Towing 10' feet more

[Huntsvillian]

So I've been towing a Starcraft 186BH (4600lb dry, length is 23' with tongue) for the last 5 years. I've got a Ram 1500 sport with 3.92 axle rated for 10,050lb. I currently use 800lb with no issues.

Last week we went trailer shopping. We opted for a Jayco 27BHS ( dry weight 6500lb and 32' length with tongue). Then we had a change of heart and I put the deposit down on a 28BHBE (6800lb dry and 33' with tongue). I've ordered 1200lb weight bars. Jayco says 680lb tongue which I think is less than modest. At 13% I get it too 884lb so I'm feeling good about the 1200lb bars. I'm not concerned about the weight per say in that I always travel with only a few gallons for washroom breaks as well as pack in a way that the box of the trailer is usually empty and I load the trailer mostly over the axle to avoid extra unnecessary tongue weight.

The new trailer is 10' longer. This 186bh is the only trailer I've ever towed. When pulling it apart from super tight corners my driving technique is almost the same as without towing being that the tongue to axle is fairly short and it goes nice and tight.

How much will I notice the extra 10'?

I know once I get on the road I'll realize....but is this 10' hugely noticeable in that I'll be swinging out at almost every corner?

I don't have anyone else that has a trailer period to ask or try out so figured best to ask here.

[vcbice]

Yes, you will notice it. You will also notice the extra weight. When you load it, weigh it, to make sure you have enough weight on the hitch. Not something to guess at.

[Huntsvillian]

Trust me I will and I'm far from guessing but before the trailer is on the hitch all you have is math to go off of.

Thanks.

[33 RLDS]

I went from a 19ft Hybrid to the 33RLDS which is 36ft with tongue and 39ft with rear cargo rack out and more than double the weight. I did not notice any difference at all except for pulling in and out of my driveway. I have to swing in the other lane to avoid ended up in the culvert !!

[RAurand]

Make sure you have your hitch set so the nose of the trailer is slightly nose low, not level. I have found if I am level, I will have slightly more sway than if I am slightly nose low. Watch the inside wheels going around corners.

[Huntsvillian]

Thanks.

[vikefan7]

I went from towing a 16' tent trailer with a Mazda CX-9 to a 35' fifth wheel with a Ram 2500 and aside from just being more mindful of space and turns it's been a pretty easy transition.

[vcbice]

Fifth wheels are easy compared to a large TT on a 1/2T truck.

I went from a 24ft fiver to a 35ft, both with a diesel. I did notice the difference. Much slower acceleration, downshifted on hills, wind moves it more. Gas mileage about the same. MUCH wider turns. Watch gas stations especially.

[Ottawasteve]

I went from pulling a 3500lb dry/4300 lb loaded for camping 19ft (including 3ft hitch) Bigfoot fiberglass camper to our current 28BHBE. Your tongue weight will never be 680lbs unless you fill the fresh water tanks as well as the black and grey tanks with helium and keep them sealed up. Our tongue weight loaded for camping is 1050lbs and some on this forum have reported having over 1400 lbs of tongue weight on that model of trailer.


You mention the dry weights of your current future camper, but do not mention your loaded weights for camping. Camper loads are unique to the individual. We now carry an extra 200 lbs of stuff more than we carried in the Bigfoot, despite having close to double the living space when the slide is factored in. We have room for more stuff, but having tent camped for years before upgrading to the Bigfoot we have streamlined our packing to the stuff we need and use. The average is around 1000lbs of camping gear, the minimalists can get buy with considerably less and the everything including the kitchen sink campers can easily exceed the 2700 lbs+ of cargo carrying capacity of the BHBE in addition to the 700-800 lbs they need to pack in the box of their truck. If you dry camp, filling the fresh water tanks will add an additional 750 lbs to the camping gear in the trailer.


The extra 10 ft will look long when you first hook-up, but after the first 100 miles the difference will be negligible because you are probably already leaving more than an extra 10 ft of safety margin for lane changes anyways. Some of the campsite you used to squeeze into will not fit the BHBE and your backing radius will be larger, but once you have backed it a few times you will expect the extra turns of the wheel to get the length to turn. Our little Bigfoot was far more sensitive and turned sharply with the slightest turn of the steering wheel whereas you have to start turning much sharper much earlier due to the increased length.


Your challenge will be your payload after you factor in your loaded tongue weight. The consensus on this forum is that F150's with 1800 to 2400 lbs of payload pulling this model of trailer would be overloaded and unsafe and endangering their families and everybody on the roadways, but my personal experience for the last 3 years has been the opposite. You will have to determine whether you can load your TV and trailer safely in accordance with your available payload. You will certainly be safer than all the Ram 1500's I saw on the Quebec North Shore last week running up and down the hilly coast line with 40 ft fivers with 3+ slides.