New to the forum, Solitude 310GK, should arrive end of Feb...we have 2 Questions

JohnandHeidi

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Hello everyone,

We are new to owning an RV, but have been camping for decades. We ordered a 2024 Solitude 310GK that should be delivered at the end of February. Grand design is adding a 5500 generator, and we will be adding solar and lithium batteries after we get the trailer. We have 2 questions:

1.) What additional items would you suggest we have the dealer install on our solitude? The 2 we are aware of and want to add are a backup camera and a pet screen for the door. Any other items that we may look back on and say we should have had installed by the dealer?
2.) We have been looking at 5th wheel hitches for a few months. We have a 2024 short bed Sierra 2500 GMC truck. The sticker says it will tow 21,600 pounds. The bed is 6 feet 10 inches. We would like to be able to make a 90 degree turn and not have to get out of the truck. We would also like to be able to hitch and unhitch at an angle. We want good clearance from the truck rails, so the hitch doesn’t hit when on uneven ground. It appears we can’t have everything unless there is an option we don’t know about. The mechanic at our dealer, Happy Daze RV, suggested the 4500 pullRite OE would be our best option. It will do the 90-degree turn, but we must hitch and unhitch at not more than a 10-degree angle. I don’t think the Anderson hitch will bring the trailer back far enough for a 90-degree turn and may leave the truck rails very close to the hitch when on uneven ground. The pullRite 4500 is 209 pounds and appears to be our best option. Anyone have a better hitch option that will do everything or most of what we want?

Thanks for your help : )

John & Heidi
 
To be honest, I'd probably be more concerned with how much payload capacity that truck has, because that trailer when loaded to or near the GVWR of 15,000 lbs, will be putting at LEAST 3000 lbs of pin weight on your truck....plus the 200 lbs of hitch, plus anything/everything else that goes in/on the truck.

It's not what it will tow, it's WHAT/HOW much will it carry! Do you/or can you post up the payload capacity numbers that are on the driver's side door sticker.
 
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I'll second what [MENTION=21739]xrated[/MENTION] said - the Solitude 310 is too much trailer for a 3/4-ton truck. Tow capacity and payload capacity are two different things. Any modern light diesel truck will pull a brick house off its foundation... but you can't put the weight of the house in the truck bed. Our Solitude 310 put 3,280 lbs. on the pin the last time we were across the scales - and that's not counting the 225 lbs. for the hitch, the truck box and what's in it, etc.

Here's a thread you might want to read through (from beginning to end):

https://www.mygrandrv.com/forum/showthread.php/14865-How-To-Determine-Your-Truck-s-Trailer-Towing-Capability

You can also plug the numbers in here:

https://changingears.com/weight-calculators/fifth-wheel-towing-weight-calculator/

Rob
 
Hello everyone,

We are new to owning an RV, but have been camping for decades. We ordered a 2024 Solitude 310GK that should be delivered at the end of February. Grand design is adding a 5500 generator, and we will be adding solar and lithium batteries after we get the trailer. We have 2 questions:

1.) What additional items would you suggest we have the dealer install on our solitude? The 2 we are aware of and want to add are a backup camera and a pet screen for the door. Any other items that we may look back on and say we should have had installed by the dealer?
2.) We have been looking at 5th wheel hitches for a few months. We have a 2024 short bed Sierra 2500 GMC truck. The sticker says it will tow 21,600 pounds. The bed is 6 feet 10 inches. We would like to be able to make a 90 degree turn and not have to get out of the truck. We would also like to be able to hitch and unhitch at an angle. We want good clearance from the truck rails, so the hitch doesn’t hit when on uneven ground. It appears we can’t have everything unless there is an option we don’t know about. The mechanic at our dealer, Happy Daze RV, suggested the 4500 pullRite OE would be our best option. It will do the 90-degree turn, but we must hitch and unhitch at not more than a 10-degree angle. I don’t think the Anderson hitch will bring the trailer back far enough for a 90-degree turn and may leave the truck rails very close to the hitch when on uneven ground. The pullRite 4500 is 209 pounds and appears to be our best option. Anyone have a better hitch option that will do everything or most of what we want?

