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Old 10-20-2016, 09:51 AM   #1
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long bed vs short bed

I have a jay feather 25z travel trailer that is 27'.5 long. I am currently towing it with a 1500 extended cab with a 6'.5 bed. I am right at my weight limits and am looking to replace it with a 2500 crew cab. Is it better on the highway to tow with a long bed than a short bed? I live in the high desert in Southern California and we do have wind. I do travel down a mountain pass to the camp grounds that we go to and the winds can be very strong in the pass. I can be in the wind for as much as 40 miles before I drive out of them. All of my other trucks have been 2500 long beds so I am no stranger to this type of truck. When I bought this truck I had just retired and we had just bought a jayco tent trailer. As the saying goes trailers just bigger!
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Old 10-20-2016, 09:57 AM   #2
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Part of this is just opinion. However, the facts of physics cannot be denied.
With a short 3/4 ton, you will do just fine, having a sway bar or other anti sway system will always help. Yet, the longer wheel base of the long bed (assuming you are still going with a crew cab), will definitely be less prone to sway.


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Old 10-20-2016, 10:14 AM   #3
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I agree with NVGun40. Longer TV=better stability.


Also, from an ascetics standpoint, crew cab + short bed just kinda looks funny.
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Old 10-20-2016, 10:37 AM   #4
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I prefer the short bed because it is my every day vehicle and fits better in the garage and parking lots - I don't find any difference in towing.

May not hurt to check payload as part of your consideration too - there is a difference with the various box lengths and wheel bases.
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Old 10-20-2016, 12:43 PM   #5
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Longer the wheelbase the more stable. You mention 2500 so I assume a GM truck. To the best of my knowledge in GM 2500 series Crew Cabs there is 2 bed options, Standard (6.5') and Long (8'). Where as in the 1500 series Crew Cab you can get a short bed (5.5'). In my experience the 2500 Crew Cab with 6.5' bed is a very stable tow vehicle. It's still plenty of wheelbase, but to my disappointment it won't fit in my 22' garage with sufficient space to pass, therefore it's outside. I only mention this because if you are comparing a 1500 w/ 5' bed to a 2500 with 8' bed, it's a huge difference in wheelbase, but not an appropriate comparison as far garage suitability due to the 2500 not having the short box option.
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Old 10-20-2016, 03:05 PM   #6
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The longer the truck the better the ride. I bought the short bed with my Tundra and have regretted it ever since. When I bought the truck it was just meant to be my ride around like a car and about that time camping fever set in! The rest is just old history.
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Old 10-20-2016, 03:15 PM   #7
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Like many of us, I've had short bed and long bed trucks. The long bed is more stable for towing, and is easier to back the trailer with, plus you can load plywood and other 8' lumber and still close the tailgate. However they are more difficult to park. With all these factors, given a choice I would pick a long bed every time.
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Old 10-20-2016, 04:01 PM   #8
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I love having a long bed for the extra hauling utility/size and the ride. I am long bed guy, but if I could afford a decked out shorty for cruising, I would get one.
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Old 10-20-2016, 04:14 PM   #9
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I didn't buy the long bed, but I got the Mega-Cab...so it has a long bed wheel base. I love the truck! Luckily I have a tandem style 3 car garage, so I fits in the tandem side. If I had the choice of a long bed or short bed, I'd go with the long bed...just my opinion.
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Old 10-20-2016, 05:00 PM   #10
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Long bed

My personal preference is a Long Bed. Like mentioned in previous posts here I can carry a full 8ft. piece of lumber and close the tonneau cover. I also feel that towing is smoother. And as for parking ,well I like to park out towards the end of the parking lots we go to. Less people park out there and I can always use a little walking
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Old 10-20-2016, 05:42 PM   #11
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I have the 2016 F150 Platinum with the super crew cab and short bed. I've never used any other sized TV so no experience with different sizes for wind or towing. My decision (after determining it was a good TV for our trailer) was based on being able to fit it into my garage, low auto deploy running boards which help my wife get in and out, and a nice day to day around town ride but still a truck. The longer truck does mean it takes more space to back up and maneuver the TV. I still cannot back my TT into our curved driveway without the front of the truck ending up in the neighbors yard across the street. A shorter truck would give me a tighter turning radius and make backing up into tight spaces a bit easier but, I do love my truck as it is. I don't haul lots of stuff in the bed and if I have very large items like lots of lumber or furniture to move I can hook up my flat trailer.
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Old 10-21-2016, 08:12 AM   #12
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I too am a long bed fan. I haul stuff around regularly and always laugh at the short bed guys at home Depot that have to run 8' 2x4s into the sliding window and into the front seat. (Don't you wish you bought the "whole" truck??). Also laugh at the guys with their mountain sleds and quads sitting up on the tailgate or onto the cab roof. IMHO a "truck" should not have a short bed or in most cases doesn't belong in a garage.... in my case the 10' camper demands a long bed as well. ( I have seen a 10' camper in a 6.5' bed truck and the center of gracity for the camper was about 1' behind the rear axle.
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Old 10-21-2016, 08:25 AM   #13
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Long

