I have a few towing questions.I have an 05 6.0 250 srw 8' bed. I am in the market for a travel trailer. How about the pro vs cons of a 5th wheel vs a standard trailer.Just recently went to a rv show, really liked the 29' 5th wheel. Any input would be great as I also have to cinvince the other half as to another purchase

 

Personally, I found the 5th wheel floorplans better suited for two people or smaller families. I ended up purchasing a 329 TBS Catalina model Coachman travel trailer for the floorplan that allowed maximum sleeping berths. We travel with a minimum of 6 people for soccer tournaments and as many as 8. My 329 TBS layout will sleep 10 easily.

Performance wise, I would like the fifth wheel. Sway isn't really a factor compared to a travel trailer. I think the fifth wheels also handle rough roads better with the hitch weight ahead of the axle, so you have less tendancy to "bounce" after a bump in the road.

You do lose use of you pick-up bed with a fifth wheel. Also be sure to check for bed clearance to the trailer. The newer trucks ride higher and may present a problem. I have seen some trucks that have had their bed sides cut down 3"-4" to better clear their fifth wheel trailer.

Are your needs just local camping trips, or cross-country expeditions?

 

...moved.....

 

About two years ago we moved from a pull behind TT to a 5th wheel and I will never go back to a pull behind.

The 5th wheel pulls much easier (it "feels" more like one vehicle instead one vehicle pulling another).
It's easier to back into a tight camper spot because the articulation is closer to the center of your truck rather than the tail of it. It's not as easy to "jacknife" or get it into a precarious situation because of this. At least not to me it isn't but as a side note, I used to hold a CDL license and am more use to the fifth wheel type of towing anyway.

We have a 28' 5th wheel and it has plenty of room for myself, my wife and two kids. Another unanticipated advantage to the 5th wheel is that the kids love the upstairs bedroom. If we're stuck in the camper because of rain or whatever, the kids will just hang out up there and leave the lower floor for my wife and I. I think the kids feel like it is a "fort" or "playhouse" in the upstairs.

Like twin said though, you do loose truck bed space and setting that 5th wheel hitch in and out of your truck can be a real pain. Mine probably weighs close to 100lbs.

On the other hand, you don't have that huge hitch sticking out of the back of your truck while your at the campground for everyone to bang their knees on and for kids to run into with their bikes.

Our 5'er sleeps 6 comfortably; two upstairs, two on the fold out couch, two on the oversize kitchen table.

We camp regularly with some friends that have a 28' pull behind with a slide out and theirs will sleep 8; two in the master bedroom, two on the fold out couch, two (small people or kids) on the kitchen table, and two (small again) in the rear bunk beds.

I guess it's all up to the individual as to which you prefer but to me the ease of pulling a 5th wheel far outweighs any disadvantage to owning one.

 

One other advantage of a 5th wheeler...

In many states it is legal to have passengers in the trailer if it is a 5th wheel. It is not legal with a tow behind travel trailer.

Not sure if I would really put someone in the travel trailer, but there have been many times when it sure would have been handy if we could toss the kids in the trailer, or I could catch a nap while the wife drove, or the wife could whip up a dinner so it was ready when we got there, yeah right.

I have never driven a 5th wheller, but have towed a travel trailer for about 7 or 8 years pretty regularly. I have a 94 250 4x4 E4OD supercab long bed with a weight distributing hitch and anti sway and most times I hardly notice the trailer. I even tow over dirt roads in the mountains and snow and have never had a problem. Once in awhile I will get a road that has just the right bumpiness that the truck might bounce to a rythm for awhile, but it has never been a problem.

I would buy another tow behind, since I like having the use of my truck bed, especially to haul junk or lock kids into while the trailer is behind.

Good Luck,

Jim Henderson

 

I've got a 33' Prowler TT and pull with my '05 F250 V10. I've got plenty of truck to pull the trailer (about 8k# loaded) and haven't experienced any sway or bob in the trailer since switching to the SD.

I, like Jim, haven't pulled a 5er, but can attest that pulling the TT isn't the handful to drive that so many people make it out to be. The biggest difference I noticed going from my previous tow vehicle ('02 Nav.) to the SD was in the integrated brake controller. If you have that on your truck, you'll never want to go back to an aftermarket product regardless of the trailer you're pulling. The truck and trailer act as a single unit during braking and there's no surge/jerking coming to a stop. A good WD hitch with sway control will make a lot of difference in the driveability of a TT too. It's one area where skimping on price is likely to affect your whole attitude towards pulling.

Also, I like having the bed of the truck available while I'm towing. I make several trips a year to the coast and like to be able to throw my fishing gear and all the necessary beach "stuff" in the back of the truck without a 5th receiver in the bed.

