Travel Trailer

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robcope

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I am the happy owner of a 2017 Ram 1500 Lonestar Silver that is rated to tow 8210lbs. My wife and I will be purchasing a 5074lb (dry weight) Rockwood travel trailer after x-mas. Should weigh no more than 6100 lbs loaded. 630lb tongue weight. I know the truck can handle it.

I don't want to get ripped off by the RV dealer. Do I need to purchase the weight distribution hitch? I have no problem doing so, but want to make sure I do this right.

Thanks, Rob
 

mtofell

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Yep, get a good weight-dist. hitch and anti-sway. You don't have to buy them from the dealer but in my experience you can negotiate it in with the trailer purchase. It's somewhat beneficial to buy from them and have them set the whole thing up so if there's ever a problem it's all their deal. Otherwise, you'll just get them blaming and finger pointing. Exception would be if you're totally comfortable setting it up and want to save 20% or so and buy online. I'm pretty handy and comfortable with RVs and would just get it from them.

Speaking of price, don't be shy about negotiating the RV price. MSRP on RVs is ridiculous. You should be able to get out the door at around 70% of MSRP. Maybe a bit more on a new, in demand model, less on an expiring model.

Have fun!
 
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robcope

robcope

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Thank you. That is what I thought. The older gentleman I have been working with at the dealer has been a great help teaching me the things I need to know. I ended up having a great experience buying the truck after several fails!! Buying the truck was easy because I know how to deal with car dealers, but RV's, that's a whole new world.
 

Salsa

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Most definitely get the weight distribution/stabilization hitch. They make all the difference in the world for having peace of mind in your towing experiences. I've have various towable RV's for the last 26 years. Like was stated above, you can definitely work on not only the price of the RV as well as the hitch. Let them set it up as that's what they do all the time. Then make sure they thoroughly explain the operation to you if you don't already know it. On my travels this summer in our RV we saw a brand new truck pulling a brand new trailer that still had dealer tags on it laying on their sides on I-90 in eastern Montana. Looking from the other side we noticed there was no weight distribution system. I imagine that was their first mistake and one that they will soon not forget. Good luck with your purchase and happy RVing.
 

csuder99

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Make sure to get the correct WDH for your tongue/trailer weight. Most dealers take the 'one size fits all' approach and install a 1000 lbs tongue weight WDH. That works ok for larger trailers but the spring bars are too stiff for a 6k trailer.
 

Farmer Fran

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IMHO if you are not familiar with the process, pay the price and let them do it. If you can read the directions, have the CORRECT tools and are confident you will set it up correctly, then do it yourself.

It is not that hard to do, but you better be able to do it correctly.


All this said, please, PLEASE spend the same amount of time setting up the brakes correctly for your load. Remember all factors come into play, weather, load balance, terrain,

LEARN how to stop it safely!!!!
 

HvyDuty

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I do recommend a WD hitch. I've been happy with my 1k Fastway e2. Quick and easy to set up and no need to disconnect when backing up into your campsite.

I used to pull a heavier trailer than yours with the same truck specs and all. I have a Wildwood 26TBSS 890 dry tongue, 7800 GVWR. Power was never a problem, but loaded to about 6900 CAT scale verified, it wasn't enough truck for my comfort level. Never "white knuckle", but I could not tolerate with weird push pull motions of the rig due to passing traffic on the highway. I was towing at the limit, and at or very slightly over payload capacity, just under GCWR.

You probably have about 1400-1500 lbs door sticker payload capacity. Be careful with this number as its the one you will be most likely to exceed, loaded ready to camp.

The RV Dealer is the WORST place to have your WD hitch setup. Most techs have absolutely no clue. They just want you out the door ASAP.

Take the time and set it up yourself. Not sure of your RVing experience but it pays to be a good DIYer in this lifestyle.

You'll need a tape measure and some basic tools. With an equalizer or fastway e2, you won't need to drill into the frame for a friction sway device etc. So you should be able to get it setup at the dealer. Then get to a CAT scale to get your weights.
 
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KSH

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Get a propride hitch, costly but the sway control is amazing.

Sent from my SM-J727T using Tapatalk
 

Riccochet

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I run a ProPride 3P. It's simply the best WDH you can get.

That being said, it's probably not needed for a 6000# trailer. Equal-i-zer 4 point or a Blue Ox would work just as well.

Once you start getting in to the 8000# and 25'+ trailers is where Hensley and ProPride really shine.

Also, don't trust the RV dealer to set up your WDH properly. They won't. They don't give a flying ****. You could roll in there in a Tacoma and they'll tell you "sure, you can tow this 9000# 34' trailer no problem!" and sell you a Eaz-Lift WDH for $1000. They don't care about you, your safety or the safety of anyone else on the road.

