Towing help for someone brand new to trucks and towing.

[Tulecreeper]

Another question for the group... I'm looking for trailers with a dry weight of 5,500ish and I hopefully won't exceed 6,500lbs. When looking, does it matter if the dry weight is say 5500 but the fully loaded weight is 7500+ if I don't plan on traveling with any water and only looking to put less than 1500lbs of gear?

The dry weight of your TT is just that...only the weight of the trailer as it came off the end of the factory line. The GVWR is max the trailer can weight, which is the dry weight + the Cargo Carrying Capacity (CCC) including all your gear, water, pots, pans, etc. If the TT says 5500# dry weight, and the GVWR is 7500#, it simply means that you can load 2000# of cargo into it, it doesn't mean you have to. Like OC455 said, you would have to know what each piece of gear weighs that you put in it.

 

[DinkyDauBilly]

"... although I know absolutely nothing about trucks, towing etc ...".

Take a look at this:

The Ultimate Trailer Towing Guide - Towing 101

This ultimate trailer towing guide provides everything you need for how to tow a trailer safely and sucessfully. It is perfect for any first time trailer owner, as well as seasoned veterans looking for a refresher. It offers some of the most helpful information about trailering because it is...

www.curtmfg.com

Scroll down to the bottom for links to the other chapters in the series.

 

[68PowerWagon]

This is seriously the best towing forum of all time lol. So much great info and I appreciate it all!

Another great forum you should look into is iRV2. Great information on the camping do's & dont's. You mentioned getting groceries after you get all set up. I personally would not like doing it that way. It is usually really hot, & after I set up, I am most likely worn out from the day. Last thing I would want to do is get back into a vehicle to "hopefully" find a grocery store. Sometimes a store is 20-30 minutes away. We only run to town if we forgot or run out of something. But you will learn as you go what works best for you. I do highly recommend that forum though. Very helpful information like you get on here.

 

[2003F350]

Another great forum you should look into is iRV2. Great information on the camping do's & dont's. You mentioned getting groceries after you get all set up. I personally would not like doing it that way. It is usually really hot, & after I set up, I am most likely worn out from the day. Last thing I would want to do is get back into a vehicle to "hopefully" find a grocery store. Sometimes a store is 20-30 minutes away. We only run to town if we forgot or run out of something. But you will learn as you go what works best for you. I do highly recommend that forum though. Very helpful information like you get on here.

This. Pack what you think you'll need, or even stop at a grocery store on the way and load up as a worst-case scenario. But once you're set up, you're not going to want to go back out for a bit. It's more work than people realize to setup and tear down camp, even with a camper.

 

[chopperdog45]

This. Pack what you think you'll need, or even stop at a grocery store on the way and load up as a worst-case scenario. But once you're set up, you're not going to want to go back out for a bit. It's more work than people realize to setup and tear down camp, even with a camper.

100% agree. I generally will get everything not grocery related loaded up in my camper the day before my trip, and also buy whatever groceries I need. I prep any food that needs prepped and bring my groceries over to the camper either the night before my trip, or the morning of the trip. I also try to make my first meal of the camping trip something that requires very little work to prepare. That way once I get to my campground, I set my camper up and am ready to eat.

 

[nlambert182]

Another great forum you should look into is iRV2. Great information on the camping do's & dont's. You mentioned getting groceries after you get all set up. I personally would not like doing it that way. It is usually really hot, & after I set up, I am most likely worn out from the day. Last thing I would want to do is get back into a vehicle to "hopefully" find a grocery store. Sometimes a store is 20-30 minutes away. We only run to town if we forgot or run out of something. But you will learn as you go what works best for you. I do highly recommend that forum though. Very helpful information like you get on here.

This. I'm also a member there.

Rule of thumb.... calculate whether or not your truck can tow it based on the GVWR of the trailer. Stuff adds up in it fast and before you know it, you'll be at the max trailer weight. Then add in ~100 lbs for the WDH, add in some margin for cargo in the truck (I usually plan for 300-400 lbs) and THEN determine on paper what your remaining payload on the truck will be. I use 15% to calculate the trailer weight. Always leave a margin of error. If it looks close to using up all your payload don't do it. Chances are, you WILL exceed it.

If the payload on the truck is 1,400 lbs and the GVWR of the trailer is 6,500:

6,500 * 15% = 975 lb hitch weight
WDH = 100 lbs
Truck cargo (firewood, extra people, dogs, etc..) = 400 lbs

975+100+400 = 1,475 lbs anticipated payload. If it's even close I won't bother with CAT scales. It wouldn't be worth it. But if it's within 5-600 lbs of payload I would then weight it on a CAT scale and get the true weight.


That's what I would PLAN for. Could the truck do it a couple of times? Probably. Would you want to do it? Probably not for long.

 

[dRAMbuie]

I recently purchased a 2019 Canadian sport 1500 with a 5.7 hemi ,crew cab 4x4, 5'7 bed and 3.21 gears. On the sticker on the inside of the door it says the max payload is 1423lbs and total weight of the truck is 7,100lbs. I want to eventually get a travel trailer and the Keystone Rv Travel Trailer RVBullet 243BHS seems like a perfect match although I know absolutely nothing about trucks, towing etc lol (although I'm trying to learn before any TT purchase). The specs of the TT ...
Dry Weight
5,088 lbs.
Payload Capacity
1,412 lbs.
GVWR
6,500 lbs.
Hitch Weight
580 lbs.
is this safely doable? Thanks in advance

No problem whatsoever. Your truck will pull that pretty easily.
Just remember, proper weight distribution is your friend. It makes all the difference in the world on the road.

One tip if you plan to fill the water tank on your trailer, is to plan a spot closer to your destination to fill up. Keeps towing weight down and helps to save on fuel.
Assuming a 30gal fresh tank, that's about 240lbs you can trim.

 

[dRAMbuie]

I can't find the tow chart for the 2019 MY, but for 2023 the chart says your max towing capacity is right about 8000#. Even with a max loaded TT at 6500# you still have over 20% safety margin on weight so you should be fine. Be careful, take it slow, have fun. There will be a learning curve involved so don't get frustrated.

That's interesting. I knew there would be some difference, but hadn't realized the tow cap was so much lower with the 3:21 rear end.
I was able to find a chart confirming 8,040lbs for the 2019.

Makes me even happier to have the 3:92s with an extra couple thousand pounds of wiggle room.

 

[Tulecreeper]

That's interesting. I knew there would be some difference, but hadn't realized the tow cap was so much lower with the 3:21 rear end.
I was able to find a chart confirming 8,040lbs for the 2019.

Makes me even happier to have the 3:92s with an extra couple thousand pounds of wiggle room.

The main difference between the gear ratios is when you first start moving. After you get up to speed the difference pretty much disappears.

 

[runamuck]

all good info above. our travel trailer was 4700# as delivered and 56-5800# when towing. the gross was 7000# but even tho I thought the wife was packing everything we owned in there, we never were over 6000#. we towed that 28' trailer all over the place with my '19 laramie 4x4 ccsb 5.7 with the 3.92 gears. it towed great and liked to settle in around 68-70. like others have said, good to have everything you need when you get to camp. after towing and then setting up we usually had something easy for dinner like burgers or even pasta salad and a cool beverage or two. save the big cooking for the next day. on long travel days I always plan ahead for a good spot to pull over for lunch in the trailer. we recently traded that trailer for a 5th wheel and bought a 2500 laramie to pull it.