Observation camping

reek · Aug 12, 2016

After talking the wife out of the pop up she's been wanting for over a year, we ended up with a Forest river 19 ft travel trailer - 400 lb hitch weight, 4000 lb empty. The dealer we used actually was trying to talk me into a WD hitch so I thought, "these guys must be pretty stand up". Until I saw the guy after me pull in with an F150 to pick up his 5th wheel. Then I figured, they were just trying to sell me a hitch.

I'll have to agree with Thetank when he says it's the responsibility of the tow-er to know what is needed for a safe tow. Of course, when you show a tundra pulling a space shuttle and you're new to towing, it's tough to know what questions to ask.

incidentally, our first 8 hour round trip camping adventure was great! Don't feel the need for a WD hitch.

Aries75 · Aug 12, 2016

reek said:
After talking the wife out of the pop up she's been wanting for over a year, we ended up with a Forest river 19 ft travel trailer - 400 lb hitch weight, 4000 lb empty. The dealer we used actually was trying to talk me into a WD hitch so I thought, "these guys must be pretty stand up". Until I saw the guy after me pull in with an F150 to pick up his 5th wheel. Then I figured, they were just trying to sell me a hitch.

I'll have to agree with Thetank when he says it's the responsibility of the tow-er to know what is needed for a safe tow. Of course, when you show a tundra pulling a space shuttle and you're new to towing, it's tough to know what questions to ask.

incidentally, our first 8 hour round trip camping adventure was great! Don't feel the need for a WD hitch.

wait what u mean that wasnt real :roflsquared:

dexter · Aug 12, 2016

reek said:
incidentally, our first 8 hour round trip camping adventure was great! Don't feel the need for a WD hitch.

I think the manual says a WDH is only need for over 5,000lb trailers - check that.

reek · Aug 13, 2016

dexter said:
I think the manual says a WDH is only need for over 5,000lb trailers - check that.

I'm sure with all the stuff the wife packed into the trailer, we're probably just over 5000 lbs. I can only gently "suggest" we don' t need the George Forman Grill and the stoneware plates and the tempurpedic (knock off) mattress and the ..... you get the idea. Its amusing to watch considering she originally only wanted a simple bare bones popup. Anyway, if she adds any more stuff to the trailer, I may just have to trade in the 2500 for an F150. :naughty:

fastgti · Nov 7, 2017

I use to pull my 26 ft box travel trailer with my 06 1500. it had a 4 inch lift and 35 in tires. with me buying it used I knew that I was going to need a bigger one to pull the trailer that weights 5345 empty and we probable get it fully loaded at 6500lbs. I use a WDH. I am not going to try and drive it far with out one. I tend to run into wind a lot.

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Ratket · Nov 8, 2017

We just moved to arizona - had my brother drag the 12x6 enclosed double axle u haul trailer and I dragged the 16 foot double axle Carson trailer, come up a hill on 40 I was in it to get around a semi- and blew a tire at about 75mph - I didn’t feel it blow nor did it affect the handling of the truck, I just happend to be spot checking my mirror and saw chunks of rubber flying.
That being said my brother taught me a valuable lesson - “ This is why we bring two spare and a high lift jack” took us 10 minutes to change the tire and we where gone again.
On a side note my brother has decide for $104 shipped to his door- he just buys a already mounted and balanced wheel/tire combo for his trailers...
we literally unstrapped the box from the trailer, pulled the brand new tire out and shoved the old tire in the box and re strapped it and bolted up the new one. Then I double checked all the tire pressures and we where gone.

GsRAM · Nov 8, 2017

Ratket said:
We just moved to arizona - had my brother drag the 12x6 enclosed double axle u haul trailer and I dragged the 16 foot double axle Carson trailer, come up a hill on 40 I was in it to get around a semi- and blew a tire at about 75mph - I didn’t feel it blow nor did it affect the handling of the truck, I just happend to be spot checking my mirror and saw chunks of rubber flying.
That being said my brother taught me a valuable lesson - “ This is why we bring two spare and a high lift jack” took us 10 minutes to change the tire and we where gone again.
On a side note my brother has decide for $104 shipped to his door- he just buys a already mounted and balanced wheel/tire combo for his trailers...
we literally unstrapped the box from the trailer, pulled the brand new tire out and shoved the old tire in the box and re strapped it and bolted up the new one. Then I double checked all the tire pressures and we where gone.

