Duramax Owners......

[davisenvy]

I have a 2006 Duramax Crew with a short bed and pull a 2016 Jayco HT 29.5 BHDS. I am thinking about upgrading to a newer (2014-2015) Duramax, but I am concerned about the difference in bed rail height. Does anyone have a New body style Duramax towing a FW similar to mine and do you have issues with the nose cone to bed rail clearance.

It would especially help if you have experience with the old body style and the new body style.

I have already been battling towing nose high with this FW and don't want to make it any worse.

[dalebra]

You can see below what I have for TV and 5er. I'm okay. But if you do some searching on here about pulling HT's with a 3/4 or 1 ton you will see a lot of comments of flipping the axles and or even adding framework to raise the body to level there setup.

[TxLoser]

I'm towing a 26.5BHS with a '16 Duramax. It tows a little nose high, but not bad. I have 6" clearance at the tailgate, and 6.5 at the most forward point on the bed rails. I am having my axles adjusted down to the lower bolt hole which help a tiny bit I think. Here a photo of my setup.

[Tail_gunner]

2011 GMC 2500HD w/Duramax and 2016 Eagle HT 29.5 FBDS


Pic was taken after we took delivery and on the way home and we stopped for a celebratory dinner.

Since the pic was taken, I dropped the hitch 2 holes to the lowest position and dropped the pin box one hole to the lowest position. So it is pretty close to level with everything empty. With gear, water and firewood, I'll call it as close to level as you can get it.

[davisenvy]

Originally Posted by Tail_gunner

2011 GMC 2500HD w/Duramax and 2016 Eagle HT 29.5 FBDS


Pic was taken after we took delivery and on the way home and we stopped for a celebratory dinner.

Since the pic was taken, I dropped the hitch 2 holes to the lowest position and dropped the pin box one hole to the lowest position. So it is pretty close to level with everything empty. With gear, water and firewood, I'll call it as close to level as you can get it.

That's about how mine looks. How much clearance do you have between the bed rails and the nose? I can make my FW more level, but don't want to sacrifice bed/FW clearance.

[TxLoser]

Originally Posted by Tail_gunner

2011 GMC 2500HD w/Duramax and 2016 Eagle HT 29.5 FBDS


Pic was taken after we took delivery and on the way home and we stopped for a celebratory dinner.

Since the pic was taken, I dropped the hitch 2 holes to the lowest position and dropped the pin box one hole to the lowest position. So it is pretty close to level with everything empty. With gear, water and firewood, I'll call it as close to level as you can get it.

Do you have the 15 or 16" wheels on that?

[REWahoo]

Originally Posted by davisenvy

Does anyone have a New body style Duramax towing a FW similar to mine and do you have issues with the nose cone to bed rail clearance.

I have a 2011 Duramax (the new body style, 18" wheels) pulling a 2017 Eagle HT 27.5RLTS (16" wheels). Like the two photos posted by TxLoser and Tail_gunner, the trailer is a couple of inches high in front. I have 6 to 6.5 inches bed rail clearance so don't want to drop the hitch any lower. I'm going to call it close enough.

[videoguy]

I don't have a Duramax but do have a 2016 2500HD with the 6.0. We just purchased a 2017 Eagle HT 28.5 RSTS so I am interested in this topic too! I am concerned about the nose high issues people have been posting about.

We haven't picked up our unit yet but I am wondering if I should call the dealer and have them lower the axles before we pick it up? I would hate to have to pay to have this done later. Our 5er does have the 16 inch wheel option. Thoughts?

Anyone else have this or a similar setup?

[Tail_gunner]

I have about 6" to 8" depending on where you measure, front of trailer or above the tailgate.

We have the standard (15"?) wheels.

(It's still in storage, expecting to hear words any day now on when they'll be pulling them out of the buildings at the county fair grounds)

[TxLoser]

Originally Posted by videoguy

I don't have a Duramax but do have a 2016 2500HD with the 6.0. We just purchased a 2017 Eagle HT 28.5 RSTS so I am interested in this topic too! I am concerned about the nose high issues people have been posting about.