Quote:
Originally Posted by RickAE View Post
My personal preference is a Long Bed. Like mentioned in previous posts here I can carry a full 8ft. piece of lumber and close the tonneau cover. I also feel that towing is smoother. And as for parking ,well I like to park out towards the end of the parking lots we go to. Less people park out there and I can always use a little walking

I agree 100%. The long bed is the only way to go. If you buy a short bed you will be sorry later.........
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Old 10-21-2016, 08:41 AM   #14
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I agree 100%. The long bed is the only way to go. If you buy a short bed you will be sorry later.........
I'm not sorry. My Sierra is my first PU. Always had Suburbans and vans in the past. I love my Sierra and I love owning a PU. In the 2 1/2 years we've owned it I have not had any desire or need for a longer bed. The few times I've had to haul 8' what ever, so it sticks out? It's not like I have to drive 100 miles like that.
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Old 10-21-2016, 08:56 AM   #15
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I have the short bed, and I do just fine. There have been maybe one or two times I wished I had the long bed, but even those have been strictly for convenience; I was able to make due with the short box relatively easily.

If I had it to do over again, I would most likely still get the short bed. If parking in my garage were not an option, I would value the long box slightly higher in my decision matrix, but it wouldn't be an automatic for me. If I ever planned to tow a fiver, again, the long box would get another tick mark on the list. If I found myself constantly hauling construction materials and large objects like ATVs or whatnot, again the long box gets another tick. But I just don't do that stuff.

But then I think it's such a personal decision based on the intended usage. Sure, the long wheel base might be a bit more stable for towing, but my rig is plenty stable. I could haul full sheets of plywood in the bed, but in 5+ years owning my last two trucks (both short box) I've never needed to haul full sheets of ply wood. If I need to haul a bunch of materials, my neighbor has a small flat bed trailer I can borrow any time I want.

My advantages are that I think it looks better, it fits in my garage, it's relatively easy to park and maneuver, it tows my trailer very well, it hauls everything I have ever needed to haul, and it does everything I need it to do.
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Old 10-21-2016, 09:49 AM   #16
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There are times I miss the long bed, but a 2500 Crew cab long bed to me is a loooooooonnnnnng truck, even though its just 1.5 more feet. Extended cab long bed truck is about the same length as the crew/short (6.5') and would be a good choice for those wanting the long bed. A regular cab long bed is a great work truck, with the drawback being lack of passenger space. The 5.5' bed on the half ton crew would just be too small for me. Compromises, compromises...
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Old 10-21-2016, 11:59 AM   #17
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I too am a long bed fan. I haul stuff around regularly and always laugh at the short bed guys at home Depot that have to run 8' 2x4s into the sliding window and into the front seat. (Don't you wish you bought the "whole" truck??). Also laugh at the guys with their mountain sleds and quads sitting up on the tailgate or onto the cab roof. IMHO a "truck" should not have a short bed or in most cases doesn't belong in a garage.... in my case the 10' camper demands a long bed as well. ( I have seen a 10' camper in a 6.5' bed truck and the center of gracity for the camper was about 1' behind the rear axle.
Happy Camping
I have always been able to haul 8' 2x4's in my short bed with no problems. Just put the tailgate down, instant 8' bed..... And there's no way I would even consider loading my mountain sled into my bed, even if it was an 8'. Those days ended after sleds started edging towards 1,000+ lbs... Sled goes in the snowmobile trailer...
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Old 10-21-2016, 03:53 PM   #18
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A crew cab 2500 with a 6.5 ft bed is NOT a short vehicle. It will ride fine.


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Old 10-21-2016, 08:02 PM   #19
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Thanks to all the short bed folks for joining in. Yep, if side by side I would still take the short bed over the long bed. My super crew cab and the short bed is still a very long wheel base and plenty of truck for what I need and use it for. I've stacked plywood and lumber and other stuff in without a problem and get to laugh at the guys I know that have to leave there $55,000 truck outside all year since it won't fit in their garage. It's a long way to reach up there to scrape ice off the windshield on cold mornings. :-)

Kidding aside, guess this is like gas vs diesel - each to his own and glad for them!
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Old 10-21-2016, 08:29 PM   #20
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Originally Posted by northwindone View Post
Like many of us, I've had short bed and long bed trucks. The long bed is more stable for towing, and is easier to back the trailer with, plus you can load plywood and other 8' lumber and still close the tailgate. However they are more difficult to park. With all these factors, given a choice I would pick a long bed every time.
+1 the reason I would not own 1/2 a truck (short bed)
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