I am looking for anyone who has some information on towing a 5th wheel and a boat behind a V10. I am looking to purchase a 28' to 30' 5th wheel and also have a 21' ski boat and would like to pull both. Looking for pros and cons on performance and safety.

thanks

 

Is that kind of vehicle length allowed where you are?

I think we had/have a member on here that's on the boarder-line w/thier DOT guidelines on the 5ver rig and his 15'or 16' boat...

 

It varies from state to state. Sometimes there are length restrictions, and sometimes it's illegal in a particular state no matter what.

 

Unfortunately, pulling doubles is a big no-no in NC.

 

Pulling doubles in Utah without a CDL is 65 feet (Front Bumper to Rear of the last trailer)

 

Mhagen, what state do you live in and will you be towing this combo into any other states? Each state as it's own guide lines that may differ from neighboring states. where I live in ND the law states that I need to have lights and saftey chains on all trailers and brakes with a breakaway switch on the lead trailor. It states that the hitch on the camper has to be part of the frame so you usually end up with a reinforce bumper with a welded peice of 4"x4" angle or flat Iron spaning between the frame rails welded to both the frame and the bumper. The only other restriction is 75' maximum length from the front of the tow vehicle to the rear of the last trailer.

I personally tow a 26FLS Wildwood Travel trailor (single slide) and a 17ft smokercraft boat together behind my V10 powered F250 (the pictures in my gallery show my old camper but give the same Idea, I have a new pic of the new camper w/ the boat hooked up but haven't had time to upload them). I sit at 73ft in length, just shy of the 75' limit! Now I could actually tow a 6ft longer fifth wheel and be no longer than I am now since the hitch of a travel trailor adds to the length and there is no overlap on the pickup. You'll have to check your own state regulations but I would imagine you to be right around 75ft depending on your trucks configuration and how long the fifth wheel actually ends up being. I don't think fifth wheels are as deceiving as travel trailers as far as length go's. My 26ft tt actually measures out to 30' from hitch to bumper yet my dads old camper was called a 24' but that was the overall length. it can get confusing if your not paying attention.

The second thing is your going to be towing around 14k lbs giver or take so I would be sure to at the very least verify that you have atleast a 4.30 rear end gear. I tow my set up with 3.73s and a set of 285/75/16s and it does good but I could easily see going to deeper gears when I buy a larger boat and or fifthwheel. My setup tows great and will hold 65-70mph in moderate hills without any problem and can pull pretty strong into a head wind but if I have to battle both things it can become a work out for the V10. I'm grossing right around 18k lbs so I feel pretty satisfied with how well it pulls since the truck isn't even rated for that kind of weight. 4.30s actually increase the GCWR quite a bit. I would guess that you'll be gorssing 21k lbs so you may want to do a gear change at the same time that your getting your fifther hitch installed and getting the whole rig set up as needed. Good luck and if you wait untill tomarrow I should have pics in my gallery of the new setup.

 

I live in California and will be towing to Nevada, Arizaona and Utah. I have seen several rigs on the road in those states so I believe it is legal. My truck is currentl running 3:73 with 315's So I will probably need to go lower. I am just concerned about the V10 and the transmission handling the load.

 

I would reccomend going back to stock tires and switching your gears to, at a minimum, 4.30s since you'll be towing up some serious grades. If changing tires isn't and option, which I don't blame you because I won't go back to stock either, then just compensate with the gears. I would then go to a 4.56s or a 4.88s. Do a little research so you know how much everthing wieghs, take into consideration the hieght of the fifthwheel for wind resistance, your tire size and then do some calcs on one of the gear calulators to see what you need so your in the right RPM band when towing in D (3rd). I would ignore your OD and the Rpms that it'll run in OD unless you do a lot of unloaded driving. Presonally I would shoot to get your Rs into that 33-3500 range at say 60-65mph in 3rd gear. That should give you enough gear to tow anything that the V10 is capable of doing and yet have enough OD gear that you could still drive it unloaded and not have your engine turning excessive rpms running down the highway.

 

I finally managed to get an updated photo of the whole rig uploaded tonight, enjoy!

https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gal...124209&width=0

 

I think the length limit in Ca is 65ft and you need an endorsement on your drivers license.

 

I was looking at some 5th wheelers this weekend and they all seemed to run about 9,000 to 11,000 pounds. Based on that and the trailer towing capacity of my f350 being 10,300 pounds I do not see how I would even be able to add the boat to it. Seems to me like the 5th wheelrs by themselves are pushing the limits of the truck. Wonder how these guys are pulling the 35' to 40' trailers.

 

Are you guys saying people with a normal licence can pull two trailers???? That would have to be insane. What if they have to reverse or go into some tight roads etc?

I can understand it if you have a special licence and have had some sort of training.

 

Aussie Pete,

In Michigan we have to take a test to get an endorsement on our license to pull a double. Oh, by the way you really don't do much backing up with doubles. If you have to, you unhook the second rig and then back up the first one. Just gotta plan ahead so you don't need to back up.

 

Its not that bad and the capacity set by Ford is under what it can actually tow. That is a safe and legal number and is differnt from truck to truck depending on how its set up. Towing heavy is takes some skill and common sense knowing how to react to the road. IE braking distance and sway. I've seen powerstrokes towing over 20k with no problems and the truck can handel it.

 

I live in SoCal and tow thru those same places. I always pull long hard grades starting right here at the Cajon grade all the way thru the Virgin River Gorge in AZ and Utah's high mountains and passes. I switched my '03 over to 4.30's and stayed with factory diameter tires. I just went with the wider option on the Transforce HT's (265/75R16 from 235/85R16). The tires are fantastic, and the gears were a super big help. I tow a large 5th wheel with no problems. I had to go into 1st gear (over-driven with the GV unit) only one time and that was at an elevation of 7,000 feet on an 8% grade. My tranny temp needle never moved upwards except only one time slightly up Cajon grade. You need not worry about the V10. It's is a stout, high rpm flat torque curve engine which now has my undying devotion. I will never whimper anymore about having to give up my beloved 460.