Newbie Truck Camper Sway Question
David Stevens
RVing in general. Just a simple question to cast into the fray, please
reply if you can help.
The hardware: 1965 Ford F250 (3/4 ton) with 8' cabover camper, Happijacs
holding it on, swaybar on the rear axle, hula doll on the dash. The
camper is a "[illegible] Huntsman" 1968 model, and the period paintjob
makes a truly neato retro package. Anyway, occasionally on the highway
the truck and camper will go into a swaying or porpoising motion which
can be kinda scary. It is a side-to-side motion, with a peculiar roll
on the longitudinal axis of the truck. My wife, riding shotgun, says
she can see the camper moving relative to the truck. It persists longer
than I would expect given the new gas shocks on the truck. Lifting off
the gas or light braking will help quell the motion, but it is damn
annoying and could be dangerous. At least my wife is convinced it is,
and who am I to argue? :) The camper has two mounts under the cabover
section that pivot and have female threaded sections. The truck has 4
holes on both sides of the cowl where "camper supports" had been
mounted, according to the previous owner. I have not seen this type of
support on any other units, but I suspect I need them. Are they still
made? Would they be useful in my situation? Ya got a pair for sale
cheap? Seems to me *some* flex between the cab and bed of the truck is
necessary, and bolting them firmly together at the front could damage
something. Today I did a bit of a web search for stuff, and only found
an inflatable rectangle that goes between the cab of the truck and the
cabover of the camper. Which seemed kinda Mickey Mouse, but perhaps
they work? Or maybe an airspring system to firm up the rear
suspension? It does not seem low or overloaded. I do not know the
weight of the camper, but it is only 8'. The GVW of my truck is 8500, I
should probably find a public scale just to check it out...
All info, advice and URLs are greatly appreciated. Unfortunately the RV
dealer where I bought the camper does only big trailers and motorhomes,
and were pretty clueless as to the ways of truck campers. We had tons
o' fun on our first trip, out to the delta here in Calif. Beats the
hell out of a tent, especially given the high winds and rain we had.
But before I get it up to 100 mph again my wife insists I solve the
swaying problem. :)
Thanks in advance!
And remove NOSPAM to reply,
David
Steph and Dud B.
I suspect the problem is that you were distracted by the antics of the hula
doll on the dash, causing you to lose control. I can also see why your wife
would be upset. If I had a hula doll in the truck with me Steph would sure
be pissed! <g> BTW - I know absolutely nothing about truck campers, sorry.
Perhaps a Hensley hitch would help? <vbg> Good luck with your search for
info.
--
Dudley (http://members.aol.com/stephndudb/rv.html) -
"Roughing it in 5,000 lbs. of stick and tin."
David Stevens wrote in message <38B869FE...@home.com>...
>Hello NG! My name is David, newbie to truck campers in particular and
>RVing in general. Just a simple question to cast into the fray, please
>reply if you can help.
>The hardware: 1965 Ford F250 (3/4 ton) with 8' cabover camper, Happijacs
>holding it on, swaybar on the rear axle, hula doll on the dash...
Will Tompkins
>on the longitudinal axis of the truck.
I want to be clear here: There's a side-to-side motion as well as a
for-and-aft (logitudinal) roll?
>My wife, riding shotgun, says she can see the camper
>moving relative to the truck.
Where is her reference point located when she sees this movement: on the cab
or on the bed?
>the truck has 4 holes on both sides of the cowl where
>"camper supports" had been mounted, according to the
>previous owner.
How exactly is the camper tied to the truck now?
>Seems to me *some* flex between the cab and bed of the truck is
>necessary, and bolting them firmly together at the front could damage
>something.
You need less than 1/2" in the front and less than 1/4" in the rear, which
is generally provided by preloading spring mounted turnbuckles to the
correct tension.
>I should probably find a public scale just to check it out...
Yes, I agree.
Will Tompkins
David Stevens
>>>>...
>
>
> I want to be clear here: There's a side-to-side motion as well as a
> for-and-aft (logitudinal) roll?
>
>>>>Mostly side to side, but more complicated. Almost elliptical, though not
fore and aft like a squat then dive from acceleration and braking. Sorry,
extremely difficult to put into words a complicated vector like that.
