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Old 11-25-2022, 09:11 AM   #57
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bedlam View Post
Ford uses axles rated at almost 10k lbs on their SRW's but the wheels and suspension are rated for less. Upgrade the stock suspension with Torklift StableLoads or replace the rear spring pack with a heavier set from SDTruckSprings.com the wheels can be upgraded to 4500 lb Vision Heavy Hauler 81 rims and 245/70r19.5 LRH PR16 tires to give your wheel setup 9000 lbs on the rear.
...so new (and expensive) rims, tires, springs etc. or spend the money on a DRW truck which will tow better anyhow due to the longer wheelbase and more stable DRW platform, never mind being actually under the rated weights....I know which choice I'd make.

First I've heard of the SRW's having 10,000 lb axles (Ford rates the M275 at 7,230 lbs); my Dana M300 is rated at 9,995 lbs and is the axle used in the F350 DRW, F450 and F550. SRW's use the Sterling 10.5" or the Dana M275 if a diesel or gasser with optional 4.30 gears.


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Old 11-25-2022, 09:18 AM   #58
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Homeby5 View Post
Question from someone ignorant. How did you calculate the GVWR? I have a Crew Cab F350 6.7l and when I ordered the truck, they let me select the sticker numbers. I could have selected 10,000lbs or 11,200lbs or let Ford do it. It was my understanding that was for insurance purposes and the actual GVWR is more and the sticker isn't accurate. Is that true?
Anyway...I guess I need to educate myself more because I don't overthink this like you guys. I looked at the manual Max Weight Distribution (20,000lbs) with my setup and I assumed that was my safe towing capacity as long as tongue weight is good.
I would assume 99% of the people on the road would think your truck could handle your rig with no problems. I cannot imagine buying a $100k truck and then loosing sleep over a few hundred pounds. Again...I'm not arguing and I am sure you guys are correct. I probably need to be more diligent like you guys.
You'd have to ask the manufacturer's engineers how the calculate GVWR but yes, some trucks are available with a paper derate for insurance/licensing purposes. For those trucks you should be safe to use the "non-derated" numbers.

As far as the rest; you are in good company as many/most people don't understand that the "max tow rating" of a truck is largely an unobtainable, fictitious number and you will almost always run over the TV's GVWR/payload and perhaps even axle and tire ratings long before you get to that number. This is especially prevalent with half ton owners looking at "max tow" ratings of up to 14,000 lbs when the reality is they are decent tow vehicles at half that number or less.


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Old 11-25-2022, 09:47 AM   #59
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave Pelletier View Post
...so new (and expensive) rims, tires, springs etc. or spend the money on a DRW truck which will tow better anyhow due to the longer wheelbase and more stable DRW platform, never mind being actually under the rated weights....I know which choice I'd make.

First I've heard of the SRW's having 10,000 lb axles (Ford rates the M275 at 7,230 lbs); my Dana M300 is rated at 9,995 lbs and is the axle used in the F350 DRW, F450 and F550. SRW's use the Sterling 10.5" or the Dana M275 if a diesel or gasser with optional 4.30 gears.


Dave
Yeah, and the recall on the weak 2020-2021 rear axles also gives me the warm and fuzzies.

There's at least one active member that tried all the mods this guy suggested (on a GMC, but still), but he admits nothing compared to his dually when he switched to the proper tow vehicle.
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Old 11-25-2022, 03:26 PM   #60
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I don't know about other folks results. But I pull a 43 foot fiver with my F350 with no problems. In fact, I sometimes feel the need to look back and make sure my trailer is still there.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CrazyCamper2 View Post
Hi Everyone,
I made a very common mistake. I did not buy enough truck. I'll share my numbers and some background and hope that you can provide some guidance on what I need to buy next.

Background:
- Recently bought a 2021 F350 Platinum CC short bed diesel
- 11,500 GVWR
- 7230 rear axel rating
- payload is 3339
- I have a 2021 Alliance Paradigm 310. GVWR is 15,000, 35 feet
- I plan to travel 5-6 months a year. Next year we have a 3 month out west camping trip planned and in 2024 we head to Alaska for a 6 month trip

CAT scale numbers with trailer:
Steer Axle - 4800
Drive - 7400
Trailer - 11,220
Total - 23420

CAT scale numbers for just truck:
Steer - 4920
Drive - 3800
Total - 8720

It looks like I'm 700 pounds over on GVWR and 170 pounds over on the rear axel.

