Hi all. Well Im new to this scene and have decided that in the future I would like to get a 5th wheel toy hauler, and the only truck I think that is capable towing it is a Ram with Cummins power.

I have looked at a few 5ths and the one Im interested in is the Thor Vortex 40ft 5th wheel. This thing dry is 12,200 and can carry a max of 5000 extra pounds coming in at a gross weight of 17,200.

I guess what I want to know is can I get away with a Ram 3500 4x4 SRW properly equipped with high load tires? A part of the reason I ask about the SRW is that I would like to be able to take the truck and go do some serious off roading. With some trails being narrow, Id rather not take the risk of being stuck because of a dually rear axle.

I do understand that a dually will provide more stability while towing, but I dont want to have the truck for JUST towing, I want to be able to take it out and go places on and off road.

So, what do you think?

Id go far to say that Id rather get the 5th wheel and a 3500 Ram and live at an RV park than rent an apartment. Might cost more per month, but in the end I would own both the 5th and the truck. I guess that is my ultimate goal; to be able to live aboard and have something to call my own while I build enough credit for a house.

 

I have never understood why people rent I say get a trailer or a boat and own it ya know, as far as the truck get a dually and a rhino when your talkin about 18k

 

Anything that heavy demands duallies. Your pin weight will surprise you. Make sure when considering weights, do not exceed GVWR ratings. Do not exceed rear wheel load limits. You will obviously exceed GCWR with 17,000 pounds of fiver using a Dodge. You will get by with that easier than exceeding the individual GVWR of each vehicle. I am towing over 16,000# and have about 55K doing that. Just drive accordingly knowing you are over the combined ratings. Make sure the brakes are superior with heavy axles, G rated tires and large brakes.

Second recommendation - - do not buy any Thor product. Their reputation is horrible. Had a friend with one - - disaster. Read the RV websites and weep at the situations with Thor products.

Bob

 

FiverBob cuts right through the Bull! Every one of his points is right on the money, and he hits the vital points. I have only a 32ft Toyhauler 5th and fully loaded with water, gas, fuel, and cargo my pin wt is 2350# and Gross is 22,225#. I'm only 775# from the Dodge weight limit @ only 32ft. There sure is a lot of Overlimit 5er's out there.

 

As for off-road stuff, don't get your hopes up. That Cummins motor weighs in at more that 1000 lbs. With that much weight up front some situations are going to be a real problem.

You are going to need a dually for all that weight. Don't jeopardize your safety or your families but cutting corners on the truck.

Get the dually and save up for a jeep for off-roading.

 

get a dually and as far as off roading i've gotten mine into some pretty tight places and didnt have a problem. the mirror when extended acts as a gauge for your fenders

 

fiverbob and rockdonon are right, my 32ft serria has a 2,000 pin# and around 19,000lb. do a lot of checking befor you buy.

 

Ummmmm, There's a fine line where your heading. It can be done if done right. Bad part is your wanting to do serious off roading and that means you'll need big wide soft tires that don't really get a good weight rating and you'll also want the truck up high, all of this is bad news for a large 5er in the 15K range.
I'm within the ratings so don't let others tell you it can't be done. Iv'e been yanking this thing around for a year. I suggest you get a set of tires and rims for off roading and switch back to a high weight rated tire for towing.

 

Juz, thats what I was intending to do. Your %th is about the size of the one that I would like to get and its nice to see I dont have to get a dually to pull her!

I figure put a compressor in the 5th so that I can switch from the towing tires to Off road tires when I arrive at the destination.

One quick question and this is only because I hav eno idea, but can a truck with the proper towing tires have a lift put on it and still be effective at towing?

 

I would simply go with a smaller 5er and be happy. 40' is a very, very large unit and may be impractical in many campgrounds, especially more remote ones.
-P

 

I'm at just about 58'-6" total and my trailer is 39'-8". So simply..... it can be done.
Just don't go over board and over load the trailer with crap inside it, and get a lite weight trailer. For a 40' trailer mine weights in at 14,500 read to roll, and thats 25-30 gals of water (i fill at campground) and about 1500lbs worth of stuff in the garage. My pin weight is 2950lbs, so add that to my trucks rear axle weight of 3042lbs (ready to roll, fuel, me, wife and gear) thats 5992lbs on the rear axle. Truck as is is spec'ed for 6200lbs. So I'm good to go.
For your question about a lift..............that can also be done if you get the right trailer, and by that I mean get a trailer that can set high off the ground and not push a overall height over 13'-2" +/- a few inchs. I have a lot of troubles with bed clearance because I won't raise my trailer (flip axles). I'm at 13'-2" now and don't want the worry of a extra 4-5" for hitting every limb and wire in town, PLUS the lower the trailer sets the better it handles.
As a guess, I would say try not to push a bed height of 60", with the right trailer you mite get a little more but bed clearance is the problem with a lift.

 

yes you can be lifted and tow, is a pain, might have to lift the trailer. i had a 24ft 5er that we put a 6in lift on it so it would be the same hight as my truck, and i ran 35 boggers. luckly my new trailer is all ready high enuf to sit the same hight as my truck. bad thing about going biger is most camp grounds have a 40 to 45 ft limit. so i cant stay hooked up and park close. or its too tall and you have to watch trees.

 

The down side to twoing with alifted vehicle is physics, you are raising the center of gravity of both the truck and trailer, so sway and trailer roll are magnified. on a large trailer this can be a real safety issue!!!.
Just because you CAN do something, doestn make it safe or the best....
The best advise you have been given is to get the dually to haul that size load with and save up for a jeep or similar to play with....

 

Can it be done? Yes.
Can it be done safely? Not exactly.

Sold a 44' horse trailer to a guy pulling it with a 3/4 ton Chevy. Weighed in at about 13,500lbs empty. He got it home and called me to say that everything went fine on his 4 hour ride home. I thought (and still do think) he was nuts. I was not even going to sell it to him until one of the other guys chimed in and said they had a customer pulling the same trailer with a 3/4 ton for years.

There are very, very few rigs out there that aren't over weight in my opinion. It can be done, but you don't exactly want deal with the lawyers that find out you were over weight if/when you get into a wreck.

 

You know at times I love these discussions about CAN IT BE DONE SAFELY and other times it gets pretty trying.
I guess it is good advice to not push the envelope of a truck if you’re not prepared to do so, and even a bigger one is if you’re able to handle it.
If you haven’t pulled large trailers before and your not experienced with 5th wheel hauling I’d say start smaller and work up. And I’m all for using duallys for these kinds of trailers, but to throw a blanket over every trailer in the 38’-40’ range and say it’s unsafe, well that’s just not true.

No flameing intended to the other posts. I'm only stateing my opinion. And it's based on doing it.