New To RV Towing Question

[Duke4857]

Originally Posted by 19:11 verse .45

Hello all, new to forum and brand new to Rvs. Wife and I are considering a Jayco X23B. Advertised GVWR of 5500...so guessing TW of 750 lbs. TV is 19 Ram 1500 CC 4x4 SB, 5.7 Hemi, 3.92 axle. GVWR 7100, Door jamb payload sticker of 1719, tow rating a bit over 11k lbs. Self, Beautiful Wife, son, and daughter weigh in at 475 lbs. ( kids are 9 and 5) Definitely will get WDH...guessing around 100 lbs. This leaves around 400 lbs for wiggle room and stuff. Will mainly be weekend warriors with occasional longer trips. Does this seem a reasonable combo? What else do I need to consider....I'm sure a lot. Regards and thanks.

We pull our 2016 24RKS with a 2014 Ram outdoorsman. Stats are about the same. We have pulled the TT from OR to Ok,Il and back to OR. The only trouble we had was winds at high speed, slow down to 60 and all was great. We did run a little low on fuel between Winnemucca NV and Adel OR is a long way. Also the wife did not like Doherty Slide.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Ld8Juwg9SI

Have fun.

[19:11 verse .45]

Thanks to all for the replies. Great insight for a newbie to digest. Especially appreciate those who replied with info on similar combos I am looking into.
Great video Duke......My wife would have probably needed to be asleep going down that.
Gotta say, long time lurker, first time belonging to any forum. Nice and insightful bunch of folks y'all have here. Now to research WDH's......which from my research thus far needs to be done carefully as they seem to invoke some rather "impassioned" discussions. Thanks to all again.

[Sanali]

We love our x23b. We've had it since 2011. We are a family of 5, but our kids are older- teens and a 20 yr old. Over the years, we have done weekend trips, week-long trips, and a cross country trip with the x23b. The x23b has worked great for us over the years.

I can't help you with your towing question, but I think you will like your new trailer. It has tons of storage space. The tent ends make it feel like you're sleeping outside.

The one drawback is the clearance under the trailer. Be careful on your site as you back in and level.

Enjoy!

[cantupshift]

We have an '17 x23b, towed it back home over Mont Eagle with a '14 F150XL 5.0 2wd, regular hitch. Got some buffeting from the trucks passing.

Later upgraded to a CC F250, and added a WD hitch. Noticed as much of an improvement with the WD hitch as with the truck.

Got the E2 equalizer hitch, 8k or 10k, don't remember. I think it was about $400 or so installed.

I need to hit a scale though, on the to do list along with getting the leaky window fixed.

[RKHengst]

X2 regarding the Andersen hitch. Been using one for over 5 years, works very well, and doesn’t weigh a ton. A bit more expensive but absolutely worth it.

[WisconsinCamper]

So we have put on a lot of miles using our 2010 Chevy Traverse LTZ. No problems at all. Rock steady in all weather and road conditions. 5500lbs tow rating on Traverse. Your truck won't even know it's back there. Our sweet spot is 2200rpm 62mph.

[19:11 verse .45]

Sanali, thanks for the info on the camper. Wont get it for a bit, but I am one of those that has to research things to death. Really like the idea of sleeping under canvas, though the wife is pretty adamant about a bathroom.....so better make her happy.
Cantup & RK, yep....the Equalizer and Andersen are main two I am researching at the moment. How hard are they to get dialed in? I am pretty mechanically inclined, just havent messed with WDH before.
Wisconsin....nice looking rig. Thanks for the help. I never doubted the Ram has the grunt, but have mainly pulled utility trailers, etc. nothing high profile. Nice to hear from first hand experience.

[cantupshift]

I paid to have mine installed for two reasons.

It would require me buying probably 150-200 in tools and trying to figure out how to do it and several hours. I did not have the time or the appetite for one time use tools. (250ft lb torque wrench and a thin walled specialty sock for the e2)

Others will chime in about how they can adjust theirs themselves for this vehicle or a different future vehicle.

Or that the installer did a crummy job, didn't torque things etc.

I opted to trust my installer, you will need to make this choice either way as well.

Check the reviews on who you would consider installing the wdh.

Keep going with the research, ask questions, search, the forum is invaluable!

[Midnightmoon]

Originally Posted by 19:11 verse .45

Sanali, thanks for the info on the camper. Wont get it for a bit, but I am one of those that has to research things to death. Really like the idea of sleeping under canvas, though the wife is pretty adamant about a bathroom.....so better make her happy.
Cantup & RK, yep....the Equalizer and Andersen are main two I am researching at the moment. How hard are they to get dialed in? I am pretty mechanically inclined, just havent messed with WDH before.
Wisconsin....nice looking rig. Thanks for the help. I never doubted the Ram has the grunt, but have mainly pulled utility trailers, etc. nothing high profile. Nice to hear from first hand experience.

I can't comment on the Equalizer, but the Andersen is very simple to install and adjust. My initial install was less that 45 min by myself taking the time to read the manual and double check everything. Simple, light and easy to handle. Basic hand tools and a torque wrench capable of 150 lb/ft for the two large bolts for the ball mount on the shank.

[Midnightmoon]

Originally Posted by cantupshift

Others will chime in about how they can adjust theirs themselves for this vehicle or a different future vehicle.

Or that the installer did a crummy job, didn't torque things etc.

I opted to trust my installer, you will need to make this choice either way as well.

There is nothing wrong with paying someone to install your hitch. However it is extremely important for you to know how and be able to adjust your hitch. Your installer adjusted that hitch one time in the shop, took a few measurements, and gave you an initial setup. That may or may not be a good baseline adjustment, especially if the trailer and or tow vehicle were not loaded for travel at the time of installation. The owner needs to be able to take that unit to a CAT scale and fine tune the hitch settings and load distribution maximize the towing experience.

[spark of insanity]

We had a Jeep Grand Cherokee and was told the differential would need replacing before we could tow again. That was a 2004. Then I got a Jeep Cherokee Trail Hawk with a complete tow package that says GVWR of 5500. The RV we have now says dry weight is 2900 with a top out at 3500. We were told we had I think 67% tow capacity. We do not store anything in it except the basics. It seems to tow great at around 65 mph to keep gas costs down. Otherwise, still looking at a grand cherokee once this one is paid off. Both RV and tow vehicle had the brakes replaced and looks good for an out west trip in 3 months. I guess all this tow stuff still gives me anxiety attacks. Happy travels.

[19:11 verse .45]

Cant/ Midnight...thanks for feedback on the Andersen. If I go that route, will probably hire/find someone I trust and get them to teach me how to set-up/adjust. Think I have a torque wrench that will go high enough, need to check it. I am one of those that cant stand not doing my own stunts.
Spark....appreciate the anxiety part. Have found waaaaay to much to educate myself on. Kinda prefer when I was a teenager growing up on a farm. Payload was limited by space in the bed of the truck and only towing capacity question was do we get the truck or tractor.