Tow Rigs - Lets discuss (2 Viewers)

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

Lessons I have learned from hanging out in the Tow Rig section on Pirate4x4:

#1: if you ever tow ANY load with something less than a 1 ton you are guaranteed to kill a station wagon filled with nuns. Please note this is a minimum, if there is a rock crawler on the trailer you should strongly consider using a MDT. :rolleyes:

View attachment 739012

Needless to say, no nuns were harmed getting this home.

not only sending the nuns to meet there maker.

if you are towing more than you tow rig capacity "GVW" U are in deep do do :cheers:
 
Lessons I have learned from hanging out in the Tow Rig section on Pirate4x4:

#1: if you ever tow ANY load with something less than a 1 ton you are guaranteed to kill a station wagon filled with nuns. Please note this is a minimum, if there is a rock crawler on the trailer you should strongly consider using a MDT. :rolleyes:

View attachment 739012

Needless to say, no nuns were harmed getting this home.

:lol: sounds like they work for U-Haul :whoops: and nice trailer bud :)
 
ya don`t need a CDL unless ya tow or haul for hire. ICC DOT commerce rules then apply .

U really DON`t want & certainly don`t need a federal travel paper!
 
Positioned the camper on the trailer and it looks like I will need about 10.5" of a spacer to clear the black water tank and the rear step will set flush on the deck.



 
Fits good john! A friend of mine used I beams to space the slide in. Worked well for him. Here are some pics. A little weighty but it aint going anywhere.

image-2689807282.jpg


image-2944867811.jpg


image-676298860.jpg


image-2632217919.jpg
 
Awesome. How much dech space do ya have behind the camper. Looks long. :):). Sweet

Thanks Cody Sent from my iPhone using IH8MUD
 
Have 19' 8" of open deck left, should be able to fit an atv and rig.

Thinking of I beams or building some type of wood storage box.
 
Looks great John :) can't wait to check it out at the boil.
 
Fits good john! A friend of mine used I beams to space the slide in. Worked well for him. Here are some pics. A little weighty but it aint going anywhere.

That's nice and that truck camper looks pretty big :)
 
ya better put some good caster wheels under the cement blocks:grinpimp: we know how U go zoom zoom:cheers:
 
I vote metal with storage all the way across. never have toooo much storage:)

second would be an RC track so if it is raining ca play in the dry:lol:
 
So, now that you guys have discussed the hell out of every option for tow rigs :lol: I have a couple of questions. Since we are going to downsize the fleet by one and the "new" tow rig will be Sandy's DD, what would be the up's and down's to getting a gas burner as opposed to a diesel? The reason for this consideration is we will only use it to haul Clifford maybe 6 or 8 times per year (God willing). I just don't see the justification for a diesel in a DD for her. She only puts about 12k - 13k per year on her FJC due to my company car. She will take my company car to work on weekends when I'm not using it and the gas and insurance is paid for by my company. And that all leads to another question: what's the longevity / life expectancy of a Chevy / GMC / Dodge 2500 gas burner? I am finding Chevy / GMC 2500 Crew Cab 4x4's with the 6.0l that are in the 2010 - 2011 model years with 75k+ on the odo for ~$26k. I wouldn't really worry about a diesel with 75k but I don't know much about owning a gasser past 100k.

Having said all of that, I do understand that the gasser will get poorer mpg's when towing the trailer but again, only 6 - 8 times per year. Thoughts?
 
Last edited:
the best way IMO is for U 2 calculate your estimated miles per year DD & towing then take the average cost per mile factoring in fuel,oil changes fuel filter general maintenance for both gas & diesel with the price diff between purchase price average it out say 5 years .

my bet is you will find the gas burner will cost less over all.
yea I pull with a F450 SD but it is not my DD & I burn BIO:D
 
I have been contemplating the same thing , Mike.

since i don't tow but 4-6 times a year ( less now since i have been driving the 80). I wanted something more economical (better mpg, less costly maintenance, cheaper fuel, etc).

since i will mostly tow the zuk buggy now (3000lbs) I have more choices. I will probably go with an 100, but looked at Titan, Armada, Tundra, Sequoia. I mention Nissans because they are half the price of Toyotas. plus i want something i can daily drive that is stock to keep the miles off the 80.


The tundra can tow 9,000 lbs ( actual standardized tow rating) . It would be nice to have a truck in the fleet but i really need a third row.

At some point i may go the crawler hauler set up. at which point i will look at 3/4 ton crew cabs. My 1st choice would be a chevy, then ford then dodge gassers . I find chevy to be more reliable to the 100,000 mile mark. but after that i would sell and start over. The only way i find diesel to be worth the extra costs involved in owning one is if ya tow a lot, can use bio like Paul, or plan to do a natural gas conversion in the future.

Just my humble opinion

I wish toyota would produce a dually...
 
Agree with it being her DD the gasser would be the most economical way to go with diesel prices where they've been recently and the cost of maintenance in mind. As mentioned I'd stay away from the high mileage gassers for worries of reliability they wear much harder than the diesels. With that said for long term reliability, fuel economy and regular hauling the diesel is still the way to go IMO but definitely not the best choice for DD duties :)
 
All those reasons are why i got rid of the f250 7.3, of course I dont worry about engine mileage on a gasser quite as much as everyone else.

My mom drove a 91 caprice with the SBC 350 to 300k without ever opening the motor, my dad only changed the starter, alt, and ac compressor. never once had a problem except right at the last 20k she started smoking just a little on startup after sitting overnight. btw i drove this in high school and would race mustangs and other v8 "sports cars" and win!!! i dogged that thing from about 180k to 250k and it still ran like a champ!

i picked up a f150 4.6l with 200k on it and it runs like a great(little low on emmph), i changed the coils and plugs when i first got it. and i've had to change the water pump(it was still the factory pump, but started leaking).

My family has had great success with long lasting modern gassers, as my mom is driving a 06 serria with 185k on it that they bought brand new with 0, but you also need to take into consideration my dad is a mechanic like Paul so everything was/is always maintained.(not that you wouldnt, but you were talking buying used, so....)
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom