buying a 397th real soon

[Carverelli]

I have a '19 Gmc 3500 dirtymax short bed. SRW
As of yet I'm not set up to tow anything.
no hitch no trailer power cord...not even a trailer.
I'm looking for advice. I pulled a gooseneck trailer hauling hay decades ago. No 5th wheel experience whatsoever. I've heard I could have clearance problems towing a 5th wheel with my short bed truck. There are ways around this with offset balls slider hitches etc.
I'm leaning toward a gen y offset ball gooseneck set up with a reese air ride gooseneck/ 5th wheel pin box adapter changeout.
Opinions and/or ideas?

[FT4NOW]

Welcome to the forum. There are certain things to help with a short bed. Slider hitches are popular, and heavy. Some go with the Anderson Ultimate Hitch which uses the goose neck ball and that allows for some rear adjustment. If you go with a narrower body 5th wheel that could help; Solitudes and Momentums are wide body at 101". You could also get a standard hitch and pay very close attention to what your limits are as far as truck to camper angle.

You might also want to reconsider your camper choice. The 397 has a dry pin weight of 3500lbs, that's without propane tanks, batteries and cargo in the camper. A hitch weighs almost 200lbs. I'd bet the loaded pin weight of a 397 comes in close to 4100lbs. The 397 is definitely in dually territory. If getting a bigger truck isnt an option, you could look at some of the lighter Momentum floor plans.

[huntr70]

Welcome to the forum. There are certain things to help with a short bed. Slider hitches are popular, and heavy. Some go with the Anderson Ultimate Hitch which uses the goose neck ball and that allows for some rear adjustment. If you go with a narrower body 5th wheel that could help; Solitudes and Momentums are wide body at 101". You could also get a standard hitch and pay very close attention to what your limits are as far as truck to camper angle.

You might also want to reconsider your camper choice. The 397 has a dry pond weight of 3500lbs, that's without propane tanks, batteries and cargo in the camper. A hitch weighs almost 200lbs. I'd bet the loaded pin weight of a 397 comes in close to 4100lbs. The 397 is definitely in dually territory. If getting a bigger truck isnt an option, you could look at some of the lighter Moment floor plans.

Ditto....

Too much toyhauler for a SRW short bed truck.

[Second Chance]

Not to pile it on, but I agree with @FT4NOW and @huntr70 - the 397TH is a dually-only trailer.

Rob

[Soundsailor]

Welcome to the forum @Carverelli, this is a great place to learn from GD owners. Looks like you've gotten some good advice from big rig veterans, hope you find a coach that ends up working for you.

[Carverelli]

Not to pile it on, but I agree with @FT4NOW and @huntr70 - the 397TH is a dually-only trailer.

Rob

based on what might I ask

[Second Chance]

based on what might I ask

A GVWR of 20,000 lbs. and a loaded pin weight north of 4,000 lbs. Plug all your numbers in here:

https://changingears.com/weight-calc...ht-calculator/

And read through this thread:

https://www.mygrandrv.com/forum/show...ing-Capability

Rob

[Carverelli]

I'm not over concerned with close. You are correct about maxing out the trailer weight being a bit much for a srw short bed, diesel or not.
I'm selling our house and going full time RV with my good wife of 35 plus years.
I'm still working, currently on a big name computer chip manufacturer in the Portland OR area. Probably be here another 4-5 years.
Don't plan on moving much. Maybe down to Arizona when it starts raining here non stop. I still need to fit in parking garages etc.
While NOT being ideal, my truck is what I'm using. A few k over isnt a deal breaker for me as I'm more of " rules are just mostly guidelines" with a safety factor of at least 20%..
If I were hauling loads for a living, day in day out, I can see your point.
Best rubber on 2 wheels to me is more important than towing over weight a little bit. A blowout on a rear could be really really bad.
A dually is a nice insurance for that, I concur.


And, I most likely won't be roughing it, boondocking. if you will.
No fully loaded water tanks and waste tanks bouncing down the interstate @70 mph.
Btw, when you all are making miles, what limits your speed besides your foot? Wear tear on the chassis, jostling the frying pans and furniture, tires getting hot? I'd thought about a big pusher 450 hp diesel motor coach. but I need a rig to get to work.

One thing is for sure, once my house sells, things will move quickly. Right now the research never stops. I realize some of you fellers are peering at this thread looking just over the tops of your glasses in disbelief. While I may wander towards sketchy...I won't go near downright dangerous, as there's too much at stake. Worked my whole life, and I'm NOT going down trying to draw to an inside straight.
I appreciate all opinions and ideas

[xrated]

I'm not over concerned with close. You are correct about maxing out the trailer weight being a bit much for a srw short bed, diesel or not.
I'm selling our house and going full time RV with my good wife of 35 plus years.
I'm still working, currently on a big name computer chip manufacturer in the Portland OR area. Probably be here another 4-5 years.
Don't plan on moving much. Maybe down to Arizona when it starts raining here non stop. I still need to fit in parking garages etc.
While NOT being ideal, my truck is what I'm using. A few k over isnt a deal breaker for me as I'm more of " rules are just mostly guidelines" with a safety factor of at least 20%..
If I were hauling loads for a living, day in day out, I can see your point.
Best rubber on 2 wheels to me is more important than towing over weight a little bit. A blowout on a rear could be really really bad.
A dually is a nice insurance for that, I concur.


And, I most likely won't be roughing it, boondocking. if you will.
No fully loaded water tanks and waste tanks bouncing down the interstate @70 mph.
Btw, when you all are making miles, what limits your speed besides your foot? Wear tear on the chassis, jostling the frying pans and furniture, tires getting hot? I'd thought about a big pusher 450 hp diesel motor coach. but I need a rig to get to work.

One thing is for sure, once my house sells, things will move quickly. Right now the research never stops. I realize some of you fellers are peering at this thread looking just over the tops of your glasses in disbelief. While I may wander towards sketchy...I won't go near downright dangerous, as there's too much at stake. Worked my whole life, and I'm NOT going down trying to draw to an inside straight.
I appreciate all opinions and ideas

Not overly concerned with "close"....well, you certainly won't be "close" That combination is at the OMG overloaded level...you're right, it won't be close. "A bit much".....yea, one could say being overloaded by 600, 800 lbs or more is a "bit much"

I know a couple that full times with a 397TH and their pin weights are in the 4500 lb range. You're SRW shortbed truck likely has a payload capacity in the low to mid 30s....take a peak at the sticker on the driver side door and find out for sure.

[Carverelli]

so basically what I'm starting to understand here is the amount of weight transferred from the trailer to the rear axle of the truck must be limited because 2 wheels 1 axle and 2 tires can only safely handle so much.

The engine, transmission, type of hitch used is mostly irrelevant.
To transfer more weight from a heavier trailer at the contact point I'll need more rubber to the ground. 4 tries vs 2.
Of course air bags or the like might help slightly, but not much.
Why couldnt I load a few thousand lbs of roofing shingles in the garage section of the trailer. That should lighten the front end of the trailer just enough ������