WickedJulesTikiAl Welcome to the family and the forum! . Some of the 303 group will be by to provide some positive guidance.

WickedJulesTikiAl
Hi Alan & Julie,

Welcome to our owners technical forum. When you have a chance, have a look at our welcome post. https://gdrvowners.com/forum/main-fo...to-new-members .

You are correct that there is little storage space aft of the axles on a Reflection 303RLS. The weight of things stored forward of the axles is shared by the trailer axles and the truck. I am surprised that your one ton tow vehicle is challenged by the 2100 lb pin weight of a 303 (with normal camping stuff and empty tanks).

Rob

Hi all - its me again...thanks for the quick replies. I plead newbie so I probably wasn't as clear in my original post as to what info folks needed to "weigh - in" (get it...weigh in???) Anyways...here is more info. My F350 is a fully loaded King Ranch, Turbo Diesel, 4x4, Crew Cab 2015 SRW with all the tow options. FYI I bought it used to do this new adventure thinking I was getting a solid tow platform, but later realized that all of the bells and whistles can definitely impact towing capacities. Used super duty trucks are EXTREMELY rare since the RV buying surge and that was all I really had to pick from. I would have preferred a less loaded version but we have to admit...we really like it and how it drives! Anyways it has the step up tailgate (which appears to be very heavy so that is what I plan to attack first). It also has a rollup aluminum tonneau cover which again, weighs about 150 but is really nice when we aren't towing to secure things in. Removing that is also an option. We have minimal tools in it, just the basics and it had our typical travelling items in it (which are not excessive). It was weighed with both of us in it and a full fuel load (50 gallons diesel) and blu - def load.

The specs on the truck from Ford are: GVWR: 11,500 / GCVWR: 23,500 / Payload: 3277 / Front GAWR: 6000 / Rear GAWR: 7000 This is all rated at the tire specs that are currently on the vehicle.

Our 303RLS had these weights from the factory prior to water and propane. GVWR: 11,995 / GAWR (per axle): 5,200 / GAWR (both): 10,400 / UVW (no water or propane): 9,902 / Hitch Weight: 1,818

Now here were my weights...Our vehicle with all of the things mentioned (both of us) above but no trailer Front: 5140 / Rear: 4000 / Total: 9140. The trailer with all of our stuff we added and about 1/3 tank of fresh water...grey and black empty...full propane.

Next here are with trailer...Front: 5080 / Rear: 6540 / Trailer: 9100 / Total: 20740

What this tells me (again...I am a newbie to RV and towing both) is that we are fine on the trailer weight as well as the combined weight. Due to all storage on the 303 RLS up front it appears our hitch weight (pin, tounge etc) is now 2,540 and we are over our Fords GVWR by about 120 pounds. We have yet to add either a generator or solar or even a second battery. Heck...there is no room for my TIKI stuff!!

Please consider me immune to criticism or snickering because I am new at this. That's why we joined the forum to glean the knowledge all of you have. So please...fire away with any and all suggestions! They are most welcome. And again...thanks to all of the suggestions already given! It is very much appreciated!

Tiki Al

WickedJulesTikiAl
Hi Al,

That should be all the numbers to figure this out. Is the 3277 Payload from Ford literature or from the label on the door of your specific truck?
I am surprised at the UVW of your 303 . . . this is 600 lbs heavier than our earlier 303.

A 2540 pin weight (22% of an 11640 trailer weight) is towards the high end for 303, but not unreasonable.

Back to your original question . . . about the only usable storage for heavy things towards the back of the trailer is the space under the couch. We do store large bags of dog food here which I suppose does help our pin weight some. Be careful about putting heavy things in the cabinets on each side of the couch . . . the floors of these cabinets are only 1/8" ply (at least, on our 303). Similarly, we try to keep only light things in the overhead rear cabinets.

Rob

WickedJulesTikiAl ,
You've got a very good grasp on the numbers for a newb. I sure as heck didn't when I was in your position--and it cost me $$$$$ since I ended up having to trade in a brand new F-250 Platinum for a DRW. (I haul a Honda Goldwing in my truck bed in addition to the tongue weight from my very heavy, and heavily modified, 315RLTS.)

To your numbers: I had to "see" them so plugged them into Excel. (Ignore the gray color in some of the boxes--I use that to remind myself that the number is calculated from other numbers.)

As usual, the limitation is payload--both in your TV and trailer. 415 lbs of payload left in the trailer is not hard to use up. That 6.7 diesel can pull just about anything, the 350 SRW frame (by spec) just can't carry a lot of pin weight.



This forum, per GD's direction, sticks to manufacturer's specifications when it comes to towing. As a fellow moderator says (and he knows) a modern truck can be taken right up to it's ratings. Effectively that's where you're at with the truck and trailer. Anything you want to add (solar, etc) means removing something to compensate if staying within specs is the goal.

Howard

P.S. You will probably be interested in Cate&Rob 's Measure Spring Compression and Arch Height (How To) thread in the Suspension, Brakes and Tires' Reference Material channel.