Thanks for your help : )

John & Heidi

Welcome to the forum, glad to have you with us. If you can still add them, I'd recommend the double-pane windows. They help both with heating and cooling as well as noise. It's not worth adding them to an existing coach, but if you can get them on your new coach you'll be glad you did.

I won't comment on the weight issues as you've already gotten good advice there. Just to say we have the Andersen hitch and have found it very easy to hitch. It can handle a 90-degree turn, at least on our truck.
 
Here is the payload info...thanks for your help : )
 

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Here is the payload info...thanks for your help : )

With your payload number being right at 3300 lbs, that is likely going to be an issue for you, if you want to stay within all the weight capacities for the truck. As I stated earlier, and Second Chance (Rob) added in, if you are near or at the full GVWR of the trailer (15,000 lbs), you will very likely be right at the payload capacity for the truck. Then you have to add in the weight of the hitch (another 200 or so lbs), plus anything you may put in the bed of the truck like firewood, a toolbox with tools in it, etc. Then you have to account for passengers if you are carrying any. Just the pin weight of the trailer though, if it is fully loaded, is going to put you right at your truck's payload number. I guess a couple of options are a much lighter in weight hitch and maybe never loading the trailer close to the GVWR for it, but if you are like a lot of us, we keep adding stuff to the trailer to take along and before you know it, it's maxed out and sitting right at the GVWR (15,000 lbs) And remember this, if you are over the payload number of the truck, you are automatically over the GVWR of the truck because that is how the payload capacity if calculated.....Truck's GVWR - the weight of the truck = payload capacity. An example of that.........your truck's payload capacity is 3296, then you add the hitch and it weighs in at 200 lbs. Your available payload is now 3296 - 200 = 3096 lbs.
 
To add to what [MENTION=21739]xrated[/MENTION] is saying above, the door sticker only reflects the truck as it rolled off the initial production line. Any post-production accessories or additions - including those done by the dealer - are weight that is subtracted from the GVWR of the truck to arrive at the actual available payload. The only truly accurate way to know your actual payload is to fuel up the truck, put everything in it that you would carry on a trip, you and your wife jump in, fill up the tank, and head for the nearest CAT scale. (You can subtract the actual weight of whichever hitch you decide on after you weigh). Subtract the scale weight of the truck (and the hitch if it's not in the truck when you weigh) from the GVWR and you'll have the true, usable payload capacity. Here are my numbers as an example:

Truck: 2012 F350 DRW CC 6.7 Lariat
GVWR 13,300
Curb weight per factory: 7,757
Payload using factory numbers: 5,543
Weight on scales (with hitch, truck box/contents, full fuel and passengers): 8,740
Payload using scale weight (with everything figured in): 4,560

While this is a 1-ton dual rear wheel truck, it is a 2012 model and the new models have much higher payload numbers (and GVWRs for you to pay taxes on if your state does it that way). The above is simply to illustrate how what you see on the sticker is not always what you get in reality.

Rob
 
[MENTION=59617]JohnandHeidi[/MENTION]
I agree with everything said so far. I don’t have slide toppers, but I think we’ll get them on the next trailer. There are pros and cons both ways on those. A search on “slide toppers” will get you some reading.

I would get dual pane windows.

You already ordered the onboard genny, which saves a lot of hassle if you are dry camping. I have yet to do solar, mostly because I like shady camping spots. I’d focus on the lithium batts and inverter(s) first. If no a/c is necessary, I can run our genny (QD8000) for an hour and a half, then go on batts for two days (min). If a/c is necessary, the genny is a must even if your roof is full of panels. If you always camp at full hook ups, well….you don’t need either. Personally, I prefer camping with no services, as you lose a lot of the crowd.

Regarding the hitch and truck, I’ll give you my experience. I pulled our new 310GK (and still light weight at that time) to South Dakota with a ‘13 Chevy 2500HD 6.0 gas truck, and it was an abject failure. Not enough engine. We were within the RGAWR, over payload by about 300 lbs, and at the GCVWR. If you have the 6.6 gas, you will be a little better, but get used to high RPMs when pulling hills. If you have the diesel, that’s not an issue. As far as payload, you will be at the limits. Some people don’t care about the limits. They usually refer to the folks that do care about limits as the “weight police”. With a 310, I’d consider you on the bubble. People can make it work with an SRW, but always have to be mindful of weight (again, if they care). This is where I would ask, “how much do you plan to travel?” If you are weekenders for a few trips a year, buy the Pullrite, watch your weight (if you care), and trade up to a 3500HD next time. If you are going to crisscross the country full time, I’d get a dually with a long bed and an air hitch to protect that new trailer from road shock from the truck.

