Towing with M5OD
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From: Iowa
Towing with M5OD
Ok, I think I am able to buy the truck I have been chasing around the area since May
. It's a '91 F150 4x4 ext cab 300I6 5spd. My current '88 have a very worn out ZF 5 spd, and I have had no problems towing with it.
My question is, the Mazda tranny is only rated to tow 3600 lbs, I will be towing 6-7K
. How long might the tranny last and what have you guys towed with yours (and wheather or not it hurt the tranny). I really like the low 1st gear in the ZF.
A friend has an F250 302 with the M5OD and they Have been pulling a 31' camper for a long time with no problems, and they occasionaly haul vehicles with it.
I will only be towing about once a month, maybe a few times a month during the summer (hauling vehicles, scrap, and taking my tractor to pulls)
I suppose I should start looking for a ZF.
BTW, the guy bought this truck for $2000, put an engine in it, and is selling it to me for what he owes on it, $950. I offered him $1000 and he said "No, I only want 950. Seems odd, but I'm not complaining.
. It's a '91 F150 4x4 ext cab 300I6 5spd. My current '88 have a very worn out ZF 5 spd, and I have had no problems towing with it. My question is, the Mazda tranny is only rated to tow 3600 lbs, I will be towing 6-7K
. How long might the tranny last and what have you guys towed with yours (and wheather or not it hurt the tranny). I really like the low 1st gear in the ZF. A friend has an F250 302 with the M5OD and they Have been pulling a 31' camper for a long time with no problems, and they occasionaly haul vehicles with it.
I will only be towing about once a month, maybe a few times a month during the summer (hauling vehicles, scrap, and taking my tractor to pulls)
I suppose I should start looking for a ZF.
BTW, the guy bought this truck for $2000, put an engine in it, and is selling it to me for what he owes on it, $950. I offered him $1000 and he said "No, I only want 950. Seems odd, but I'm not complaining.
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Joined: Jun 2003
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Ok, I think I am able to buy the truck I have been chasing around the area since May. It's a '91 F150 4x4 ext cab 300I6 5spd. My current '88 have a very worn out ZF 5 spd, and I have had no problems towing with it.
My question is, the Mazda tranny is only rated to tow 3600 lbs, I will be towing 6-7K. How long might the tranny last and what have you guys towed with yours (and wheather or not it hurt the tranny). I really like the low 1st gear in the ZF.
A friend has an F250 302 with the M5OD and they Have been pulling a 31' camper for a long time with no problems, and they occasionaly haul vehicles with it.
I will only be towing about once a month, maybe a few times a month during the summer (hauling vehicles, scrap, and taking my tractor to pulls)
I suppose I should start looking for a ZF.
BTW, the guy bought this truck for $2000, put an engine in it, and is selling it to me for what he owes on it, $950. I offered him $1000 and he said "No, I only want 950. Seems odd, but I'm not complaining.
. It's a '91 F150 4x4 ext cab 300I6 5spd. My current '88 have a very worn out ZF 5 spd, and I have had no problems towing with it. My question is, the Mazda tranny is only rated to tow 3600 lbs, I will be towing 6-7K
. How long might the tranny last and what have you guys towed with yours (and wheather or not it hurt the tranny). I really like the low 1st gear in the ZF. A friend has an F250 302 with the M5OD and they Have been pulling a 31' camper for a long time with no problems, and they occasionaly haul vehicles with it.
I will only be towing about once a month, maybe a few times a month during the summer (hauling vehicles, scrap, and taking my tractor to pulls)
I suppose I should start looking for a ZF.
BTW, the guy bought this truck for $2000, put an engine in it, and is selling it to me for what he owes on it, $950. I offered him $1000 and he said "No, I only want 950. Seems odd, but I'm not complaining.
Well, I'll be honest.
When I lived in Pa, I regularly pulled a tandem axle trailer with a semi restored 46 Farmall "H" behind my 96 F-150 Inline 6 w/5 spd.
I normally was a few mph under the legal speed limit but had no problems actually pulling the trailer and tractor.
Every few weekends I would drive around to local fairs and enter the tractor in Antique tractor pulls.
When I had the trailer and tractor weighed together it came in just a tad under 8300 lbs. The only problem I ever had was making a real tight turn since the trailer tongue was shorter than it should have been.
PS. I live in Ohio now.
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From: Iowa
I haul my Farmall Super H that weighs 4500lbs on my friends 18' bumper hitch trailer which weighs 2500 lbs. However, I may start carrying 1K of weights for pulling in 5500lb class. I only took it to 2 tractor pulls this summer. (hoping to go to 4 or 5 next year)
Which tranny did you have- the Mazda or the ZF?
Which tranny did you have- the Mazda or the ZF?
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Joined: Jun 2003
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I think I have the mazda one.
I'll check to make sure and let you know.
I use to carry an extra 500 lbs of weight with me for the next higher class too.
For some reason, My tractor weighed in at around 5100 lbs.
Does yours have the front bucket that mounts in the front of the rear axle and lifting cylinders too ??
