Advise and recommendations

[traveldawg]

You're gonna like the 310GK - a lot. Wishing you success on the 'truck hunt'...

[CoChris]

Well, looks like I best relook at my choice of tow truck! Wow, I thought the 2500 deisel would be fine, but everyone seems to think I will need a one ton instead. Ok, now back to the drawing board.
Thanks for all the advise and for sharing your knowledge. I appreciate all the wisdom that was shared and it makes me think about safety and tow abilities and stopping the big rig. Thanks again for everything!!!
I think we are sold on the 310GK just need to rethink the truck!!!!!

The good news is there is very little price difference between a 3/4 ton and a 1 ton!

Chris

[The Bone]

I am going to get a 344 GK and pull it with a F250. Plenty of truck
What these guys didn't tell, you is the F250/2500 is the same as F350/3500 trucks.
You can get both trucks in the same 10,000 payload. As for the yellow sticker in the door jamb, there is also a white sticker . The yellow one is for loading the truck by itself while the white sticker is for towing. I have 6,500 pound axles in my truck which = 13,000 pounds of load. But my tires only can carry around 8,000 pounds of load. According to the tow guide I can only tow a max of 16,900 pounds. Now if you go buy the yellow sticker even a DRW truck isn't capable of handling the pin weight they say it can haul 24,400 pounds. Some old guys think the yellow sticker is the only story but don't be fooled. Like I said I am going up one step from your rig and not going to buy another truck. If I want bigger than that would be a different story. There is just no way I would ever buy a DRW truck. Bigger isn't always better or safer.

In the current situation of lock down you may not find the truck you want.
The newer trucks are so much better than the older trucks. Mine is 5 years old and it is a very capable truck. The new 20's are even better. I would stick with the 3/4 ton.
Not sure how registration is in AZ but my 5 year old truck is $730 a year. My 03 SOB is $200. I can only imagine the hit i will take on a new 344GK.

[Canyonlight]

Well, looks like I best relook at my choice of tow truck! Wow, I thought the 2500 deisel would be fine, but everyone seems to think I will need a one ton instead. Ok, now back to the drawing board.
Thanks for all the advise and for sharing your knowledge. I appreciate all the wisdom that was shared and it makes me think about safety and tow abilities and stopping the big rig. Thanks again for everything!!!
I think we are sold on the 310GK just need to rethink the truck!!!!!

You are getting sound advise from a number of experienced 310 and other Solitude owners regarding the need for a 1 ton. When the 310 and similar floor plan models are loaded, the pin weight can easily be 3500 lbs. +/-. Factor in anything and anyone else other than the driver in the truck, back seat, truck bed and you will easily be exceeding the payload of a 1 ton and maybe even the springs/tires capacities. Folks truly conscientious about safety/capabilities margins for themselves and others will share sound advise.

To get really educated on a 310 matched to a GM 3500, read the post from experienced and very conscientious RVr, CWSWine and you will learn much. Whether you agree or disagree with Dennis is another matter but he shares real world experiences with this combination to better inform others to act on their own situation. https://www.mygrandrv.com/forum/member.php/4443-CWSWine

Dan

[bertschb]

What these guys didn't tell, you is the F250/2500 is the same as F350/3500 trucks.

I would suggest you visit your local Ford dealer and look at the rear spring pack for an F-250 and then an F-350. You'll see the obvious difference between the two trucks if you do this. This will also explain the difference on the yellow sticker that shows the higher payload capacity of the F-350.

[Txfivver]

I would suggest you visit your local Ford dealer and look at the rear spring pack for an F-250 and then an F-350. You'll see the obvious difference between the two trucks if you do this. This will also explain the difference on the yellow sticker that shows the higher payload capacity of the F-350.

Very true, not to mention the bigger heavier duty rear axle as well.

[boyscout]

@GreyGhost you will certainly meet contrarians who tow with less truck than they should have. Seems like a lot of them are proud of it, despite that their narrative has to exclude certain facts that others have inserted in this thread after post #13 (unlucky 13!) above.

The fact that many of the contrarians get away with it without hurting or killing anyone doesn't mean you should follow their advice; maybe they've been lucky but the odds may not favor you. You also shouldn't follow them on the road and you certainly shouldn't buy a used truck from them.

You got a lot of better advice from others here. Must be hard for you to give up a good deal on the used 2500 you were looking at, but you'll be grateful to the folks here who want you to get the right truck first, rather than get the wrong truck (as some of us have done) and be wanting to replace it sooner.

Good luck with your search.

