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Old 07-14-2016, 10:59 AM   #1
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Brand: DRV
Model: Fullhouse
State: Florida
Posts: 8
THOR #4230
Any Full House Owners out there?

Checking to see if there are any Full House Owners and what they are towing with. Looking to mate with a Ram 3500...the numbers seem to work but curious to see how it would tow and stop as well as the overall handling. Or, would it be a safer bet to go to the 5500?

Dry weight of the Full House is about 19,000...looking at 23,000 loaded.

Thanks for any input.

Tim

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Old 07-14-2016, 06:39 PM   #2
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Brand: DRV
Model: 36RSSB3
State: West Virginia
Posts: 67
THOR #4763
A Ram 3500 DRW CC with long bed, 4X4 equipped with Aisin tranny and 4.10, such as mine, has a GVWR of 14K and GCWR of 39,100#..RAWR is 9750# with tires aired to 65psi...
Cummins12V98 is towing that amount of weight with his 2015 Ram , same as mine.

oh, I have rear air assist, as does Cummins12V98

Jim
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Old 07-15-2016, 04:08 AM   #3
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Brand: DRV
Model: 43' MS Atlanta
State: Arizona
Posts: 117
THOR #1683
We tow our 2016 MS Atlanta 43 footer with our 2014 Dodge Ram Cummins dually with 3.73 rear end. It is rated for 24,500 lbs of trailer or some such. It tows and stops like a dream.

Now, if I ever get the itch for a new truck, you can bet it will be another Ram Cummins, but with a 4.10 rear. I am also interested in that rear air option. You cannot go wrong with a Ram to pull these brute DRV's.

Joe
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Old 07-15-2016, 08:31 PM   #4
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Brand: DRV
Model: Fullhouse
State: Florida
Posts: 8
THOR #4230
Thanks, NC & Joe.....I was pretty sure I'd be ok. Just wanted to confirm with anyone who was already hauling around that kind of weight! Will be ordering both truck and trailer later this year.

Tim
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Old 07-16-2016, 11:26 AM   #5
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Brand: DRV
Model: lx450
State: Illinois
Posts: 2
THOR #2006
We pull our lx450 fullhouse with a 2013 ford f450 with a 4:30 rear gear. No problem at all
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Old 07-18-2016, 04:18 AM   #6
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Brand: DRV
Model: 38RSSA
State: Georgia
Posts: 187
THOR #1667
Our current truck has zero problems pulling our 21K rig with it's 450/1650 Detroit.

The replacement Kenworth that is getting the bed built for it right now should do a little better, 500/1650 Cummins with a Eaton 13 speed Ultrashift. I know that a LOT of people pull trailers over 20K with a pickup but a MDT or HDT will do the job and not break a sweat doing it.

My GVWR is 35,900 with a GCWR of 75,900. I like having a lot of safety margin towing and the wife likes the comfort.
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Old 07-18-2016, 12:13 PM   #7
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Brand: DRV
Model: 36RSSB3
State: West Virginia
Posts: 67
THOR #4763
Quote:
Originally Posted by GeorgiaHybrid View Post
Our current truck has zero problems pulling our 21K rig with it's 450/1650 Detroit.

The replacement Kenworth that is getting the bed built for it right now should do a little better, 500/1650 Cummins with a Eaton 13 speed Ultrashift. I know that a LOT of people pull trailers over 20K with a pickup but a MDT or HDT will do the job and not break a sweat doing it.

My GVWR is 35,900 with a GCWR of 75,900. I like having a lot of safety margin towing and the wife likes the comfort.
I can use my truck as a daily driver, drive it anywhere I want to, restaurant's, malls, stores, take it out on unpaved narrow country roads and use the bed to haul things in...It's paid for, full warranty and it can easily and safely tow a 21K 5er...When I disconnect at a campground, I can drive my truck anywhere we want to go...I won't need yet another car like I see most HDT carrying around..Insurance is cheap and cost of the truck was about 62K..I get 15.5 to 17 mpg just driving the truck around..I get almost 10 towing...I have a safety margin of over 11,000# on GCWR and close to 1K on GVWR and even more on RAWR..so, plenty of safety margin and my truck also doesn't work up a sweat towing 19-21K 5er's..and 99% of my towing is in the mountains.

My truck is also much easier to get in and out of for the dogs, the wife, (who just had hip replacement), and me, who is still recovering from a stroke I had 11 months ago...

The newer 1 ton dually's manufactured starting in 2013 are FAR more capable than pre-13' same trucks. It's there for the research...My wife can easily tow with and drive our truck anywhere she want's, 9grocery store, malls, etc)..at 5'2 and 64 yrs old, that's pretty good...

Each have their pro's and con's, but 450's, 4500's and up, MDT's and HDT's are not necessarily needed today to tow 5er's with GVW's of 18K to 21K, even higher..and I adhere to trucks recommended GVWR's and GCWR's...which isn't the popular way to go on some forum's, (where I am referred to as a "Weight Police").

Jim
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Old 07-18-2016, 04:38 PM   #8
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Brand: DRV
Model: 38RSSA
State: Georgia
Posts: 187
THOR #1667
Jim,

A HDT or MDT isn't for everyone. I happen to have a pickup for the "other" duties of hauling and I enjoy the height, comfort and ability of the larger trucks,. The M2 Freightliner will fit in the same parking spaces as my F350 dually it is just a couple of feet taller but a world of difference in ability.