Unfortunately, the truck that is best for daily driving, and the truck that is best for stable pulling of 15k lbs are two different animals for a lot of people, including me.
 
[MENTION=59617]JohnandHeidi[/MENTION]
I agree with everything said so far. I don’t have slide toppers, but I think we’ll get them on the next trailer. There are pros and cons both ways on those. A search on “slide toppers” will get you some reading.

I would get dual pane windows.

You already ordered the onboard genny, which saves a lot of hassle if you are dry camping. I have yet to do solar, mostly because I like shady camping spots. I’d focus on the lithium batts and inverter(s) first. If no a/c is necessary, I can run our genny (QD8000) for an hour and a half, then go on batts for two days (min). If a/c is necessary, the genny is a must even if your roof is full of panels. If you always camp at full hook ups, well….you don’t need either. Personally, I prefer camping with no services, as you lose a lot of the crowd.

Regarding the hitch and truck, I’ll give you my experience. I pulled our new 310GK (and still light weight at that time) to South Dakota with a ‘13 Chevy 2500HD 6.0 gas truck, and it was an abject failure. Not enough engine. We were within the RGAWR, over payload by about 300 lbs, and at the GCVWR. If you have the 6.6 gas, you will be a little better, but get used to high RPMs when pulling hills. If you have the diesel, that’s not an issue. As far as payload, you will be at the limits. Some people don’t care about the limits. They usually refer to the folks that do care about limits as the “weight police”. With a 310, I’d consider you on the bubble. People can make it work with an SRW, but always have to be mindful of weight (again, if they care). This is where I would ask, “how much do you plan to travel?” If you are weekenders for a few trips a year, buy the Pullrite, watch your weight (if you care), and trade up to a 3500HD next time. If you are going to crisscross the country full time, I’d get a dually with a long bed and an air hitch to protect that new trailer from road shock from the truck.

Unfortunately, the truck that is best for daily driving, and the truck that is best for stable pulling of 15k lbs are two different animals for a lot of people, including me.

I'm pretty much in agreement with what you wrote about the towing part of this topic. He may be able to make it work for his truck, but two things need to happen. He's going to have to load the trailer as lightly as possible, as the unloaded pin weight is already close to 2400 lbs as it is built. And the second thing is to make sure that when the truck is loaded and ready to go, and the trailer is loaded and ready to go, the very first thing to do would be to hit a CAT scale and see exactly what he has regarding weights on the truck. Then, if necessary, he can make adjustments to still be within the payload capacity of the truck. And yes, he's going to be on the bubble.
 
I won’t go down the weight path other to say we’ve been where u are but now have a 1 ton long bed.

On all previous short beds I used an automatic slider; both Pullrite and DEMCO. Of the 2 I preferred the DEMCO because of the latching mechanism. Both are HEAVY; so more weight to your set up. If you want to save some weight consider a manual slider; just be sure to use it before that 310GK hits you can (which it will in a sharp turn).

As for options, the double pane windows for us are a must. 3 ACs. No generator (2 small 2200 watt generators are lighter and easy to use). Upgraded 8000 ln axels with disc brakes. We passed on slide topper this time - too noisy in the wind; but clearing to slide tops is an item.

As for aftermarket stuff and accessories: my suggestion is to not get anything before had and see what you really need once you spend some time in the RV. That may or may not apply in your case since you aren’t new to this “sport”.
 
What we did is replaced one 12V with two 6V GC2-ECL-UTL Interstate batteries, cables and one large box for both. Regarding the hitch, we have the Anderson and love it. I was pretty sure I had clearance but dinged the cab on a very tight maneuver.
 
We own a Solitude 310GK absolutely love it. We bought a Ford F350 diesel to tow it. I don't think we bought too much truck, just the right amount of towing capacity for our fifth wheel coach.
 
