I am planning on upgrading to a 3/4 ton truck in the future, but we are looking at 5th wheels right now. I don't see many 1/2 tons pulling 5th wheels, anyone have first hand experience? The ones we are looking at weigh 5000-5600 empty, well within the weight limits of the F150.

Thanks.

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firstimeFord
99 SC 4x4 5.4 3.73LS

 

I would not. The 250 is alot different. Trans, axles, rear ends. Are so different. A camper yes, but 5th wheel. Look for trouble. Good Luck

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Ruger's F-150

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"With Amsoil You Can't Go Wrong"
E-MAIL ME:
pureamsoil@bigfoot.com
MY HOME PAGE:
PureAmsoil

 

firsttimeFord: I will speak from experience here. I have pulled 5th wheels for the past 6-7 years ranging in size from 24 ft (4700 pounds empty) to 32 ft (12,000 pounds loaded). My advice for you is to expect to add at a minimum of another 2000 pounds or better to the CGVWR for all the incidentals, you, your wife, your children, your dog, cat, kitchen sink and maybe even an extra pair of sneakers or two. It alway amazed me how the better half could cram so much STUFF into all those places not to mention on every trip we would always find something else that we had to have for the 5th!!!! Seriously, a Ford, Chevy, Dodge regardless if it's a 1/2, 3/4 or 1 ton will always get the thousands of pounds in motion....what counts after that is safety in stability and stopping! The 1/2 ton WILL NOT do it for you and what you expect it to when you tack on 3-4 ton behind it. AT the MINIMUM go with the 3/4 ton and if you have any suspicions that you may really enjoy the RVing way of life go for the 1 ton either dually or straight. You won't be sorry.

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2000 Flareside SCab 4x4, 5.4 w/3:55, Oxford w/gray leather captain's, upgraded Lariat pkg, Class III towing pkg, all power, 60watt fogs+hi beams, billet third brake light cover, monogramed dash cover, expy console, K&N, custom exhaust (single in-dual out) with Flowmaster 40, Superchipped, 5.4L badges. Waiting to be installed: Hellwig anti-sway bar, Trenz billet grill and OE bladerunner.

 

Thanks Casper II. I had planned on 1000-1500 extra pounds for gear, then we're getting towards the limit. Must be why you don't see 1/2 tons pulling 5th wheels.

I'm going this afternoon to look at SuperDutys. Now I need to decide: diesel for v10? Quite a jump from an F150...

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firstimeFord
99 SC 4x4 5.4 3.73LS

 

this is just my opinion on the v10 vs PSD

I have a 2000 F250 PSD and i usually get around 17-19 MPG in the city. When I pull my 30 foot fifth wheel the mileage drops down to around 11-13 mpg.

My brother-in-law has a 2000 F250 V10 and he gets 9-10 mpg driving around the city, and when he pulls the mileage drops drom to 4-6 mpg.

If you are planning to keep the truck for a while then you would probably better off to spend more and get the psd

I did the same step up that you are talking about. I had 99 F150 with the oil leaking motor that ford replaced the motor on. Well I didn't trust the truck so i moved up to the F250

ronnie

 

I would go with the ps, and besides after that if you still want more power you could chip it, just drove a ps with a chip in it and it made a pretty good increase in power over a normal ps, mind you they already have more than a v10 so I am sure you would not be disappointed. I dont know about in the U.S but here in Canada some probvinces (B.C) are not allowing half tons to pull 5th wheel trailers there as most are carrying to much weight, its also the same with ski doo's, a half ton with two sleds if overloaded and not allowed into the province and more provinces are starting to follow. There is also talk about changeing the trailers electric brakes because the big concern is that you have no real safety if you loose your power to the trailer and a half ton will not hold back a loaded 5th wheel in the mountains

 

Black F150 Offroad - the rules in BC are that you cannot tow more than the GCWR limit of your truck. This means that they put you, your truck and your trailer on a scale and if you are over, you must remove weight before continuing on your trip.

The police cannot make judgement calls on the ratings. They are just enforcing the manufacturers guidlines. If the guidelines are set too high from the manufacturer (like 9000 pounds towing limit on a Tahoe) they will still let the vehicle go.

There is no specific rule that a 1/2 ton cannot pull a 5th wheel and plenty of people pull smaller fivers that are under the limit.

Now, if you want a really stupid rule, in Alberta you can tow more than one trailer so long as the overall length is less than 60', so it is common to see a Dakota pulling a fifth wheel and a boat!

Ian

ps - I agree with you about trailer brakes; I had a set fail on a 6000 lb trailer behind my F250 in the Roger's pass - not a fun trip!

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99 Expedition EB
5.4l, 4x4, 4.10 LS
WMS Tube, Bassani Cat Back Exhaust, Superchip Flipchip

 

I would agree with not using a F150 to pull a large load, but why do you need the v10 or ps? On the farm we have a 98 f250 with a v8 and we pull a 32 foot livestock trailer and we use it to pull a d4 cat on a trailer. The d4,trailer and truck are over 22000 lbs. the ps is only good in my opinion on very long drives, short drives will drain the tank and oil reserve pretty fast.

 

MechE - my F150 has an FQR 5.4 that still knocks, I would not purchase another 5.4, and seeing as the 6.8 is a 5.4 with 2 more cylinders and also has piston slap problems, I'm leaning more towards the PSD.

I drove an F250SD SC/SB PSD yesterday. The difference between that and the F150 is night and day. The F250 is a TRUCK! Don't know if I could get used to that ride for the 95% of the time I'm not towing...

Then I drove a GMC 2500HD with the 6.0 v8. Very nice ride, good power, but can an ex-Ford driver get used to the ugly-*** interiers of the GMs?

I could go either way, but it will probably come down to whoever can give me the most trade for my F150.

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firstimeFord
99 SC 4x4 5.4 3.73LS