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10' cabover truck loading calc's - help needed

loading truck weight center of gravity

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#1 flyboykev

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Posted 01 February 2017 - 12:14 AM

hi everyone,

 

was curious about my loaded weight so I went to the dump and got scale readings for my total weight, front axle weight and rear axle weight.

 

here are the details:

 

1993 F250 XLT w/ new load range E tires 10ply

from door pillar factory sticker:

 

total GVWR 8800 lbs

front GAWR 3920 lbs

rear GAWR 6084 lbs

 

scale readings below:

 

total GVWR 9020 lbs

front axle     3740 lbs

rear axle      5300 lbs

 

conditions:

 

full fuel tanks, empty 20 gal water tank, no passenger, 215 pound driver, 100 pounds of jack stands & jack posts, 75% normal camping gear loaded. Estimated 1995 Alaskan camper weight of 2000 pounds.

 

questions:

 

why do my combined axle weights add up to 10,000 lbs but my GVWR is only 8800 lbs? safety factor?

 

can I exceed my GVWR rating if I don't exceed my axle weight ratings?

 

what sort of safety factor does Ford build into their trucks for loading?

 

thanks, any help would be appreciated.

flyboykev


Edited by flyboykev, 01 February 2017 - 12:15 AM.

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#2 Grrlartist

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Posted 01 February 2017 - 04:55 AM

Hi Kev~

 

I'm a new vintage AK owner and have been dealing similar questions recently. I can pass on a little info I learned here, specifically about the axle weights and GVWR. This is is NOT my personal knowledge, but things I gleaned from folks who actually know what they're talking about!

 

The GVWR is the total weight your vehicle is rated for. There's no way to change that rating, though there are overload springs and other things designed to help your truck handle a big load more safely. Having said that, your GVWR is the max your vehicle is intended to safely carry.

 

The individual axle rating is the max that is allowable on each axle, so if your GVWR is 8800 and your rear axle is rated for 6084, that just means you could distribute weight as follows: no more than 6084 on the rear (and the remainder on the front axle), the total not to exceed the GVWR. So, the rear axle rating being higher doesn't make the overall GVWR higher, it just tells you the truck is designed to be safe at a maximum rear axle weight of 6084. Make sense? in other words, although the truck is designed to carry 8800 lbs, you can't put all that weight on the rear axles and still be safe. If you want to wade through other discussion of this issue, you can check out my thread "Just got a 8 ft NCO and have tons of questions". The guys have been very informative about lots of stuff in that thread.

 

Do you have weight for your truck without the camper? I did not have that info, and I learned something interesting. If you do a free VIN search online, it will tell you among other things the curb weight of your vehicle. I learned from an insurance adjuster that curb weight is the weight of your vehicle with appropriate fluids and half a tank of gas (excluding any extras such as bed liner, etc). Dry weight is as it came off the assembly line, so no fluids at all. That's not directly related to your question, but it helped me do some figuring since I did not have an unloaded weight for my truck.

 

I am in a somewhat different situation than you because my truck is a half ton and my camper is an 8ft NCO. I haven't gotten a scale reading on it yet, but I'm running pretty close to the line as well. The 1970 8 ft NCO was advertised as being designed for a half ton or 3/4 ton. We'll see what my actual numbers are when I get there!


Edited by Grrlartist, 01 February 2017 - 04:57 AM.

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#3 Ripperj

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Posted 01 February 2017 - 10:30 AM

If I am reading your numbers right I think you are in great shape. 220# over is nothing to sweat, you are not exceeding the axle ratings. Just make sure you have good tires with thje right air pressure.
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#4 ntsqd

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Posted 01 February 2017 - 01:38 PM

I get the impression that the axle ratings are what each axle can carry, but the vehicle rating is what the brakes can stop. It may be possible that there is/was a 10k rated version of your truck and it might be worth looking into the differences in the brake systems - if any.


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Thom

Where does that road go?

#5 flyboykev

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Posted 01 February 2017 - 08:17 PM

thanks everyone for the advice. I don't have the dry weight for just the truck but I will hunt it down.

 

When I got the F250 along with the camper, I had to overhaul the front brakes due to the caliper boots being melted to the pads and rotors were warped.

 

The previous owner told me he had 5 guys up front with all their gear including a 12' aluminum boat on the boat lift rack installed by Brian at Alaskan Camper.

 

Truck was fully loaded with their gear including an outboard and they drove twice up the Alcan Highway from Seattle and back on fishing trips without any issues. I'll never get that loaded.

 

I put brand new Goodyear 10-ply Kevlar sidewall Load Range E tires on this truck and operate at max loaded pressure.

 

The 93 F250 has an original 38k miles with a Dana 50 IFS (independent front suspension) front end and a 10-1/4 Ring gear heavy duty rear end.

 

next steps:

Upgrading OEM to Bilstein shocks, install front hitch receiver for a cargo carrier to haul my small generator, spare fuel and propane tank and will keep under 200 pounds. Add an aftermarket transmission cooler for my research shows that the E4OD 4 speed transmission gets hot and blows the output shaft seals. I will haul my jacks and stands on the camper instead of the cab back seat area to minimize front axle loading and re-distribute that 100lbs. I also told my girlfriend she has to ride up front naked to save weight too :D


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#6 Durango1

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Posted 04 February 2017 - 12:19 PM

I will haul my jacks and stands on the camper instead of the cab back seat area to minimize front axle loading and re-distribute that 100lbs. I also told my girlfriend she has to ride up front naked to save weight too :D

Most remove their jack stands once the camper is on the truck. Less weight and they don't get hung up on stuff/damaged. This way your girl friend can at least keep her panties on...


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#7 longhorn1

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Posted 04 February 2017 - 01:36 PM

Funny. Good laugh to start my Saturday off. JD
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http://texaslonghorns01.blogspot.com/

 

Ford F-250 Long bed, 2014 Grandby

 






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