Anyone tow a Jayco Hummingbird 17RK Travel Trailer?

[Bear Hunter]

My wife and I are looking at getting a camper. This one (Jayco Hummingbird 17rk) looks good and seems that it would pull easy. I have a 21 Willy's with gas engine and 3.73 gears and 33 in. tires. I would appreciate hearing your experience...

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[NOTJeepBeerSleep]

i have a diesel and i pull a 21 foot single axle trailer and i had to use a loaner overland gasser to pull my trailer camping once. on the road the gasser pulls just fine. the biggest issue is the visibility. i will say the small movements and parking are better with my diesel because i largely dont have to do much throttle to move the trailer at slow speed, just brakes. with the gasser the trailer wont start moving until i give it enough beans.

 

[Labswine]

Just note, with your larger tires, your towing capacity (and ability) will be diminished so, bear that in mind when looking at campers and their weights plus, the frontal area of the camper as wind resistance will also hurt your ability to maintain speed in a reasonable gear and RPM range.

 

[Bear Hunter]

The specific camper is around 2900 lbs. although I am open to rehearing really don’t want to add $2500. To the mix.

 

[MTB58]

Your truck will tow that trailer no problem, but any hills will be at a higher RPM. Some people freak out at the high RPM but these trucks are designed to be at a higher RPM for max torque and Hp.

FYI, If you are over 6' the bed will be tough to sleep on. I had the same bed length on mine and at 6'1" it was hard to sleep on for me. My feet and head hit both walls.

I believe your trailer will have almost 4k GVWR so you tongue/hitch weight will be around 500 lbs. Depending on how many extra's you have on your truck the tongue/hitch weight could put you over on your truck's payload number. I had a Tacoma TRD Offroad with bigger tires, sliders, skids, roof rack, toneau cover, recover gear, and when I added my wife and I, camping gear, firewood, Bbq and a generator I was over payload with essentially the same size trailer.

Always us a Weight Distribution Hitch, Trailer Brakes and maybe an anti sway bar. I used all on the Tacoma and it towed great.

I have since traded in the Tacoma and purchased at 2023 Gladiator Max Tow so I can tow a trailer with 5500 lbs GVWR. Tows the new trailer with ease.

 

[Gvsukids]

My wife and I are looking at getting a camper. This one (Jayco Hummingbird 17rk) looks good and seems that it would pull easy. I have a 21 Willy's with gas engine and 3.73 gears and 33 in. tires. I would appreciate hearing your experience...

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/...-towing-hitches-electric-brake-controller.32/

 

[PaulW]

I have one and because the storage is forward the hitch weight is on the high side. I choose to pull that trailer with my F150 rather than my JLUR. One battery, one propane, and a rear spare helps the hitch weight somewhat

 

[Josh00333]

Looks like a nice little trailer.

https://www.jayco.com/rvs/travel-trailers/2017-hummingbird/17rk/

GVWR is 3750, even loaded up you should be 100% fine. Get a WD hitch, I like the Anderson ones and a break controller and enjoy!

 

[loganjeeps]

While I have never personally towed it, my father-in-law tows that exact trailer at least once a month with a 2021 JLU Sport on 33s with a 3 inch lift and says it does great. And he has a 2024 Ram 1500 with a Hemi at his disposal and doesn't feel it necesary to use the full size truck for the Hummingbird.

 

[MudderNuker]

Slightly different topic, have you looked at other brand travel trailers? My first travel trailer was a Starcraft 16bh and the build quality was terrible shoddy. I found burrito wrappers in hidden mechanical compartments and doddles on the wood under the benches. The holes to route cables seemed to been made with hammers indeed of hole saws. I sold it and went to go check out some new Jaycos at the local Camping World in 2020 and I was not impressed with them. Silicone smeared in areas where there shouldn't be any. Jacknife sofas where the armrests were held by just one screw and miter corners with more than a 1/2" gap to name a few, dirty under the cabinets and storage areas. I didn't walk away, I ran. I then looked at Rookwood Geo Pros and the difference was night and day. That is why we ended up buying a Geo Pro 19bh. Hopefully Jayco upped they game and the one you are looking at is better. I do recommend the Geo Pro.

 

[RudeJeepin]

My wife and I are looking at getting a camper. This one (Jayco Hummingbird 17rk) looks good and seems that it would pull easy. I have a 21 Willy's with gas engine and 3.73 gears and 33 in. tires. I would appreciate hearing your experience...

Just as a heads up. With a rear kitchen with the fridge is behind the trailer axle packing becomes important. Bumps will be magnified. Any contents in the fridge will get disturbed, along with stuff in the cabinets.
It's not a major issue, just needs to be planned for. A shorter trailer wouldn't be as bad as a longer trailer.

Friends of ours had the glass round table in their microwave actually break. This was in a 30+ footer, while just traveling down the highway.

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