bumper pull or gooseneck

[mooch]

I have a ram 3500 DRW. I want to get a trailer to tow my excavtor (7k lbs) and other friends equip. I would like to be able to tow a 10k lb machine. I was looking at 14k trailers, tilt bed bumper pull and deck over gooseneck. I may eventually get a srw truck. I know the gooseneck will tow better but I dont currently have a ball installed and the low deck height of the tilt bed is attractive to me. I am leaning towards the bumper pull but have never towed that much weight. Any concerns with 14k bumper pull trailer?

 

[sd455dan]

Are you not interested in a gooseneck tilt bed utility trailer?? my set up is similar to what you are talking about.

An 03 Ram 3500 srw and a Wilson 10k (payload ) tilt 16'+ 4' trailer set up for fifth wheel pull It pulls nicer than my 17 ' boat /trailer- bumper pull

I load the trailer sometimes with the 55hp 4x4 Rhino with loader & grapple, /6' brush cutter and 18 hp riding mower, estimate the loaded trailer weight at around 12000lbs pulls very nicely.. and the tilt is nice to have.

Maybe you could try a loaded version of each hooked to your Dodge - gooseneck + 5 th wheels don't seem to (wag the tail) like some bumper pulls... I'm sure many won't agree with this , but it is just what I have experienced... good luck on your search:thumbsup:

one more thing what year of Ram , my HD 03s stock receiver hitch is only rated to 10k total- with a weight distribution hitch. My understanding is they uprated/upgraded the receivers on later years just something to check...

 

[Deere Dude]

What is your truck rated to pull from the bumper? It may say it on the hitch. If you want to pull a 10k machine then your trailer will weigh probably 6000# empty and that would be 16000# total.

I have a 3500 DRW GMC and I would have a hard time wanting to pull 12-14000# behind me in traffic with a bumper pull. It would be more than the truck could handle safely.

I just bought a 16,000# GN and that may haul a 10,000# load but I think that would be about the limit because I think the trailer weighs in at 5600#.

 

[RobertN]

I have been thinking I need to sell my 7klb trailer and get a bigger one; my NH is heavier, and much longer than my old Kubota. It barely fits on the trailer, and has it maxxing out. I have to take the mower or scraper off to get it on the trailer.

I'm set up for my 5th wheel. I have wondered about a gooseneck, and use one of the gooseneck ball plates that fit the 5th wheel rail bed mounts.
Curt Spyder Gooseneck Trailer Hitch for Fifth Wheel Rails, 25,000 lbs GTW Curt Gooseneck 16085

I've only towed 7k on the bumper/reciever. I definitely like the way my 5th wheel tows much better. Guessin a gooseneck tows pretty similar.

Only thing about a hitch in the bed, it does limit what you can put in the bed while towing.

 

[handirifle]

In my fairly limited experience, I have towed boats, bumper pull trailers with and without equalizers, about 5 different length weight combo's, and now my 29ft 5th wheel. The difference is night and day in control, and manuevering. The maneuvering is DIFFERENT with a bed hitch, be it goose neck or 5th wheel, compared to a bumper pull. Especially a goose neck, since you can jack knofe those a lot more than a bumper pull, and prob a 5th wheel too.

I've had NONE of the sway issues I had pulling a 27ft bumper trailer. My 29ft 5th wheel makes turns in traffic as though I were pulling a much shorter trailer, so there is that to consider. On a utility trailer, it might not makes as much difference, if the two trailers have the same bed length.

 

[RedNeckRacin]

GEt a GN with a b&W flip over ball. IT mounts under the bed and only the ball sticks up. You can use your bed for other things and not have that stupid truss sticking upin your bed taking up space.

As for towing 10k payload plus trailer. Get a GN. you will not regret it. Some members on here brag about what they tow behind their pickups and thats fine. But there is a reason why OTR tractors pull with the weight over the axles and not hanging off the butt end. The other advantage of a GN is the articulation over a 5'er. If your planning on staying in the road, a fifth wheel is fine. For farm work or construction sites, its hard to beat a gn.

 

[foreman Etexas]

I would go with the GN also,depending on you width of what need to haul they have the lowboys and other flatdecks that are lower to ground if the height is an issue.

 

[LD1]

For towing 10k, I would go GN for sure.

IF the 7k excavator was the only thing you would be towing, I would say you could get by fine with a 10 or 12k bumper pull, but I wouldnt want to go over 7k with a bumper pull, especially if you plan on downgrading to a SRW in the future.

The turn-over-balls are nice indeed.:thumbsup:

 

[hosspuller]

I have a 3500 DRW with a B+W GN hitch. I haul a 24 foot long, 14,000 # flatbed trailer. If you decide on a BP trailer be aware that load balancing is critical. Too much load behind the wheels will unweight the tongue, leading to sway issues. Loading a GN is much. much less critical.

Installing a B+W hitch is straight forward. The hardest part was going at a brand new truck bed with a 4 inch hole saw ! Measure 4 x or more ... cut once!

 

[handirifle]

GEt a GN with a b&W flip over ball. IT mounts under the bed and only the ball sticks up. You can use your bed for other things and not have that stupid truss sticking upin your bed taking up space.

I agree, and a lot of 5th wheel trailer guys I know are swapping over to GN for their travel trailers. Although they have to get the hitch that softens the ride, not sure what it's called. Getting my hitch in and out of my truck is a winch affair. Mine is a Curt slider, since I have a 6 1/2' bed. The whole unit weighs about 100lbs and is a PITA to move.