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Old 01-29-2017, 08:17 AM   #15
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Bob, This is slightly off topic, but does "sort of " relate to gearing! Something we did not discuss, my fault, is your boondocking! This may have been covered and I missed it. For your needs(you mentioned steep, washboard, ect.), is a 4 wheel drive giving you a transfer case. For those slow,steep, curvy, washboard roads, when placed in 4 low, gives you the ability to "inch your way" through while keeping the engine at a desirable rpm range. We've done a few of those situations towing our unit (19K lbs.),and would not have even considered it without 4 Low! memtb
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Old 01-29-2017, 04:13 PM   #16
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My 2014 DRW Ram has 3.42 gears... does fine with our 5er. I lock out 5th at speeds below 70 or in the hills. Keep in mind tire diameter. A DRW with 3.42 is not the same as a SRW with 3.42 due to taller tires wheel packages on the SRW trucks
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Old 01-29-2017, 08:35 PM   #17
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This is where the capacity charts for each truck comes into play as mentioned earlier.

While technically yes, the numerically higher the axle ratios provided a greater multiplication of torque, and in theory a higher ability to tow, that doesn't mean the manufacturer rated the truck to tow more with the higher gear. Sometimes there are other limiting factors (axle weight limits, etc). Though generally, you will see a higher tow rating given a higher gear ratio, but it isn't always a given, especially if the truck has been aftermarket regeared.

The Trailerlife tow guides are very useful for this info, but not absolute correct when you want to dive into specifics.

What's more important is to not worry about the gear ratio so much when cross shopping GM vs Ford vs Dodge. Use each trucks chart to decide, because like others have posted, a 3.55 geared Dodge may be rated the same as a 3.73 GM. They aren't apples to apples across brands.

And ditto on the "stay away from the 6.4L Fords". Either get a GM, 2011 or newer preferably for the better frame, or get a 6.7L Ford. I would have done the same, but I didn't want to spend on the premium that was going for them when I purchased mine.


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Old 01-30-2017, 06:28 AM   #18
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timetogo - 6' bed on the one ton to keep over length as short as possible.
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Old 01-30-2017, 08:40 AM   #19
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Bob - if I remember correctly your looking at GM, but will echo what others have said.

you want the deepest gears (numerically HIGHER) the model truck your looking at buying can get. but IGNORE what the other brand (or even other years of that manufacturer) use.
Ford vs GM vs Dodge will be very different as it really depends on the transmission ratios etc etc etc.

Here is the 2016 ford towing guide, I know you arent getting a ford, but its interetsing.

http://www.fleet.ford.com/resources/...e_r3_Nov12.pdf
Scroll down to page 18 - F-250/350/450 Super duty Pickups 5th wheel towing.

You can see how the towing rating increases as the rear axle ratio gets deeper (numerically high).

A F-250 can have 3.31 gears, a F-350 will usually have 3.73, Duallys 4.10s, F-450's up to 4.30.

Now there is a lot more that goes into towing capacity then just gears, but typically the heavier the load, the deeper gears you want. Note the deeper gears help while loaded, but are detrimental UNLOADED.

Full time we've found we are loaded approx 1/4th of the time - the other 3/4 of the miles we are just in the truck with the trailer parked at camp. So it goes back to that balance....which do you optimize for? .
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Old 01-30-2017, 10:34 AM   #20
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Buy a truck that is designed to tow the maximum weight that you may ever want it to tow. I recommend you get the lowest (numerically highest) gear ratio offered.

You may pay a slight penalty in fuel economy when running empty, but you will spend more time & miles in higher (transmission) gears when towing. Your engine won't have to work as hard if your differential is doing its share of the work. Let's face it, if you're worried about burning a little more fuel, you shouldn't be driving anything capable of towing anyway.

They say that your third RV is the right one and they generally don't get smaller. We're on our third fiver and our third truck. If you buy a 350/3500 diesel dually with the lowest rear end you can get, you'll be ready for whatever you decide to move up to later.

Good luck with whatever combo you end up with!

