loch

We were talking in another thread about legal issues concerning hauling, it wasnt about being overloaded and i didnt want to sidetract the issue there.

A gentleman and i were in the coffee shop this morning, he was being quite boastfull of the fact he routinly pulled a load with his powerstroke that combined with his truck , trailor and load was 38,000 lbs. After his half hour rant and rave about the performance of his truck he asked my thoughts,(not really his best idea). My response was no im not the least bit impressed, i can pull a 80,000 lb semi off to start it, any good truck can. If you want to really impress me with your power stroke, then you try stopping that load from 60 MPH.

If your asking a truck to do more than its specs your being a fool, getting a load moving is one thing, stopping is a whole nother problem. It really bothers me that drivers never consider the things that can and will at some point happen. If you wish to risk your own truck and life thats up to you, but dont risk others.

My long winded point is, size your truck to your load, its safer for us all and will end up being cheaper. If you want to challenge your truck, thats what sled pulls are for,,,,,,,,,,,

TonyB

I agree!

My rant....

Every day, I see TOO many 5th wheels that are too large, but the salesman said they could. Otherwise, they would not be able to sell it, right?

People do NOT understand weight and the need to stop that weight.

People also do not understand that cutting off a truck trailer, meaning anything from a 1500 w/ light load to a 3500 dually w/ 35' 5th wheel, is OK to do. Then, they get upset when their cute little car gets crushed!


Tony

Russ Roth

Ya oughta see what they do when you're pulling 100,000 plus down the highway.

pind

I'm sure some people might recall a long time ago, when someone posed the question about which clutch was the best to get for hauling 40,000lbs. And being the tactful type, I told him that it didn't matter so much which clutch he got, but the package it came in better say Peterbilt on the side of the hood.

It comes down to the fact that I have hauled some truly ridiculous loads with my trucks. however, I do exercise a lot of common sense as to road speed, and I make sure I have the maximum amount of braking power that I can get for those loads. Actually, I make sure I have the maximum braking power available for ANY load. It just makes sense.

I have seen the results of too much trailer, and too little truck, too many times. I have seen a 40' tridem 5th wheel holiday trailer, get squirrely and upset a 4700 series international truck. I have also seen a 32' stock trailer push a 5500 gmc through a guardrail, on a descent in less than optimum conditions. What makes a person think that a 2500 or 3500 series truck would handle that stuff at all??? Who knows.

Like loch mentioned, size the truck to the load, or the load to the truck, but don't go overboard. Its better to see everyone get home alive.

RickG

When I was delivering RV's there was a guy at one lot with a Ford Expedition about to buy a pretty large travel trailer . He asked me if his truck could pull it . He didn't know what the trailer weighed . I showed him where to find the VIN plate on trailers . I asked what engine and rear axle gear ratio he had . He didn't know . . He lifted the hood and he had a 4.6 , no tow package . We checked his owner's manual . The trailer weighed 2,000 lbs. more than the tow rating for his setup . He said "Well , I don't plan on going up many hills " and bought it anyway .

PChouinard

Just being able to stop that weight is not enough.
You need to be able to stop it on a 6% downgrade in a curve. This is where you are gonna need the most controlled braking under normal cicumstances. We have a few here in AZ and while it's fun to spin up a turbo and pull those grades, it's best to be able to go down the other side in controll.
Rule of thumb for me is go down at about the same speed you came up.

Jeff in TD

If you cruise through any RV park, chances are about 1/2 of the rigs are overloaded.

I don't consider the ratings magic, like 1 pound below is safe and 1 pound over isn't, but I like to at least be close.

When I decided I wanted a bigger toyhauler 5th wheel, I first sold my SRW 3500 to a buddy and got a dually.

In addition to being legal and safer, it is much more stable and relaxing to drive (even when I still pulled my small 5th wheel).

I ran the 40' Patio Hauler and dually over a CAT scale on my way back from the dealership (tanks empty, trailer empty).

I got 4760 front axle, 6440 rear axle, 9000 trailer axles. I've seen SRW trucks, or even 3/4 ton trucks pulling similar trailers, which I think is just asking for a problem.

