I plan to pull a regular travel trailer, not a fifth wheel. I would like to keep the gross trailer weight around 80% of the capacity of the tow vehicle.

When I go to the Super Duty build page on the Ford web site and start setting the configuration values it lists trucks with a towing capacity of 15,900 lbs. That can't be the conventional towing capacity. The towing specifications web page indicates that the maximum conventional towing capacity for a SRW diesel is 14,000 lbs. It lists the same towing capacity for the F-250 and F-350. Does that mean that the F-350 is overkill for conventional towing?

What do I need to know about ensuring that the truck I configure will have the maximum conventional towing capacity? Are there certain things I MUST include and others that need to be excluded?

I'll be moving up from a 2007 Nissan Titan. The Titan was easy to configure as there were very few options. It didn't take much to get every option available. The plethora of options available on the Super Duty makes my eyes glaze over.

I think I'm going to wait for a 2017, but if a 2016 comes up just the way I want it I might pull the trigger.

 

The F-350 isn't overkill, but you have to understand why it it there.

The F-350 will carry more cargo, including tongue or pin weight. If you're at the top end of the rating for towing a 5th wheel, you are likely over the cargo rating (or hauling rating) of an F-250. That is why you would need an F-350 SRW.

 

F350 for 5th wheels and F250 for Bumper pulls.

If you were to find a bumper pull at 14K (the max for the trucks) then your tongue wt (which counts as payload on the truck) would be around 10% of the trailer GVW.

1400 lbs. That should be well within the payload capacity of the F250.

Might want to settle on the trailer first. One never knows. Then get the truck for the job.

 

What exactly are you going to be towing?

The newer trucks are all rated for a LOT of weight, but there are some small differences in max weight depending on gearing and engine.

 

If you look at the specification web page in your link, you'll notice different tabs. Of interest to us here are two: towing, and payload package selector.
Don't confuse towing capacity with payload. It is entirely possible to configure a truck that can pull 15,900 pounds through engine/transmission/differential selection, that can only carry 150 pounds of cargo. In this (theoretical) configuration our truck wouldn't have enough cargo capacity to carry the tongue weight (at 10%) of the 15,900 pound TT. In other words, these trucks run out of cargo capacity long before they run out of towing capacity.
So, you've already decided you are towing conventional, so it's a safe bet you don't need a dual rear wheel truck.
Next would be to decide what the maximum weight you would be pulling is, to choose between diesel and gas.
Once you have decided that, then you can look at such options as towing package, camper certification, etc.
The trick to maximizing cargo capacity of any given truck is to minimize the added options. Every item you add takes away from cargo capacity. Most people (like me) strike a balance between comfort and capacity. My F-250 gasser Lariat has a cargo capacity of 2611 pounds. So, all passengers, full tank of gas, firewood, tow hitch, and tongue weight have to fall below that. This means that if my TT weighed 10,000 pounds and my tongue weight (at 10%) was 1,000 pounds, I'd still be able to carry 1611 pounds of people and stuff.
Hope this helps clear it up for you. Have fun building your truck!

 

I would think if you're going to be towing heavy, a dually would be the better choice. A wider rearend, along with 2 extra tires back there for added stability. I know a lot of folks do pull some serious weight with 3/4 ton trucks, but for me, I'd be looking at the dually's especially if that's what the truck will mainly be doing.

 

Last travel trailer I had was a small 26' Dutchman that was 5500#, so anything could tow that from F150 on up. You'd have to be going to a pretty big trailer to really see a big difference. I agree with the above that you should pick the trailer first. Building up a rig to max and ending up with a trailer 1/2 that weight will be a wasted effort. For most travel trailers an F250 any way you like it will be more than enough truck. If you get one of those nice big trailers then work the truck up to handle it. 350 would be my pick, and if it's really heavy and you'll be towing quite a bit, then the DRW makes sense.

 

The plan is to get a Winnebago Spyder 28SC (toy hauler). 8,600 lbs dry, 12,000 GVWR. The trailer has more cargo capacity than I would use, by at least 500 lbs. I'll be doing a lot of towing in the mountains of Colorado and Wyoming.

I totally understand the difference between cargo and trailer capacities. I have a tongue scale that I use to make sure I'm keeping my trailer tongue weight within what my capacities are.

I just can't figure out which options will get me to the maximum 14,000 lb trailer capacity. On my Nissan Titan I had to select the tow package to get the maximum 9,400 lb tow capacity and then the LE model (top level) reduced that down to 9,200 lbs. I can't find that kind of information on the Ford site.

 

I did quite a bit of looking into this same sort of thing when I was looking to order my 2015 about a year and a half ago. The conventional towing capacity on the SDs is limited by the factory installed receiver hitch. All of the gas engine trucks get a 2" Receiver that is rated for a maximum of 12,500 lbs with a weight distributing hitch. All of the diesel trucks get the 2.5" receiver, which is rated to the 14,000 lbs with a weight distributing hitch. Any truck that is not a bare bones XL work truck will by default come with the towing package and the integrated Trailer Brake Controller. If I remember correctly, a CCSB with the 6.2 and 3.73 gearing was only rated to tow 12,100 lbs. Any of the diesel options will be rated at 14k conventional and getting a 6.2 with the 4.30 gears will get you a fifth wheel tow rating of 15,100 lbs with a receiver limited conventional tow rating of 12,500 lbs.

 

The diesel engine was definitely on my "must have" list. I think I need to get the 3.55 gears also.