Bighorn & towing questions

Hi everyone,

I have been lurking and reading lots of info on this site and it has been very helpful. I finally went and created a log in. My husband and I are looking to buy our first FW. We have been searching and researching like crazy and finally settled on the Bighorn 3410RE. We have not purchased it yet but hope to by the beginning of this upcoming year. In the mean time, we are looking at TV's. We do not have a truck yet and are currently looking for one. We are getting so confused on what to get. We have one handful of people saying a 250/2500 diesel would tow this model. We have the other handful of people telling us to get a 350/3500. I keep seeing people saying to take this and minus that and it will give you your maximum numbers to tow. So, exactly what do we need to look for when looking at the specs on trucks. We want to be safe while traveling but on the other hand, we live in a very heavily congested area in the Tampa Bay area so if we can stay away from a dually, that would be nice but if that is our only option, then we'll do what we have to do. We would prefer a SRW though. We would only use the truck for camping and it would also be my husbands full time vehicle. From our research that we've done, for example, the payload on a Chevy 2500HD Diesel 2007 was 3,458 pounds. I read that you take 20% of the GVWR of the FW to determine your pin weight and to not go by the dry weight. So, 20% of the GVWR of the Bighorn we are looking at is 2900 pounds. So, according to that, we would be 558 pounds less then the max payload according to the specs I found. But, like I said, we are very confused so correct me if I'm wrong. Any input would be VERY much appreciated. We are looking at either the Chevy or the Ford. Sorry so long and thank you in advance!!!

P.S. I know this has been asked a gazillion times...sorry for asking again. Since I posted this, I found the GVWR worksheet so hopefully this will help us figure out all the numbers and adding here, taking away there, etc. Thanks in advance for any and all feedback!

Just a quick response. A 3500 or 350 would be best. You have to also add the passengers weight, fuel, any other cargo in the bed of the truck to that 3458# capacity. and then there's the Gross Combined Weight Rating to try to stay within. Dually's aren't that bad around town. Being full time, our dually is also our daily driver. Plus it helps get us a little exercise in parking lots.

I'll cast my vote on the 350 / 3500.

If you buy the 250 /2500, you'll probably wish you had the beefier 350 / 3500. You won't wish for the lighter model, I'm sure!

When we bought our 350, many of the specs were about the same, but the 350 is bigger fram, and most important BIGGER BRAKES!

I have a Bighorn 3400RE. About the same as the 3410RE except you have a window in the back and a 40" tv that rises out of a cabinet. If they would have had that when we would probably have bought it. My TV is a 2006 F250 Super Duty 4 door long bed 4 wheel drive. If you go to the Ford web site you will find that my F250 has the same rating as the F350 SRW except that it has a larger cargo rating.

https://www.fleet.ford.com/showroom/rv_trailer_towing/2007/07RVttslctrp17Aug06.pdf

If you get a truck get the 1ton SRW Long Bed Crewcab. With the long bed you can put in any hitch you want. I have the B&W Turnoverball which allows you to have a clear bed, a Gooseneck hitch and a companion 5th wheel. It is on the upper end of the price list but is a good hitch. Others have their preferences also.

If you plan to go full time look into the F450.

We all went through the same question and answers as you did. Be patient, read and look at all options. It is better to go a bit bigger than not have enough. The saying is you will have enough power in most diesels but do you have the stopping power.

FWIW
BC

I went through the same contortions before settling on the 3500HD dually to pull our 3670. It is my primary vehicle, most of the time, and I don't have a problem manuevering in city traffic or parking it. It wasn't the width I had to get used to, it was the length. I got it with the rear parking aid option, so it's really not much of a problem backing up. It does pay to keep an eye on the side view mirrors when turning, though, to prevent "curbing" when rounding corners.

I've been back and forth with F-250 and F-350. I did a lot of looking in the dealers parts lists. What I found is a 350 is the same truck as the 250.The difference is in the tires, wheels and gears. You can buy a 250 with the same springs as a 350. The engine,tranny,frame,brakes,rotors are all the same part numbers. All that said I would buy a 350 for the extra tire capacity in the rear and a little higher GVW.and the 4.10 gears.I also want to stay with SRW. Just my 2 cents. JON

....finally settled on the Bighorn 3410RE....

If I may make a comment, the BH 3610RE has 12" frame, 7K axles, and G rated tires. When the unit is a couple of years old, you will probably be very happy that you went with the heavier duty equipment that the 3610RE has. Whereas the 3410RE has 10" frame, 6K axles, and E rated tires. Are you sure the 3410RE will fullfill your needs in the future?

