5th Wheel w/2018 2500

[Groundhog66]

Looking to purchase a 5th wheel, just wanting to get some feedback from those who know. I’m assuming I would be OK with this one, but would my Cummins have any problem towing this trailer?

Also, Reese does not make an under bed puck system for the short bed, any other mounting kits without rails that would work with a Reese RE 18 receiver hitch?





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[mtofell]

The brochure pic is from a travel trailer and your title says 5th wheel???

 

[6.7CumminsDrvr]

Not sure about the whole 5th wheel or travel trailer deal but based on what I see in the pic, your Cummins will laugh at that load and beg for more.........


If my math is right, Max load would be 11,100 lbs

 

[Groundhog66]

The brochure pic is from a travel trailer and your title says 5th wheel???

Apologies, I grabbed the wrong pic off of my phone, updated.


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[Groundhog66]

Not sure about the whole 5th wheel or travel trailer deal but based on what I see in the pic, your Cummins will laugh at that load and beg for more.........


If my math is right, Max load would be 11,100 lbs

I guess the whole fifth wheel thing confuses me a bit, apparently we are no longer talking about tongue weight, correct?


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[6.7CumminsDrvr]

Correct. Looking at the previous pic, the unloaded vehicle weight was 8,500 pounds and change and a carrying capacity of 2500 something. Tongue weight was like 1000 which is heavy but still in spec for a bumper pull and easy for a 5th wheel

Looking at the updated pic, you’d still be good. With a 2500 CTD you’ll be close to max payload but that really depends on how much you have in the truck with you. Check your yellow door sticker and see what your payload number is.

 

[Bldrinker]

Not sure about the hitch.

But are you serious about wondering if your diesel can pull a 8500# trailer?

Well I’m looking at 5th wheels that are 10,500# and my truck has the 6.4

 

[Groundhog66]

Correct. Looking at the previous pic, the unloaded vehicle weight was 8,500 pounds and change and a carrying capacity of 2500 something. Tongue weight was like 1000 which is heavy but still in spec for a bumper pull and easy for a 5th wheel

Looking at the updated pic, you’d still be good. With a 2500 CTD you’ll be close to max payload but that really depends on how much you have in the truck with you. Check your yellow door sticker and see what your payload number is.

Right on, I'll have a look

Correct. Looking at the previous pic, the unloaded vehicle weight was 8,500 pounds and change and a carrying capacity of 2500 something. Tongue weight was like 1000 which is heavy but still in spec for a bumper pull and easy for a 5th wheel

Looking at the updated pic, you’d still be good. With a 2500 CTD you’ll be close to max payload but that really depends on how much you have in the truck with you. Check your yellow door sticker and see what your payload number is.

Right on, I'll have a look, thanks.

Quick search says 1891lbs, but I'll verify.

 

[6.7CumminsDrvr]

Be sure to check the sticker on your door, more times than not what ever you use to look it up online won’t match what’s on your door.

 

[mtofell]

Pulling? Sure, you could probably pull two of those trailers. Carrying the payload? You will probably be over the GVWR of the truck. I'm guessing your door sticker says payload around 2300#? Assuming the trailer is 10,000# loaded, the pin for that 5th will probably be 2000#. That only leaves you 300# for people, a hitch, gear in the truck and anything you've added to the truck since it was weighed to calculate the 2300# payload (over-sized tires, lift, etc.).

GVWR of 2500 trucks is capped at 10K to remain in a certain class. Many argue that exceeding GVWR but staying under axle and tire ratings is okay. You can find pages and pages of arguments about this whole concept.

In an ironic twist, my far less capable Hemi has a payload of 3000# because my engine weighs roughly 700# less than yours. So, with my 11,000# 5th wheel I'm right at the trucks GVWR but still under my RAWR (rear axle rating) by about 800# and under my tire ratings my about 1200#

I personally would roll with what propose as I'm far more concerned about tire and axle ratings but I get berated regularly on forums by people swearing I'm going to end up in jail if I'm ever in an accident.

 

[6.7CumminsDrvr]

Pulling? Sure, you could probably pull two of those trailers. Carrying the payload? You will probably be over the GVWR of the truck. I'm guessing your door sticker says payload around 2300#? Assuming the trailer is 10,000# loaded, the pin for that 5th will probably be 2000#. That only leaves you 300# for people, a hitch, gear in the truck and anything you've added to the truck since it was weighed to calculate the 2300# payload (over-sized tires, lift, etc.).

GVWR of 2500 trucks is capped at 10K to remain in a certain class. Many argue that exceeding GVWR but staying under axle and tire ratings is okay. You can find pages and pages of arguments about this whole concept.

In an ironic twist, my far less capable Hemi has a payload of 3000# because my engine weighs roughly 700# less than yours. So, with my 11,000# 5th wheel I'm right at the trucks GVWR but still under my RAWR (rear axle rating) by about 800# and under my tire ratings my about 1200#

I personally would roll with what propose as I'm far more concerned about tire and axle ratings but I get berated regularly on forums by people swearing I'm going to end up in jail if I'm ever in an accident.

I always find it amusing when the weight police sound off about jail and accidents. There is a thing called gross negligence and as you have pointed out, it’s not as simple as going over GVWR!

