I have a 97' f150 with the 5.4. Im going to be starting to tow a 25 foot gooseneck horse trailer (with two horses). I was thinking about adding heavy duty leaf springs and helper springs in the rear to help with the added weight. Does anybody else pull a trailer of this size? And is the 5.4 powerfull enough to tow something this heavy?

 

how much weight?

 

I think hwm3 pulls a similar set up with his NBS F150 hopefuly he see this and can answer your questions.

 

The stock springs (although yours are 9-10 years old) handle GWVR and max payload well before the suspension bottoms out. It takes over 2500 pounds in the bed to get close to the bump stops. If you think you need helper springs, you probably need a new (heavier duty) truck.

 

While I'm sure you have plenty of towing experience, your constant "you need a heavier duty truck" responses aren't really helping.

What is the difference between someone using a weight distributing hitch on a bumper pull trailer, and someone using helper springs when towing a gooseneck trailer?

To the OP, we need to know more info about the trailer. Is it a steel trailer, or aluminum? A basic 2-horse gooseneck with a dressing room or living quarters weighs less than 3k lbs. Add in a couple horses at 1k lbs each and your only at ~5k lbs. On the other hand if we're talking about a trailer with full living quarters, it can get heavy pretty quickly.

 

Do you think it is okay to exceed the manufacturer's ratings on a regular basis?

Really? WD puts wight back onto the trailer's axles and takes weight off the tongue of the truck, therefore helping keep the truck under GVWR. Helper springs, add-a-leaf, replacement heavier duty spring, and air bags keep the weight on the truck and do not increase GVWR of the truck.

 

Who said anything about exceeding the manufacturer's ratings? It's possible that he won't be exceeding ANY of the manufacturer's ratings, and could still benefit from the helper springs.

This is exactly why I stay out of this section. In nearly every thread there are people like you that attempt to prove that someone is being unsafe or exceeding the manufacturers ratings.


I see. Helper springs are bad, and only used by people that are over their GVWR.

Have you ever towed a gooseneck trailer?

 

I don't think using helper springs improves towing experience at or under GVWR. I could be wrong as I don't have them. My question is somewhat arbitrary but you still did not answer it.

You'll love this thread, then.


That was not the point I was making above, but now that you mention it. For the most part, yes, because of my opinion above. I know what my truck looks like as far as suspension/stance/rake and how it handles at GVWR. Most people would look at my truck @ GVWR and not think it is anywhere close to GVWR. So, many people overload their trucks, look at how much it sags, then add help(er springs, air bags, etc).

I'll restate since you don't comprehend.. WD system reduce weight on the truck's axles/springs. Helper springs do not.

Nope. Haven't a need yet in my life or the vehicle to do so..

 

APT, I don't see anywhere in this thread where the weight of his trailer is mentioned, yet you automatically assume that he's overweight. Nobody suggested that anyone tow over their limits.

MitchF150 has helper springs on his truck, so he MUST be over the GVWR for his truck using your logic.

One final thing, since you haven't towed a gooseneck trailer before, and this thread is specifically about towing a gooseneck trailer, why did you bother to respond? Towing a gooseneck trailer is a completely different situation than towing from the bumper, and since you have ZERO experience with it, your opinion carries little weight.

That said, I'll wait until the OP gives us a little more info on his setup before I respond. Have a great day.

 

And I've admitted I'm over my trucks GVWR when I tow or put more then #800 in the bed...

My stock springs are so weak, that I sagged when I sat my fat *** on the tail gate!

With only #6250 of GVWR to work with in my case, I don't have much left over, but I've been using my truck as a truck since 2001 and towing since 2002 and I've now got over 193,000 miles on the rig, so I'm not destroying it by any means..

I'm not directing this post to anyone in particular, just posting my 'disclaimer' that, yes, I'm over GVWR at times... ha, ha!

Mitch

 

hwm3, we have now come back around to my first post in this thread. If you think you need helper springs, you probably should use a bigger hammer, I mean truck.

 

I wouldn't worry about pulling it; just stopping it in time when i really needed too.
F150 dress out about 5400lb+
F250 with diesel 7000lb+

Used to tow a steel GN 16' stock trailer loaded with an old '85 F150 302 not fun trying to stop it when you really needed too. Pull it with a F250 Diesel now and what a world of difference.

And a 25' GN Horse trailer must have some large living quarters and is going to be pretty heavy; a featherlite 2H trailer has 2 4800# axles under it. To give an idea.

 

This is exactly why I avoid this section. These are the common responses in here. It's always "you need a bigger truck". You don't know ANYTHING about the trailer the OP is wanting to pull, yet your already saying he needs a bigger truck, even though you have ZERO experience with a gooseneck trailer.

To the OP, if you have any questions, and want answers from someone with actual gooseneck towing experience, feel free to PM me.

FYI, this is what I tow at least a couple times a week. I've been pulling this trailer with my '07 F150 for nearly 2 years now without any problems. With brakes on both trailer axles, it stops very well too.

 

DUDE!!! You need a bigger truck.

 

Off topic, Beautiful setup. Beautiful picture.