>
>
> >My wife, riding shotgun, says she can see the camper
> >moving relative to the truck.
>
> Where is her reference point located when she sees this movement: on the cab
> or on the bed?
>
>>>>From her seat she looks up to the corner of the cabover. I have not seen
it, being otherwise engaged, so I can only report that there was some relative
motion.
>
>
>
> How exactly is the camper tied to the truck now?
>
>>>>Happijack (that's the brand name) setup, preloaded spring thing-a-ma-bobs.
The right rear I am pretty sure is not currently springing much, as I think it
bottomed inside just as it tightened down. I'll double check and hack off an
inch or two of the long threaded hook.
Thanks for the ideas!
David
George E. Cawthon
how your camper is mounted but you definitely need flex between the cab
and the bed of the truck. There were some Ford pickups in the 60's that
had the bed and cab as a continuous structure. They would crack just
behind the cab part.
The inflatable rubber donut things placed between the top of the cab and
the camper overhang work by improving air flow. I had a camper that
would start jumping up and down at about 50-55 mph under some
conditions. Installing a rubber donut completely cured the situation,
course I never got my truck up to 100 mph either. Just watch out when
you go over high passes as you will have to monitor the inflation
pressure of the donut and let it out as you go up and increase it as you
go down.
As a starting point, buy an inflatable donut. They are cheap and may be
the only thing you need to cure your problem.
David Stevens wrote:
>
> Hello NG! My name is David, newbie to truck campers in particular and
> RVing in general. Just a simple question to cast into the fray, please
> reply if you can help.
>
> The hardware: 1965 Ford F250 (3/4 ton) with 8' cabover camper, Happijacs
> holding it on, swaybar on the rear axle, hula doll on the dash. The
> camper is a "[illegible] Huntsman" 1968 model, and the period paintjob
> makes a truly neato retro package. Anyway, occasionally on the highway
> the truck and camper will go into a swaying or porpoising motion which
> can be kinda scary. It is a side-to-side motion, with a peculiar roll
> on the longitudinal axis of the truck. My wife, riding shotgun, says
> she can see the camper moving relative to the truck. It persists longer
> than I would expect given the new gas shocks on the truck. Lifting off
> the gas or light braking will help quell the motion, but it is damn
> annoying and could be dangerous. At least my wife is convinced it is,
> and who am I to argue? :) The camper has two mounts under the cabover
> section that pivot and have female threaded sections. The truck has 4
> holes on both sides of the cowl where "camper supports" had been
> mounted, according to the previous owner. I have not seen this type of
> support on any other units, but I suspect I need them. Are they still
> made? Would they be useful in my situation? Ya got a pair for sale
> cheap? Seems to me *some* flex between the cab and bed of the truck is
> necessary, and bolting them firmly together at the front could damage
> something. Today I did a bit of a web search for stuff, and only found
> an inflatable rectangle that goes between the cab of the truck and the
> cabover of the camper. Which seemed kinda Mickey Mouse, but perhaps
> they work? Or maybe an airspring system to firm up the rear
> suspension? It does not seem low or overloaded. I do not know the
> weight of the camper, but it is only 8'. The GVW of my truck is 8500, I
> should probably find a public scale just to check it out...
>
Will Tompkins
If his GVWR is close, he can improve the truck's handling by beefing up or
replacing the rear spring package, making certain that the end result brings
the truck level with the camper loaded.
In addition to rear spring work, I found that heavy-duty airbags over the
rear axle and Rancho 9000 air-adjustable shocks significantly improved the
handling of my truck/camper combo.
Will Tompkins
George E. Cawthon
Your post provides a pretty defense that much of the problem is due to
overload or other inadequacy of the truck. I went to William Miller's
post that said he had had 1965 and a similar problem and that those
trucks weren't as sturdy as today's. Yet, it would be a very unusual
for 8' camper to overload an F-250 with a GVW of 8500#.
After reviewing all of the posts, I think the problem is overweight and
I think his truck doesn't have a GVW of 8500#. My '73 F-250 camper
special had a GVW of 8100, and I understood that this was considerably
higher than the 60's F-250. There is no way that an 8' camper could have
overloaded my 73. My father-in-law had a mid 60's and it wasn't
anywhere near as heavily built as my 73. I think it had a GVW of about
6500-6900#. Maybe some old timer can confirm the GVW of a '65 F-250.
