Beefing up half-ton for gooseneck

[Negligence]

The trailer is 27' total, but the neck itself is 7'. So the "floor" portion of the trailer is only 20ft. Sorry if I was misleading.

Payload for the truck bed is 1500lbs. Even with the trailer fully-loaded up to 10,000lbs, the tongue weight (around 20% I read) will be 2,000lbs. I'll never be this heavy -- I just won't bother towing it at this point. For all other weights, with extra springs I should be fine.

I'm two years into a lease on this truck so I can't upgrade without a lot of penalties. It's not worth it for the amount of towing I'd be doing.

Additional springs and higher-rated tires I think I'll be safe. At least that seems to be the general consensus here.

 

[Brahmus]

Don't forget the tranny temp gauge!

 

[Diamondpilot]

The trailer is 27' total, but the neck itself is 7'. So the "floor" portion of the trailer is only 20ft. Sorry if I was misleading.

Payload for the truck bed is 1500lbs. Even with the trailer fully-loaded up to 10,000lbs, the tongue weight (around 20% I read) will be 2,000lbs. I'll never be this heavy -- I just won't bother towing it at this point. For all other weights, with extra springs I should be fine.

I'm two years into a lease on this truck so I can't upgrade without a lot of penalties. It's not worth it for the amount of towing I'd be doing.

Additional springs and higher-rated tires I think I'll be safe. At least that seems to be the general consensus here.

If its a lease I would look at the penalty for putting in a bed mounted hitch. I am guessing that is a no - no somewhere on the paperwork, especially on a 1/2 ton truck!

Chris

 

[radioman]

If its a lease I would look at the penalty for putting in a bed mounted hitch. I am guessing that is a no - no somewhere on the paperwork, especially on a 1/2 ton truck!

Chris

Ouch! good point here. hopefully the dealer will be sending you a free upgrade voucher to get out of lease with no penalty sometime soon.

 

[Negligence]

Well I have full intention of stepping into a 3500 when the lease is done (or sooner if its advantageous) so I'm pretty confident this is something they could overlook. But I'll check my paperwork anyways...

 

[Negligence]

I forgot to mention in this that the previous owner towed with a Ram 1500 as well. They had extra leaf springs installed. Perhaps some anecdotal evidence that the 1500 will be occassionally up to the task?

This is the same make/model of the trailer:

 

[Heywood Jannockitov]

Looks like a McBride. Not a real heavy trailer.
Truck could probably handle it for occasional short-distance hauling provided you didn't put two horses in the front two stalls.
Configured as two box stalls with a mare and foal in each should be OK.
You would want tires with E load rating and trailer brakes and controller that were in top notch working order. Air helper springs are wonderful.

This photo is of my 3/4 ton SRW Dodge with 30 ft overall 4 horse head to head. This truck (before helper springs) barely squatted with this trailer attached. Look at how far back trailer axles are placed, due to a 5 ft. wide side un-load ramp. A half-ton with helper springs should at least support the tongue weight of the trailer, being careful of how the trailer is loaded.

Anyway, is it not usually a problem to get out of an existing lease if you are going to lease a newer more expensive truck from the same dealer?
I don't know, never leased anything before.

 

[Builder]

I found an excellent deal on a 4 horse gooseneck (27' long). Now I've got a 07' Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab (4x4, with tow package) to tow with, but I know it needs some "work" to make it suitable and safe.

Gross weight for this trailer is 5000lbs. Adding in two horses (2400lbs combined), two foals, passengers and cargo keeps me under 10,000lbs.

I had planned to add SuperSprings to beef up the box load capacity to prevent sagging. I could go with air bags or extra leaf springs but I think SuperSprings give me the best all-around ride when and when I don't need the support.

What do you guys think of this planned setup? I'll be hauling occassionally (couple times a year at most) so I don't intend to upgrade to a 2500 or 3500 just for the sake of the trailer. Thanks.

I would not advise doing this. 1/2 tons are not well suited for gooseneck towing in that weight range.

Remember it's not the truck that's the most important thing to consider, it's the safety of the general public around you.

 

[Negligence]

Yes, it's a McBride trailer. When I spoke to them they told me it would be at least under 5,000lbs.

I did call the dealer to inquire about jumping into a 3/4 or 1 ton, but because the car companies are not leasing anymore (at least not as much -- leasing rates are 10%, my lease rate is 0%), I would lose too much. They said if I came back in the third year of my lease then I would be better off.

I'm starting to think that maybe I should pickup a cheap, used 1 ton truck for the hauling work...

 

[Dargo]

I would not advise doing this. 1/2 tons are not well suited for gooseneck towing in that weight range.

Remember it's not the truck that's the most important thing to consider, it's the safety of the general public around you.

I agree. It may have been mentioned earlier, but the brakes and axles on a 3/4 ton and 1 ton are significantly larger than on a 1/2 ton pickup. Being able to stop everything properly would definitely affect the safety of the general public around you.