Towing and running 75mph? If that's the case and you run st rated trailer tires, you were 10 mph over their speed rating, overheated them and blew them out. I'm glad you were able to maintain control and didn't hurt anyone doing those speeds and towing.

I see that a lot unfortunately, someone towing a 30+ foot tt with a Tahoe or Durango blows by me when I'm doing 70 already. Then a few miles down the road i see em on the side of the road changing tires, or worse rolled over. People just don't respect the weights involved or how easily things can go wrong. They tow like they drive a sedan. Not good. Ignorance is bliss i suppose. I'm just grateful and blessed to know better.

To the point of this thread, yep, seen all kinds of overloaded rigs, many many f150s owners think can tow anything. Way too big 5th wheels, 30+ foot TTs, you name it. They think because they are under the factory "tow rating " they are good to go and are ignorant to payload limit. See it all the time unfortunately.

HvyDuty · Nov 8, 2017

Yep, see plenty of overloaded rigs.

I've seen:

-Minivan towing a 24ft tandem axle TTs (multiple)

-Lifted Ram 2500 4x4 5.7L Hemi towing triple axle toy hauler

-Ram 1500 towing 30+ foot 5ers (multiples)

-F150 Ecoboost towing 35+ foot 5ers (multiples)

-F150 Ecoboost towing 40 foot Park Model TT

-Dodge Durango 2nd gen towing 35 foot TT

sandawilliams · Nov 8, 2017

GsRAM said:
Towing and running 75mph? If that's the case and you run st rated trailer tires, you were 10 mph over their speed rating, overheated them and blew them out. I'm glad you were able to maintain control and didn't hurt anyone doing those speeds and towing.

I see that a lot unfortunately, someone towing a 30+ foot tt with a Tahoe or Durango blows by me when I'm doing 70 already. Then a few miles down the road i see em on the side of the road changing tires, or worse rolled over. People just don't respect the weights involved or how easily things can go wrong. They tow like they drive a sedan. Not good. Ignorance is bliss i suppose. I'm just grateful and blessed to know better.

To the point of this thread, yep, seen all kinds of overloaded rigs, many many f150s owners think can tow anything. Way too big 5th wheels, 30+ foot TTs, you name it. They think because they are under the factory "tow rating " they are good to go and are ignorant to payload limit. See it all the time unfortunately.

I agree with you. 75MPH towing is an accident waiting to happen. My max towing speed is 65 for safety and stability. I've towed thousands of miles this way and few pass me towing trailers. Not preaching here just a suggestion.

GsRAM · Nov 8, 2017

sandawilliams said:
I agree with you. 75MPH towing is an accident waiting to happen. My max towing speed is 65 for safety and stability. I've towed thousands of miles this way and few pass me towing trailers. Not preaching here just a suggestion.

don't take it as preaching at all friend and neither should anyone else. that's why these forums are great. we get to try to help folks who may not know any better and hopefully help them not to make a big mistake or worse.

I typically tow between 55-65 mph. usually around 60 or so. the faster you go, the less time you have to react to things. you also increase chances of sway.

i take my time in the seat towing serisouly. I'm on alert for threats and am constantly scanning. kind of like when i used to ride motorcycles. its a big responsibility. many times your rolling down the road, North of 5 tons combined and that's a lot of weight to control and stop when things go bad.

i realize I may be in the minority on that, but to me, it's an activity not to be entered into lightly or without doing your research in before you drop that tongue onto the ball. it's not just your life, but the lives of those your sharing the road with too.

i think if we all were more paitent and courteous with each other, (myself included), we'd have far less wrecks and far less cases of road rage.

Something to think about I reckon ...

have a good evening guys.

Ratket · Nov 8, 2017

I was passing - and had a massive line of cars/trucks behind me, was trying to be polite and get out of people”s way by getting around the train of semi trucks, I could of easily dragged that trailer up that hill at 100 “ was hard for me to hold it back at 75mph” and all though the speed limit was 75 all the passenger vehicles behind me wanted to do 85, in California max tow speed is 55 “ usually tow 60” and in arizona I haven’t towed faster than 65. The tires weren’t even warm, we checked them and the hubs, cool to the touch, “ the blown tire was hot as hell- prolly got low and heated up”. I’ve got countless miles under my belt for driving/towing, I was just sharing the experience, mainly my brothers way of dealing with spare trailer tires. I am not taking what was said personal or as preaching, no hard feelings at all here.