David: Where did you find the GVW for you truck? You still need to get
a swaybar on the front in addition to whatever other beefing up is
needed.
Mike Niemela wrote:
>
> David
(snipped)
You mentioned the GVWR for your truck. This weight rating is
> the maximum the truck is capable of handeling when in top condition and
> under good driving conditions. It leaves little reserve for emergency
> manuvers or sudden changes in road conditions. For safety, IMO, a
> margin of 20% or a little more should be maintained. If a trip to the
> scales says you are within the GVWR then you have problems in other
> areas. What did the scales tell you about the distribution of the load
> fore and aft? Many times a camper will overload the truck on one end
> and make it handle badly.
>(Snipped)
>
Harald
David Stevens wrote in message <38B8D527...@home.com>...
>> How exactly is the camper tied to the truck now?
>>
>
>>>>>Happijack (that's the brand name) setup, preloaded spring
thing-a-ma-bobs.
>The right rear I am pretty sure is not currently springing much, as I think
it
>bottomed inside just as it tightened down. I'll double check and hack off
an
>inch or two of the long threaded hook.
The Happijac turnbuckles consist of 2 spring loaded units and 2 rubber
snubber units. The longer ones are spring loaded and go at the front of the
bed to allow some air loading flex. They should be tightened about 1/4 inch
after slack is removed. The shorter 2 turnbuckles go at the rear of the
bed. They should only be slightly snug. If you over tighten these rubber
snubbers, you will destroy them.
--- Harald ---
Email to: HARALD at FOXINTERNET dot NET
"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little
temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." -Ben Franklin
David Stevens
experience.
I got the 8500 GVW from some original sales literature I got with the truck.
However, y'all motivated me enough to get off my butt and check the data
plate on the truck; and lo and behold the actual GVW is 7500! I paid a visit
to my local scale today, fully loaded for camping except for my wife and
daughter and one of the gas tanks about 15 gallons light. The front axle is
at 3120 pounds, the rear 3660 pounds, for a total of 6780. Toss in the
family and it will be around 7000, give or take. I would consider that damn
near overloaded, right? That is a margin of only 7%, not the 20% Mike
prefers.
Short of the two obvious and silly suggestions of get a heavier truck or a
lighter camper, any suggestions? I loooove the idea of a front sway bar to
compliment the rear one, but have not been able to find one for a 1965 F250.
First year of the Twin I Beam, FYI. An inflatable donut for between the cab
and cabover is probably worth the money as an experiment. Are the inflatable
rear air springs helpful in reducing this kind of sway? That seems to me to
be 'The Fix' but I'd rather not plunk down the money if it will not help.
FYI I did inspect the rear spring shackles and bed mounts as others
suggested, all looks good. The front tires are 7.50x16 inflated to max 60
psi, the rears 33x12.5x16.5 inflated to the max of 50 psi. The truck sits
perfectly level as far as my eye can determine. I considered airshocks, but
the shock mounts are not vertical but tilted over at 45 degrees, making that
so-so choice even less effective.
Thanks again to all,
David
W F Sill
> . . . I paid a visit to my local scale today
<bad news snipped>
>Short of the two obvious and silly suggestions of get a heavier truck or a
>lighter camper, any suggestions?
Since you seem committed to continuing with the truck camper I leave
it to others to offer suggestions on how to increase stability on the
road.
But for the benefit of those weighing options I probably should share
my POV that of all the common types of camping equipment, the truck
camper seems to me among the least feasible for all but the hardy
back-country hunter/gatherer types. We've considered them but never
owned one for a variety of reasons, not the least of which would
include:
1) All but the most fragile ones are too heavy for any normal
light-duty pickup truck. And if not heavy enough to go over the GVWR
they often weigh down the back end too much.
2) Even the ones with a pop-up top are too cramped for Large Economy
Size people.
3) I really really dislike top-heavy vehicles that look & feel like a
rollover is just one yank of the wheel away.
4) Climbing in & out of the thing is tough.
5) Too much ceremony associated with loading & unloading it.
