Hi All, I've being perusing the M-H posts and was wondering how the GVW, GCVW and F designations work. This info was culled from previous posts:

This information is taken from the Ford sales manual:
F1 = 1/2 ton
F2 = 3/4 ton
F3 = 3/4 ton Heavy Duty
F4 = 1 ton
F5 = 1 1/2 ton
F6 = 2 ton
F7 = 2 1/2 ton
F8 = 3 ton

This information is taken from the Ford sales manual:
F1 - max payload of 1480 lbs, 1850 lbs including body & equip.
F2 - max payload of 2428 lbs including body & equip.
F3 - max payload of 3340 lbs including body & equip.
F4 - max payload of almost 5000 lbs, 5980 lbs including body & equip.
F5 - max payload over 8000 lbs, 9570 lbs including body & equip.
F6 - max payload over 5 tons, 11,305 lbs including body & equip.
F7 - max payload of 12,865 lbs including body & equip.
F8 - max payload of 15,465 lbs including body & equip.

To complicate things my 1951 F5 has 2 info plates with contradictory info. The Ford glovebox plate states: Gross vehicle weight except as restricted by blah,blah of 14000 lbs. The M-H plate on the firewall states: Chassis weight=5200 lbs. and Total Gross Weight = 15500 lbs. So what does the F5 designation of a 1 1/2 ton mean? The cab & chassis weigh almost twice that and my M-H designated payload is 13,300 lbs give or take a few hundred pounds. Can anyone clear the air for me?

 

How much does your truck actually weigh? The " chassis weight =5200 lbs" means the cab and chassis only, no bed, hoist or anything on it. Gross weight means truck+ load = gross. A payload of 13,300 lbs can't be right for a 1 1/2 ton truck with a gvw of 15,500 lbs. Something screwy there IMO....... T/M

 

Seeing no ground swell of comprehensive answers, I'll take a swing at it. Sorry Tinman, I was typing at the same time you were.

My 1952 dealer's Truck Handbook provides the following definitions:

Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW)- "Gross vehicle weight is the total sum of the weights of the chassis (complete with fuel and water), cab, body, equipment and payload. In other words, the total weight of the loaded truck on tires at ground."

Gross Combination Weight (GCW) - "Gross combination weight is the total sum of the weights of a truck tractor with cab (complete with water and fuel) and fifth wheel plus semi-trailer including body and payload. In other words, the total weight of a loaded tractor-trailer unit on tires at ground as given in this Truck Handbook. Gross combination weight may also be used to indicate total loaded weight of the complete truck chassis pulling a 4-wheel or six-wheel trailer or any train combination."

Recommended Maximum GVW or GCW - "Recommended maximum GVW and/or GCW is the maximum total gross weight recommended by the manufacturer for a given truck or tractor-semi trailer equipped with specified tires and equipment."

Why the model designations are half ton, 3/4, etc, I have no idea. Maybe one of folks that's worked in the industry can jump on that piece of the puzzle.

The differences that you'll see in weight ratings has to do with wheel base and with the way a truck is equipped. Obviously the payload goes down as the weight of the truck goes up. The charts show heavier ratings with 8.25 x 20 tires than they do with 7.50 x 20 tires. Also, some charts have a star (*) designation saying that the weight rating assumes the truck is equipped with auxiliary rear springs.

My "R" series Marmon-Herrington chart agrees with your stated 15,500 pound GVW. But it lists Chassis Weight as either 5,350 for the 134" wheel base, 5,475 for the 158" wheel base, and 5,600 for the 176" wheel base.

There's a start at an answer. Stu

 

Sorry for the bad math, my computer burped, posted twice and wouldn't let me correct my mistake. Payload should be 10,300. But what does the 1 1/2 Ton designation mean for an F5? Here in Alberta the cops go by your tire load rating when determining if you are overweight or not, now I know why.

 

As for the F5= 1 1/2 ton thing........I don't know where that started. It's a handy way to know the size of a truck though. How much do you plan on hauling? I'd weigh the truck empty, and use the GVW on the M-H tag..... T/M

 

it does get confusing. ford stats are for cab and chassis with loaded fluids. when it comes to mh stats, all ratings change. my 1.5 ton has a gross of 13,800. pretty heavy! this is because mh were built heavier. 3 ton springs, much heavier axles, etc. ex.-my front axles, (the actual axle inside housing), is 2 inches thick. generally speaking, four wheel drive with solid tube front axle will carry more than straight axle. f-5 1.5 ton would indicate that standard truck, not 4wd, would be capable of carrying 3,000 lbs. once you add 4wd and heavier axles, you triple weight capacity. you have a pretty neat truck there, and they are somewhat rare. being a mh, it is in a class all by itself!

 

I figure the cab & chassis weighs around 5000-6000lbs. Not sure what I'm going to do with the truck yet. Car hauler? Put a 5th wheel on it, tow a trailer and call it a recovery vehicle? I figure it would probably look best hauling my 69 crewcab 4x4 stepside to car shows.

 

This has been talked about before. Just rember that the factory model numbers and weight charts are NOT what the cops use when they pull you over to check you out. Example: an F-4, two axle flat bed truck on the Federal weight charts is allowed to have a GVW of 40,000 Lb. From that point on it gets a lot more complicated as there are many variables to the Federal weight formulas. Tom

 

Since posting my first response I've spent some time flipping through other sources for similar data. It's interesting that different Ford references from that era cite different weights. I still didn't find anything, though, to explain the half, 3/4, ton, etc, ratings. Stu

 

Here's the paged from the 1951 Truck ("Salesmans") Handbook:

 

Don't have a lot to add, especially re what is meant by 1 1/2 ton.

I have an F-5 with Marmon Herrington also. Mine is a 1950, and the M-H plate is different than yours. It indicates chassis weight 5125 lb, but total gross weight is 14,000 lb, same as the Ford plate on mine. I have no information as to whether M-H changed anything between 1950 and 51.

BTW, where are you located? I'm in central Maryland. I'm just curious, especially if you happen to be near me. Many folks put their location in their profile or whatever, so it shows up at the top of posts.

Duane.

 

Sorry Duane I should of twigged onto the fact my location wasn't being shown seeing as someone else mentioned it. Nowhere close to Maryland, Alberta Canada is where I hail from.

 

Hi. I work for the New Zealand government on vehicle certification. I'm trying to help someone with weight ratings of their 1951 Ford truck - an Australian version of an F-5 or F-6 etc, which they imported from Australia. Julie, can you please say what the column headings on the above "load capacity chart" are, or can you please post the previous page, which may have the column headings on it? Regards.

 

Believe it or not the Australian trucks were built in Canada and then shipped to Australia.

 

Hello and Welcome,

Sure, I can post the page for you...then the thread has all the info if we need to look back at it later as well. Here ya go: