Using a Ford F650

[beetlebob]

OK Getting a lot of different answers so I will put this out and see what happens. We want to boondock and stay out for weeks at a time. With that I am thinking of building a Ford F650 . Smallest with factory air ride. I will put a Reading enclosed service box on it to store all the extras I "think" I will need. Extra H2o,generator,full solar system(say 4 panels and everything needed to make it work,maybe a washer and some of those portable coolers/freezers that I saw at the RV show. Now this will be a lot of weight so I feel a 650 should handle this and still have power to pull a 31. Everyone is saying I will destroy the trailer with this much truck. Now with air ride and a air ride hitch how much dama ge could I do ?????. I saw somewhere where someone uses his service truck to pull Airstreams to fix without any problems. I am a newbe want to be and can use all the input I can get to do this right the first time. Will be selling everything to make this move. See the world with your house what more can you ask for. Can you get a stornger frame or make it stronger? Hope you all see what I am thinking and anything you can add will be helpful.

[AWCHIEF]

Stand by for lots of "opinions". Personaly to me it seems like over kill.

[n2916s]

Gotta agree with AWChief, seems like overkill. Unless you are planning the rig to be a "bug out" vehicle in a doomsday scenario.

Mike

[nilesrob]

I am not technically qualified to answer this. My first reaction is, boo yeah, like to see this bad boy! In truth, I think you may have length issues when trying to fit into campsites, and while I do not understand "air ride" I suspect the strength of the suspension of an F650 may have rivets popping out of your Airstream. Still, sounds intriguing!

[panheaddale]

FINALLY somebody on this forum has some great ideas about a tow vehicle. You are definitely overkill but you wont ever have to wory about being overloaded. Your tow vehicle is not going to change the way your trailer rides down the road. It doesn't care whether you are towing it with a yugo or your F650 there is no way to damage your trailer with what you tow it with.The trailer has its own suspension and is independent of your tow vehicle. " REMEMBER JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN TOW IT DOESN'T MEAN YOU CAN STOP IT OR CONTROL IT" you my friend can do all the above. Kudos to you for your choice of tow vehicles.

[Kyle401]

I'd definitely want an Airsafe hitch with that set up.

[Harry W]

While the trailer wheels have their own suspension, the hitch is responding to the TV's suspension. There are numerous threads on front shell separation due to stiff TV suspension.

[pattydoug]

Go for it! And then we can say a beetlebob and his money are soon parted! Buy the truck and all those freezers and generators, hook up the ol' 'Stream and head down the road. Then kiss goodbye to the frame on the Airstream! Go For IT!!!! Over Kill is a drastic and sad overstatement!

Why not mount the airstream on the bed of the truck? At least THAT wouldn't completely destroy it!

[dkottum]

It's a ridiculous setup.

Rephrase the question to "What tow vehicle, hitch, and Airstream do I need to see the world, and boondock for weeks at a time?"

There are Airstreamers on this forum doing that every day.

doug k

[random 17]

You won't pop any rivets.

I tow with a 1 ton dually with nothing more than the ball. Absolutely no problems for over 15,000 miles now.

Previously had a 3/4 ton SRW with anti sway/weight distributing hitch---contrary to popular opinion, this set up was a much rougher on the trailer with routinely thrown cushions, open cabinet doors, etc.

Load the truck the way it's meant to be loaded and go. You won't need a fancy hitch either.

[dkottum]

Originally Posted by azvantage

You won't pop any rivets.

I tow with a 1 ton dually with nothing more than the ball. Absolutely no problems for over 15,000 miles now.

Previously had a 3/4 ton SRW with anti sway/weight distributing hitch---contrary to popular opinion, this set up was a much rougher on the trailer with routinely thrown cushions, open cabinet doors, etc.

Load the truck the way it's meant to be loaded and go. You won't need a fancy hitch either.

You may be lucky enough to never have to make a quick emergency maneuver at 65 mph.

doug k

[random 17]

Originally Posted by dkottum

You may be lucky enough to never have to make a quick emergency maneuver at 65 mph.

doug k

Actually, I have.

[Bigjohn59]

Go for it, I'd like to see an air ride airstream trailer too!

[beetlebob]

Thanks for all the input. Hope to get more. Never thought of being a doomsday prepper. Not a bad idea if you think about it. The wheel base is the same if not just a bit longer than a XLT 350 with crew cab,so leangth is not a issue. Since it is commercial it is built to last say 500,000 + miles, so should be the last truck I buy before I can not longer drive because I will be say 100 years old. Also it is nice to have the money to spend.What I am wondering is when so many people say they are damaging there trailers with a 3/4 ton truck what are you doing to your trailers???? With air ride and air hitch I think almost no ride from truck should be transfered into the trailer. What say all you out there using a 1 ton to pull. I say use what you have. Pulling is good stopping is better.