OK, OK, I realize there are good and sufficient reasons why some folks
would rather have a truck camper than OUR choice of an RV, and I am
not trying to ridicule others'choices. But I do think you ought to
consider what impact (if any) these kinds of issues might make on YOUR
situation before you go make a purchase.
Will KD3XR ---- the Curmudgeon of Sill Hill
In baseball a 500 hitter is a hero - how good
are you?
George E. Cawthon
kicks, I checked an out-of-date JC Whitney catalog, and they did not
list a front swaybar for a 65 F-250. One of the available bars would
probably fit with a little fiddling of the links, and a local
hotrod/racing shop should be able to do it.
I have no experience with rear air bags, but guys on this NG seem to
think they work pretty well and should firm up the rear suspension. The
problem that the airbags don't address is that your rear axle is/or is
nearly overloaded, so unless you are careful something might break.
Your new information on tires provides a possible clue, maybe the most
important clue. Regular tires on the front wide ones on the rear are
bound to have some handling effects. You need to check the maximum load
carrying capacity of those tires. It may be that the rear tires have
too much sidewall flex. I maybe wrong, but I can't imagine #50 pressure
being able to maintain a sufficiently rigid structure for good handling
at your GVW.
David Stevens wrote:
>
> Thanks George, and to all for your help! Nice to tap into your collected
> experience.
>
> I got the 8500 GVW from some original sales literature I got with the truck.
> However, y'all motivated me enough to get off my butt and check the data
> plate on the truck; and lo and behold the actual GVW is 7500! I paid a visit
> to my local scale today, fully loaded for camping except for my wife and
> daughter and one of the gas tanks about 15 gallons light. The front axle is
> at 3120 pounds, the rear 3660 pounds, for a total of 6780. Toss in the
> family and it will be around 7000, give or take. I would consider that damn
> near overloaded, right? That is a margin of only 7%, not the 20% Mike
> prefers.
>
> Short of the two obvious and silly suggestions of get a heavier truck or a
Erich Coiner
>
It may be that the rear tires have
> too much sidewall flex. I maybe wrong, but I can't imagine #50 pressure
> being able to maintain a sufficiently rigid structure for good handling
> at your GVW.
> > psi, the rears 33x12.5x16.5 inflated to the max of 50 psi. The truck sits
> > perfectly level as far as my eye can determine. I considered airshocks, but
> > the shock mounts are not vertical but tilted over at 45 degrees, making that
> > so-so choice even less effective.
> >
> > Thanks again to all,
> > David
> >
When I was looking for wider tires for my truck, I considered 33
12.5x16.5 tires. They are load range D with a weight rating of 3000
pounds at 50 psi.
The stock tires on my truck are 235/85R16 Load range E with a load
rating of 3084 pounds. For my use I decided to stay with stock, I needed
every last ounce of rating.
The original poster has 3700 pounds spread out on two tires with a total
load capacity of 6000 pounds. Rear tire capacity is not his problem.
Erich
Fred Schreier
Having been in a very similar position as you now find yourself in, I
can recommend a fix for your problem. However along with the fix you
will need to apply a very large amount of cautious driving.
That having been said you have two major problems with your Ford 250.
The first is the way those wonderful twin I-beams change the caster and
camber of the front wheels when a load is applied. This change causes
the front end to dive and sway on any dip, or turn, or with wind gusts.
The fix is to unload your camper. Then measure and record the distance
between the lip of the fender well and the ground (with the pickup
sitting on level ground of course). Repeat this for all four wheel
wells. Now load your camper and if possible the wife and daughter, and
another party that is equal to your weight in the front seat and take
these measurements again. If , as I suspect, you find that the new
measurements are over 2" shorter you will have to add air bags to the
front coil springs and add enough air pressure to raise the vehicle to
the original measurements to correct that part of the handling problem.
The second part is to match the rear tires to the front ones for size
and load rating. If the rear axle is overloaded also you may even have
to install either air bags there also or add helper springs to level the
load.
Good luck and happy traveling. If anything happens to your pickup, might
I suggest that its replacement be a F350. They are built just a bit
beefier in all the right places that really matter.