[Pizzaman53]

I am going to get a 344 GK and pull it with a F250. Plenty of truck
What these guys didn't tell, you is the F250/2500 is the same as F350/3500 trucks.
You can get both trucks in the same 10,000 payload. As for the yellow sticker in the door jamb, there is also a white sticker . The yellow one is for loading the truck by itself while the white sticker is for towing. I have 6,500 pound axles in my truck which = 13,000 pounds of load. But my tires only can carry around 8,000 pounds of load. According to the tow guide I can only tow a max of 16,900 pounds. Now if you go buy the yellow sticker even a DRW truck isn't capable of handling the pin weight they say it can haul 24,400 pounds. Some old guys think the yellow sticker is the only story but don't be fooled. Like I said I am going up one step from your rig and not going to buy another truck. If I want bigger than that would be a different story. There is just no way I would ever buy a DRW truck. Bigger isn't always better or safer.

In the current situation of lock down you may not find the truck you want.
The newer trucks are so much better than the older trucks. Mine is 5 years old and it is a very capable truck. The new 20's are even better. I would stick with the 3/4 ton.
Not sure how registration is in AZ but my 5 year old truck is $730 a year. My 03 SOB is $200. I can only imagine the hit i will take on a new 344GK.

Lol Drw cant tow it?


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[Txfivver]

I am going to get a 344 GK and pull it with a F250. Plenty of truck

Are you sure about that? GD's site says the empty pin weight of a 344 is 2500 pounds so with batteries, propane and camping supplies what 3000 lbs minimum? With hitch and stuff in truck you're maxing out a F350 let alone a 250. Here's a pic of my prior rig, 2017 F250(2200 pound payload) with the Reflection 28BH. GD says it's 1592 pin empty, it scaled at 2100! That 250 was maxed out with that trailer believe me. That's when I started researching this stuff, especially before I bought the Solitude.

[CoChris]

I am going to get a 344 GK and pull it with a F250. Plenty of truck
What these guys didn't tell, you is the F250/2500 is the same as F350/3500 trucks.
You can get both trucks in the same 10,000 payload ........ Bigger isn't always better or safer.

..... Not sure how registration is in AZ but my 5 year old truck is $730 a year. My 03 SOB is $200. I can only imagine the hit i will take on a new 344GK.

To expand a little for @GreyGhost information (and yes, this is MY opinion). This is for Ford. I do not know how other brands handle the differences.

3/4 and 1 share some similar components but they are not the identical truck. Spring packs are different and depending on the engine & payload packages the rear end can be different along with other changes.

You CAN buy a DERATED 1 ton and lower the legal payload to 10,000#. The 1 ton truck is the same, but the legal payload limit is not. This is done strictly for registration costs. Some areas of the country charge registration fees based on the GVWR and a 11,500# or 12,400# GVWR truck is more (sometimes much more) expensive to register than a 10,000# truck. You will pay this difference for many years. Other parts of the country (like where I live in Colorado) for a non-commercial truck they charge by the empty weight of the truck. There is very little weight difference (and hence registration cost difference) between a 3/4 and 1 ton truck. In our area, there is NO advantage to getting a derated truck. You will need to check how they charge registration fees in your area. One other cost I just thought of is insurance. I do not know if the GVWR make a difference in cost for a non-commercial truck. You would have to check that for your specific area and insurance company.

Payload RATING (yellow sticker) is a legal rating and is simply the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) - the weight of an unloaded truck (Ford uses full tanks and 150# driver as part of the "unload" truck). A lower GVWR (say 10,000# vs 12,400#) for a similar truck will give you a lower payload rating. A diesel (vs gas) engine will significantly lower your payload rating (very roughly about 800#). Why is this important? In general the payload rating will be the limiting factor for towing a 5th wheel trailer. The total payload in the truck is the sum of everything you are carrying (people, hitch, firewood, tools, food AND trailer pin weight). There are a number of good, real world reports of Solitude 310GK pin weights on this forum. Use the search function to find them. One was linked above. I run toward the lighter end and am typically between 2,800~2,900# pin weight. Others have reported up to 3,500# pin weight. My truck, listed below in my sig, has a GVWR of 11,500# and a payload rating of 3,253#. So the pin weight is most of my payload rating. Now the big questions is do you have to stay below your payload rating? The answer is to be legal, YES. To be safe? That is a personal question only you can answer. I am conservative but I also believe there is some safety margin in the weight rating. If I stay within the manufactures weight rating I feel comfortable that I am safe (not overloading the truck). Only YOU can determine if you are comfortable exceeding the manufactures weight rating (and by how much). Again, there are a lot of discussion on the forums about the legal and physical (safety) ramification of exceeding the payload ratings. Note: it is also important to stay up on the truck maintenance, especially the tire condition and pressure when you are towing heavy loads.

Bottom line is learn about the limits, what they mean and real world number (for YOU - these are going to be estimates until you get and load your trailer) and then make an informed decision that YOU are comfortable with. Then enjoy your setup. Camping is a wonderful escape.

Chris