Your weights are real close to my 2021 303rls. You could put cargo carrier on the rear but that's rated at only 300 lbs, I'm guessing anything that far aft of the axles wont have much effect on the pin load. My 2019 Ram 2500 Hemi has a pin load rating of 4050 lbs. Just a fyi I worked in GM chassis development for years and all the ratings they have on trucks has a good size built in margin, not that I'm saying to run way over but if your at pin load of spec you should be fine.

What are you using for hitch? I put the Anderson ultimate hitch in my truck that weighs only 30 lbs, plus the support on the underside that's around 50 lbs.

We only put a few gallons in our fresh tank for emergency, With water at 8.33 lbs/gal can add up fast.

Dennis66 Dennis, Pin weight will be reduced by the moment factor of the rear receiver to center of axles to king pin to center of axles. It's one giant moment equation with the final result equal to 0.

Here are my weights on the 303.
99% of the stuff in the unit less clothes and food, I weighted everything. With 63 gallons of fresh water on board.

Gross truck and trailer was 19,700 lbs.
Truck only 8660 lbs
Trailer only 11,040 lbs (total trailer weight)
Trailer axle weight 8,860 lbs
Pin weight 2,180 lbs.

We did not have a few things in the trailer, but what we did add was over the axles or just a few clothes.

I think the majority of the water is behind the center of the axles which may help to lighten the king pin. Also remember a full tank of water will ride better than a partial tank due to the moving center of mass of the water as it sloshes around in the partially full tank.

You are correct, true on the water slosh but adding approx. 700 lbs is a lot of weight. We don't due much boondocking so for us we just run tank dry or like I said a few gallons for pit stops. I weighed all of our big stuff minus cloths food and small items. Im hard pressed to get 600 lbs in my compartments. Maybe I should weight the wifes cloths maybe I'm way off. My data sheet I don't have the extras on the sheet but looking at available payload I should be good. Adding a diesel sure drops the payload. I have not weighed mine yet need to find a scale and get some actual readings.

We have basically an earlier version of the same rig but with a shortbed truck (I assume from the 50 gals of fuel reference that you have a longbed). We have numbers similar to yours with a couple of exceptions. When fully loaded for a long trip, we are close to the trailer and truck gvwrs. I believe that Rob’s unit (@cateandrob) comes from the period before our unit (2018) when the units got the bigger refers. Mine came from the factory with a uvw of 9780 (dual ac) and weighed 10,040 lbs at the scale completely empty on the way home from the dealer. The normal propane and battery as well as 3 slide toppers were added by the dealer. Anyway, our hitch weight is typically ~2350-2400 lbs. The ccc of the truck is also about the same as yours as it is a loaded platinum trim. I have the same step gate and a Bakflip cover as well as a auxiliary 50 gal fuel tank. Fully loaded, I can typically stay under weight limits with ~40 gals of aux fuel (75 total). Personally, I would work to reduce the rv pin weight rather than the truck weight if you can. Remember that 350 lbs of the truck is fuel which disappears all too rapidly. You don’t mention which hitch you are using and you might be able to save 100+ lbs if you switch to an Anderson from a heavier hitch. As Rob mentioned, I removed the foldout under the couch and store beer, wine, and other liquids back there which probably helps a little. Sounds like you have some heavy items up forward or under the bed. Good luck figuring it out. The combination makes for a great rig imo.

Great suggestions everyone! It is very much appreciated!

Boy - even doing an excel sheet!!!

since folks are asking we have a standard bed so needed a slider hitch. The only one I could put my hands on was a B&W companion manual slider. EVERYTHING related to RV’s is hard to come by due to the buying spree as I am sure most already know.

Again..thanks for all the great tips. You all have given us a lot to work with!

oh the payload for the Ford came from the sticker on the tire info in the door frame. That was before the tonneau cover, air bags etc were all added is my guess.

WickedJulesTikiAl that is a heavy hitch. I fell for that reasoning as well (needed slider hitch). You don't need a slider hitch. I sold ours (Demco) when we recently changed 5th wheels, and replaced with one of the new technology lightweight/high strength hitches (Pullrite 2400). Got 220 pounds out of truck. I tow a lot more trailer than you do. Not sure, but I believe the Reflection is a 96 wide unit and our Solitude is 101. I can turn to approx 80 degrees without contact from trailer. When there is contact, it is at the rear of pinbox structure to the top of the bed rail, which I can easily see in my side mirrors and avoid. I wouldn't stress over a few pounds over an axle rating, so long as the weights on your tires are observed. You need to be diligent with tire pressure when you are hitched up to a max load. If you were pulled into a scale for a weight check by law enforcement, they are going to check for overloaded tires (primarily). Another thing to consider is adding some sort of load assist at the rear of the truck. Common choices are air bags and Timbren rubber springs. I run the Timbren severe service units and love them. Keeping the rear supported transfers a small amount of weight to the front axle, in theory.

Im at about 85 deg with 6' box Anderson hitch I have plenty of room and I have the hitch set for max turn and still have room at bed rails. I only need to be careful turning tight with very uneven ground.