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I mean towing a travel trailer that is towing a boat... We talked about upgrading to a 5th wheel which means upgrading the truck, but now we're thinking of just adding a small boat instead. Our cabin cruiser is gone. Too much for us.
Like so:
It is legal here, and I see it many times to and from camping.
Anyone do it? How does it handle? If you have electric or electric over hydraulic brakes on the boat trailer, how do you hook up them? I'd assume surge brakes would be easier...
Out here the first trailer has to be a 5th wheel, and I think that's the case in many places so plan ahead. I would think such a combination (both conventional trailers) could get to porpoising and swaying significantly under the right conditions. The set-up in the picture looks to me like way too much tail and not enough dog.
Surge brakes would be the only practical option for the boat. Anything electric would require dual controllers and a lot of wiring. Dexter makes some excellent surge disc brake kits.
Back to the stability issue though, the back trailer is going to exacerbate sway on the front trailer, and thats REALLY going to make the truck sway due to the tongue load being on an overhang as opposed to directly over the axle as in the case of a 5th wheel. I personally don't think it's a good idea, but if you keep it within the various weight limits and meet all the legalities and licencing requirements then nobody can tell you "No". In the hands of a less-than-excellent driver, I think it's an accident waiting to happen.
I’m not sure if it’s legal with two bumper pulls, I thought the first one needs to be a 5th wheel? Maybe not. Like you said it is legal here in AB but not in BC. Saskatchewan is ok with it also.
never done it but looks like a nightmare, like if you get jammed up in a gas station and jack knife one of them buggers trying to back up.
A lot of states don't allow it, so just be sure where you're going actually does. From a safety standpoint I think it's pretty dangerous, and you have to make sure whatever camper you get is actually rated to have a few thousand lbs hitched to the back of it.
Yeah I've only seen the TT being a 5th wheel. I didn't spend much time looking for a picture example and just used the first one I saw :P
Guess I'll have to see if I can find specifics on what the first trailer needs to be because I can't find anything that says is MUST be X-trailer...
I don't think I would ever even try backing up a train like that lol It would definitely take some planning ahead of time and ensuring you never get into a situation where you need to reverse...
The campground we go to are pretty good for where all the boat trailers are parked near the water. Very large loops, plenty of room to pull in, drop the boat, move up, drop the camper, hook up boat, back boat trailer into a spot and then hook up to camper and head to the campsite. Seems like a lot of steps but it's really only 5 minutes of work. I'd definitely be investing in an electric tongue jack to make it easy and fast lol
Originally Posted by chimmike
A lot of states don't allow it, so just be sure where you're going actually does. From a safety standpoint I think it's pretty dangerous, and you have to make sure whatever camper you get is actually rated to have a few thousand lbs hitched to the back of it.
Yes I need to double-check the laws on the TT being bumper-pull or 5th wheel. But even with my old tandem axle camper, I'd just make sure I have some good welds for a hitch. The TT is 5000lbs loaded and the frame and tongue are stamped with a 10,000 lbs rating. If we get a little boat it'll be fine.
These damn summertime ideas my wife and I come up with every year lol
Actually backing up doubles with a NON-articulated second trailer is not that difficult. An articulated second trailer like a commercial big rig pulls is basically impossible to back up in a controlled manner.
Even in places that allow both to be bumper pulls (which I think Montana does, as I've seen more than a few of them on the road), the F-150 may or may not be allowed as a tow vehicle. Montana requires the tow vehicle to have a payload capacity of over 2k pounds for a tandem rig, and the total weight on the trailer axles must not exceed 40% of the gross weight of the towing vehicle (which I assume is the GCWR rating, not the GVWR, but it's not entirely clear to me reading the law or the state website). I have no idea what the restrictions are elsewhere, but I'd suggest reading the details closely before a small-town cop points them out and makes you unhook the second trailer before proceeding.
Many things we have to look into yes, for both legal and safety reasons... I'm surprised nobody has chimed in yet that has done this with a camper and boat...
06-24-2018, 08:36 PM
Anyone tandem-tow or double-tow?
