6000lb Travel Trailer Towing?

[3213JT]

Oh, a couple other points of interest, I measured the JT suspension drop before and after WD. Before it was 1 1/2 inches front and back, after it was 1/4 front and back. FYI, I have a. 1 1/2 inch front and 3/4 inch rear lift on 33 inch tires. I have since put Air Lift air bags in the rear. Handling and power were good driving a couple hundred miles at 60 MPH.

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[BaliMawr]

Doi need as way bar with a weight distribution hitch?

If your wdh does not have integrated sway control, I'd add something.

 

[SwampNut]

If your wdh does not have integrated sway control, I'd add something.

And I would not. Sway controls are a crutch for improper loading and weight. WD and good setup eliminates the need. The JT also has electronic sway control. Sway bars are a pain to deal with.

 

[BaliMawr]

Oh, a couple other points of interest, I measured the JT suspension drop before and after WD. Before it was 1 1/2 inches front and back, after it was 1/4 front and back. FYI, I have a. 1 1/2 inch front and 3/4 inch rear lift on 33 inch tires. I have since put Air Lift air bags in the rear. Handling and power were good driving a couple hundred miles at 60 MPH.

What pressure are you running in your bags? I'm going for round two off setting up my bags and WDH this weekend.

 

[BaliMawr]

And I would not. Sway controls are a crutch for improper loading and weight. WD and good setup eliminates the need. The JT also has electronic sway control. Sway bars are a pain to deal with.

Fair enough. I've always used integrated sway control arms. Have heard the ad ons are a pain.

 

[brianinca]

Right at 720 lbs on the truck scales.

Do you happen to know the tongue weight on your camper?

 

[3213JT]

What pressure are you running in your bags? I'm going for round two off setting up my bags and WDH this weekend.

Sorry, can’t answer that, whereas I haven’t towed with them Yet.

 

[rezar1]

I read all 7 pages and I am somewhat confused as what to do. I currently have a Rubicon 3.6 auto. It has 3.5” lift with 5.13 gear and soon will have 37” tires.

I am thinking about buying a camper that is about 5800lbs dry with 680lbs hitch weight. Assuming I get a break controller and WDH, will I be ok pulling the camper or is it too much?

 

[Gvsukids]

I am thinking about buying a camper that is about 5800lbs dry with 680lbs hitch weight. Assuming I get a break controller and WDH, will I be ok pulling the camper or is it too much?

What's your payload? Figure in the weight of the 37" vs stock tires. 5800lb becomes much heavier when you factor in the weight of stuff you take with you plus what you carry in the tow vehicle.

 

[futzin']

I read all 7 pages and I am somewhat confused as what to do. I currently have a Rubicon 3.6 auto. It has 3.5” lift with 5.13 gear and soon will have 37” tires.

I am thinking about buying a camper that is about 5800lbs dry with 680lbs hitch weight. Assuming I get a break controller and WDH, will I be ok pulling the camper or is it too much?

Personally, I wouldn't want to tow that very far with my stock JTR.
Travel trailers have a lot of frontal wind resistance. I'd be happier under 5K if I was gonna tow it very far or very often.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

What's your payload? Figure in the weight of the 37" vs stock tires. 5800lb becomes much heavier when you factor in the weight of stuff you take with you plus what you carry in the tow vehicle.

Yeah, and bigger tires reduce braking ability, a high lift reduces safe towing ability. There are many truck and 4x4 sites that discuss this. You lose the ability to tow safely as you totally change the characteristics of the vehicle with a lift and the higher, the more things change - center of gravity, reactions to turns and braking and more. There's more tendency to sway, more tendency to lose stability control when you make a turn or need to brake.
Doesn't take long at all to find a dozen or more truck sites discussing this as well as videos showing how a lift has a negative impact on towing and drops the number of pounds to tow and tow safely. If a truck's specs say you can tow 6,000 pounds and you lift it and add much larger tires, better reduce 6,000 that by several hundred pounds. Taller vehicles also present more wind resistance, so there's that as well.
Macho men will argue because nothing looks good or is as manly as a lifted anything, but there's reality in there that trumps your pride. Science over how much you hate an unlifted truck.

 

[CreepyJeepy]

Weight is only part of the equation….

You need to also review max frontal area of your setup, you will likely be over.

Will it do it, and will it do it well are different questions.

if towing a full size trailer, a full size truck is the right call

 

[brianinca]

You would have to tow it around empty, ours is 4400 lb dry and it's a full load at 6000 lb, even though the trailer has a max gross of 7000 lb. 12% hitch weight takes us right to our vehicle max gross at 6000 lb, that's a 720 lb hitch weight, off a 1238 lb payload.

The stability of proper tongue weight is an undeniable necessity, long ago I mis-loaded a Jeep trailer and it walked my little YJ all over the road. The trailer and load weighed a lot less than the Jeep, didn't matter, I got sloppy loading it.

Brake controller is a legal requirement, WDH is a sanity requirement, regardless, but find a smaller trailer.

A lift and 37's is not going to help with towing, that's why I've not done that, maybe look at something in the 5000 lb GROSS range, double axle. WAY more stable with double axles, fewer choices in the lighter range though. Be patient, the RV market is correcting as interest rates rise.

I read all 7 pages and I am somewhat confused as what to do. I currently have a Rubicon 3.6 auto. It has 3.5” lift with 5.13 gear and soon will have 37” tires.

I am thinking about buying a camper that is about 5800lbs dry with 680lbs hitch weight. Assuming I get a break controller and WDH, will I be ok pulling the camper or is it too much?

 

[rezar1]

This is the camper I was thinking about but from the above comments, it looks like it might be too much. It's double axle.

https://forestriverinc.com/rvs/travel-trailers/cruise-lite/263BHXL/2240

 

[MPMB]

This is the camper I was thinking about but from the above comments, it looks like it might be too much. It's double axle.

https://forestriverinc.com/rvs/travel-trailers/cruise-lite/263BHXL/2240

I'm definitely no towing experts, but from what I've read on here and elsewhere, I'd be wary of a trailer that long.

There is a rule of thumb calculator for trailer length depending on wheelbase.

Copied:
110" wheelbase = 20' of trailer.
for every additional 4" of wheelbase = +1'.
so at
114" wheelbase = 22' trailer.
118" wheelbase = 23' trailer.
122" wheelbase = 24' trailer.

JT wheelbase is 137" which works out to 26.75' overall trailer length.

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