[NJtoNC]

why not go all the way and get a tractor trailer? mount that sucker right on it.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Originally Posted by azvantage

You won't pop any rivets.

I tow with a 1 ton dually with nothing more than the ball. Absolutely no problems for over 15,000 miles now.

Previously had a 3/4 ton SRW with anti sway/weight distributing hitch---contrary to popular opinion, this set up was a much rougher on the trailer with routinely thrown cushions, open cabinet doors, etc.

Load the truck the way it's meant to be loaded and go. You won't need a fancy hitch either.

Please state it correctly....."In my opinion you won't need this or that."

Bob

[dkottum]

Just a thought about the doomsday escape pod. It will get you to the first place you need to stop for fuel, then you will be stranded there among a hoard of other survivalists, as there will be no fuel.

doug k

[panheaddale]

Originally Posted by pattydoug

Go for it! And then we can say a beetlebob and his money are soon parted! Buy the truck and all those freezers and generators, hook up the ol' 'Stream and head down the road. Then kiss goodbye to the frame on the Airstream! Go For IT!!!! Over Kill is a drastic and sad overstatement!

Why not mount the airstream on the bed of the truck? At least THAT wouldn't completely destroy it!

The guy was asking for thoughts about towing with the F 650 He didn't ask for a sarcastic attitude like alot of people have on here

[Zigidachs]

Our TV is a Ram 3500 DRW & we have had no problems. P-3 hitch is wonderful. Question: if you boon dock that long....weeks...where do you dispose of black & grey tank contents?

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by beetlebob

OK Getting a lot of different answers so I will put this out and see what happens. We want to boondock and stay out for weeks at a time. With that I am thinking of building a Ford F650 .

Check out the insurance situation very carefully. You may find that you need commercial insurance, which can be prohibitively expensive.

Smallest with factory air ride. I will put a Reading enclosed service box on it to store all the extras I "think" I will need. Extra H2o,generator,full solar system(say 4 panels and everything needed to make it work,maybe a washer and some of those portable coolers/freezers that I saw at the RV show. Now this will be a lot of weight so I feel a 650 should handle this and still have power to pull a 31.

Do what you want, but if you add up all the weights of the things you list it's hard to push past the capacity of a 3/4 ton truck, unless you're carrying a ridiculous amount of water.

Everyone is saying I will destroy the trailer with this much truck. Now with air ride and a air ride hitch how much dama ge could I do ?????. I saw somewhere where someone uses his service truck to pull Airstreams to fix without any problems. I am a newbe want to be and can use all the input I can get to do this right the first time.

If you have the rear suspension on the truck loaded to near capacity then you'll probably be OK. But if it's lightly loaded you're going to damage the trailer.

The physics of it have to do with the enormous unsprung weight of the rear axle on a 650. The airsafe hitch won't help any more than a padded glove would if you're trying to catch a bowling ball thrown at 90 mph.

Will be selling everything to make this move. See the world with your house what more can you ask for. Can you get a stornger frame or make it stronger? Hope you all see what I am thinking and anything you can add will be helpful.

Best advice I can give you is to look around and see what other people are doing. People have been on the road boondocking with Airstreams for decades and the consensus overall is that a 3/4 ton truck, 1 ton on the outside, is all you need. Cheaper to buy, cheaper to run, and carries enough. If you have your own reasons for putting a service body on there, fine, but those aren't an ideal base for what you say you want to do.

Solar :: 3 large panels will fit on the Airstream itself, probably all you need. A couple more smaller panels can be shoehorned in with effort. On larger trailers it's fairly easy to expand to 4 group 27 batteries, and some people put in more than that.

Generator :: a pair of Honda eu2000i will fit in the bed of a pickup under a Tonneau cover

Water :: How much do you want to carry? I sometimes put an 82 gallon freshwater tank and a 55 gallon wastewater tank in my truck bed

Fridge/freezer :: The one in my Airstream is big enough for 5 people for at least 4-5 days and we cook, a lot; unless you need freezer space for an elk hunting trip or something you shouldn't need more than a midsize or larger trailer provides

Washer/dryer :: These do show up in some larger non-Airstream RVs but it's hard to make them work without water/sewer connections. We use coin laundry while traveling and it works out OK. If you do go this way look at the Splenda combined washer/dryer units.

Keep thinking and exploring