We currently have a 2011 f250 super duty 6.7 diesel powerstroke 4x4 crew cab srws. thinking of buying a 5th wheel sometime next year. Lets just say im gonna tow a 16k 5th wheel with it. Main purpose is to park it at a campsite maybe do a trip a short 5 hr trip twice a year. So not much road traveling at all.

iSo im asking for opinions on how one can minimize weight and work within the limits for the most part or lets say we are a small amount  over...how does one walk the fine line?  

im just thinking outloud, Js not here to bounce my questions off, and patience isnt one of my strengths Lol. 

Bean

While the F250 can "tow" 16K, it more than likely cannot carry the roughly 3000-4000 lbs that will be the portion on the fifth wheel hitch. Add to that the weight of the hitch, any gear in the pickup bed, passengers, fuel. I am certain that you will exceed the truck's rear axle payload rating for a trailer that large. Consider, no you should have, a 1 ton dually for a 16K fifth wheel trailer. Also just remember you have to be able to stop it as well, not to mention the extra tires add a measure of safety in the event of a blow out on the tow vehicle.

Your 16K trailer weight (gvwr) is carried on the two axles on the trailer and the fifth wheel hitch in the pickup bed. It consists of the empty trailer weight (weight right off the production line) plus the weight of all your personal gear and food, any additional options(typically dealer installed), water carried and propane carried. Typically the amount carried by the hitch is between 20% and 25% of the total trailer weight. for a 16K trailer you're looking at 3200 to 4000 pounds. The hitch itself can weigh 250lbs give or take, fuel 35gal at 7.3/gal is 250 lbs give or take, well you get the idea here. F250 will simply run out of "payload capacity" with a 16K trailer. You don't want to over load a trailer either... tire failures will really ruin your day.

Here is a good website to check on your truck's capabilities. Good luck in your choice.

It's not always the capability to tow the trailer but for safety can you stop the trailer.

I towed our 15,000lb 5th wheel one time with a 3/4 ton and immediately realized The biggest problem would be to stop. Within a few months I got rid of the 3/4 ton and moved to a 1 ton DRW.... much better stopping power.

Now I have a C4500 to tow it with and the ability to stop quickly is amazing with this truck. Plus it has an exhaust brake so going down hill requires very little use of the brakes. It will go down a 6% grade at 55MPH and I never have to touch the brakes.

I vote for a bigger truck with an exhaust brake setup.

Payload is the weight of passengers and cargo. cargo includes everthing you put in the truck, including the hitch in the pickup bed, fuel you carry also and the pin weight of the trailer. You quoted 2143... that is your payload. 23500 is the combined weight of the truck and any trailer you tow. The max weight of the truck is 10K per your info so you will be rather limited as to the trailer you can tow. Pin weight refers to the weight that is pressing down on the hitch. The trailer you cited is being reported as having 3000 lbs of pin weight so already you are over the trucks 2143 payload number, not including the hitch in the pickup bed, or passengers or fuel or other gear you may want to carry in the pickup. If you want to keep your truck you will have to look at smaller or lighter trailers. Other wise you'll be trading it in on a more capable dually or larger truck. Sounds like you did the "mock" calculation correctly... 12000 for a fully loaded trailer sounds about right for a F250s maximum capability. I'd still feel I was pushing the envelope with that trailer weight. (JHMO)

Sushidog wrote:

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There are many lighter weight fivers within the capability of your truck.

Here's a short list I was looking at for my 08 F-250 before I decided to go with a TT instead:

Heartland SD3000CK - GVWR 13,800 lbs Pin wt. 1960 lbs
Heartland SD2880RLT - GVWR 13,800 lbs Pin wt. 2220 lbs.

Forest River Wildcat Maxx 282RK - GVWR 13,455 lbs. Pin wt. 1455 lbs.
Forest River Wildcat Maxx 302RL - GVWR 13,595 lbs. Pin wt. 1595 lbs.
Forest River Wildcat Maxx 322RK - GVWR 13,690 lbs. Pin wt. 1690 lbs.

Forest River Salem 29RLW - GVWR 11,601 lbs. Pin wt. 1441 lbs.
Forest River Sandpiper 32QBBS - GVWR 13,896 lbs. Pin wt. 1896 lbs.

There are many others as well. This is just a few that I felt had sufficient CCC for my FTing needs. Remember that pin wt. is your limiting factor, and with any cargo you add, about 20-25% will go on the pin. Be sure to verify your exact cargo carrying capacity for your truck, as the specs vary considerably for a 2011 F-250, from a low of 2,300 lbs to a high of 3,550 lbs. for the 6.7l.

Chip

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 The pin weights are obviously DRY weights and are no where reality.  You do say later 20-25% is pin weight.  So based on the GVWR of 13,960# the 20% pin would be 2,790# and 25% 3,490#.  Both weights are most likely over the 08 F250 you mention.

Is that the anti-corollary to "I'm older, wiser and have more insurance" theory in "Fried Green Tomatoes"? ....younger, bullet-proof but still has more insurance.

I was under the impression that the OPs 2011 F-250 had more cargo capacity than my 08 model (the Ford PDF says it's 2,920-3,020 lbs. for a 158wb, crew cab 2wd, but drops to 2,530-2,630 for the 4wd model), but it seems his particular truck is rated even less. https://www.fleet.ford.com/truckbbas/topics/2012/12_SD_Pickups_SB.pdf

All of the fivers I looked at are under 10,000 lbs dry, the Salem under 7,500 lbs. Even the 13,896lb GVWR Sandpiper 32qbbs has an uvw of only 9,005 lbs.  If I add 3,000 lbs of payload I'm now up to 12,000 lbs., so that spec is OK as my truck's tow rating is 15,900lbs.

So now let's look at the pin weight. My F-250 has a CCC of 2,730 lbs. Subtract 400 lbs for additional passenger, hitch, etc. and the working capacity is only 2,330lbs. The dry pin wt as advertised for this model Sandpiper trailer is 1,896lbs. If I calculate 20% of the 3000lbs of cargo I might add (as most of the weight will be in the back, where the kitchen and bedroom is) that's another 600lbs of added pin wt., so we have a total of 2,496lbs pin wt. It looks like DW is going to have to lose a little wt., and I'm going to have to take my 90lb tailgate off) cause I'm 166 lbs over.   Even if I get it slightly under, it's still too close to capacity, if you ask me, for FT use. Now for occasional, light towing like the OP describes in his particular application, it would do fine.

This is why I am looking at a TT rather than a fiver for my particular needs. Add to this the fact that with a fiver, I will lose my truck's bed for storage, and I plan on taking a couple of lightweight motorbikes with me. They only weigh 150lbs each, but are too bulky to fit into the basement area of a fiver.  I could build a rack and put them on the back bumper of a fiver, as I've seen 800 lb Harleys carried this way, but I wouldn't feel comfortable having that much weight aft, as I'm afraid it might damage the frame of a lightweight fiver, not to mention making the handling squirrely.

Chip

MarkS wrote:

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I feel pretty certain that there is an age/toy hauler caveat to the manufacturers ratings. The reason I say this is that here in California young people use 250/2500 srw trucks to haul 43 foot toy haulers all the time. Usually at high rates of speed going down the grape vine. I think the formula utilizes the youth/indestructability quotient.

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 I have seen plenty of them IDIOTS laying on their side along the stretch of I-10 in the PalmSprings area.  To top it off a lot of the trucks have a lift and big tires.