your other two questions were answered pretty well, but it seems boat
towing expirience is a bit lacking on this list.... hope the long
reply is worth something other than time to ya =)
On Friday, Jul 4, 2003, at 16:58 America/New_York, Punch wrote:
> what would my future boat weigh? ( 19-25ft sport type leisure craft,
> with
> trailer etc...)
don't forget trailer, gear, fuel and water. everyone always forgets
that they add 1000++# to their boat's dry weight as soon as they're
ready to go. fuel is around 6#/gallon, water around 8.5#/gal. your
trailer depends on brakes, # of axles, material, etc. and is about
impossible to guess. at the low end of your size range, with a
fiberglass boat you're looking at an easy 3000#, and probably over 4
ready to go. at the high end of your range, you shouldn't be looking
at a Dakota -- you'll be very close to, if not exceeding your tow
rating of around 6000#, and if you're towing more than once or twice a
year for any distance at all, you'll regret not having shopped for a
half or 3/4 ton Ram. the extra weight of the truck will help towing
stability immensely, along with simply being a stronger vehicle that's
set up for the weight.
a few towing stories:
my Dak's predecessor was an '87 F250 with 4WD, a 460 and 4.11 gears
(rated to tow 10k#). it was purchased to tow: first a 28' Coachman 5th
wheel RV, then a 24' Sea Ray cabin cruiser. I was a bit young in the
5th wheeling days, but IIRC towed weight was around 5000#, and I know
the boat was approaching if not exceeding 6000#. When towing, there
was little difference between a little red wagon and a 6000# cabin
cruiser. the truck didn't care what followed it, and got 7MPG no
matter what. the one emergency stop still resulted in a deer doing
it's best to crush the radiator between itself and the block, but the
rig stayed straight and true and hauled itself down from 45MPH fast
enough for the boat to push it's bow stop forward on the trailer.
That's 15 year old technology, and I know my Dak can't stop that well
towing a 2500# pontoon boat.
my current Dak is (as my sig says) a '98 4x4 with a 318 and 3.92 gears.
I get 14mpg on the road if I'm lucky (no kidding, I'm jellous of you
guys getting 16 and 17...), and ~10 towing/hauling. I *know* when I've
got a trailer behind me -- it moves the rig around in the wind, and I
can feel the bumps resonate between truck and trailer, and can get some
unfortunate slamming harmonics built up on the wrong road. When making
a haul from ROC to CLE at the end of school last year, I was moving for
myself in the truck, a friend in a large single axel UHaul and books
for a second friend in truck. I scaled out at 8680# (split
2720/3960/2000, according to the Cat scale at the TA at exit 46 on 90)
- assumedly *way* over my unfindable GCWR. However, thanks to the
heavy truck I didn't have the trailer issues (*major* slamming with
empty truck and trailer...) that I do with a larger, lighter load. In
short, you don't want a sail behind a light truck. longer wheelbases
and heavier loads make towing far less trying. Also, a word for the
wise: do pay attention to trailer suspension for both load and occupant
comfort.
>
> my friends say 2wd will slip on the boat launch.
at a steep ramp if you get your back tires wet, you want 4WD just to
feel safer. it's a scary thing if you break traction and start to have
your second pride and joy start to fall back towards the others' home
(i.e. truck -> water). of course, if you're getting an auto,
extraction is *far* easier, and 4WD may not be as necessary, but I
still would never own a 2 wheeler, even if I was on-highway only, if I
was thinking of getting close to a launch ramp. it's my northern
attitude, I guess.
-- Michael Maskalans <http://mike.tepidcola.com/> Apple Campus Rep - ClassTech Consultant - Printer Tech mobile.612.618.4652 campus.585.274.2246 fax.954.697.0487
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