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Getting RV/Camper and boat to the lake.


txwakejunkie

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I didnt want to hijack the Class A rv thread but it got me thinking, For those of you that have RV's do you pull your boat with it?

If so so you launch your boat with it also?

Does anyone here Pull a Camper (goosneck, 5th wheel, or bumper) and pull their boat also? does it seem to scary to pull a $70k boat with a $25k camper? I have seen this on the highway a bunch but never with expensive boat, its usually a beater in tow on the back.

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I didnt want to hijack the Class A rv thread but it got me thinking, For those of you that have RV's do you pull your boat with it?

If so so you launch your boat with it also?

Does anyone here Pull a Camper (goosneck, 5th wheel, or bumper) and pull their boat also? does it seem to scary to pull a $70k boat with a $25k camper? I have seen this on the highway a bunch but never with expensive boat, its usually a beater in tow on the back.

You may have just answered your own question. $70K Boat + $25K POS camper = disaster?

A few years back I got some advice from the snomobile dealer when I was planning to use my old steel POS trailer for my nearly new sleds and he summed it up: "Do you really want to tow $12k worth of snowmobiles on a $200 trailer in the winter?? i bought the new $3K aluminum covered, drive-on, drive-off trailer and have never regretted it

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We had a class c that we towed the boat with. There are a few things that you have to remember about a class c.

1. They have their own weight capacity (coach) then the overall that the frame is rated for. On an E450 (which is what you want if you're going to tow anything) that number is 20k pounds. So you take the weight of the coach off of that, that gives you what you can legally tow with it.

2. Related to #1, most class c coaches come with a 3500 lb receiver. There are a couple of reasons for this, but the biggest (most important IMO) is that the extensions that come off of the frame at the rear are generally not built to take more than that. So you have to plan on some hitch work. We had big beefy plates welded where the frame met with the extensions on each side, & had him box out the receiver so that it actually connected with the frame. We also added Firestone 100lb Airbags, which helped a variety of issues, including sag on the rear overhang as well as the steering issues that you can have related to #3.

3. Plan on some steering upgrades, a stabilizer is a good place to start. Class c coaches want to wander a little anyway, & if you add all of that tongue weight to the back it will sometimes make it worse. The Airbags neutralized pretty much all of what the boat contributed, but it still could have used a stabilizer.

We camped with both a couple of times & launched & retrieved with it. It was actually easier & had better visibility than a pickup/camper combo (which we've also had).

Here's a pic of the last trip that we took with ours. Towed the VLX over 700 miles on that trip & it did well. With the coach & boat, we were just under 20k lbs total (real world weight, not what either company claims on their sheets). The Ford V10 has a ton of room to grow also, with things like the Banks Power Pack. We don't have either anymore, but I would own another class c in a heartbeat.

post-1-1248726911_thumb.jpg

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We tow the boat with our class A many times, including several times over the Mt Hood on our way to Lake Billy Chinook, but have never tried to launch with the motorhome. I'm sure I could given the right ramp, but have not wanted to. We have gone places where we have others in the group with a tow vehicle that can be used to launch the boat and have chosen that route.

Our old motorhome was rated at 5000# and the new one at 6000# or 6500#. Never really had any problems towing, but didn't set any speed records over the passes that's for sure.

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My current set up. Duramax diesel pickup, 21 foot travel trailer and ski boat. I take two trips for my 9 day campout (just ended) which is 93 miles from my driveway. I had a 36 foot diesel Beaver motorhome and hated it. Plus I need a 4 wd pickup at the campout because we go down gravel roads to get to hiking trails during the campout. We use the trailer for other campouts often just in the forest along a stream and my Komfort trailer has big tanks , a high gvw, and high ground clearance for that usage.

A REMEDY:

Go to U-Haul and rent their new Chevy 1/2 ton pickup for $19.95 per day. It should have a 4.8 v8, auto, and air and have a receiver hitch. You can tow 5000 pounds with it. Let your wife drive that. U-Haul charges 20 cents ? (fuzzy) per mile you drive their pickup. ( It could be more per mile I looked into it last year. and maybe it was 30 cents ?) When you get to your destination park the U-Haul pickup until you go home.

Way cheaper thsn buying a motorhome.

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I have a camper for my pickup and occasionally I just tow the boat to the lake with it use it to launch the boat. Backing down the launch ramp really isn' t too hard once you get the hang of it. Biggest issue for me is the fridge only works if the camper is pretty level and the boat parking areas are never level, so the fridge doesn't work. Most of the time we just take two trucks to the lake...even last year when gas was $4.50...glad those days are gone for a while.

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Our Class A MH is only rated for #6000 so pulling the boat with it is not an option. I really wouldnt want to anyways. My wife pulls the boat with my 2500HD and I drive the MH. That way once we are at the lake we have something to launch the boat with and something to make store runs with.

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I didnt want to hijack the Class A rv thread but it got me thinking, For those of you that have RV's do you pull your boat with it?

If so so you launch your boat with it also?

Does anyone here Pull a Camper (goosneck, 5th wheel, or bumper) and pull their boat also? does it seem to scary to pull a $70k boat with a $25k camper? I have seen this on the highway a bunch but never with expensive boat, its usually a beater in tow on the back.

