Tough towing this go around.

What a hell of a trip.

We left on a Friday afternoon and headed out to ID. That was the best we could do time wise. Traffic was a PITFA all the way to Cheyenne, WY. Stop and go the whole way. We should have just stopped at @Sean266 house for six one packs and left at midnight. Out of Cheyenne the wife wanted to open her up. Poor lady, she got the short end of this trip. We had 30-40 mph crosswinds that made towing a TT pretty hard. She is a skilled driver, so she dropped a little speed and kept on. Lucky for us, the wind was constant for the most part, and trailer sway was predictable. We stayed at a Walmart Parking lot in Rock Springs since we took so long

Once in ID, towing was good, just a lot of two lane road and mountain passes.

From ID to MT was pretty good. Once over the Continental Divide, the big mountain passes were done. The wind picked back up. The wife got the brunt of that towing as well. I so made out on this trip.

MT to ND. Holy hell, that sucked ass. The wind was not constant and the towing was a PITA. We had to drop speed down to 65-70 mph, and at times down to 60 mph.

From ND to SD was pretty difficult with all the truck traffic, construction, constant hills and curves...and of course high winds. There were some long stretches between fueling stations, and we ended up getting down into the reserve tank. 5 gallons doesn't give me a warm and fuzzy. I'm pretty sure we are getting an Aux Fuel tank, between 22-56 gallon. I'm leaning towards 22-30 gallon.

The craziest thing was my trailer tires. My rear trailer axle tires pretty much are done after this trip. The added little bit of sway from the wind, speed, and third season has done them in. The tires are at the wear bars, fronts are still good to go.

Rears


Front axle.

 

You're always welcomed!!

 

Hell, we would have made better time, that I am sure of.

Not sure I am ready for my girls to meet your son. They have a little soft spot for handsome Hispanic boys. Lol

 

It is so nice. My wife has a Class A CDL, so so was used to running big trucks.

We are still out. Sturges area, Hill City.

 

Don't let him fool you. He's as white as I am.

 

Still a little heart breaker.

 

Even some Tundra muscle beside me.

 

~8200 lbs trailer, 9000 lbs truck, 17200 combined.

My other half and I picked up some more rocks in ID for her collection.

 

No, I'm towing my TT with my truck.

 

Yeah, the rear tires on a tandem or triple axle trailer take a beating and scrub the ground pretty good. This was even made worse by traveling with full water, and in some cases pretty full on gray/black water.

I have a buddy that was pulling double bumper pulls, 25' TT and a 21' Chris craft behind that. He got some bad sway at 65 mph and totally destroyed his brand new tires on his single axle boat trailer. I was speechless. He thought he was going to die. His wife made him get rid of his 1/2 ton and go get a new 07 CC DM. The next upgrade was a 5th wheel trailer and sell the boat.

 

Yeah, it was ridiculous.

Now he is more safe...

 

It was exhausting for long hauls. For short trips in CO, the Tundra was a champ.

I also had no reserve when towing the flatbed and Jeep, which is heavier than the TT.

I always offer at least to the Colorado people, you ever want to know what 7-10k lbs behind your truck feels like, I can hook ya up.

 

Next time you're up my way, shoot me a call/text. Beers/food whatever y'all need are on me.

 

Done.

 

I wouldn't go that far. The Tundra pulls very well in most situations.

So I need to do some background on why I went the route I did. Everyone else in my Offroad crew purchased either a 34' enclosed gooseneck trailer to haul 2 Rock crawlers or a 40' toyhauler. We are sharing towing duties between 3 of us so we all can go and all have a place to stay after a long day of Jeeping. This is obviously way more than what a 1/2 ton could pull.

We have some kick ass members on this site and it is getting bigger every day. Hell, I can't even keep up with the welcoming committee duties...lol. What I am suggesting is start a thread about borrowing a trailer to do a tow test. Find out what you want, and ask here in your area if you can hook to the trailer. Another option is renting a TT for a weekend to see what you think.

If you were in CO, you could hook to either of my trailers and hit the mountains to see what you think. Most members would probably help you out. You know how guys are, they always like playing with their toys.

 

Anytime Jose. You know where I live...well for another 30 days starting right meow. You have my number. We could throw your truck on the trailer and see what 9500 lbs feels like and how the Tundra handles it. You probably will be pleasantly surprised at how well it does. It shocked me the first time I hooked to a heavy load.

 

Well, if your travels find you in Colorado Springs, let me know and you're more than welcome to test the shit out of mine.

Speaking of that, it is 10 pm, and I have 8 hours of pulling tomorrow starting at 7am. Fun fun.