Full Timing - Quitting or Starting Over... again?

[m.hony]

I ain't the smartest man in the world, but it looks like to me you need to get you a 2016 Classic and a 2015 Silverado High Country crew cab Duramax/Allison with a cap and a bedslide.
That's just my opinion, though, for what it's worth.
Just sayin'-

[m.hony]

Paula,
Here is your new truck:







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[Foiled Again]

Originally Posted by overlander63

Paula, this is what we carry with us for a ladder:
ANSI 330lbs 9 5ft Telescoping Aluminum Extension Telescope Ladder EN131 Std | eBay

HI Terry.

Telescoping ladder for a loner (who has quite a bit of junk in her trunk) strikes me as a questionable idea. I have to be a little more conscious of "what could go wrong" than married people who have alternate resources (such as working at OODM) when a more heavy-duty system is needed. Marie will notice if you fall (or are hanging on to the awning tube yelling for help)... and if you have a big job, you could haul Bertha into the shop. I'd almost go for one of those knuckle busters that turns into two ladders with a scaffold platform, but that could be overkill.

Here's a question that could ignite yet another tow truck controversy. I know you have a Dodge RAM truck. WHY are they so much less popular/common than Chevy's or Fords? (I do like your folding tow mirrors!) Comment?

Paula

[Foiled Again]

Originally Posted by m.hony

Paula,
Here is your new truck:
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Well, don't be a tease. Year? Bed Length?
Might get me breathing heavy if it's already had a spray in bed liner done, and/or a bed slide? Noticed the towing mirrors - and I think the Chevy's now have an integrated brake controller don't they?

[cwf]

I drove the Dodge, Chevy, Ford. The Chevy ergonomics fit my "body type" best, including "Kreature Komforts"..
And, a great discount for the Demo.

The Dodge was not a demo, but rode like a Conestoga wagon might have (no I am not that old)... But I have ridden in some well preserved ones.

Ok, the Dodge didn't give me splinters and had a good AC...

Then the resale.. As a Chevy customer I got some loyalty money to sweeten the pot...

The Dodge was really positive because there was no "def"... And..for towing the Dodge was more than up to the task..

[m.hony]

Originally Posted by Foiled Again

Well, don't be a tease. Year? Bed Length?

Might get me breathing heavy if it's already had a spray in bed liner done, and/or a bed slide? Noticed the towing mirrors - and I think the Chevy's now have an integrated brake controller don't they?

Year- 2015
Spray-in bedliner- check-
Bed length- 6.5' (8' bed is available)
Bed slide- no- "windoors" on the sides of the cap with tool boxes just inside- bed steps on both sides and the back in addition to the built in steps in the bumper- it is still possible to install a bed slide-
Built in trailer brake control- check-
It is a beautiful truck, but my Tundra still has a bigger back seat, bigger back doors that open wider, and air vents in the back seat-


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[KJRitchie]

How much? Why are these trucks always in white?

Kelvin

[Al and Missy]

I have towed my 2001 Safari 25 with both a 2006 F150 5.4 3.73 and now a 2013 Ram 2500 CTD 3.42. Yes, the Ram has a 6-speed and the F-150 had a 4. A newer F-150 would have a transmission that was a better match for towing. And the Eco-boost seems to have good towing power. But with a 1/2T truck, at least on paper, the problem is not with the towing capacity (at least in my case) but with payload. My trailer GVWR is 1000# less than the current trailers and once loaded with stuff I need, only leaves me about 380# of excess capacity in the trailer. In the truck, accounting for two people, dogs, and fuel I only had about 70# of payload left.

I REALLY did not want to buy a new TV. That's one reason I chose the trailer I have. We thought and talked about it a lot before buying a one-year old used Ram, but I have now put over 2000 miles on the trailer with the Ram and there's no way I would go back. I have a couple of rationalizations for that:
1. While the diesel is initially more expensive than a equivalent gasoline powered truck, I feel I'll get at least some of that back when I sell. My F-150 barely got 10 mpg towing at 55. The Ram gets 15 at 65-70. I don't feel like the economics are as bad as they look on the surface. I can get somewhere faster and pay less for fuel.
2. The torque peak for the gasoline engine was in the 3000 rpm range. The diesel is at 1700 rpm. Probably not coincidentally, that is right at 65 mph in 6th gear. I just pulls all the way in 6th gear on 95% of the roads I travel. I had to pull over and wait for something to cool off with the F-150 before I could do the last mile of a 6-mile 8% grade.
3. This doesn't affect the Eco-Boost, but I want to travel the west and the higher you go in altitude, the more power a naturally aspirated engine looses. The turbocharged EcoBoost and the CTD don't have this problem.
4. I'm doing this for fun and enjoyment. I don't want to worry about what the hill around the next curve looks like.

Good luck with your decision.

Al

[m.hony]

Originally Posted by KJRitchie

How much? Why are these trucks always in white?

Kelvin

$65,000
$62,000 with the discount...


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[m.hony]

I have seen them in black and silver. Silver would be my first choice. Black would be my second choice.


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[slowmover]

.



Here's a question that could ignite yet another tow truck controversy. I know you have a Dodge RAM truck. WHY are they so much less popular/common than Chevy's or Fords? (I do like your folding tow mirrors!) Comment?



Paula[/QUOTE]



I'll take a stab:

They aren't. Not when a one ton is the primary way to earn a living. And not for the past twenty years due to both the motor and the manual transmission being more reliable and less costly to operate in a Dodge. LTL and hotshot. The oilfield separates the wannabes from the must haves quickly. 3-4 years at 300k miles and time to buy another. Loads 10k past the so called "rating". Only one brand was capable 1994-2014.

This may change due to Fords new motor. In the past twenty years Ford only got it right in one four-year period. Six speed autos changed the game, but the expense of rebuilding them PLUS the more complicated emissions controls have made them all more expensive to buy, own and operate. So I'm starting to see other choices made for that crowd of operators.

RVers are about the only ones for whom the first choice is GM. Ride quality and ergonomics is the usual reason cited.

Chevy and Ford aren't necessarily better, but there are far more of them in any specification and truck buyers tend to stick with what Daddy drove. Not a group given to analysis, much. And those two brands just have more money to spend on glitz and advertising.

RV is such light duty use that brand doesn't matter. I'd focus on suspension and steering sophistication first, and general impressions second.

IFS with sensitive steering is tops for our needs.

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by Foiled Again

HI Terry.
.

Here's a question that could ignite yet another tow truck controversy. I know you have a Dodge RAM truck. WHY are they so much less popular/common than Chevy's or Fords? (I do like your folding tow mirrors!) Comment?

Paula

Paula, the short whelbase/stiff suspension/very small V8 were all issues with it. The coup de grace was when a girl in a Nissan car ran a stop sign, and I remodeled her car for her. So, now it's just the F250.