Layout and liveability will make a big difference on longer trips and what looks nice for 15-20 minutes on the lot may not be practical or suitable for extended stays. You've got plenty of truck to pull just about anything short of a 45' double-wide. Take your time and shop around for what "fits" best for you and your family.

I'm sure, regardless of what you decide on, you'll really enjoy the freedom of the trailer life... Good luck shopping!

 

I don't have as much experience on campers, but have plenty with flat beds and livestock trailers. My experience isn't with fifth, but with goosenecks, which are basically the same. You can get conversions to make a fifth into a goose, which frees up bed space. But the focus of why I am responding isn't about the hitch style, but towing quality. Fifth by far exceeds a bumper any day. The hitch pivot point is way better, so the backing aspect is no comparison. Also, the fact of the front of the trailer being nearer the cab, the airflow is better. Ride quality is better due to the more equal distribution of the hitch pressure. Another factor is traction... much better with a fifth over a bumper hitch. All things to consider, but something in favor of the bumper hitch is versatility, you can hook up to more tow vehicles without the special hitch, all you need is a rear receiver hitch.

 

My 02 F250 LB pulls my 28.5 ft 5th wheel very wellthanks.

The hitch ( Reese 16K) comes out in 2 pieces which weigh about 50 lbs each ( the HEAD and the platform). This leaves 2 rails which are about 1/2 " high in the bed when I'm done.

 

Once you pull a 5th wheel or a gooseneck you will most likely never go back to a bumper pull trailer. And all that mickey mouse hitch BS that goes along with them, spring bars, chains, anti-sway... With the 5th wheel you back under the trailer and flip the lock on the latch, raise the landing gear, plug in the electric and away you go.

I do pull a 5th wheel, trust me it is the safest, and most reliable method of pulling a trailer that is available. That's why this system is used by tractor-trailer rigs the world over. It does not induce a sway to the tow vehicle due to the placement of the pivot point relative to the rear wheels. This practically eliminates the sideways movement of the tow vehicle.
A bumper pull hitch places the pivot point about 4 feet behind the rear wheels and it's this leverage that works to induce the sway that all drivers of bumper pull trailers fear. Worst yet is the fact that when a sway is induced it tries to change the line of travel of the truck which must then be corrected by the driver and then that correction induces a sway to the other side... In short order this manifests itself into a significant amount of dangerous sway and can lead to the complete loss of control. Sometimes applying just the trailer brakes or slowing down can help stop the sway but in any case it's a scary deal.

In my travels as an OTR trucker for 25 years I witnessed 3 RV accidents involving bumper pulls and sway. One happened right next to me in 1977 on I-26 in SC. Elderly man and wife, trailer on it's side, truck upside down...she was killed.
Another as I topped a hill and let a gasoline tanker roll, at the bottom I see a camper start swaying and I start hitting the brakes just as the thing goes sideways dragging the Ford SUV with it. Trailer hits the left guard rail and explodes with the remainder and the now jack-knived SUV continuing across to the right guard rail. The road was blocked and others ahead of me were having a hard time stopping, there was a lot of tire smoke and I too had a really, really hard time stopping 80,000# of truck and gasoline from 70mph. There were no injuries but a lot of very upset people including 3 kids in the SUV...what a vacation!

I know that this all sounds like gloom and doom but it's been my experience and something that I can't just forget. If however it helps just one person make an educated choice or understand the reasons for the different hitch system then it's worth putting out here.

Before we became fulltimers and sold the house our next door nieghbors came dragging in one morning with the truck loaded to the gills. They had just returned from VA and picking up as much of her parents belongings as they could off the sides of the interstate. Her father said that they were doing about 60mph down hill and he commented to his wife that the camper passing them sure looked nice. Then he realized that it was THEIR camper. It went into the guard rail and spun around in pieces dumping everything all over the place.
Investigation showed that the chain had broken on one of the spring bars and the trailer seperated from the truck. The break away cable failed to set the brakes also.
They were real lucky that it didn't hit another vehicle.
They travel in a motorhome now.

Bumper pull...no thanks, not for me. In fact, I'm looking for a way to convert my 24' cargo trailer to a gooseneck or buy another trailer.

I wonder if there are any statistics as to the accident ratio between bumper pull and 5th wheel campers and the type of accident? I'm not a betting man but I'd lay odds on the bumper pull being the big loser in this. Of course there are likely twice as many bumper pulls as 5th wheels on the road so the results might be skewed a little. Also I would like to believe that the drivers of the 5th wheels have more experience too.

BTW, in a lot of states you can pull a second trailer with a fifth wheel camper.