questioning how the math works out? I understand GCWR is all up total (23,500 or what ever) as well as the rear axle rating, but can't you not exceed the vehicle GVWR? Or, if I am remembering correctly that can be changed based on the registration of the vehicle. In my case - my registration is for 10k, but my sticker on the side says 11,500.

 

I did just that. Upped my registration.

 

Why I now have a DRW and I am still close to the limits.
My truck alone with all a tool box (steel) roll top cover, hitch, 60+ gallons of fuel some firewood and spare water for the trailer, two adults and two pups comes in at 10K

Changing your registration may only help if you were to actually get stopped and had an LEO match reg to weights, and my guess is they are more concerned with the $$$ that goes with registration and road taxes then real capacity.

Over weight is overweight, no matter how it is viewed.
I raised the registration weight on my 5th wheel (doesn't cost anything extra) after replacing the suspension, wheels and tires. But it still doesn't change what the manufacturer put on the decal when it was built.


$10.50

Weigh your truck and trailer for $9.50 then drop the trailer in the back lot and come right back for a re-weigh with the truck alone. Costs $1 extra and will give you some real data to look at.