Boat Towing - Ranger 31

I am considering purchasing a Ranger 31CB. Never towed a big boat like this...

I currently have a Ram 1500 ecodiesel, but plan on bumping up to a Ram 2500 with the Cummins.

Has anyone had experience towing East coast, Maine to Keys. I live in Baltimore, but certainly plan to tow this bad boy a few places.



Thanks,
Bob

You might think about a 3500, maybe with dual wheels. That boat weighs 11,500 lbs dry, at least 13,000 with gear and fuel. Plus a triple axle trailer will get it to almost 15,000 lbs. A few models of 2500s can tow that but without much margin.


David

Just check beam, height, and weight. We have a Grady 28, and the beam requires a special permit to tow. It's an annual permit as I recall, not a per-trip permit like for a truly oversize load. And I think a wide-load banner is required. I only did a cursory look at it and decided not to trailer it, so I'm going on recollection alone here.


Weight will probably only be a consideration for your trailer and tow rig, but I'll bet you are getting close to the limit. My truck's GVW tow capacity is 14,000, and once you factor in the weight of a trailer, it's a practical payload limit of around 10,000 lbs. And it makes for a very heavy tow. Your boat is probably right near that limit, so worth a careful check to be sure it all fits.


And last is height. My boat's air draft is 10' with antennas down. For trailering, add the water draft, plus the carrying height of the trailer, and you are probably getting close to 14'. It's not uncommon to encounter 14' bridge clearances, and of course lower in some cases.


It all might work out fine, but I'd suggest checking very carefully. You might also start to trigger per-state wide load rules.

If trying for mountains, any weather or highway speeds, you really don't want to be pushing up to max rated weight.

Yes a brilliant trailer helps, but if SHTF you want as big / long / heavy a TV as possible for maximum control.

It's the control & stopping, not whether you can pull it.

In addition to other's comments

Have you visited the TugNuts website to see if your question is asked and answered? Many RTs are towed out west with little difficulty. The best towing rig, trailer type, brake setup, lights and all sorts of minutiae should be found there. A Ram 3500 will tow 31,000 lbs.

I've towed an 11,000 lb boat/trailer combination with a 2500 series. No problem, but an RT 31 is pretty big. The 29 is easily towed and with same beam as RT 31.

I own currently a 2500 with the cummins. My advise, specially with boat and trailer total would be to upgrade to a 3500. It's not that the 2500 wouldn't be able to handle it - as it's rated to tow 17k. It's that I would want to have the dully - more rubber on the road and less likely you'll be being pushed by the trailer. I towed about 10-11k with the 2500 and felt over all it was about as much as I'd like to with that truck being single rear. Some of it boils down to personal preference and past experience.

bshillam said:

I own currently a 2500 with the cummins. My advise, specially with boat and trailer total would be to upgrade to a 3500. It's not that the 2500 wouldn't be able to handle it - as it's rated to tow 17k. It's that I would want to have the dully - more rubber on the road and less likely you'll be being pushed by the trailer. I towed about 10-11k with the 2500 and felt over all it was about as much as I'd like to with that truck being single rear. Some of it boils down to personal preference and past experience.

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Is the 17k rating with a ball or pintle hitch, or is that with a 5th wheel setup?

Hitch

Straight from the hitch.

bshillam said:

Straight from the hitch.

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Thats impressive..

Thanks for all of the great information.

I have been frequenting Tugnuts, and it is a great site.

I am weighing all the options. I will probably take the boat down to the keys by trailer 1x per year, and the same north, to maine or LI sound. I'll also pull and launch it myself each year. So it is not that much towing. I like the idea of staying within the Ram 2500 catagory, but not if it is a safety risk. Fortunately I haven't purchased the boat yet, so I've got a little time.

Bob

Well going much slower than normal will make all the difference safety wise.

Do-able if really that rare, but only if you have the self-discipline.

My comments above were based on the American insistence on maintaining normal highway speeds, no matter what.

In Europe the fact they can't is (partly) what allows for the much more generous ratings.

I used to move boats cross country for a living. Yes a 2500 may handle the job, but a 3500 dual rear wheel will do the job much better. Having the DRW will give you much more stability than SRWs. The 2500 may do fine but you will be much closer to the edge of safety. I used to tow with a 2500 and argued it was fine because I wanted it to be fine. Once I moved to a 1 ton DRW I realized how much better it was.