--------------------------------------------
From our home on the Road
Fred Schreier
--------------------------------------------
George E. Cawthon <George...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:38BC251F...@worldnet.att.net...
> Hi David: Yes, you are riding right on the edge of maximum weight.
SNIP
>
> David Stevens wrote:
> >
> > Thanks George, and to all for your help! Nice to tap into your
collected
> > experience.
> >
> > I got the 8500 GVW from some original sales literature I got with
the truck.
> > However, y'all motivated me enough to get off my butt and check the
data
> > plate on the truck; and lo and behold the actual GVW is 7500! I
paid a visit
> > to my local scale today, fully loaded for camping except for my wife
and
> > daughter and one of the gas tanks about 15 gallons light. The front
axle is
> > at 3120 pounds, the rear 3660 pounds, for a total of 6780. Toss in
the
> > family and it will be around 7000, give or take. I would consider
that damn
> > near overloaded, right? That is a margin of only 7%, not the 20%
Mike
> > prefers.
SNIP
> > First year of the Twin I Beam, FYI.
SNIP
> >
> > FYI I did inspect the rear spring shackles and bed mounts as others
> > suggested, all looks good. The front tires are 7.50x16 inflated to
max 60
> > psi, the rears 33x12.5x16.5 inflated to the max of 50 psi. The
truck sits
> > perfectly level as far as my eye can determine.
SNIP
> > David
George Lowry
<fesch...@basec.net> wrote:
>David:
>Having been in a very similar position as you now find yourself in, I
>can recommend a fix for your problem. However along with the fix you
>will need to apply a very large amount of cautious driving.
>
>That having been said you have two major problems with your Ford 250.
>The first is the way those wonderful twin I-beams change the caster and
>camber of the front wheels when a load is applied. This change causes
>the front end to dive and sway on any dip, or turn, or with wind gusts.
>The fix is to unload your camper. Then measure and record the distance
>between the lip of the fender well and the ground (with the pickup
>sitting on level ground of course). Repeat this for all four wheel
>wells. Now load your camper and if possible the wife and daughter, and
>another party that is equal to your weight in the front seat and take
>these measurements again. If , as I suspect, you find that the new
>measurements are over 2" shorter you will have to add air bags to the
>front coil springs and add enough air pressure to raise the vehicle to
>the original measurements to correct that part of the handling problem.
>
>The second part is to match the rear tires to the front ones for size
>and load rating. If the rear axle is overloaded also you may even have
>to install either air bags there also or add helper springs to level the
>load.
while I agree with most of what has been posted, I must disagree with
the above statement. If the Axle is overloaded, i.e. the weight on it
exceeds the GAWR, then no amount of added suspension in the form of
helper springs or air bags will help, The Axle will just be
overloaded more by the weight of the additions. If the Axle is
overloaded, you must either reduce the load or change the axle.....
>^ws.smartworld.net!not-for-mail
>Xref: news.jps.net rec.outdoors.rv-travel:14180
George E. Cawthon
I mistakenly bought a pair of load range D tires and was unsatisfied
with them and finally replaced them with load range E which came on the
truck originally. My loads were much higher at times than David's, and
sometimes over the GVW of the truck when hauling fire wood short
distances.
David Stevens
issue. :) Just to catch you all up on the saga, I know y'all have been
fretting....
To reply to Fred, the front end of the truck is not visibly sagging (ie
negative camber) under the load. Previously it had weak original front
coils, and the camber change was obvious to the eye and lead to the inner
part of the front tires wearing more than the outer part. As I was swapping
in a heavier engine (plus contemplating a camper) I had new coils custom
wound with an additional 150# of capacity, something like 1400 pounds or
so. As far as I can tell the only deflection these I-Beams can do to any
degree is camber change caused by ride height. Since the tires look nice
and vertical with and without the load of the camper, I think we're cool
there as far as weight. Most have recommended air bags on the rear, but the
front seems like it could be effective, too. Anyone else have input on rear
vs front air bag installation?
A front swaybar is a no-brainer item to bolt on, but still no luck locating
one. Buhu! 1965 F250, for all of you kind souls reaching for catalogs...
Just to answer some other posts, the rear axle is a Dana 60, rated at 5200
pounds, and the tires are load range D rated at 2930 pounds each at 60 psi.
