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I think my 79 f350 SC 4x4 trailer capacity on the bumper is 9000lbs, 8500 on a 5er. Hell my 2011 Navigator can do nearly 9k. A newer f150 can do 13.5k and use less gas doing it.
Getting a dent to pull a heavy 10,000 load on flat road up to 60mph isn't that bad, but that's it. With a 460, it can take on the hills but will struggle with mountains or steep grades. The real issue is braking. The risk isn't worth the reward on owning a dent for pulling that weight. Also, the suspension squat from the trailer will raise the front, reducing the braking capabilities on the front brakes. I have experienced this hauling hay. Be smart and think of the safety of others on the road. You can get a good pulling rig from the late 90s and up for under $15k and they will have the suspension and brake power designed for your needs. I see them all the time on FB market and CL.
I’ve seen a few fords in my area from the 90s that aren’t high miles or rusted out but in the 30k range. I am actually in a very very hilly part of Iowa, far NE corner and our roads can be very nasty. The trailer would have roughly 9k pounds in it and 4K pounds is the trailer weight I think I’d have to look. I found a few used 22 standard cab super duties for sale locally but I really didn’t want to go that route but safety is key.
Why is everyone looking at the dent as a POS that is all wore out?
You can have 2000 to 2015 that are just as bad or worst.
I have a DD with 285K that I bought new to pull my open deck car trailer.
Because I know the truck I trust it to pull and go anywhere but anything used dent or newer will need to go thru it 110% to make sure it will do the job safely.
Being you would need to rebuild either the dent or anything newer would it be worth it to spend more money on something newer that may not need as much work to get it safe to tow with?
I would say pulling that weight I would be looking at a 350 size truck, in this case bigger is better.
You also keep saying truck brakes the trailer will have brakes so if the truck cant stop its self then it should not be on the road in my book.
And yes I have pulled many different size & types of trailers with just as many pullers.
Dave ----
ps have you seen the posts of the newer trucks with tow package that issues of not seeing the trailer, break controllers not working and all needing to go to the dealer to be turned on/ rebooted or fixed / replaced? I have never had "trailer disconnected" show up on anything I own
Give me old school where I can work on it and fix it if needed.
Dave ----
I watch farm and government equipment auctions around my state and there are usually some pretty decent work trucks there, gassers are cheap. A lot of the time they have flat beds and/or DRW. Many times they aren't clapped out. I think a lot of times when people say they want a cheap tow pig or work truck, they don't REALLY want a basic work truck. It sounds like you're already talking yourself into something relatively new
Sadly all 1990-2016 trucks in my area are rusted junk or high miles and over priced. I’ll likely have to break down and get a new f350 standard cab. Thanks for the input everyone.
I’m in need of another truck by the end of the summer and I can’t make up my mind about what the best option is. The one option would be to buy a 4wd 79 f250 supercab or a cab and chassis dually with a aluminum flatbed and use it for occasional towing. Gooseneck and bumper hitch mainly but hauling in the bed as well. Would a 20 ft livestock trailer be too much for a truck like I’ve described? I just don’t wanna buy a 55k+ truck in this economy if I can have a nice dentside and accomplish the tasks I need a truck for. Thanks
I think a Dent would do it OK if this 20 foot trailer was pulled like for just 10-20 mile trips on good old 4 lane 55 or 60 mph state routes and a fella was happy just going along 45-50 mph and no heavy high traffic running on interstates were involved ... and no steep grades unless one is willing to ease up them instead of hauling *** up them.. Coming down, my hope is the stock trailer has brakes too.
If towing heavy 500 miles on the big road, you'll soon hate the thought of it.
oddly enough yes. There have been a lot brought in from out west and down south. My 79 f150 is from Louisiana. People are willing to go a long way for good dentsides but not much else. They are a sought after truck here because everyone had one back in the day and not many 80s fords were sold here since our area was hit hard by the farm crisis and there wasn’t any many for the new trucks.
Why is everyone looking at the dent as a POS that is all wore out?
But then say
Being you would need to rebuild either the dent or anything newer would it be worth it to spend more money on something newer that may not need as much work to get it safe to tow with?
Because a newer vehicle will have more inherent capability. You can't get around age, and some things can go unnoticed, the factor here was also cost so a 110% condition Dent would barely be adequate and any deficiency will reduce that number
You also keep saying truck brakes the trailer will have brakes so if the truck cant stop its self then it should not be on the road in my book.
Factor of safety. The truck brakes still get additional load regardless of trailer brakes due to tongue weight and transferred load during braking. It also comes down to how the chassis handles the weight.
oddly enough yes. There have been a lot brought in from out west and down south. My 79 f150 is from Louisiana. People are willing to go a long way for good dentsides but not much else. They are a sought after truck here because everyone had one back in the day and not many 80s fords were sold here since our area was hit hard by the farm crisis and there wasn’t any many for the new trucks.
I went to Wisconsin from MD once to get the Superduty I wanted, sounds like it's time to widen your search.
In the late '60s, "Car and Driver" magazine did a test of a Plymouth Fury, a Ford Galaxie, and a Chevrolet Impala. All had the largest engine available and an automatic transmission. For extra interest I guess, they included a two axle Airstream travel trailer. They did brake testing, all the cars stopped fastest from 60 in a panic stop with the Airstream in tow. I think they did some other tests, like top speed too.
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