Share Pics of People Hauling or Towing Something Wrong

[4570Man]

It's also where most forklifts would set the pallet if he didn't pull off the tailgate. Having any amount of weight rely on those tailgate straps for support is generally asking for trouble.

Not unless they're a terrible operator. I load pallets all the time with a forklift and don't leave them on the tailgate. The obvious problem in this case was the toolbox.

 

[DieselBound]

Exactly what I thought. These trucks with a 4 door cab, tool box and short bed set themselves up for that when they haul bulky loads. The back of the toolbox is about where the rear axle starts.

I'd borrowed a Mazda truck that my dad had and it had a tool box in the back. I went to pick up some laminate flooring only to find that the bed was too short to hold it with the tailgate shut! I didn't really have anything other than a tarp so I diapered it (I was by myself and it was raining slightly): it worked, but I'm not proud of it. Anyway, I'm one to think that any real working truck should be able to safely carry a full sheet of plywood within its box (with tailgate closed).

 

[MossRoad]

I was at a gas station today. Its near an auto salvage/auction area, so there are always cars in various states of wreck being moved around. 3-4 junkyards, an insurance wreck auction, and another auction. Anyway, these two guys had a couple year old F150 with no front bumper and a bent cap on the back. They were towing a car hauler with a wrecked mini-van. It was a short car hauler trailer and the mini-van was rolled almost to the front of the trailer, weighing down the rear of that F150 so much that I'll bet there wasn't 4" of clearance between the bottom of the hitch and the road. On top of that, the rear tires on the F150 were about half deflated. I mean this thing was squatting so low in back and the front suspension was so light, I'll bet they were not able to steer well, let alone brake effectively with the truck's front brakes. I would have snapped a photo, but they looked like they were not friendly types.... :laughing:

 

[MossRoad]

... Anyway, I'm one to think that any real working truck should be able to safely carry a full sheet of plywood within its box (with tailgate closed).

That's why I like my '93 Suburban. I can fit a stack of 4x8 sheets of anything inside or I can pull my car hauler trailer for stuff that is too tall to fit in the rear doors. It'll seat 8 when needed, but I usually leave the rear seat at home. Right now there's some fishing poles, some tackle, life jackets and half a dozen 2x4's back there under a mover's quilt.

 

[DieselBound]

Maybe what was on those pallets at the back weren't very substantial in weight?

Guy who transported my Polaris had it in the bed of his beefed up F350 (he hauls trailers):



He had built the ramps in the back (needed to go above his extra fuel tank/tool box), but did not know that the rear wheels on the Polaris set out farther than the fronts! That's a 2k lb machine there! And, obviously, riding on the tail gate.

 

[4570Man]

Maybe what was on those pallets at the back weren't very substantial in weight? Guy who transported my Polaris had it in the bed of his beefed up F350 (he hauls trailers): <img src="http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=484603"/> He had built the ramps in the back (needed to go above his extra fuel tank/tool box), but did not know that the rear wheels on the Polaris set out farther than the fronts! That's a 2k lb machine there! And, obviously, riding on the tail gate.

The setup isn't great, but the weight is fine. That truck can easily handle a 2k load in the bed plus maybe 500 pounds for other stuff, and a fairly light travel trailer. It also looks like the trailer axels should be farther back. We've got a 1994 F-450 rollback. It's probably a lighter duty truck than his much newer F-350, and we haul a lot more weight than that on it.

 

[DieselBound]

The setup isn't great, but the weight is fine. That truck can easily handle a 2k load in the bed plus maybe 500 pounds for other stuff, and a fairly light travel trailer. It also looks like the trailer axels should be farther back. We've got a 1994 F-450 rollback. It's probably a lighter duty truck than his much newer F-350, and we haul a lot more weight than that on it.

Yeah, this truck was really beefed up. This was no hick either. Great guy. From Montana. Point was that the tailgate was bearing some load here.

I bent my tail gate up dispensing a bunch of "goat crap." Stupid me, I didn't think to pop the cables and drop the gate down and when I pulled out my makeshift "crap carrier*" the weight was so intense that it bowed the gate. Although one shouldn't be doing these kinds of things, it demonstrates that the gates and cables are amazingly tough. Oh, I was really pissed at myself; my mother, rest her soul, had to point out to me that it's a farm truck!

* I had some wood rods underneath some plywood and the "crap" sitting on that. With hooks at the rear of the plywood I pulled out it out like a sled: strain on the eye-bolts lasted for two trips, but it significantly cut down on the time to shovel the... Now I've got a dump trailer so I'm ready for whatever crap comes along

 

[4570Man]

I ruined the tailgate on my F-350 by accidentally dropping a log on it. The tailgate on my 1500 hangs lower than it should because I bent the mounts by loading it too heavy. Sometime I'm going to buy a F450 with flatbed.

 

[DieselBound]

:laughing: If you drop enough logs on your F350 you might end up with that flatbed you're after!

Yeah, mine's got quite a bow to it. Still works though. It took more of a slow strain than a sudden jolt. When I bought my truck it had 248k miles on it and it wasn't the original tailgate: color mismatch; always have it in mind to find a proper replacement but they're really hard to find (because people tend to do stupid things to them)

 

[ultrarunner]

Anyway, I'm one to think that any real working truck should be able to safely carry a full sheet of plywood within its box (with tailgate closed).

Growing up we had Station Wagons around... lots in the neighborhood too.

The nice thing about a full size wagon is no problem hauling 4x8 sheet goods. Sometimes us kids would have to sit on top of the plywood to get home.

One of the Dad's was a tool salesman and drove a Station Wagon... it had pull out racks and a commercial tags for plates... have not seen that since but guess it was common then.