HvyDuty · Nov 8, 2017

My 2015 TT came with Bias Ply tires (didn't know these are still made!).

My first mod was to replace them and the spare with Radial 75mph speed rated trailer tires, one load range higher (D). I also had them balanced.

I do the speed limit or 70 mph, whichever is lower.

Ratket · Nov 8, 2017

As long as you are “ Aware” then it’s all good. It’s the population that is not aware that is the issue. I imagine Texas is like arizona, the tow speed limit is the regular speed limit unless posted other wise? Like I said before in California it’s 55, but that state has all sorts of laws to prevent natural selection or Darwinism from doing its thing.

GsRAM · Nov 9, 2017

Ratket said:
I was passing - and had a massive line of cars/trucks behind me, was trying to be polite and get out of people”s way by getting around the train of semi trucks, I could of easily dragged that trailer up that hill at 100 “ was hard for me to hold it back at 75mph” and all though the speed limit was 75 all the passenger vehicles behind me wanted to do 85, in California max tow speed is 55 “ usually tow 60” and in arizona I haven’t towed faster than 65. The tires weren’t even warm, we checked them and the hubs, cool to the touch, “ the blown tire was hot as hell- prolly got low and heated up”. I’ve got countless miles under my belt for driving/towing, I was just sharing the experience, mainly my brothers way of dealing with spare trailer tires. I am not taking what was said personal or as preaching, no hard feelings at all here.

Thanks for clarifying all that. Good deal. Glad to hear you know better and are aware of things. That's half the battle. With your explination, I'd agree with your thoughts, probably got low on air pressure and that's why it heated up.

I've heard good things about the new good year endurance st. American made from what i hear and well made, not in the "china bombs " category. Lol

sandawilliams · Nov 9, 2017

Ratket said:
I was passing - and had a massive line of cars/trucks behind me, was trying to be polite and get out of people”s way by getting around the train of semi trucks, I could of easily dragged that trailer up that hill at 100 “ was hard for me to hold it back at 75mph” and all though the speed limit was 75 all the passenger vehicles behind me wanted to do 85, in California max tow speed is 55 “ usually tow 60” and in arizona I haven’t towed faster than 65. The tires weren’t even warm, we checked them and the hubs, cool to the touch, “ the blown tire was hot as hell- prolly got low and heated up”. I’ve got countless miles under my belt for driving/towing, I was just sharing the experience, mainly my brothers way of dealing with spare trailer tires. I am not taking what was said personal or as preaching, no hard feelings at all here.

I've had a few blowouts over the years on my TT and it always tears up the body of the trailer. I make a point to visually check all tires and other things every time we stop (usually every two hours or so) Even at that you never know what you might pick up on down the road.

GsRAM · Nov 9, 2017

sandawilliams said:
I've had a few blowouts over the years on my TT and it always tears up the body of the trailer. I make a point to visually check all tires and other things every time we stop (usually every two hours or so) Even at that you never know what you might pick up on down the road.

True, there's no preventing it, but doing things like keeping them covered all the time, inflate to max sidewall pressure cold before a trip, park on wood planks, don't curb them don't overspeed them, etc all go a long way in keeping them as healthy as possible

TRCM · Nov 9, 2017

HvyDuty said:
My 2015 TT came with Bias Ply tires (didn't know these are still made!).

My first mod was to replace them and the spare with Radial 75mph speed rated trailer tires, one load range higher (D). I also had them balanced.

I do the speed limit or 70 mph, whichever is lower.

Where did you find 75 mph rated trailer tires ?????

Ratket · Nov 9, 2017

Prolly not trailer tire”s.

GsRAM · Nov 10, 2017

I'm not 100% on this, but the new Goodyear endurance st trailer tires may be. I believe they are speed rated more than 65, at least thats my understanding

Riccochet · Nov 10, 2017

There have been plenty of trailer tires rated for higher than 65 mph.

Most load range D and up are rated for higher speeds. Technically, the speed rating is directly proportional to the load being placed on the tire. At max PSI and max load the max speed is the rating. At lower loads the speed rating goes up.

I still don't do over 65 mph. I run Carlisle Radial Trail HD's on my trailer that are rated for 81 mph.

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