The rear of the truck weighs 3660 on the scale, so we're not overloaded on
the rear axle. Certainly could be *some* sidewall flex going on with those
pudgy 33x12.5x16.5's on the back, but I do not think that is the source of
my sway problem. The motion does not feel like a rubber motion, if that
makes any sense. I will mount the same size on the front once those
7.50x16's wear thin. I do not have power steering, so I might need a can of
spinach at low speeds. :)
Just to lay to rest the idea of simply dashing out and buying a different
rig, I am doing this on an incredibly tight budget. I paid $1400 for the
truck (beautiful except for a thunderous rod knock) $688 for the camper,
$240 for new rear tires, $145 for new front springs, and perhaps another
$500 for odds and ends. Plus we like camping in small out of the way places
where the Land Leviathans dare not go. So yes, I am committed to this rig,
mostly because it is paid for and in my driveway. I can possibly swing a
set of rear air bags before our next trip, that seems to be the consensus
choice among many on this NG as the best fix for a swaying camper.
On the subject of overloading, I read parts of a book "Basics of RVing" by
Fred and Jan Moeller (I think) who contend that *most* RV's are nearly
overloaded, including brand new units straight off the lot. They mentioned
one (unnamed) unit that was so close to the GVW that simply filling all the
tanks put it over! I have only a 7% margin between my GVW and my actual
road weight, but I feel a lot happier about that now. Mike suggested a 20%
margin as ideal, and while I agree a bigger margin is better it hardly seems
realistic. I would recommend *everyone* get to a scale, pay the $6 and find
out for sure where you are in relation to your GVW. No fair flaming me on
that issue unless you have weighed your rig.
Our next trip is Point Reyes, just north of SF. Anybody willing to disclose
their favorite boondocking spot there? I promise not to tell a soul! :)
And don't worry, I will probably not even get on a freeway, much less go
fast. Cautious as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs...
Thanks, Happy Trails,
David
P.S. Remove the obvious to reply.
Fred Schreier wrote:
> David:
> Having been in a very similar position as you now find yourself in, I
> can recommend a fix for your problem. However along with the fix you
> will need to apply a very large amount of cautious driving.
>
> That having been said you have two major problems with your Ford 250.
> The first is the way those wonderful twin I-beams change the caster and
> camber of the front wheels when a load is applied. This change causes
> the front end to dive and sway on any dip, or turn, or with wind gusts.
> The fix is to unload your camper. Then measure and record the distance
> between the lip of the fender well and the ground (with the pickup
> sitting on level ground of course). Repeat this for all four wheel
> wells. Now load your camper and if possible the wife and daughter, and
> another party that is equal to your weight in the front seat and take
> these measurements again. If , as I suspect, you find that the new
> measurements are over 2" shorter you will have to add air bags to the
> front coil springs and add enough air pressure to raise the vehicle to
> the original measurements to correct that part of the handling problem.
>
> The second part is to match the rear tires to the front ones for size
> and load rating. If the rear axle is overloaded also you may even have
> to install either air bags there also or add helper springs to level the
> load.
>
The Dog
[snip]
> Just to lay to rest the idea of simply dashing out and buying a different
> rig, I am doing this on an incredibly tight budget. I paid $1400 for the
> truck (beautiful except for a thunderous rod knock) $688 for the camper,
> $240 for new rear tires, $145 for new front springs, and perhaps another
> $500 for odds and ends. Plus we like camping in small out of the way places
> where the Land Leviathans dare not go. So yes, I am committed to this rig,
> mostly because it is paid for and in my driveway. I can possibly swing a
> set of rear air bags before our next trip, that seems to be the consensus
> choice among many on this NG as the best fix for a swaying camper.
Man David, you are working this from the bargain basement side of
the equation. But you know, it doesn't sound like you're having any
less fun that we are even though you have an order of magnitude less
money involved. I'm somewhat jealous. ;-)
I gotta say that as long as you know that your pushing the limits
and try to act accordingly, there's really not that much wrong with
what you're doing. You know that there's issues with your rig and
it sounds like you take extra caution. Works for me! Happy travels.