Will the trucks only function be to tow the Ranger, or will this be an everyday driver for you even when not towing the boat ?

I'd be inclined to go with the 2500 as it will be cheaper to purchase and feed.

With a little common sense you can mitigate the risks involved in getting close to the tow limit. Remember, tow ratings are for everyone. If its rated at 17k lbs, that means you could tow that amount up the rockies to denver. Driving the east coast is relatively flat. It sounds like you'll be doing 90% interstate driving, that's easier on a vehicle. I imagine it won't be in the heat of the summer that you're towing in Florida, that gives you a little more margin. If you're not the average chucklehead who's first time towing is a 2 ton truck with 15k pound boat, you have a little more safety margin. If the Chrysler legal department said you can tow 17k, you can probably safely tow 20k because they don't want law suits. I'm not advocating that, I'm just saying if they really thought the limit was 17,001, they wouldn't have put the limit at 17k.

Also the windage on a boat is considerably less than a large rectangular trailer. I was looking at an SUV once that had a different tow capacity ( higher ) if it was a boat vs anything else.

I'm sure many here will call me reckless and jump all over me, but limits are set for certain conditions and people. The further you are from those situations and people, the less applicable those limits are. If you have more common sense than the average person, and are towing in less severe conditions than the ratings were designed for, you should feel comfortable going closer to the tow capacity of the vehicle.

While a 250 may be rated to tow 17k. Remember there are a couple of more things to consider.... Payload, 10% of the gross boat and trailer weight say 1500lbs.. you and passengers and all the cargo may exceed the gvwr... the reason most people choose a 3/4 ton over a 1 ton is to keep the GVWR under 10,000lbs. My SBCC diesel has a curb weight of about 8000 lbs I assume the Rams are about the same... with 1500 lbs of tongue weight, that puts you within 500 lbs of the GVWR.... while the truck can handle more if something bad should happen and you were over the GVWR your insurance company may not be so understanding.... If it were me towing something that large it would be a 1 ton and probably a goose neck type trailer..

The truck will be my "back and forth" to work car, so it will only have other moderate use as a real truck. This is another reason for leaning toward the 2500.

Thanks for your input!

I haven't towed as much as Comodave but I did tow my 330 Sundancer several times including a couple of trips across the Cascade Mountains.

If the truck was going to be my daily driver there's no way I would get one with duallies. They're a royal PITA to park anywhere in a parking lot, turn in a relatively short radius and just a pain to drive in traffic. Let's face it, you're probably going to be towing a handful of times a year. A DRW truck is better at doing that. But the other 350 days of the year you're going to be wishing you had a truck that wasn't such a PITA to drive.

If you were towing a much as Comodave did you probably would want a DRW truck. If not, I'd vote for a SRW truck and it definitely would be a 1-ton.

"Fortunately I haven't purchased the boat yet, so I've got a little time."


The brake system for the trailer should be researched too.

rpelton said:

The truck will be my "back and forth" to work car, so it will only have other moderate use as a real truck. This is another reason for leaning toward the 2500.

Thanks for your input!

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Get a single wheel 1 ton.

jleonard said:

Get a single wheel 1 ton.

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Yes - the dually we owned for more than 5 years was quite capable but really a pain many times.

rpelton said:

Thanks for all of the great information.

I have been frequenting Tugnuts, and it is a great site.

I am weighing all the options. I will probably take the boat down to the keys by trailer 1x per year, and the same north, to maine or LI sound. I'll also pull and launch it myself each year. So it is not that much towing. I like the idea of staying within the Ram 2500 catagory, but not if it is a safety risk. Fortunately I haven't purchased the boat yet, so I've got a little time.

Bob

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Unless you just want a bigger truck, why go through all the expense of a big truck for two tows a year? Just contract with a hotshot tow company for the annual move and save tens of thousands of $’s. And lots of hassle too.

If you just want a bigger truck though, then buy one......

The price differential between a 2500 and 3500 is about $1500. Hardly significant when spending $300K for a boat. A well dressed brand new Cummins 6.7 powered Ram 3500 for less than $50K should be a great combination with the RT.

Sounds fun, and then you'd have a boat and truck that could go anywhere harbor based in the US or Canada. Drive the loop, take the Mississippi north from St Louis, hit all the Great Lakes, go to the west coast etc. This type of lifestyle is the allure of the RT it would seem. More to trailer boating life than pulling to FL.