We just got this camper so there are upgrades that we'll be doing.

Things I still want to add to my camper:
- solar (adding 1200 watts on roof and adding 3 additional lithium batteries for a total of 6)
- a MORyde cargo tray (100lbs) in basement passthrough
- MORyde generator tray in front area (say 60 pounds)
- 3000 watt portable generator in front area (say 100 pounds)

I would have liked to have added a larger fuel tank on the F350 short bed, but with the current weight issue, that's not happening.

We bought a used camper that came with a washer/dryer in the front closet area installed and a dishwasher in the kitchen (which we're thinking of removing).

I think I need to move to a F350/3500 long bed (preferred) or a dually. I don't think we'd ever go bigger on our camper. We'd like to try and camp in national parks as much as we can. From what I've seen, a F350 Platinum long bed has a payload of around 4000 pounds. I think my current payload is 3480. Do you think the additional 500 pounds of payload in a long bed would safely put me inside the numbers given the upgrades I have planned?

I'm not happy about another truck search since I just got this one in August. But I want to make sure I safe on the roads as my wife and I head off on many RVing adventures.

Thanks for your thoughts.
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Old 11-25-2022, 08:29 PM   #61
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave Pelletier View Post
...so new (and expensive) rims, tires, springs etc. or spend the money on a DRW truck which will tow better anyhow due to the longer wheelbase and more stable DRW platform, never mind being actually under the rated weights....I know which choice I'd make.

First I've heard of the SRW's having 10,000 lb axles (Ford rates the M275 at 7,230 lbs); my Dana M300 is rated at 9,995 lbs and is the axle used in the F350 DRW, F450 and F550. SRW's use the Sterling 10.5" or the Dana M275 if a diesel or gasser with optional 4.30 gears.


Dave
youve got to go to the axle manufacturers info. the manufacturer includes suspension and chassis in their weight ratings, the axle maker only does a weight rating for just the axle. ive seen danas ratings, and you can do some research, fords ratings are way lower than danas, dana applies to my truck so thats all i looked into, im sure aam has the same info. the assembly is only as strong as the weakest rated component, and its not the axle assembly.
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Old 11-26-2022, 11:31 AM   #62
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Hi Everyone, OP here. This has been very informative for a new Super Duty and 5th wheel camper person.

When I emptied out the remaining firewood in the truck, I could have had around 100 pounds of wood in there. Now that the truck is empty (except for the Anderson Hitch and some tools), I'm going to fill it up and re-weigh the truck. I'll post the updated weights.

Thanks to many for the comments on the tire weightings. This wasn't something I was aware of. I have Michelin LTX A/T LT 275/65R20 tires. Load Range E. The max tire load is 3750 at 80 PSI. When I'm towing, I run 80 in the rear and 60 in the front. Being over on tire rating is the scariest number of all!

My wife and I have moved to our retirement home in the Mountains. The mountain drive up is very windy and steep (our house is about 3300 in elevation). I back into my driveway. When pulling out of my driveway, my F350 cannot make the turn onto the road. I have to backup and adjust, then pull forward. Not a big deal, but I'm thinking with an F450, I could potentially make that turn. Not sure I'd like the rougher ride empty though.

I like the idea of emptying the camper completely and re-weighing. The previous owner made a lot of updates and I'm sure the updates are adding to the weight issue.

Thanks everyone!
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Old 11-26-2022, 01:06 PM   #63
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Yes, Ford lets you select the GVWR, however what you need to understand is that you are telling Ford how to build that truck. Build it with lighter springs and lower rated tires for the 10K GVWR, or heavier springs and larger tires for the 11,200# GVWR. It's not just a sticker choice. The manufacturer makes technical changes to some notable parts when you select the higher GVWR.



