Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

F-250 payload and 5th wheel towing New to this

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • F-250 payload and 5th wheel towing New to this

    Hey guys
    question for you. So my wife and I are looking to get our first 5th wheel and I want to make sure I have done this math correct or if I am over compensating and we could get a larger 5th wheel.

    We have a 2017 F-250 diesel. When I look at the payload on the door it says 2272 (which seems low to me but it is what it is) for passengers and cargo. We are looking at the 150 series 5th wheel 268BH with a dry hitch weight of 1274. So my question is... if our payload is 2272 - 1274 (pin weight) - 35 hitch (andersen 5th wheel hitch - 400 (family in truck) that leaves us about 563lbs for supplies, water, propane, and anything else we wanna take along.

    Does se this math seem right and is there anything I’m not thinking about here... is that really the heaviest hitch weight 5th wheel we can get with this truck without going over payload? Just wanted to get your thoughts.

    thanks

  • #2
    Originally posted by Reform21 View Post
    Hey guys
    question for you. So my wife and I are looking to get our first 5th wheel and I want to make sure I have done this math correct or if I am over compensating and we could get a larger 5th wheel.

    We have a 2017 F-250 diesel. When I look at the payload on the door it says 2272 (which seems low to me but it is what it is) for passengers and cargo. We are looking at the 150 series 5th wheel 268BH with a dry hitch weight of 1274. So my question is... if our payload is 2272 - 1274 (pin weight) - 35 hitch (andersen 5th wheel hitch - 400 (family in truck) that leaves us about 563lbs for supplies, water, propane, and anything else we wanna take along.

    Does se this math seem right and is there anything I’m not thinking about here... is that really the heaviest hitch weight 5th wheel we can get with this truck without going over payload? Just wanted to get your thoughts.

    thanks
    Welcome to Grand Design's Technical Forum. Great question and congratulations for asking before buying.

    The answer to your specific question is contained in the first paragraph below. The rest I've included as FYI.

    There's several forum members with significant expertise in this area, so expect a few more responses!

    - Howard

    -----------------------------------

    IMPORTANT PLANNING INFORMATION
    The hitch (or pin) weights on Grand Design RVs as listed on their website (under Specifications) is usually less than what you'll experience in the real-world. The UVW (Unloaded Vehicle Weight) is usually less, too.

    For planning purposes, use 15% of a bumper-pull trailer's GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) as a worst-case scenario for hitch weight. For a 5th Wheel use 25% to determine worst-case pin weight. (These numbers are from the towingplanner.com website referenced below.) The actual weight of your trailer's hitch or pin will probably be less, but if your truck can handle the worst-case scenario everything else on your tow vehicle should be within specifications (but always double-check).

    VIDEOS
    Keep Your Daydream's video on the topic



    From the RV Safety website: https://rvacademy.com/my-class/match...ks-to-trailers

    The first 12 minutes of this video by Changing Lanes! on Youtube is recommended for those considering a 5th Wheel



    WEBSITES
    http://towingplanner.com/

    https://www.huskytow.com/towing-calculator/

    http://changingears.com/rv-sec-tow-vehicle-sizing.shtml

    https://catscale.com/ All you ever wanted to know about CAT scales

    www.fifthwheelst.com This website has a lot of information. There are many references to the app RV Tow Check (not free).

    CALCULATORS
    The attached worksheet from Ford shows how to determine what you need.
    Ford Towing Capability Calculator.pdf

    Keep Your Daydream's spreadsheet: http://www.keepyourdaydream.com/payload/

    APPS
    https://rvtowcheck.com/ (This is not free.)

    HITCH RATINGS: See post https://gdrvowners.com/forum/referen...-hitch-ratings
    Last edited by howson; 05-09-2020, 08:39 AM.
    Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

    2017 Ford F-350 DRW, '19 315RLTSPlus

    Comment


    • #3
      I have used the 20% pin weight of the gross weight , in your case 9500# gross would yield about 1900# pin weight. If you are just weekend camping and are not carrying loads of stuff you may be ok. If you load all you can you will probably be over. There are plenty that go over but that's all in what you want to do.

      Brian
      Brian & Michelle
      2018 Reflection 29RS
      2022 Chevy 3500HD

      Comment


      • #4
        Originally posted by Country Campers View Post
        I have used the 20% pin weight of the gross weight , in your case 9500# gross would yield about 1900# pin weight. If you are just weekend camping and are not carrying loads of stuff you may be ok. If you load all you can you will probably be over. There are plenty that go over but that's all in what you want to do.

        Brian
        At max GVW of the trailer at a 20% pin weight there is 338 lbs left (no passengers) so the only option would be to load very light to stay below max GVW of the trailer. I wish RV manufacturers would list the range of pin weight from empty to 25% for 5ith wheels. This would be so much more helpful than listing only the empty pin weight of the rig.