To properly set up a WDH you need scales, level ground, levels and patience. There are plenty of guides online that make the process easy. I set mine up in the parking lot of a truck stop that had CATT scales there.
 
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robcope

robcope

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Thanks for all the input. I am slightly ****. It took over 6 months of reading, watching videos and test driving before I bought the truck. I have been doing the same with travel trailer, WDH's and towing. So, I know what I am looking at. The RV dealer I will be buying from comes with great reviews from several friends that have bought from them. Yet another reason I am glad we decided to settle in west Texas.
 

spoon059

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You should be fine with that trailer. The most important thing to remember is your payload versus tongue weight. You list a 630 lbs tongue weight, that is clearly the EMPTY tongue weight. Loaded at 6100 lbs you should expect to see a tongue weight closer to 800 lbs.

Figure another 75-100 lbs for a weight distribution hitch and you are 850 to 900 lbs of tongue weight. I assume your Ram has around 1300 or 1400 lbs of payload, but I could be wrong. 900 lbs of tongue weight would leave you 400 or 500 lbs for everything else in the truck... wife, kids, dogs, bikes, firewood, etc. Make sure the math works and you should be fine! Congrats on the pending purchase, we LOVE camping!!!
 
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robcope

robcope

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Unless I am mistaken the payload of the truck is 1680. But you are correct as far as being careful about payload. I am going to keep track of weight. I realize, even the addition of running boards takes away from that. Going to purchase a tongue weight scale as well.

So glad I joined this forum. Thanks again for all the help.

Rob

P.S. Did I tell you I love my truck :happy107:
 

Riccochet

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Yeah, you want your tongue weight to be 12-14% of trailer weight. Not enough tongue weight leads to sway.

My two biggest towing issues with the Ram were sway and rear bounce. The OEM rear sway bar is a hollow *************. Seriously, take it off and you can flex it by hand. The Hellwig is 100% beef. And the rear coil springs just don't hold a load like leaf springs. AirLift 1000 bags were under $100 and solved the bounce issue. So, for like $300 total I have a much more stable towing platform.

Oh, yeah, head over to irv2.com and join the forums there. Lots of great people and information on trailers, towing, maintenance musts.
 

GsRAM

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Congrats on the new truck and pending new trailer! Good stuff! Sounds like your on the right track with being mindful of payload as it goes quick. I towed for years with half ton trucks and never had an issue, but I always followed my 20% rule which leaves me with plenty of margin and an enjoyable tow. Good luck and remember, most st rated trailer tires are speed limited to 65 mph, stay under that or they'll get hot and go boom. (Bad\lots of damage) keep your tires covered and don't curb them and damage the sidewall.
 

spoon059

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The Hellwig is 100% beef. And the rear coil springs just don't hold a load like leaf springs. AirLift 1000 bags were under $100 and solved the bounce issue. So, for like $300 total I have a much more stable towing platform.
One other suggestion is better tires. You likely have P-rated car tires on your truck with a max PSI of 44. Switching out to D or E rated tires will make your truck feel a lot more solid, reduce the "squishy" feeling of the soft car tires and run a lot cooler.

Just a thought! Enjoy the new truck, sounds like your trailer will be a very good fit! Hope your family enjoys camping as much as mine does!
 

RRRam

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We just bought our 5,000 lb trailer in June. Yes, definitely get the WDH. Take photos of it when they set it up for you. Mine is the third chain link down. But did I remember that after leaving the dealer? Nope. Photos helped to remember how to do this and what to do with that. Like you, I watched about 47,000 videos and read a similar number of articles. Not ****. Learning. My wife and I enjoy "Keep Your Daydream" videos on Youtube. Mark and Trish. They started out as newbs like us. But, yes, get a WDH. Keeps the weight balanced on both sets of tires, as the dealer tech guy will point out. Too much leaning forward, too much weight on the front tires. Speaking of which, swap the China tires that will likely come with a new TT. We're going to purchase Goodyear Endurance, made in the USA.
 

thekevin

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154de954cc6b3f5afa24574c28a7b498.jpg

I have a 2017 Hemi Crew 4x4 Big Horn and tow a 27ft TT that is around 6500lbs loaded and the truck really does handle it with ease. I too have the Fastway E2 WDH and it was super easy to install and makes a huge difference with control and sag. I towed it 100 miles home when I bought it with no WDH and we have about 700 miles towing it now with the WDH and there is no way I would tow it again without it.


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Kev12

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Nice looking setup! So I'm one of those people who was sold a "one size fits all WDH" when we purchased our 1st trailer a few years ago. I now have a Coachmen Express that weighs about 6000lbs loaded and have a husky 1000#lbs WDH that I bought for a different truck and camper a couple of years ago. I now have a 2500 5.7, so would investing in a new WDH be worth it for me? Would I see that much improvement?
 
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