I know exactly how good the newer dually are, I have one. However in a LOT of places we visit, they are NOT exactly "parking friendly" and neither is my M2. River street in Savannah is a prime example.

A Smart car on the back of the new truck will solve that issue as Enterprise Rental Car was becoming a regular occurrence with us. Another use for the HDT is that I have ours setup for trips of 2 or 3 days where we can park our fiver and go on short trips somewhere else where the larger trailer will NOT fit.

If you can get a 30 foot Motor home into a campground, I can get the new truck in there as well. It has shore power for the truck to run the microwave, refrigerator, TV and other 120 volts loads as well as a shore power option on the APU so we can have heat and air in the truck without running a generator or the main engine.

That will allow us to stay in older parks or a LOT of federal and state parks where our current fiver will not fit. You do need a special license in a lot of states to drive one but in Georgia, that is a 15 minute written test that most should be able to pass with a little bit of study.

Both sides have their virtues and each has their own adherents. I use a set of folding stairs for the dogs to get into the truck and the wife and I have no issues (yet) climbing into the cab. I also have other vehicles that I drive daily that are a lot cheaper to operate than the dually or the big truck.

As far as mileage goes, the Kenworth should average around 10 mpg per Cummins given the gearing, load, tires, transmission and engine setup we have. That is about the same as the M2 or our Dually (and yours) so no advantage there for either side other than the fuel load I can carry (210 gallons)

In the long run, for us, having the ability for the wife to go into the sleeper and take a nap, or fix a snack without getting into the trailer at a rest stop, the ability to camp in the truck, having a smaller city car that can go anywhere on small streets and park in tiny spaces and have the driving comfort of a HDT outweighed the negatives.

Your truck works great for you, ours works great for us, others might want a motor home with a toad. As long as you know and understand the possibilities that are out there and make an informed decision, life is good.

David
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Old 07-18-2016, 05:30 PM   #9
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Brand: DRV
Model: 36RSSB3
State: West Virginia
Posts: 67
THOR #4763
David, I do understand all the variables. Been towing RV's for 41 years and have done exhaustive research on every move I've ever made. Being an old school engineer who has worked in design as well as R & D, I'm a spec man to the nth. degree, also OCD on about everything I do. I couldn't have made statement's that I did about 1 ton dually's a little over 3 yrs ago that I can today. It's a well known fact what you would have needed a HDT or a MDT for some towing just 4 yrs ago that may not need either of those 2 options to HAVE to tow with today,up to a certain weight.. Good research with pertinent information, simple math and common sense is all one really needs to match what one is towing to what one is going to tow with.

To each his own..Our "other car" is a 2015 Jeep Cherokee Ltd....all we need and want, getting up to 30 mpg.
Like you, we have what we need and want...I just can't accept what some preach on this forum...that you need a MDT or a HDT to tow 17K up to 21K...and if someone doesn't agree with that, all the MDT's and HDT's, all gang up on the person who states other alternatives and makes them feel very unwelcome on this forum...such is the reason I haven't posted that much on here..

At almost 66 years of age, I keep an open mind...some in here don't want to do that.

I respect your opinion, though I know mine isn't on this forum...just letting others know, considering some GVW's on 5er's and TH's, there are alternatives today other than a semi to tow with.

Jim
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Old 07-24-2016, 12:20 AM   #10
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Brand: DRV
Model: 39TKSB3 "Modified"
State: South Dakota
Posts: 1,837
THOR #1661
Here are my CAT scale members. Truck handles the load with confidence!!!

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Old 07-24-2016, 02:01 AM   #11
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Brand: DRV
Model: 43' MS Atlanta
State: Arizona
Posts: 117
THOR #1683
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cummins12V98 View Post
Here are my CAT scale members. Truck handles the load with confidence!!!

Was this with the RV still on the truck? or did you weigh each separately? and then together?

I'm just asking as I have never done a weight on my rig. I know I need to. Perhaps when we leave Iowa for the DRV southern rally in Osceola, MO at the end of September.

Joe
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Old 07-24-2016, 01:00 PM   #12
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Brand: DRV
Model: 36RSSB3
State: West Virginia
Posts: 67
THOR #4763
The way I do it is load up my truck just like I'm going camping, wife, dogs, full tank of fuel and DEF and get that weight anytime...(just weigh the truck minus the 5er)...next time you are hooked to your 5er, weigh the combo and do the math..see if any weight was added to the steer axle, (could be a small portion of your pin weight), then look at drive axle weight when you were empty and compare to hooked up, (the difference with steer and drive weight would be your pin weight)..Trailer axles weight is how much weight you have on those axles..add the pin weight to the trailer axle weight and that gives you your trailers total GVW...hope that helped.


Jim
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Old 07-24-2016, 02:59 PM   #13
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Brand: DRV
Model: 39TKSB3 "Modified"
State: South Dakota
Posts: 1,837
THOR #1661
Joe,

You just pull onto the CAT scales so the RV is on one pad and the front and rear truck axles are on their own pads. The Attendant will ask if you want a re weigh. So at that point he will log your weights. If wanting a re weigh to be accurate find a parking space with the other trucks and un hook and enter the scales again with just the truck. Then they will give you both weight tickets and you can easily see what your actual pin weight is and how much weight you are adding to the front axle when hitched.

My ticket is with the RV connected to the truck.

I am estimating my rear axle weighs 4K+ un hitched. So that means I have about 5,800# pin. I am running at least 25% pin.
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