RAMRODD

I have been weighted by the DOT at over 37K (I am registered for 38K)after inspection of the trailer and truck registration they said have a safe trip.

3rd gen trucks do have good brakes add a exhaust brake and have your trailer brakes working properly fast stops are not a issue.

I am no stranger to driving a Semi I know how fast they slow down when you have to slam on the brakes. All I can say is even with a heavy load behind my Ram it will slow down just as fast.

Bonshawman

Before I purchased my FL70, I hauled my firetruck (18K) on my 25' goose (6K) with my 3500 from NJ to Florida. So the trailer/load was 24K with around a 6K transfer, leaving 18K resting on the 20K rated trailer axles.

I had the Pac exhaust brake, which worked great and really added to safe stopping. I was mindful of speed, entered every scaled from NJ to FLA and had no problems. Now that I have the FL70, I have hauled the same (firetruck and trailer) and she handles/responds/stops much better, and it is a safer set up. The FL also has the Pac exhaust brake.

I know that exhaust brakes can be expensive, but it is great for safety and peace-of-mind, especially should one encounter a trailer brake issue. Also, my 05' 3500 (just turned 40K miles), is well maintained and in top shape, as should any vehicle towing a trailer on any road.

nkennedy

If a person is worried about stopping a load, would it be the GCWR that you wouldn't go over? I hear a lot about 3/4 tons & fifth wheels being over the GVWR. My truck is over the GVWR (8800 lbs) for the truck, but under the GCWR(20k lbs) for the truck as well as my GAWR (6040 lbs) when hauling our fifth wheel (11.7K lbs). It feels safe & secure going down the road. I don't think I would want to go a lot higher on the trailer weight though. My truck does have the camper package, so I look at it like a 1 ton SRW which Dodge didn't offer in 01'.

Busboy

Have you actually weighed your truck with the 5ver hooked up? If all you are going by is the manufacturers pin weight then you could be way off. Adding weight aft of the axles would decrease pin weight.

24valvepuller

If it something you do all the time and have previous experience doing so then 38-40 k isn't all that bad with the right equipment. With my 20k gn flatbed alot of the time when I pulled it I was over 35k, the trailer had good brakes, the truck brakes were ok for a 2000 but not as good as the newer trucks. This is not to say that a guy that has only ever towed his little utility trailer around should go out and hook up to 30k, but for somebody who is used to it it is not a big deal. I treat my Pete the same way, if the tires under it will hold it the throw it on, but I live by the motto that anything under 60k on the deck is an LTL

loch

Sorry i dont get the 40k being remotely safe, in either braking or steering, thats just on the edge of insane.

The Dodge Ram Heavy Duty Cummins Turbo 600 boasts an enormous towing capability of 15,500 lbs., a payload of 5,020 lbs. and a Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR) and Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) of 23,000 lbs. and 12,200 lbs. respectively when properly equipped

Thats thats the rating on a 2005, it matters little if your approved or you have enough experiance in pulling, thats it. The truck isnt desighned for more, its unsafe.

40k lbs is a load for a TRUCK not a pickup. Heck a kodiak C8500 is only rated at 42k, just a tad bit of truck size differance there. So if the Kodiak is rated at 42k then why would anyone even try to pull 40k with a 3500 pick up.

06er

Iam a cummins man but this issue is why i drive an 08 ford f450 for the tow rating of 24500 and i put it to the max. I sure wish it had a cummins both of my 06s pull twice as hard as my 450 but it does handle the load better but its also a dually and my dodges are not.

24valvepuller

what is unsafe about it, if you know how to drive it, steering is the same turn the wheel the way you want to go, and if you want to stop push on the middle pedal. My truck and trailer empty weigh roughly 14500 so take the awesome rated gcvw of 20000 and that lets me haul 5500 lbs according to Dodge. Thats quite a payload. If you don't feel safe doing it then don't, but don't ridicule the rest of us for working our trucks as they were made to. The thing that really scares me out on the road are grandma and grandpa doing 75 mph in their 50k retirement home on wheels, it takes no special training or liscense to drive one of these and alot of them have never driven anything bigger than a mini van before they got it