I just want to thank you all for your feedback. I told my husband that I had created an account on here and that I posted our question. We talked about it last night and we both feel the same that it's in our best interest to get the 350/3500. Like you all have said, it's better to have more then enough then not enough (or close to max). We plan on keeping the truck for a long time so we want to make sure we get enough truck to last us 10 years or so (at least).

RVerFullTime-I'm glad you pointed that about between the 3410 and the 3610. I'm going to bring this up to my DH as well. I think it's something that we both probably overlooked while looking at the different models. They both are the same layout, just the one has more "ummmpphhh" I guess you could say. Thanks again to everyone. What a wonderful board with helpful advice. I appreciate all your feedback!!

jnphobe said:

I've been back and forth with F-250 and F-350. I did a lot of looking in the dealers parts lists. What I found is a 350 is the same truck as the 250.The difference is in the tires, wheels and gears. You can buy a 250 with the same springs as a 350. The engine,tranny,frame,brakes,rotors are all the same part numbers. All that said I would buy a 350 for the extra tire capacity in the rear and a little higher GVW.and the 4.10 gears.I also want to stay with SRW. Just my 2 cents. JON

Click to expand...

The total towing weight (Research done on GM products) is the same the difference comes in the "hauling" or in our case the "pin weight."

My 2008 2500HD with 6.6 Duramax and six-speed Allison has an ACTUAL weight (Just me, my tool chest and a full tank of diesel) at 7220 pounds giving me only 1980# for the hitch (Not bought yet) and the pin weight PLUS DW..... not gonna happen. I should bought a 3500HD DUALLY! I have a 9200 pound GVWR.

I did like you are going to do. I bought the truck prior to retirement. I got the F350 long bed SRW. I know about what I was going to buy as far as an RV. So when I got the RV the truck was broken in and ready to tow. The only regret I have had from time to time is not getting a dually. There have been times when the extra stability would have made us feel more secure, such as towing in a cross wind, or going uphill in a campground on a gravel road. I have had to go uphill on gravel and spun the rear wheels of the truck pulling that 16000 pound load. There are also pluses for 4 wheel drive. Such as getting out of a muddy campground like we had in Sedalia, Mo at the Escapade. I had to made a plywood "road" to be able to get to the 5er to hookup. The almost made it out but ended up about 5 feet short of the gravel road. A Ford 4 wheel drive pickup pulled me and the 5er the rest of the way out. I would have made it all the way out with a 4x4. Anyway, just some more food for thought. Remember that tow vehicle will serve you for a long time so it is better to get more than you need than not enough. If I had it to do over I would have gotton an F450 4x4.

I can only pass along my own experience. I have owned both a 2500 diesel and now a 3500 diesel. When you load the weight the 3500 really shines on the highway. I am so glad I choose it this time.

Congratulations on deciding on a bighorn. We also did the same as you did for about 1.5 years and did all the numbers and recieved some really great help from this forum. We decided on a 3670 and a chev 3500 dually, we wanted the added stability, braking power, and the confort of knowing we had enough truck. We use our truck for everything and when we are not pulling we can easily get 18/19 mpg, and are a little more careful with right turns.
aatauses

Rockerga has the right answer. Look at the trucks Gross Vehicle Weight Rating minus the trucks weight with fuel and passengers. The answer is you legal pin weight. My 6.o, F250 starts at 9800 # gvwr - road ready weight of 7700# leaving me with 2100# pin weight to be legal. Tow gcwtr is 25,500# and max loaded trailer weight rating is 15,700. There are tons of folks with single axels that are way over the legal weight pulling fifth wheelers. . Get a wreck where are at fault and I will guarantee that a smart lawyer will drive this point home. I love listen to salesmen tell prospective buyers, "no problem their 3/4 ton can easily handle this fifth wheel".

I poo-poo'ed the thought of a dually for years and several trailers. When I decided to jump ship from the Fords to Dodge believe it or not the only color we liked on the lot was a kacki colored DUALLY. With the prices they were selling for, last turkey day, I drove it and thought it wasn't as bad as I had thought for ALL those years. Now, after pulling the 3670 several thousand miles, I wouldn't go back to a swr especially with a monster like the 3600' series 5er's. I've always drove 4x4's so that was not an option besides one can't find a 4x2 in the PNW.