Happy trails,
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Old 01-30-2017, 12:03 PM   #21
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I owned a 2006 5.9 Dodge with 4.10 gears. They will get worse mileage on the highway at anything over 2000 RPM, but around the city they do better. My gearing was compounded by the fact I had the G56 manual, which does not have a very aggressive overdrive. The thing would pull a house down the street without a trailer though, especially in 4 low and in granny gear.
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Old 01-31-2017, 05:47 AM   #22
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Thanks everyone - I've learned a lot from you all. Lots of people that know their stuff on this forum - I'm impressed.
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Old 01-31-2017, 07:26 AM   #23
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Originally Posted by CascadeBob View Post
Thanks everyone - I've learned a lot from you all. Lots of people that know their stuff on this forum - I'm impressed.
OK, one more item which no one has mention to you! This depends on the model of truck you are looking at. If you want a new SRW truck from Ram than all of the items mention above are out of the window. WHY? Ram only offers a 3:42 gear set in the SRW configuration regardless of 2500 or 3500 model. If you order a 3500 DRW truck with a manual transmission, then you can get either 3:42 or 3:73 gear sets. The 4:10 gear set is only offered with the automatic transmission DRW trucks.

You need to study the trailer towing guides for each make and model to determine what is offered and what is not, generalities do not work anymore. One reason is the CORP FUEL MANDATES by the feds, to improve fuel mileage on trucks.
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Old 02-04-2017, 01:17 PM   #24
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Please stop using a colon when referring to axle ratios - or at least use it correctly. An axle ratio should have a decimal point 3.73 or 4.10, the colon should come after it so correctly written it should be 3.73:1 or 4.10:1 which might clear the matter of which ratio up a bit. The first number is the driveshaft turns to make one wheel turn. So a 3.73:1 rear axle would take 3.73 turns of the driveshaft to make one turn of the wheels.
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Old 02-05-2017, 05:08 AM   #25
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Randy the Fox, thanks.


That straightforward, brief explanation of gear ratios clears up a lot for me and makes the whole thing much easier to understand.


Thanks again.
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Old 02-05-2017, 08:03 AM   #26
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Originally Posted by Randy the sly old fox View Post
Please stop using a colon when referring to axle ratios - or at least use it correctly. An axle ratio should have a decimal point 3.73 or 4.10, the colon should come after it so correctly written it should be 3.73:1 or 4.10:1 which might clear the matter of which ratio up a bit. The first number is the driveshaft turns to make one wheel turn. So a 3.73:1 rear axle would take 3.73 turns of the driveshaft to make one turn of the wheels.


Jeez. I just had a flashback. My Dad worked for GM. That explanation sounded just like the one I got about 40 years ago. I was in the adults are really dumb phase of my life so he may have had to repeat it..... a few times. [emoji3]
I haven't forgot it though.
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Old 02-05-2017, 12:05 PM   #27
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I also remember a time where you had more than two engine and rear end choices. I believe sometime in the 80s, GM put out a trailering guide that listed all of the engine and rear gears and the CGWR for each pairing. The suggestion was to pick the largest engine/smallest rear end to achieve the desired CGWR. Their reasoning was that the engine, not the gearing would do the work when you were towing or hauling - which they realized was probably going to be less than 1/2 the time. The engines of the day ranged from inline and V6's to big block V8's.

There advise was sage for the day, get a big engine and don't work it hard and you will get better MPG, yet when you need it, the power will be there to haul your trailer or heavy load - yes MPG will suffer.

Today we seem to have gotten into a more finely tuned way of thinking about CGWR and rather than creating options to select it based on many overall drivetrain options, have simply tuned for the max. It is no longer a matter of what is best for the consumer, but can I beat the other guy's numbers.

I have a new 17 Silverado 2500HD with the new DMax on order. I know that I won't be towing anything close to its maximum capacity. Yet I have no choice in rear end gears that might be better overall for my needs - I would like to sub a set of 3.42 or even 3.08 in order to achieve better street mileage and still be able to tow my 7000 lb TT.

Perhaps this is only a GM issue, but it also baffles me trying to read Ford's CGWR charts as they are only partly drivetrain related ie you can change the GVWR without changing the drivetrain and that changes the CGWR - Go figure. I can see the GVWR changing the payload and perhaps the tow rating but the CGWR should be totally related to the drivetrain.
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Old 02-05-2017, 12:21 PM   #28
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I purchased a Ram 3500 diesel last October. It has 3.42's in it. I haven't towed my TT with it yet but I'm anxious to try it out. Had a 6.0l 2500 Chev with 3.73's previous. It handled the weight of the trailer fine but shifted gears lots with any amount of slope to climb.
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