The day I decided I had the right truck, a towing story.

[Cajun Couple]

...A 250 and 350 are, for all intents and purposes, basically the same truck (again, if you equip a 250 with things like the max tow/high cap springs/etc) with different GVWR's assigned....

This is very true, especially since the F250 and the F350 DRW use the same rear axle (at least this is true for my 2006 F250). However, we found that when pulling our 14,000 Lbs+ solitude that the rear truck tires were maxed out and the weakest link. The thought of blowing a tire while climbing Tennessee mountains on I-75 scared me to death. A place in Royal Oak, Michigan called Arrowcraft makes dually conversion kits for F250's https://arrowcraftproducts.com. My total cost for the conversion kit, including six wheels + a spare), dually fenders painted and installed, and four new Michelin tires, was about $4200. I installed the kit in 2-3 hours. NO MORE SWAY and much greater peace of mind. We increased the utility value of our existing (and paid for) truck without having to buy a new truck.

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That truck came out beautiful!! I agree with you can't ever have too much truck when yanking around these large 5th wheels.

[orbiker]

The 19.5 inch wheels and tires are a big difference.
I have a set that I used on my old 2002 F350 SRW truck. I hauled a 2000 lb Citation pickup camper before getting our first Grand Design. Those tires definitely helped with the stability and weight.
Safe travels Dallas.
We came back from the Oregon Coast on Sunday. 20 mph sustained winds with gusts of 30 to 40 was happening on our short 120 mile trip. The F350 we had would have made the day a white knuckle day. The Ram did the trip with the Solitude behind it very easily. I did cheat a bit and filled the water tank for a bit more ballast. KEN


Last May in NE Oregon

[fez111]

....especially since the F250 and the F350 DRW use the same rear axle... I am writing to correct a typo in my post. My statement was supposed to read, "especially since the F250 and the F350 SINGLE REAR WHEELS use the same axle". Everyone knows that the F350 DRW uses a much larger Dana axle... My apologies. It was very late when I wrote that. Frank

[D2Reid]

5 yrs to retirement when we plan on going for longer periods of time and of coarse more times in the year. Told my good wife that my retirement present will be turning the 350 in a new 450.

The big three keep making changes every year vying for mostest capability, so in 5 years I am sure the choices will be different than they are today. Who knows, maybe Tesla will have their 3 motor version of the electric truck as a contender by then.

Anyone listen to country music? There's a song "Too much fun" that basically asserts that there is "no thing as too much fun". I'd agree with that, and I think you can probably say the same thing about truck capacity, there's no thing as "too much towing capacity", only not enough.

I like that song. But one of my favorites is "Waiting on a Woman" by Brad Paisely. Another really good one is "Wolf Creek Pass" by JD Mcall. My grandfather told me stories of driving a milk truck across Wolf Creek Pass back in the 30's.

[Cajun Couple]

This song is for us F350 DRW long wheelbase drivers!!

https://youtu.be/qDxVJ471hyg

[Cajun Couple]

Wolf Creek Pass..CW McCall

https://youtu.be/X6LzWZYWpOU

[dragonfly]

Which tow vehicle discussions are always fun. Lots to learn when you are first starting out. Some of the considerations that few talk about is where are you going to tow? How far and often do you tow? I feel that when people say I tow such and such with my little truck that they are in flat country and don't tow often nor far.

Me, I am all over the US. I tow in some of the toughest conditions you can imagine. This last week we relocated from Houston TX to Breckenridge, CO. Coming out of Houston, Dallas, Amarillo pretty flat, some wind, decent roads. Amarillo to Pueblo some climbing, bit of wind. The last leg is where I decided I made the right choice in trucks.

Pueblo through Denver I-70 to Breck. When you consider tough towing conditions you have some fun stuff to think about; Weight of the RV; condition of the roads; wind; grade.

My Momentum weighs in around 20,000 lbs.

There is a lot of construction going on I-25, 470 in the Denver area. It's about as rough a bit of driving that I have encountered. That include I-10 in LA, I-40 a little west of Memphis, and 201 in north Maine.

All through the area there were wind advisories. But when I started up the canyon on I-70 the billboard said “Wind Advisory, expect heavy crosswinds with gusts up to 70 MPH”, (or something like that) And that wind was blowing.

While the I-70 grades aren't real steep, 6-7%, they are long. In my Chevy 350 I had to mind the temp guage as it would tend to creep up.

I think that was the leg was the hardest towing I have done. Heavy RV, rough roads, high wind and mountains.

My F450 performed well. While climbing and fighting the head wind my fuel mileage dropped from it's average 8.7 to 6.4, that's to expected. The DRW was stable in spite of high winds trying to shove the 5th wheel all around. With the 4:30 rear axle the truck produced enough torque to pull against the wind and climb the hill at 60 mph. I passed a lot of tractor trailers. The engine, oil, and transmission temperatures only climbed a few degrees and never came close to overheating.

Then, when we arrived at the RV park the streets are covered with snow and ice. Fortunately they are flat. I dropped it into 4 wheel drive and never spun a wheel getting the 5th wheel maneuvered on the snowy/icy streets. After I got the snow shoveled off the RV site I got it backed in even though I drove over a small snow bank.

Dallas,
How has your 450 handled in the snow packed roads around Breckenridge Co., and what are your overall feelings about the truck after owning for approximately a year?
Thanks!

[D2Reid]

Dallas,
How has your 450 handled in the snow packed roads around Breckenridge Co., and what are your overall feelings about the truck after owning for approximately a year?
Thanks!

The F450 is a beast. Visibility for parking and mirrors are poor, cameras help when they aren't iced over. It takes extra work to use it as a daily driver. You find yourself looking for wide open parking at the end of the parking lot. That's the bad part.

The good part is snow packed roads are easy peezy. Little knob put's into 4x4 and away you go. Anti-lock brakes end the pumping we used to have to do to get things stopped, you just mash on the brakes and it stops in slick conditions. If you really have to go there, just chain the front wheels. The high clearance will get you through snow that other vehicles struggle with.

My overall feelings about the F450? I love my truck.

It's too big for normal people. But when I head out with the Momentum behind I have no worries about it getting the job done safely. Steep hills, crosswinds, stopping capabilities, no problem.

[dragonfly]

That is encouraging news!!
I’m looking forward to mine coming hopefully on March!
I liked the way it handled empty and that was not quiet my experience with trying out a friends 2018, but he told me he had either 100 or 110lbs. In his tires.
Your stories help!!