There is a bit of science and physics involved and like you said, the axle, tire, and rim ratings are far more important than just the GVWR

A 3500 (srw) has the same axle, gears, breaks, frame, and drivetrain yet has a higher GVWR and payload rating.........just different spring set up which is no different from a physics standpoint of adding some airbags.........

But like you I’m gonna get hammered for posting that

FWIW, class A CDL going on 19 years, but what do I know?!

 

[Firewall]

The RV threads are full of opinions, weight police, laptop lawyers etc. etc. Bottom line is you have to be comfortable with what you are doing. The safety of yourself, your family and everybody on the road. Today's vehicles are very capable, a few years ago they decided to post yellow stickers on vehicles to give the weight capabilities specific to added options etc.

Many people that tow often are aware of the stickers and at least try to stay within the limits. However there are also some that are clueless and are told by sales people "that truck will tow a house, you'll be fine", maybe, maybe not. I'm old enough to remember large trailers towed behind ordinary cars, the rear bumpers were almost hitting the pavement but on they went safely to the campground! Probably more so than over weight tow vehicles are over weight family sedans. Take a look next to you on a warm sunny day on any major highway, you'll see car after car on their way to some vacation with a Thule on the roof, six to eight people in the car, several bikes on the back and suit cases in the trunk. My guess is the driver has no clue there is a little yellow sticker on the door!

Bottom line, do your research, know your limits and decide your capabilities!

 

[Groundhog66]

Be sure to check the sticker on your door, more times than not what ever you use to look it up online won’t match what’s on your door.

So silly question, but how much of the trailer weight is considered "cargo, as not all it's weight is on the truck?






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[G. Mcpherson]

I believe Pin weight is considered Cargo wt.

 

[Firewall]

I believe Pin weight is considered Cargo wt.

Correct, and then add the hitch weight, passengers, wood and any other camping stuff! And remember the posted hitch weight is the dry weight, it will be more! For instance my dry pin weight is 1980lbs but ready to camp I'm around 2800lbs. My particular payload is 4100lbs but of course I added about 150lbs of stuff, running boards, bed cover etc. My hitch weighs 175lbs so you can see how before I get in the truck and put wood etc in the bed the payload is dwindling! I get close but I am comfortable with the overall setup!

 

[Groundhog66]

This 5th wheel might be the best option for me then, a tow behind would be quite a bit less.

I will only be using the truck to tow the travel trailer, which won't be all that often, which is why I opted for the 2500 instead of the 3500. I know that might not make sense, but I didn't want a super HD truck to just tool around most of the time.

 

[mtofell]

So silly question, but how much of the trailer weight is considered "cargo, as not all it's weight is on the truck?






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Yikes!! That's one of the lower payloads I've seen on a 2500. Yeah, a travel trailer is likely a much better fit but before you totally give up the idea of a 5th wheel you might weight your axles and see where you are at. I believe the max rating on these trucks is 6800# for the rear (the front never really changes much). Also, be sure tires are up to the task.

 

[Groundhog66]

Yikes!! That's one of the lower payloads I've seen on a 2500. Yeah, a travel trailer is likely a much better fit but before you totally give up the idea of a 5th wheel you might weight your axles and see where you are at. I believe the max rating on these trucks is 6800# for the rear (the front never really changes much). Also, be sure tires are up to the task.

My tires have been upgraded to 35/12.5/20 Toyo’s, and here is the other sticker.



Why would the payload be so low on this, why would it vary? I understand it depends upon options etc., but I actually have the 4 x 4 off-road package, pretty much everything. Would I increase the capabilities if I installed airbags?

 

[6.7CumminsDrvr]

Need to get this out of the way: NO, AIBAGS DO NOT INCREASE THE CAPACITY OF YOUR VEHICLE.

Now, I’m not gonna tell ya to load your truck up to a 3500’s capacity and slap some airbags on and call it good. That is foolish and dangerous if you have no idea about the other items mentioned in the previous posts. What I will offer is this, a Ram 2500 and 3500 have the same frame, axles, gears, brakes, rims, tires, tranny, and engine........same cab, same drivetrain.

Yes, the 3500 has leaf springs instead of coils, but at the end of the day, the components on the truck are IDENTICAL so going a smidge over the payload may not be the end of the world...........but you better know what your axles, tires, and rims are rated for and what weight your putting on them.

I could go on and I’ll offer this last thought........before the 2500’s switched to coils, the 3rd Gen and early 4th gens ALL had read leaf springs (2500 & 3500 SRW) and the only difference between the 2500 and 3500 was a stiffer rear leaf pack on the 3500..............

 

[mtofell]

My tires have been upgraded to 35/12.5/20 Toyo’s, and here is the other sticker.



Why would the payload be so low on this, why would it vary? I understand it depends upon options etc., but I actually have the 4 x 4 off-road package, pretty much everything. Would I increase the capabilities if I installed airbags?

EVERY 2500 truck is built with the same brakes, shocks, frame, etc, etc. That set of equipment is rated to carry a certain amount of weight. Everything you add on that truck weighs something so the remainder (available payload) is reduced. The highest payload truck will be a totally stripped down 2WD Tradesman. Adding 4WD is a couple hundred pounds.... so, payload goes down. Running boards, bed liner? They weigh something so it comes off payload. If those options weren't yet installed at the time the truck was weighed (leaving the factory) it will not be reflected on the door sticker (but, of course, is reflected in the scales actual weight of the truck).

Check the weight ratings on your tires - They should total to at least the axle rating.