Sold the Zinger

[Tim D]

Originally Posted by anaro

thanks, I had to give tours to our neighbors yesterday.

Post some pics of the inside when you get time.

[johnboytoo]

Load it up and measure your REAL height...
found mine was different than the 'marketed' height !

And make it a game to see who's first to read the clearance sounds out loud during the first 4 or 5 tows...

MOST interstates are 13'6", but secondary roads are EXCITING - especially when you realize you didn't stow the directv antenna

just like backing though, you will get used to it and be able to judge (or not !)

[mark5w]

Nice 5er. Waiting for the inside pictures. I am concerned about the big sag on the truck. It looks like you're going to have to add air bags to get the rear end up. The front looks a little high also. Maybe airbags will help with everything.
Do the Chevy trucks have leafs or coil springs in the rear??

Best of luck with the 5er, will take the tour at Misty Mountain. C U then.

[jakesz28]

Chevy's still have leaf springs on the rear of their trucks.

[socoguy]

Congrats on that sweet 5er! You will get use to the height. Get yourself a truckers atlas it will advise on low clearance. The RV GPS models will as well. It does get the heart pounding the first few times you approach an overpass.

I agree with Mark on the squat, airbags will level it up nicely just remember they do not increase payload. Trailer looks a little nose high you may have to adjust hitch height. Of course it might just be the pic angle you will have fun figureing it all out

Best of luck enjoy your excitement!
Go Well.

[mike06081969]

Originally Posted by anaro

I went from a 30' tt to a 39' fiver. Length not too much of an issue. It is very tall! That is what intimidates me. Towing it isn't bad, you just have to be aware of how much more space you need for the 5er to track on a turn. I never even felt the tractor trailers today. I do feel some chucking when towing (i have the reese 16k). Don't know if that will change with loading the trailer or not. One big difference I discovered was during my backing practice in an empty parking lot across the street from the dealership. When backing up if I cut it real tight (think Jack knife), I couldn't straighten out while going backwards. The only way to straighten out was to pull forward. If you can tow that tt, you can tow the 5er.

Aileen, I would recommend air bags. When I had my 40' Blue Ridge fiver, it weighed in at 13,200 dry. It sagged the rear end of my truck, the steering was a little light, and chucking was a problem, especially on rough roads and bridges. With the Firestone Ride-Rites, I ran about 60 psi in them on that trailer and it leveled it up, drove great, and chucking was (almost) non-existent. I think you would be pleased with Ride-Rites or something similar. They're not cheap, but well worth it.

By the way, awesome camper. I think the Sabre is the best looking camper on the market.

[Tim D]

If you go with the Ride Rite look at Suspension Connection on-line. Cheapest place I found.

[anaro]

Ok thanks guys. Yes, I'm concerned about the squat also. I have no idea how to adjust the hitch, I have no owners manual and the dealership did the installation/set up (I know, never trust them). We plan to weigh it loaded next weekend. Payload should not be an issue with this setup so air bags or springs should be an ok fix, especially since its not handling light. I will have to look into them. Someone was talking about a cheaper spring fix at the rally. Can't remember what it was. Thanks.

[anaro]

Here are some interior pics of our 5er from the dealership's website.

[Tim D]

Looks very roomy. Nice.

[Loneoak]

Very pretty!

[sleepyT]

Aileen & Anthony
Just saw this post. Congratulations on the new 5er, VERY NICE.!!!!

[st.rodder2]

Nice trailer. To adjust the hitch height all you need to do is remove the 4 bolts and drop it down 1 hole. You need 6" of clearance between the top of the bed rails and the bottom of the trailer at the smallest point. Good luck and enjoy. You'll love towing the 5'er.

[RADMiller]

I know there was a post concerning suspension systems here a little bit ago, you may be able to find it in archives, Aileen.
Air bags are good and expensive, especially if you get the compressor with them. I installed on our f250 Timbrens Suspensions Enhancement System and love it. I dropped around 3" with 8748lbs on SRW, but with the Timbrens I dropped just an inch. You can check out the system on their website, and the prices on Amazon. I had mine installed for $50. My boss was so impressed he put them on our 2011GMC DRW 3500 that I use for pulling a 3 car hauler. Do your research before you invest

[socoguy]

Timbrens are good but absorb less road trauma then air bags. They certainly do help to level but are a stiff system. I found they were less effective to prevent chucking after a road bounce. I am a fan of air bags if you want it the compressor is convient b ut manual is no big deal
As RADMilller said do your homework. I know you are good at that.
Go Well

[anaro]

Thanks guys. Yes working on the homework now. I will be weighing loaded this weekend so I can get a better picture of the issue at hand (scales are less than 10 min from the house). Maiden voyage is next weekend and is only an hour away on flat land so I will see how it handles and looks loaded. In the meantime, I'm working on finding a decent truck shop down here for getting timbrens or air bags installed and trying to figure out why so much squat.

[OhioMark]

Beautiful trailer. I can't believe how roomy these trailers are now. That bedroom is as big as what you'd find in a house!

[anaro]

Originally Posted by OhioMark

Beautiful trailer. I can't believe how roomy these trailers are now. That bedroom is as big as what you'd find in a house!

thanks. Yes I know what you mean. I used to call my old TT my hotel on wheels. I call the 5er my house on wheels.

[Lloyd]

Do you think you have to much trailer for your TV?
Remember timbrens or air bags neither one will increase the payload on your TV.
The way it has your TV squatted down it must have a lot of pin weight. If that was an empty picture, you will have to do some weighing to see if you will be legal and safe towing.
A person sure doesn't want to have to be white knuckling it right from the start.

[anaro]

Lloyd, I should have plenty of payload but will know for certain when I weigh the rig loaded this weekend. I ran my numbers based upon scaled truck weights and fiver gvwr (I used a 25% pin weight just to be safe). I had 3400 lbs of payload available for pin weight and hitch weight after putting people, fuel, gear etc in the truck. I also had 3600 lbs available on the rear axle. Numbers were all within spec (5er gvwr is 13704 lbs). I will post complete numbers this weekend.