That may account for being a bit heavier than the 4500 you posted.
I'd be interested to find out.
I'll check to make sure and let you know.
I use to carry an extra 500 lbs of weight with me for the next higher class too.
For some reason, My tractor weighed in at around 5100 lbs.
Does yours have the front bucket that mounts in the front of the rear axle and lifting cylinders too ??
That may account for being a bit heavier than the 4500 you posted.
I'd be interested to find out.
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Seeing that brings back good memories.
I also had an older International Cub, 1972, with a belly mower and a front blade for snow plowing. Both were always in top running condition.
I'll check the trans tomorrow and see which one I have for sure and post it here. Thanks again for the great pic.
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Joined: Feb 2002
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From: Portage Twp, PA
Well, since we're trading truck and tractor pics...
This pic was taken back around christmastime, but I just got to actually pull what you see above last weekend to a BIG tractor show in central PA. I think my truck did fine pulling it (4500 lbs for the tractor, estimated 2000 for the trailer), but that was the first time I ever pulled that tractor. Well, I've pulled it before, but always behind my dad's Excursion.
I've got the 300, M5OD, 3.08 gears and 31" tires...even with all that against me, I still managed to maintain 55 MPH in 3rd gear at around 3200 RPM on even the steep hills. I'm not sure how well the M5OD is gonna hold up in the future, but I figure if it breaks, that'll be a good excuse to find a ZF! I'm also very likely in the future to get some shorter gears, partly to take some strain off the rest of the drivetrain, and partly to make pulling out of intersections not so much of a chore for the clutch.
Pat
This pic was taken back around christmastime, but I just got to actually pull what you see above last weekend to a BIG tractor show in central PA. I think my truck did fine pulling it (4500 lbs for the tractor, estimated 2000 for the trailer), but that was the first time I ever pulled that tractor. Well, I've pulled it before, but always behind my dad's Excursion.
I've got the 300, M5OD, 3.08 gears and 31" tires...even with all that against me, I still managed to maintain 55 MPH in 3rd gear at around 3200 RPM on even the steep hills. I'm not sure how well the M5OD is gonna hold up in the future, but I figure if it breaks, that'll be a good excuse to find a ZF! I'm also very likely in the future to get some shorter gears, partly to take some strain off the rest of the drivetrain, and partly to make pulling out of intersections not so much of a chore for the clutch.
Pat
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From: Iowa
I test drove the 91 today. Runs and drives GREAT and interior is so CLEAN. Only problems are- the ignition switch only turns about 1/8 of a turn to start it. I've never seen this before- something to watch out for?
Also, there is a loose U-joint, but I can easily fix that.
It fells doggy compared to my 88- I think it has 3.08s- Unfortunately no tach so I cant quite know for sure, sounded like it was running pretty slow.
I'll get a pic of hauling something with the new Ford when I get it. (bye bye '88 F150 custom, hello '91 ext cab XL)
Also, there is a loose U-joint, but I can easily fix that.
It fells doggy compared to my 88- I think it has 3.08s- Unfortunately no tach so I cant quite know for sure, sounded like it was running pretty slow.
I'll get a pic of hauling something with the new Ford when I get it. (bye bye '88 F150 custom, hello '91 ext cab XL)
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It's not real hard to tell the differences between the M5OD and the ZF trannies...the ZF has a granny first.The 300-6 may feel like a dog but it's a pullin fool.I've seen the Mazda tranny thrashed to points where I would never go and it still comes through begging for more.The iggy switch only means that it's not worn out and probably has fairly new parts somewhere in the column if not the switch itself.If you're not selling your 88 you might as well just swap the trannies out..Smallblocks have the same bellhousing bolt pattern.
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From: raymond alberta
my uncle pulls around a fifth wheel camper with his 96 f150 300 6 m5od pulls it nice too takes it into the mountains lots during hunting season up the loggin trails n ****...torquey lil buggers arent they
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From: raymond alberta
my uncle pulls his 20-25ft fifth wheel camper into the mountains up the trails n **** with his 96 f150 300 6 m5OD...he took the catalytic converter off it now he pulls the camper plus a lil trailer with a quad on in 
...torquey lil ****ers lol
...torquey lil ****ers lol
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From: Iowa
It's not real hard to tell the differences between the M5OD and the ZF trannies...the ZF has a granny first.The 300-6 may feel like a dog but it's a pullin fool.I've seen the Mazda tranny thrashed to points where I would never go and it still comes through begging for more.The iggy switch only means that it's not worn out and probably has fairly new parts somewhere in the column if not the switch itself.If you're not selling your 88 you might as well just swap the trannies out..Smallblocks have the same bellhousing bolt pattern.
So 302 and 351 share bolt patterns with the 300? (I am going to look for a ZF pretty soon- since I might end up pulling a 5'er with this truck next year.
Pat did those 31s hurt your gas mileage? What do you get?
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yes the 289's 300's 302's and windsors all share the same bolt pattern...your grinding may not be anything as critical and expensive as a chipped tooth...might just be bad synchros whish is what it seems like from your description.