The Dog
--
Brian "The Dog" Cunningham
http://web2.airmail.net/bcunning
Some days you're the dog,
and some days you're the hydrant.
moo...@eparka.com
David Stevens <davids...@home.com> wrote:
> Our next trip is Point Reyes, just north of SF. Anybody willing to
disclose
> their favorite boondocking spot there? I promise not to tell a
soul! :)
> And don't worry, I will probably not even get on a freeway, much less
go
> fast. Cautious as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking
chairs...
Check out eParka.com for some info on outdoor activities available at
Point Reyes:
http://www.eparka.com/guide/California/129S0REM9.html
Enjoy your trip!
-Moondog
eParka.com - The Interactive Outdoor Guide
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Before you buy.
Joe Zuk
Check out this site they might beable to help find a sway bar:
http://www.ford-trucks.com/
Joe
Harald
George Lowry wrote in message <38c059e2....@news.jps.net>...
>If the Axle is overloaded, i.e. the weight on it
>exceeds the GAWR, then no amount of added suspension in the form of
>helper springs or air bags will help, The Axle will just be
>overloaded more by the weight of the additions. If the Axle is
>overloaded, you must either reduce the load or change the axle.....
This is true in the legal sense because you can't change the GAWR or GVWR
of a vehicle. However, if you look at the new Ford Super Duty F250 and F350
you will find out that they have the identical rear axle, yet the F250 axle
is rated less. Why is that? Because the F250 comes with lower rated tires
that limit the axle rating. So in this case, you can put higher rated tires
on a F250 and safely (although not legally) carry more weight.
George Lowry
wrote:
>
>George Lowry wrote in message <38c059e2....@news.jps.net>...
>>If the Axle is overloaded, i.e. the weight on it
>>exceeds the GAWR, then no amount of added suspension in the form of
>>helper springs or air bags will help, The Axle will just be
>>overloaded more by the weight of the additions. If the Axle is
>>overloaded, you must either reduce the load or change the axle.....
>
>
>This is true in the legal sense because you can't change the GAWR or GVWR
>of a vehicle. However, if you look at the new Ford Super Duty F250 and F350
>you will find out that they have the identical rear axle, yet the F250 axle
>is rated less. Why is that? Because the F250 comes with lower rated tires
>that limit the axle rating. So in this case, you can put higher rated tires
>on a F250 and safely (although not legally) carry more weight.
>
>
>
>--- Harald ---
Obviously you did not read my post nor the one I had answered.
The previous poster had recommended adding either air bags or overload
springs to increase the weight carrying capacity of the truck. I had
pointed out that now amount of changing the suspension will change the
load carrying capacity of the AXLE.
While it is true that the GVWR is limited by the weakest link in the
chain, only by changing that weak link will the capacity be increased.
In the example you gave, the tires were the weak link. It used to be,
back when pickup trucks were built to carry a load, that the
manufacturer provided, in the owner's manual, the various GVWRs
dependent upon the various configurations of springs, axles, tires
etc. Since the majority of pickups are bought as toys (read SUVs)
instead of work vehicles, the manufacturers have derated them.
I found it pretty disgusting to find that a Ford ranger would not even
carry two people and a full tank of gas without exceeding the GVWR.
George
>
>Email to: HARALD at FOXINTERNET dot NET
>
>"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little
> temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." -Ben Franklin
>
>
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>
>George Lowry wrote in message <38c059e2....@news.jps.net>...
>>If the Axle is overloaded, i.e. the weight on it
>>exceeds the GAWR, then no amount of added suspension in the form of
>>helper springs or air bags will help, The Axle will just be
>>overloaded more by the weight of the additions. If the Axle is
>>overloaded, you must either reduce the load or change the axle.....
>
>
David Osborn
>This is true in the legal sense because you can't change the GAWR or GVWR
>of a vehicle. However, if you look at the new Ford Super Duty F250 and F350
>you will find out that they have the identical rear axle, yet the F250 axle
>is rated less. Why is that? Because the F250 comes with lower rated tires
>that limit the axle rating. So in this case, you can put higher rated tires
>on a F250 and safely (although not legally) carry more weight.
If my memory is correct, I think you'll find that the springs are also
different.
- - - - -
David, N8DO; FMCA 147762
djosborn at aol dot com