spazboz

iTrader: (2)

That's pretty cool. We pulled my friends 357 back from LOTO with his HD Duramax. With a good trailer under the boat, it towed REALLY well. You really can't hardly see the truck in the pic. Its an 08' HD SRW Duramax Crew Cab. NO complaints from us.

jeff32

same here. 3/4 ton is ok, 3500 dually is much better! Last summer I pulled with a monroe truck conversion chevy 4500. I felt like there was nothing in the back!!!!

sleek1

I've got a 353 that I tow with an 01 F250, 4" lift and 35" tires. I have no complaints, tows and stops fine. Sure a dually is probably more stable (never towed with one), but I prefer the single wheel for a daily driver.

handfulz28

How bad could it be? Save the money for a new truck and just use the Pete for the couple of long hauls.

Can you use the 4500 for the local stuff?

Just my $.02 but the 357 is comparable to a 382; over 15k EASY on that steel trailer. Diesel dually is the only way to go. Or the Pete.

sleek1

Handful has a good point concerning the weight of a 357. I didn't realize they were that heavy. Hooked up to the truck on an aluminum trailer with maybe 50 gal. of fuel, my 353 came in at 11,400lbs. If the 357 trueley weighs 14,000+ with trailer, I would think you'd need an F450 or bigger. Good luck.

tgrantz

6 mpg, no A/C, no power steering, and 13 speed is not much fun for me (a novice truck driver).

I also didn't realize how heavy that thing was - i was thinking closer to 13k with trailer.

Looks like i'll be looking for a dually. Luckily i have some local friends that can put the boat in until i find a good deal. Thanks again for the input

t500hps

according to NADA the 357 is 9,000 lbs (500 more than the newer 353, and 1,500 lighter than the 382). I would have guessed it to weigh as much as my 382. The steel trailer is over 3,000 easy though....then fuel/gear/etc. My guess with fuel and gear would put the load in the low 14K lbs range.....similiar to my 382 when loaded since I used an aluminum trailer.

BTW: If the truck must be your daily driver......I'd go for single rear wheels in a 1 ton truck.

handfulz28

RE: NADA listed weights
I'd love to know how Formula came up with those weights. By '91 the 357 was listed at 9650. I'd say for the SR1 vintage, the NADA weights are at least 1000lbs lighter than real world.

Oof...no power steering and no A/C. OK, that could make it tough. Never driven a big rig myself, but do you have to use all the high and low ranges with a "light" load?

Oh yeah...beautiful looking setup, including the Pete!

t500hps

just looked up weights of all 1989 Formula's.....could they have listed these weights without engines?
The 357 w/ swim platform is listed as 37'7''.....the 382 is 38'2". No way that old school 357 is 1500 lbs lighter if it's only 7 inches shorter.

Cold Sweat

tgrantz, did you store your boat at Bradys Bend ? Looking for a place to store our 357. Took our 29' Fountain last fall, really tight. Kept the 357 at home. If there is a better place, please let me know. Thanks, Bob
Like I said, our HD handled the boat just fine. Trailer brakes better work well for sure.