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Our
Rig |
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Our recreational
vehicle, “RV”, consists of a tow vehicle (heavy duty pickup
truck) and what is commonly known as a fifth-wheel style trailer.
Other types of RV's include motor homes and travel trailers.
Our choice of a truck/fifth-wheel trailer combination was arrived
at by months of comparative study.
We finally decided that a tow vehicle and trailer of the
size and type that we currently own was the best choice for us. |
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Our tow vehicle
consists of a 2005 Dodge 3500 quad-cab “dually” powered by a
turbocharged and inter-cooled Cummins diesel engine producing 335
brake horsepower and 610 pounds-foot of torque.
After years of owning manual transmission trucks, we went
with an automatic this time around. At first we weren’t sure
that we did the right thing buying an automatic, but it’s proven
to be a nice vehicle for city driving sans trailer. No rowing
through the gears especially in stop-and-go traffic. |
We’ve found the
standard 3:73 rear axle ratio gives a decent compromise of pulling
power and fuel economy. The fifth wheel hitch is a removable Reese
16K. Commands to the
trailer braking system are relayed via a Prodigy brake controller.
Be it Ford, Chevy/GMC or Dodge pickup, this is a common tow
setup for many RV'ers. |
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Our trailer (our
home!) is a 2005 Keystone Challenger 32 TKB fifth-wheel.
34 feet 10 inches in length, it contains all of the
amenities of a small apartment.
It has a spacious bedroom, a bathroom with full size
shower, a galley located mid-ships, and a wonderful living room
with lots of windows. There
is also storage galore. Knowing
that we’d be spending considerable time in the trailer and being
major movie buffs, we also equipped it with a 16:9 wide screen TV
and a Dolby 5.1 surround sound system. |
Total certified
weight of the trailer is just a few pounds shy of 13,000
pounds loaded with 2,250 pounds of it sitting on the kingpin. This
truck/trailer combination has proven to be perfect for us. |
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