Quote:
Originally Posted by Homeby5 View Post
Question from someone ignorant. How did you calculate the GVWR? I have a Crew Cab F350 6.7l and when I ordered the truck, they let me select the sticker numbers. I could have selected 10,000lbs or 11,200lbs or let Ford do it. It was my understanding that was for insurance purposes and the actual GVWR is more and the sticker isn't accurate. Is that true?
Anyway...I guess I need to educate myself more because I don't overthink this like you guys. I looked at the manual Max Weight Distribution (20,000lbs) with my setup and I assumed that was my safe towing capacity as long as tongue weight is good.
I would assume 99% of the people on the road would think your truck could handle your rig with no problems. I cannot imagine buying a $100k truck and then loosing sleep over a few hundred pounds. Again...I'm not arguing and I am sure you guys are correct. I probably need to be more diligent like you guys.
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Old 11-26-2022, 06:05 PM   #64
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Originally Posted by Steve Rankin View Post
Yes, Ford lets you select the GVWR, however what you need to understand is that you are telling Ford how to build that truck. Build it with lighter springs and lower rated tires for the 10K GVWR, or heavier springs and larger tires for the 11,200# GVWR. It's not just a sticker choice. The manufacturer makes technical changes to some notable parts when you select the higher GVWR.
Yeah, that's not how it works; it's a paper derate, they don't change parts.

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Old 11-26-2022, 06:39 PM   #65
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Sounds like you have a very challenging drive to your house. You need to find a F-450 to see how much better it turns. When I had a F-450 I could easily make the turn at the small cul-de-sac at the end of my street. My smaller F-250 can not make that same turn. I think the wheelbase on my F-450 crew cab was 172" I think. The wheelbase on my short bed F-250 crew cab is 160". You also get bigger brakes on a F-450.

You do have another less likely option. For a few years Ford built wide track F-350 dually trucks as an option. I am thinking like 2015 and 2016 maybe, or maybe 2017 and 2018. If you could find one of these trucks used that would be a miracle.
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Old 11-26-2022, 07:35 PM   #66
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Wrong truck

Feel your pain!! Back in 15, I discovered that my Montana had overloaded my Ford 250 I upgraded to a Diesel Ford 350SD Lariat with camper pkg ( much improved turning radius and 450 front end), dually !
What I’m offering is to sell to a dream truck and save a bunch of money!! <84k mi and 100% ford dealer maintained (with records)
We have aged out and put our Vilano for Sale at local dealer.
Any interest? Ok to just call me on cell 979-777-2870 as “things “ get lost on these sites.
Will include 2 Honda 2000 generators, aux gasoline tank, and two locking plates, and custom exhaust system
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Old 11-27-2022, 09:48 AM   #67
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Too bad you went to the cat scale . You could have been happy.
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Old 11-27-2022, 10:02 AM   #68
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Too bad you went to the cat scale . You could have been happy.
Are you saying 'ignorance is bliss'?

That's like putting your head in the sand


I run heavy but when you are over the RAWR/Tire Ratings you NEED to be informed
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Old 11-27-2022, 10:06 AM   #69
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CrazyCamper2 View Post
Hi Everyone, OP here. This has been very informative for a new Super Duty and 5th wheel camper person.

When I emptied out the remaining firewood in the truck, I could have had around 100 pounds of wood in there. Now that the truck is empty (except for the Anderson Hitch and some tools), I'm going to fill it up and re-weigh the truck. I'll post the updated weights.

Thanks to many for the comments on the tire weightings. This wasn't something I was aware of. I have Michelin LTX A/T LT 275/65R20 tires. Load Range E. The max tire load is 3750 at 80 PSI. When I'm towing, I run 80 in the rear and 60 in the front. Being over on tire rating is the scariest number of all!

My wife and I have moved to our retirement home in the Mountains. The mountain drive up is very windy and steep (our house is about 3300 in elevation). I back into my driveway. When pulling out of my driveway, my F350 cannot make the turn onto the road. I have to backup and adjust, then pull forward. Not a big deal, but I'm thinking with an F450, I could potentially make that turn. Not sure I'd like the rougher ride empty though.

I like the idea of emptying the camper completely and re-weighing. The previous owner made a lot of updates and I'm sure the updates are adding to the weight issue.

Thanks everyone!

Truck....
Should reweigh with Full Fuel, ALL passengers and all stuff you would take when you go camping for REAL World weights

Trailer.......
Should be fully stocked, camp ready when you weigh also

You want 'camp ready' weights.
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Old 11-27-2022, 10:09 AM   #70
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If you guys would look at the Yellow door sticker on all trucks it will give you the Cargo Capacity that you can carry, forget about the gross weight numbers that you can pull. the only thing that matters is what you can carry, Cargo Capacity. My RAM 3500 DRW is over 6500 lbs
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