Considering F-350 short box for Reflection, and future Solitude

**treeofliberty** · 07-22-2017, 08:35 AM

We are considering upgrading to an F-350 diesel, to tow our 2017 Reflection with ease, and set us up for a future RV upgrade, when I get a little closer to retirement. We want the short box, because our driveway isn't particularly deep and parking in urban Phoenix is tight.

I'd appreciate any general opinions out there, minus any Ford vs Chevy vs Dodge religion. We have two large rottweilers and need the big flat cab floor that only seems to be available in the Ford superduty. In particular, I'd be interested in hitch considerations. I currently have a Pullrite slider, for our 5.5 foot box, but that's likely to be overkill, or perhaps not even an option in the 6.5 foot bed.

Your perspectives are greatly appreciated.

**Husker** · 07-22-2017, 08:47 AM

I pull a 2017 29RS with my 2500 6.5 ft box with a standard (non-sliding) hitch. I have never been close to hitting the cab and I do not intend to fully jackknife my rig to 90 degrees while backing as it is very hard on tires to do so. If I get into a tight place that requires backing with a sharp turn, I simply have to pull forward one time to straighten out then proceed. I used to have a Demco auto slider in my half ton with 5.5 ft box. It worked fine but I didn't like the fact that I had to be straight out from the rig to uncouple. I would steer you toward a standard hitch if you intend to remove it once in a while as the sliders tend to be a bit heavy. Hope this helps.

**treeofliberty** · 07-22-2017, 09:39 AM

Originally Posted by Husker

I pull a 2017 29RS with my 2500 6.5 ft box with a standard (non-sliding) hitch. I have never been close to hitting the cab and I do not intend to fully jackknife my rig to 90 degrees while backing as it is very hard on tires to do so. If I get into a tight place that requires backing with a sharp turn, I simply have to pull forward one time to straighten out then proceed. I used to have a Demco auto slider in my half ton with 5.5 ft box. It worked fine but I didn't like the fact that I had to be straight out from the rig to uncouple. I would steer you toward a standard hitch if you intend to remove it once in a while as the sliders tend to be a bit heavy. Hope this helps.

That is very encouraging, Husker. Thank you for that feedback. it would be great to have a hitch that I can pull out, and have a real bed to deal to use. The huge slider in our current truck takes up most of the box, which is the price we currently pay for a simpler daily driver. We've only had the FW for a little over a year, so I'm far from an expert at this point. However, there have been very few instances where I've needed to turn at close to 90 degrees, and in those cases, I probably could have done your maneuver and been just fine.

**Second Chance** · 07-22-2017, 10:10 AM

We pulled our first 12K miles with a short (6.5') bed with a non-sliding hitch. The new contoured front caps do well and are a lot different than the old "square" front ends of yesteryear. I had to be careful in tight spots like old CCC state parks and the like. The main difference I've noticed going to a long bed CC (besides the dual rear wheels which you should seriously consider for a Solitude) is additional linear stability (better tracking) going down the road because of the longer wheelbase. You would also have more storage in the bed (truck box, portable generator, and "stuff" as George Carlin would say) with the long bed. Old-timers will advise you to "buy your last RV first." I think the same thing applies to the tow vehicle, too. We lucked into an even trade for the DRW truck. Otherwise, we'd probably still be on the edge of the envelope with a SRW truck and 3,100 lbs. pin weight.

Rob

**BabyBober** · 07-22-2017, 10:30 AM

Originally Posted by treeofliberty

We are considering upgrading to an F-350 diesel, to tow our 2017 Reflection with ease, and set us up for a future RV upgrade, when I get a little closer to retirement. We want the short box, because our driveway isn't particularly deep and parking in urban Phoenix is tight.

I'd appreciate any general opinions out there, minus any Ford vs Chevy vs Dodge religion. We have two large rottweilers and need the big flat cab floor that only seems to be available in the Ford superduty. In particular, I'd be interested in hitch considerations. I currently have a Pullrite slider, for our 5.5 foot box, but that's likely to be overkill, or perhaps not even an option in the 6.5 foot bed.

Your perspectives are greatly appreciated.