We currently have a 36 Albin, docked in Maryland. We also have towed small boats alll over the east coast.

My plan is a few tows the first year, then more following. Ideally, we'd like to have the truck and boat for quite a while. I don't see towing as a terrifying activity, and my wife even likes the idea of stopping at KOAs when we need to spend a night on the road. She's good like that.

Hiring a tow company is a great idea but not the style we are looking forward to. Also, I will use the truck as my primary transportation (I am a college professor and I already get funny looks in my ram 1500 with a couple inch lift and nice rims), so going to a dually is not really practical.

I'm thinking 2500 or 3500, diesel, with lower geared rear end.

Thanks for all the great input.

Bob

For safety make certain the the trailer has hydraulic electric brakes. If surge brakes get electric over hydraulic. Use only trailer "E" rated tires on the trailer not truck tires. Also, consider the length of the the towing package. A fifth wheel style hitch will great increase you maneuverability.

I my experience, a fifth wheel hitch tows much easier than a bumper hitch, but is much more difficult to to reverse. Having the attach point over the rear axle makes it harder to steer the trailer when backing up, a bumper hitch 4 or more feet behind the axle allows the trailer to be swung from side to side when backing causing the trailer to respond in a more direct manner.

I would also suggest that you get a 4x4. A heavy diesel truck will get stuck really easy. It will also make it much easier to get the boat back up the ramp. I have had to pull several a 2 wheel drive diesel up the ramp and they were not pulling a boat and trailer that weighed 14K.

Woodland Hills said:

I my experience, a fifth wheel hitch tows much easier than a bumper hitch, but is much more difficult to to reverse. Having the attach point over the rear axle makes it harder to steer the trailer when backing up, a bumper hitch 4 or more feet behind the axle allows the trailer to be swung from side to side when backing causing the trailer to respond in a more direct manner.

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Yes a bumper hitch responds more quickly and for a proficient backer is probably better. But the slower response of a fifth wheel is probably better for the casual tower/backer. Also if you need the quick response to make a sharp turn while backing you probably should find a better place to back up into.



David

FYI, I came across this Great Harbor towing resource link about a year ago when looking at their TT-35 boat. It consolidates the oversize towing sites for all states and also lists an indication of the permit cost by state.


https://www.greatharbourtrawlers.com/towing-resources.html


We bought a used Rosborough 246 this past spring in Florida and were disappointed to find the number of campgrounds that would not allow overnight "boator-homing" on their properties when moving our boat north. That is based on our experience along the I-95 corridor, hopefully the campgrounds will be more relaxed out west.


We were allowed to stay at a state park in SC and one private campground near the GA/FL border but got turned down at several other private campgrounds in FL, NC and a county park in FL. I'd say our success rate was under 50%. We ended up just picking up our pace and spending nights at truck stops.



If you have not stumbled upon Jim and Lisa Favors blog yet about "boater-homing" aboard their RT29, you may want to track down some of their posts from about 9-12 mo ago when they transitioned from a RT27 to their new RT29.



Trailer Trawler Life Blog – Cruising United States and Canada


The towing issue was addressed back then and they would probably be happy to respond to any questions you have.


--Mike

Guess I will jump in here and share my thoughts..; First I just bought a 2018 Ram 2500 w/ Cummings diesel. 4w drive and 8 ft bed. Previously had a 2006 Ram with Hemi.. I have pulled a 5th wheel RV through 48 states and probably 200k miles.. also have pulled my boat to Florida and around Virginia enough to have an opinion .. Yes we all have those.. The boat is a 28 ft cabin cruiser with 8.6 beam. Outboard powered. Yes the wife and I have completed the Great Loop by water in 2015.

Yes you will need to verify boat and trailer towing height. the 2500 is rated at 20,000- lbs. the Jake break keeps things under control when breaking and the diesel gets a lot better mileage than the hemi. the single rear wheels will work just fine and you will be able to get into a standard parking space. with the 4 door cab and 8 ft bed it does take a ball field to turn around. How ever now days you will have to search for the 8ft bed or special order as they sell more with shorter beds.

All said and done I would do the same again.

According to the Ranger site - the R31 is 11,000 lbs DRY and 13' 1" height on trailer. Allowing for fuel, water, "stuff" and trailer, at least 15,000lbs tow weight. Buy the truck you need and have fun.

Ken

Safety requires staying well under the max rating of the tow rig.

Especially long trips, high speeds or hilly terrain.