        Some will overload the truck but its never acceptable to do this since the term overload can vary greatly.

        Jim
        Last edited by Guest; 05-09-2020, 08:40 AM.

        Comment


        • #5
          Reform21


          I would approach this a little bit differently (which will not be a surprise to anyone regularly on this forum )

          The "standard" wisdom for 5th wheels is to allow 25% of trailer GVWR to be on the pin. This is definitely a worst-case calculation that would drive anyone towing a 5th wheel to a one ton truck and often to a dually. This perspective is often voiced by those who tow a 20,000 lb toy hauler and do legitimately need this capacity.

          At the other end of the spectrum is the Reflection 150 Series that you are looking at. Grand Design has purposely designed these 5th wheels with smaller trucks in mind. There are no forward slides and floor plans are designed towards keeping pin weight as low as possible. Note that as shipped, the 268BH has 16% of trailer weight on the pin. 1274/7791.

          Next, consider that loading a trailer to GVWR is not a requirement and actually rather difficult to do with empty tanks, unless you carry something like a full set of mechanic's tools. We travel for months at a time and find that 1000 lbs of "stuff" in the trailer is sufficient. This would take your "ready to go camping" trailer weight to 8791 lbs. Even if you got your pin weight to 20% of this (and from discussion with other 150 Series owners this would be a stretch) this would give you a pin weight of 1758 lbs.

          With a truck payload of 2272 lbs (which, BTW, is normal for a diesel 250) this leaves 500 lbs for hitch and other stuff in the truck. Only you can decide if you can travel with a basically empty truck except for people.

          As a side comment, 150 Series 5th wheels have "Turning Point" hitches to allow them to be towed with short box trucks. If you intended to use this feature (it can be locked out) this will not work with an Andersen hitch.

          My opinion (and it just an opinion) is that an F250 and a Reflection 150 Series are a good match for each other.

          Rob
          Cate & Rob
          (with Border Collies Molly & Angel + Kitties Hazel & Elsie)
          2015 Reflection 303RLS
          2022 F350 Diesel CC SB SRW Lariat
          Bayham, Ontario, Canada

          Comment


          • #6
            While I'm not a fan of diesel 3/4-ton trucks (been there, done that), I have to agree with Cate&Rob on this one. I just wanted to reinforce (the other) Rob's comments on hitches and pin boxes. We towed for over 12,000 miles with an Andersen Ultimate hitch with our previous set-up. It's a great hitch. You don't say whether your truck is a long bed or a short bed, so I'm going to assume a short bed on an F-250. One has to be very careful about cap-to-cab and pinbox-to-bed clearances with the Andersen/short bed combo. While it's very tempting to save some weight with the Andersen, the Turning Point pin box is designed for just the situation you are contemplating. I would recommend buying a decent quality standard hitch (not too heavy) with the appropriate locking plate for the Turning Point and using the features of the pin box that comes on the 150 series.

            (Another) Rob
            Rob & Laura
            U.S. Army Retired (Rob)
            2012 F350 DRW CC Lariat PS 6.7, PullRite OE 18K
            2020 Solitude 310GK-R, MORryde IS and disc brakes, solar, BB LiFePO4, DP windows
            (Previously in a 2016 Reflection 337RLS)
            Full time since 08/2015

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by Cate&Rob View Post
              Reform21...an F250 and a Reflection 150 Series are a good match for each other.
              I agree with that statement. I hope the information in post #2 doesn't lead the OP to think otherwise.

              Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

              2017 Ford F-350 DRW, '19 315RLTSPlus

              Comment


              • #8
                Use 25% pin weight at max GVW of the trailer and work back to the empty pin weight based on UVW. For TTs, Use 15% pin weight based on max GVW of the trailer and work back to the empty pin weight based on UVW. Compare these values to the yellow tag in the door jamb of the truck.

                The issue here is the manufacturers listing of the pin weight based on UVW where the range of acceptability really needs to be listed so customers can make an informed decision. Otherwise the two time club will continue increasing in membership.

                Can the moderators ask Grand Design if they could begin listing a reasonable range of possible pin weights in their literature?

                Jim
                Last edited by Guest; 05-09-2020, 12:13 PM.

                Comment


                • #9
                  The payload capacity of your 3/4 ton is normal with a diesel, the engine weighs about 500 lbs more than a gas engine. The real life pin weight will be higher than the listed weight, so you will be pushing the limits with that rig and passengers. I would not recommend a larger rig with that payload capacity.
                  2020 F-350 CCSB 6.7L Powerstroke
                  2020 Imagine 2250rk

                  Comment

                  Working...
                  X