The truck is getting bigger....

We've been doing a lot more research on fifth wheels, and there is a pretty short list of fifth wheels (or 5ers, as the veterans call them) that are agreed to be true four seasons rvs. These tend to be a lot better insulated, and the real distinction is that all the piping underneath is enclosed and heated to keep it freezing. Since we're pretty sure we will be in cold weather at some point (despite our best efforts) this sounds like a major plus. Not to mention the same short list is considered the best for full-timing, in that they hold up better over time, have more quality construction and materials, etc. For all these same reasons, this short list of fifth wheels tends to be pretty heavy. Like 16000+ pounds. I've seen plenty of people talking about towing them with a Dodge Ram 3500, but my sources seem to say that it's only rated to about 16500 pounds, and I'm pretty sure we'll have more than 500 pounds just of water and propane to carry around, let alone luggage.

So what do you do if you need a truck bigger than a one ton truck? Well, I've found a few options. There's the Chevy Kodiak, which can tow 30K pounds.


Or the Ford F-450, which can tow 21K pounds, more with the right options


Or the GMC Topkick, which can tow 17K pounds


We'll see. We'd like to stick with a regular one ton pickup, and it sounds like the numbers work a little differently with a fifth wheel hitch than towing a trailer straight behind.

It feels like the chicken and the egg problem. Do we buy the trailer first so we know how much truck we need? Or do we buy the truck first so we could bring the trailer home?