Here is how we go camping:

IMG_0040.jpg

I have been doing this for about 15 years, this is my second 5th wheel. I haven't tried it with the new VLX yet, it's been a strange year for us when it comes to camping for some reason.

Terry

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It's actually legal in California but you have to have a class A license to do it. I think you just have to be under 65 ft. I tow a couple of snowmobiles behind my 5th wheel, but I've never felt like the frame was strong enough to put the boat back there. Plus, I think in my case I may exceed the 65 ft limit.

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I didnt want to hijack the Class A rv thread but it got me thinking, For those of you that have RV's do you pull your boat with it?

If so so you launch your boat with it also?

Does anyone here Pull a Camper (goosneck, 5th wheel, or bumper) and pull their boat also? does it seem to scary to pull a $70k boat with a $25k camper? I have seen this on the highway a bunch but never with expensive boat, its usually a beater in tow on the back.

Here is how we go camping:

IMG_0040.jpg

I have been doing this for about 15 years, this is my second 5th wheel. I haven't tried it with the new VLX yet, it's been a strange year for us when it comes to camping for some reason.

Terry

That is the coolest thing I've ever seen. This is a great thread and has answered a lot of ??? I heard in California that under 70ft you don't need a special license. Not sure

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I tow a couple of snowmobiles behind my 5th wheel, but I've never felt like the frame was strong enough to put the boat back there. Plus, I think in my case I may exceed the 65 ft limit.

There are some campers that I wouldn't put a hitch on the back of, it's got to have a boxed frame. So many of the new campers frames don't go all of the way to the end of the trailer, my new one didn't. I had to extend the frame about 30", it's a lot of work. My rig is 69.5' long and Colorado law is 70'.

Terry

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I didnt want to hijack the Class A rv thread but it got me thinking, For those of you that have RV's do you pull your boat with it?

If so so you launch your boat with it also?

Does anyone here Pull a Camper (goosneck, 5th wheel, or bumper) and pull their boat also? does it seem to scary to pull a $70k boat with a $25k camper? I have seen this on the highway a bunch but never with expensive boat, its usually a beater in tow on the back.

Here is how we go camping:

IMG_0040.jpg

I have been doing this for about 15 years, this is my second 5th wheel. I haven't tried it with the new VLX yet, it's been a strange year for us when it comes to camping for some reason.

Terry

That is the coolest thing I've ever seen. This is a great thread and has answered a lot of ??? I heard in California that under 70ft you don't need a special license. Not sure

I do know that I was pulled over one time by a CHP... not because I was doing anything wrong, but he just wanted to make sure I had a Class A license. He said that most of the time people doing this do not have the proper license so he just wanted to check. :unsure: It's never a good feeling getting pulled over for ANY reason. Cry.gif

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Im with Terry on this one, We have been towing double since 04 when we got rid of the Lance 12' slide in camper (it was a pain to unload and load at the camp site). The 5er (mobile condo) has everything and more plus we have a launch and sightseeing and daily drive vehicle. In Calif if the center trailer is less than 28'6" you can tow up to 75' with a full class A with double / triple endorsement.

Vacation08059.jpg

Vacation08064.jpg

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That's awesome, I wish we had that option up here.

Plus1.gif

Guess you pretty much need to buy gas at truck stops with that length.

That's why I have an extra tank in my truck, I can carry 98 gallons of diesel so I don't have to deal with stopping for fuel when towing tandem.

Terry

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That's awesome, I wish we had that option up here.

Plus1.gif

Guess you pretty much need to buy gas at truck stops with that length.

That's why I have an extra tank in my truck, I can carry 98 gallons of diesel so I don't have to deal with stopping for fuel when towing tandem.

Terry

What kind of mileage do you get towing all that stuff? Any issues stopping?

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That's awesome, I wish we had that option up here.

Plus1.gif

Guess you pretty much need to buy gas at truck stops with that length.

That's why I have an extra tank in my truck, I can carry 98 gallons of diesel so I don't have to deal with stopping for fuel when towing tandem.

Terry

What kind of mileage do you get towing all that stuff? Any issues stopping?

Towing everything with no wind I get about 10 to 11 mpg, the wind kicks up and that can go down fast. :unsure: It actually stops very well, I have had three panic stops (two of those being deer) at highway speeds with no problem.

Terry

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post-690-1248925527_thumb.jpgWe tow our VLX all the time with our Fleetwood diesel Class A. It has a 10k hitch and you really don't notice it behind you. We also launch with it. The only thing we do differently when launching with it verses our truck is that we back down the entire ramp rather than making a U-turn at the bottom of the ramp then backing. The motor home is to tall and top heavy to safely make a U-turn on the ramp especially on a steep ramp
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Does anyone here Pull a Camper (goosneck, 5th wheel, or bumper) and pull their boat also? does it seem to scary to pull a $70k boat with a $25k camper? I have seen this on the highway a bunch but never with expensive boat, its usually a beater in tow on the back.

You may have just answered your own question. $70K Boat + $25K POS camper = disaster?

And all that behind a vehicle that probably qualifies for the cash-for-clunkers program because of the gas milage. ;)

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