Hello everyone,

We are new to owning an RV, but have been camping for decades. We ordered a 2024 Solitude 310GK that should be delivered at the end of February. Grand design is adding a 5500 generator, and we will be adding solar and lithium batteries after we get the trailer. We have 2 questions:

1.) What additional items would you suggest we have the dealer install on our solitude? The 2 we are aware of and want to add are a backup camera and a pet screen for the door. Any other items that we may look back on and say we should have had installed by the dealer?

Thanks for your help : )

John & Heidi

Two other items that would be dealer install might be rain covers for the two fans if you want to travel with fan vents open and soft starts for the AC units (dealer prices may make buying/installing them yourself and having a mobile tech install them).
 
Congratulations on the 310-GK!

All I can say on the weight issue; is that there is some very good advice here. We pull our 310 with a 1-ton SRW diesel. I watch our loading very carefully and I know we are close to our ratings.

Items that we have found useful, or ended up paying for later include:

- lithium battery / charger / inverter.
- Additional higher taillights (might be DIY).
- A power surge/management system (Progressive EMS-HW50)
- small solar set-up.

The list gets really long here, but those are a few that are important to us.
Rob
 
I'm pretty much in agreement with what you wrote about the towing part of this topic. He may be able to make it work for his truck, but two things need to happen. He's going to have to load the trailer as lightly as possible, as the unloaded pin weight is already close to 2400 lbs as it is built. And the second thing is to make sure that when the truck is loaded and ready to go, and the trailer is loaded and ready to go, the very first thing to do would be to hit a CAT scale and see exactly what he has regarding weights on the truck. Then, if necessary, he can make adjustments to still be within the payload capacity of the truck. And yes, he's going to be on the bubble.

If he's adding the factory generator, he'll likely be over 2400 lbs. Our hitch weight (per our build sheet) from the factory (no propane, no batteries) was 2632lbs with the generator.
 
Here are my weight numbers. 2016 3500 srw duramax long box. No built in generator or washer and dryer. Fully loaded the way we go down the road Steering 5004 lbs, drive axle 7040 lbs, trailer axles combined 11,244 lbs. As you can see I am very close on the drive axle ,only 10 lbs left my gvw fo that axle is 7050. I do pack a lot of stuff and could reduce but this is my worst case senerio. Have weighed this unit 3 different times and always about the same. Drive axle does go down with fuel burn.
 
Congrats John & Heidi on your new RV!

We bought a used 2020 310GK in the spring of 2022 replacing our travel trailer but had trouble finding a truck with the payload I needed since post-COVID availability was low. Found a 2020 GMC HD 2500 Diesel, short bed, and the payload capacity looked manageable. The pulling power was great.

Well, like we did in the travel trailer, we filled the Solitude up with everything we wanted and when we weighed it all at the CAT scale we were slightly over on both the 3162lb truck payload limit and the 15,000lb GVRW for the RV. So we went through and removed all the things we really don't use and relocated some heavy items I was storing in the master closet or under the bed to the rear of the RV best we could. I also stopped carrying unneeded heavy items in the truck bed. That was helpful and got us within limits but any undumped fluids or fresh water we knew could easily put us over. BTW, our fresh water tank is aft of the axles but the grey and black are in front.

Research showed that the only difference between the GMC 2500 and 3500 was the 3500 had an extra leaf spring and a slightly lower differential gear ratio and 3500 payloads were listing well above 4000lb. So rather than finding another vehicle I installed 2500lb capacity Hellwig helper springs. That doesn't change the legal payload limit of the truck but now if I go slightly over I will have peace of mind that it has little to no impact on the safe handling of the vehicle.

We have a pullRite 4100 Superglide traditional series and it works great. 90 degree turns with lots of cab clearance. It's rare, but I have had a few site back-ins that ended in over 10 degrees displacement. It will be obvious because the pin will not disconnect and you will drag (and possibly damage) the landing gear. Simply put the weight back on the hitch and disconnect the two pins for the capture plate and then raise the RV with it attached to the pin high enough to pull the truck away. Then remove the capture plate later.

We enjoy our 310GK and GMC 2500 but have learned that if we fill every cabinet and storage area we will exceed both truck payload and 5th wheel limits. Incidentally, we do not have an onboard generator or washer/dryer, both heavy forward sitting units. No solar panels either.

Hope this helps.

Mike
 

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