Quote:
Originally Posted by dwhilsdorf
I re-read all the replies and also discovered that the "door stickers" are the most credible "specification" for payload.
Since my bride bought on to the idea of an AS, she has moved up from Basecamp 16 to Bambi 22 FB.
If I buy a new truck, I will explain that will determine the maximum trailer size for the next decade :-) I don't really want to go any longer that the 22, and find maneuvering a trailer in tight spaces to be stressful enough. Dual axles even more so.
Thanks again for all the constructive input!
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1-YES you are exactly right. The door sticker is the number to compare.
2-NO-This is where a lot of people get boxed in.
The EE in you surely knows about specifying and that to meet or exceed specs is a good way to eliminate options that won't work, or aren't necessary, and make sound decisions.
If you intend to keep a truck 7-10 years, then you should specify to include what your needs may be during that time.
Our first AS was a 22, and any decent pickup or large SUV can manage that. Not much to see here. But as you have not field-tested, you may be only considering towing and payload and weights.
What you also must consider is what you will need to bring along, where it will go.
My point is, with the smaller trailers, more and more of your bring along gear is IN the vehicle-back seat, bed, rooftop, etc. You see, with a larger trailer you have more on trailer storage and can actually have a lot less stuff in the truck.
All this stuff in your truck eats away at needed payload. So that the overall needs converge quite a bit when you honestly look at the problem in this way.
My second point is that many people trade up to a larger trailer, (even if they don't intend to). We traded twice, from a 22 to a 25, and then to a 27. Because our rigs were in accidents and it was just less hassle for us to trade the insurance check in and roll out with a new unit vs missing an entire summer of camping to hassle with repairs and constantly worry if they are done properly. Now we probably would have traded to a larger unit (or at least wanted to) when we couldn't sleep 4 adults in the 22. But doing that may not have happened as fast.
My second second point is that it is usually easier to back up a longer trailer than a shorter one based on where the fulcrum is and how much more movement you have on a smaller trailer with a small adjustment on the wheel. Once you are already dealing with towing, then length just doesn't matter much as far as driving, getting gas, etc.
I'm not saying you won't buy a 22 and love it for 10 years.
I am saying that with a 22 or smaller, you will need to store lots of stuff in the vehicle and this uses up payload. I would recommend purchasing enough truck to at least be within your spec comfort for a 25 airstream as it is the most popular model.
). Driving down the road, either the trailer follows the TV or it doesn't. If it doesn't, the game is over. Haven't run into that yet. 
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