Pin weight

[chrisinkanata]

I'm looking at the Trailer Life towing guide specs for a 2014 GMC Sierra 3500 crew cab, 6.6, single rear wheel. Indicates a 5th wheel capacity of 17,200 lbs. Anyone know what the cargo (pin weight)$capacity for this would be?

Thanks

[a5150nut]

Chris,

A lot depends on how the truck is outfitted with tool box, fuel tank, weight of hitch, camping gear and people. On the trailer any where from %10 to %35 of you weight can be on the pin and that is effected by what you load, holding tanks and amenities. So you are asking an open question.

You might try rv.net or Irv2.com and find people with similar setups and get an answer there.

[richp]

Hi,

It's a tough problem if you don't already own the truck. In the very unlikely ideal, you take the rig to a weigh station and get actual numbers before you sign on the line.

As has been said, the only way to really know what you can hang on the pin is after you get an actual truck weight with the typical load of people, fuel, misc cargo, and the hitch itself.

And then there is the matter of how much water and propane you have in the fiver, where those tanks are in relation to the axles, and how that all impacts the amount of weight on the pin. Not to mention whether your spare tire, jack, generator, tools, and cast iron cookware are stored forward or behind the axle.

The only sure things are that the trailer manufacturers give minimal weight figures on the trailer, and the dealer will tell you that your truck will be fine towing the most expensive rig they can spin your way.

FWIW.

[SoTxPollock]

I think typically, Rv'ers figure a conservative 20% for the pin weight. If your trailer weights 10,000 lbs. you could plan on the truck having to carry 2000 lbs. of that weight.

I would think the 17,200 lbs. you are talking about is the towing capacity of a fifth wheel or goose neck trailer and of course would also be discussed by the hitch manufacture you choose to have installed on your truck. If your truck or hitch dealer can't show you how they calculate the figures for their respective items, I wouldn't buy from them.

My trailer weighs in fully loaded with generator and full tanks at 15, 300 lbs. It's heavy, has everything including the kitchen sink and washer and dryer, three holding tanks and multiple slides so it is home away from home.
Thanks to Kennedy I installed the 5000 lb. air lift bags on the rear to level it up while going down the highway.
Your new one may tow 17,200, but you better be watching your rear tire loads, as you will be putting a lot of the load on the rear axle and the tires and wheels in the rear need to be rated to withstand that weight or you will have problems with tires down the road.
Knock on wood, I have never had a wheel or tire problem with the truck while towing, but I have replaced all 4 of my original trailer tires, because three of them blew out and one was wearing so badly, I knew it would not get me back to Texas from South Dakota at the rate it was wearing on the trip up. Trucks are not the problem towing heavy loads now days, it's usually tires.

Assuming you will buy that truck, it has all the right stuff to pull a heavy trailer, you need to be sure the trailer you buy, is fitted to the truck properly, so that it goes down the road level. That distributes the load of both units on all of the wheels evenly. That is your best approach.

[a5150nut]

There is a handy little app Fifth Wheel ST. (Safe Towing)

You can plug in axel weights and it will tell you if it is legal and give pin weight as a percentage.

[Grayfox]

FYI,

http://changingears.com/rv-sec-tow-vehicle-sizing.shtml