We haven't picked up our unit yet but I am wondering if I should call the dealer and have them lower the axles before we pick it up? I would hate to have to pay to have this done later. Our 5er does have the 16 inch wheel option. Thoughts?

Anyone else have this or a similar setup?

First off, congrats on the new trailer. Might not be a bad idea to get it adjusted while it's already at the dealer. If you can't get it done in time, I wouldn't stress about it. With the better wheel/tire combo it'll only be a hair nose high.

[videoguy]

I talked with my dealer yesterday and told him the truck I will be using and asked if he thought the trailer would sit level when hooked up. He said, "we'll see when you get here." That seems a bit non-proactive.

I asked about lowering the axles of the trailer and he said that isn't an option with the MOR/ryde suspension. So, I guess we'll see when I get there!

[Tail_gunner]

Originally Posted by videoguy

I talked with my dealer yesterday and told him the truck I will be using and asked if he thought the trailer would sit level when hooked up. He said, "we'll see when you get here." That seems a bit non-proactive.

I asked about lowering the axles of the trailer and he said that isn't an option with the MOR/ryde suspension. So, I guess we'll see when I get there!

Don't be too hard on the guy, he's right. It is almost impossible to predict before actually mating the truck up with the trailer.

Before I took delivery of mine, I thought I had it all figured out just by measuring how far below the overhang the pin box dropped and how far below the top of the bed side walls the plate of the hitch was. It sounded good on paper. My calculations said I needed to have the hitch as high as possible.
But once I actually had it all hooked up, the hitch obviously had to go back down by quite a bit. I ended up dropping back down it as far as it would go. I also had one hole to go on the pin box, so it got dropped all the way too.

The lesson learned was the only time you can tell for sure is the first time the hitch latch slams closed on the king pin.

And FWIW, There was an unused pair of holes in the pin box. Since the bolts used were IIRC, grade 8, I got another pair of bolts, washers & nuts and added them. The bolts on there were also undertorqued. The standard torque for grade 8 bolts of that size were something like 150 foot/lbs. None of the existing bolts on the pin box as it came from the factory, were close to that.

[TxLoser]

When I got all hooked for PDI, I was pretty nose high. The tech helped me lower my hitch and then he also had to raise the pin box. Just part of the process. Leave time for this.

As to the shackle bolts.... my dealer first told me they couldn't be lowered. A tech called Jayco and confirmed it can be done with no ill effects. I will say it only makes a minimal difference. I think I posted a photo of my setup already in this thread. Now I'll post a photo with shackles adjusted. Can't really tell a difference. The only real benefit I gained was my rear leveling jacks are a full 7" off the ground now.

[videoguy]

Originally Posted by Tail_gunner

Don't be too hard on the guy, he's right. It is almost impossible to predict before actually mating the truck up with the trailer.

Before I took delivery of mine, I thought I had it all figured out just by measuring how far below the overhang the pin box dropped and how far below the top of the bed side walls the plate of the hitch was. It sounded good on paper. My calculations said I needed to have the hitch as high as possible.
But once I actually had it all hooked up, the hitch obviously had to go back down by quite a bit. I ended up dropping back down it as far as it would go. I also had one hole to go on the pin box, so it got dropped all the way too.

The lesson learned was the only time you can tell for sure is the first time the hitch latch slams closed on the king pin.

And FWIW, There was an unused pair of holes in the pin box. Since the bolts used were IIRC, grade 8, I got another pair of bolts, washers & nuts and added them. The bolts on there were also undertorqued. The standard torque for grade 8 bolts of that size were something like 150 foot/lbs. None of the existing bolts on the pin box as it came from the factory, were close to that.

Thanks for you post. That makes me feel a bit better.

[1carguy]

I just bought a Jayco Eagle HT 30.5 MBOK that is similiar to yours size wise. I tow with a 2013 GMC 2500HD Duramax. My trailer is absolutely level and has 8 inches of bed rail clearance.

[davisenvy]

My cousin has a 2015 Duramax 2500 Z71 and is going to trade trucks with me next week so I can see how it tows my rig. I'll report back after I pull my FW. Aren't cousins great