Looking to put a leveling kit, 35s and rear airbags on my 2020 F250 6.7 L (8ft bed). I tow a 15k lb 5th wheel about every 3 months. I’ve got the Curt Crosswing hitch that I can adjust up and down for height. Wondering if this is a good setup or if it’ll sit too high to tow the rig level? Anybody have a similar setup or any issues with it? I can’t imagine it making too much of a difference but would rather be safe than sorry down the road.

Also will take any brand recommendations on kits/parts & tires. Throwing some new shocks on as well as the stock ones are getting to the point of needing replaced.

 

With the 5th wheel level, measure the distance between the camper overhead and the truck bed. Now figure how much you can raise the truck while maintaining at least 6” between truck bed and camper….7” is better.

The Curt hitch can only do so much if the bed is too high.

My 2017 F350 would go down in back with 2800 lbs of pin weight. It would be slightly low in back with load, with the OEM suspension, with 7” of bed to camper space.

 

A lot of this depends on the camper you've got, but with a 15k camper that's not really that heavy so you don't need the airbags. I've pulled 18k fifth wheels and didn't need airbags. Sure it squatted a little but that's how it's supposed to work.

Depending on how high your camper sits now, you might be okay, but as mentioned 6" between the truck rails and the bottom of the camper overhang is about the minimum I'd want to run. Closer than that and you risk touching during high-flex maneuvers, which are more common than you might think. You can get away with running a LITTLE out of level to get there, on my '03 back in the day our fifth wheel was about 2" higher in the front than the rear and I never had any issues, I ran like that to clear my bed mounted tool box on a short bed without a slider. It was tight in high-flex situations but as long as I didn't rush it it was fine.

Not running airbags will actually help you keep your camper closer to level when towing, which helps get that minimum 6" clearance.

Edit: I notice you said you're running an F250. Depending on your springs you MIGHT be overloaded, I don't know. I presumed you had an F350.

 

So, lets see about this formula...
Take a truck that is designed from the factory with towing/hauling as a main design criteria.
Then we will raise the front to level it, thus making the rear end go below level when towing, so we add air bags to compensate.
Then we add taller tires, altering the overall gear ratio, lowering its pulling power.
Then we hook the truck to a 5th wheel travel trailer with a 15K gross weight, which is right at the limit of the stock F250 truck's tow rating.

Hmm, yup, sounds like just the thing to do!

 

its no use talking all that sense. the neighbor is leveled up. coworkers leveled up. cousin is leveled up. sisters boyfreind iz leveled up. gotta keep up with the jonses dont ya know.
cops in some states carry tape measures for checking wheel well gaps to give citations on all these nose high sqautters pulling around campers and other trailers. its a hazard with all those baffoons on the roads. they cant see properly out the front of the truck. the headlights are miles out of proper position blinding every other vehicle. and you know darn well the truck cant brake or manuever correctly with it 3 or 4 in nose hight.

 

To the OP, I have the setup you are referring to except mine is a short box. I have no issues at all towing anywhere. I have enhanced the rear springs with RAS and airbags to level out, but 350 need bags too to help with squat.

 

No, they don't. I have pulled a LOT of fifth wheels with various F350s, and air bags are NOT NECESSARY if you have the right truck for the job. Does the truck squat? Yes. But that's what it's DESIGNED TO DO. Airbags can mask problems that need to be addressed properly.

I have put front-living fifth wheels (arguably the heaviest tongue weights, outdone possibly only by large toy haulers with the biggest garages in the back) on an F350, and it came down to the helper springs and didn't go further. Properly set up, a portion of the weight is also going to the front axle - the center of the pin should be directly over the rear axle OR slightly ahead of it. If your steering is getting light when you're hitched up, then your pin is too far back and you aren't set up right - air bags do NOT transfer weight and therefore are only masking this problem.

 

They do if they are leveled, otherwise your headlights will be too high.

 

My F350 has 6200lbs of payload and I got flashed by almost every driver with my dims on at night when my 3900lb pin weight 5th wheel was hooked up. I put airbags on it before I ever towed again and I never got flashed while towing at night. And the truck rides like a Cadillac with 4k lbs on the pin and 40psi in the bags.

 

Dupe

 

This is about as bad of a plan as possible.

Get rid of the giant trailer if you want to tow with a lifted truck. Consider a 23' TT.

 

Not sure why you think this is "As bad as plan as possible". I've towed a lot of things a lot of miles with this setup, never a problem.

 

there are about half a million superdutys on the west coast that are leveled with 35 or 37s that have no issues pulling 5ers. I had one for several years and pulled a 47’ three axle raptor without any issues ever.
I now have a leveled plus 1 (4.5”) on my 450 with 37s and it doesn’t affect my gooseneck pulling ability.

 

I have a 2021 F350 6.7 SRW SB with a B&W Companion Slider 5th wheel hitch (haven’t used slide feature yet). I’m running 35” tires with BDS lift (about 2.5”) and AirLift auto airbags in the rear towing a 35’ Keystone Montana fifth wheel trailer. Great setup, tows great.

 

You get into some geometry issues if you lift the truck and tow.

But I run a 1.5” lift on my front. I have the taller 2017 rear blocks. Tow 15k conventional fine and 17k gooseneck fine. Stock rear springs. And yes they are supposed to sag some.

You can run 35s stock but here is what I think you should do since you have the bags…. 1 inch under spring spacer, bilstein 5100s all around, fox ifp steering stabilizer, and 2 degree caster shims. 9 inch wide wheels with 0 offset.

Do you have the stock 5200 front springs (gawr)?