As you can see from my signature I have a '17 F350. It pulls our 303 like it isn't there. Well that is as long as you don't look at the fuel gauge.... While you might be able to get by on your reflection with a non slider remember that the Solitude is a wide body (102" not 96" wide). For me that is cutting too close to the cab on a tight turn without a slider. Now that being said, I wouldn't blink an eye at putting an appropriate Solitude on my Demco auto slider. I can do a 90+ on our reflection with 4" to spare at the cab. That would mean 1" on a Solitude. Pin weight is an issue and I would not think of pulling the bigger Solitudes on our F350 because I would we well over pin weight... if you want a big Solitude go to a duelly...

Jim

**Signguy71** · 07-23-2017, 07:52 PM

Keep your hitch for the solitude. I have the same one for my Solitude 369RL and 2016 F350. No issues at all.

**MtnGuy** · 07-24-2017, 07:30 AM

BabyBober and Second Chance hit the mark on pin weight. I am within about 300 lbs of our truck GVWR wIth a 2460 lb pin weight according to my last CAT scale trip, and have added some stuff since then. The diesel is heavy. I have 3426 lb cargo carrying capacity on my fairly well optioned Lariat, 4x4 CCSB F350.

The truck does an awesome job.

**TNFSolitude** · 07-24-2017, 08:36 AM

I have the F250 w/6.5 box and use a slider hitch. As mentioned above the Solitude width makes a big difference and I have the dimple in my back pillar to prove it (when I didn't put the hitch into manuever mode). You may not think you're going to jack knife while backing up, but occasionally you can't help but come close. I've seen 2 pickups with the back window broken out because they ended up with a tighter turn than they thought they would get into. The Pullrite is a fine slider, install it in your new truck. JMHO.

**treeofliberty** · 07-25-2017, 08:39 PM

I want to thank everyone here for their helpful perspectives. This is a great community for that.

We are likely to keep the Reflection for a few more years, so that's going to be the driving requirements (no pun intended). Also, we recently drove the 2017 F350, and its a wonderful ride, with ridiculous power, but also a sizeable price tag. Probably too much for a dedicated tow vehicle, so we're looking at older full ton trucks. From that perspective, it seems like even back into the middle 2000's, pulling 10,000 from a FW hitch is not going to be a challenge for diesel truck (even ones without exhaust braking). But if you folks feel differently, I'm looking to learn.

Tim

**Second Chance** · 07-25-2017, 09:15 PM

Originally Posted by treeofliberty

I want to thank everyone here for their helpful perspectives. This is a great community for that.

We are likely to keep the Reflection for a few more years, so that's going to be the driving requirements (no pun intended). Also, we recently drove the 2017 F350, and its a wonderful ride, with ridiculous power, but also a sizeable price tag. Probably too much for a dedicated tow vehicle, so we're looking at older full ton trucks. From that perspective, it seems like even back into the middle 2000's, pulling 10,000 from a FW hitch is not going to be a challenge for diesel truck (even ones without exhaust braking). But if you folks feel differently, I'm looking to learn.

Tim

I don't feel differently about that decision, but since you are now looking for an older/used 1-ton diesel, a bit of advice: in general, steer clear of the Ford PowerStroke engines in the 6.0 and 6.4 iterations. Both versions had some problems (different issues for each engine). The earlier 7.3 was a workhorse, but couldn't meet the newer emissions standards. Ford farmed out the 6.0 and 6.4 engines and finally brought the current 6.7 back in house - and got it right.

The GMC/Chevy Duramax coupled with the Allison 100 transmission is a very reliable workhorse drivetrain (perhaps my favorite). Very early versions of the 6.6 had some fuel rail issues but those were ironed out quickly.

The Cummins diesels in the Ram trucks have a cult following - and probably with good justification. They are built like a brick outhouse and one rarely hears of failures with them (although the Aisin transmission has its lovers and haters).

A true engine brake was an aftermarket add-on for my truck's model year. All of the 1-ton diesels will have tow/haul mode which works very well. I don't think, however, I would like to go down the 7 and 9% grades I have driven with more than my 14,000 lbs. in tow without a true engine brake.

Bottom line - find a good used diesel dual rear wheel that suits your needs (not an easy task) and buy it. You won't be disappointed.

Rob