extra load handling
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Senior User
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 328
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From: northwest,WA
extra load handling
I am wondering some advice for extra load handling in my 78 250 4x4, it has the highboy blocks (I believe) in the rear, normal looking factory springs.
I got the truck with a camper on it, it holds the camper with no problems.
I recently put 2 yards of gravel in it and it sank to the frame bumpers, I would like to get some better load handling for the camper and for hauling dirt etc.
question what is better use of cash thinking about 300 bucks-ish for the upgrade
wonder should I look at overload springs? and who and where to get them?
or should I look at airbags?
I got the truck with a camper on it, it holds the camper with no problems.
I recently put 2 yards of gravel in it and it sank to the frame bumpers, I would like to get some better load handling for the camper and for hauling dirt etc.
question what is better use of cash thinking about 300 bucks-ish for the upgrade
wonder should I look at overload springs? and who and where to get them?
or should I look at airbags?
Elder User
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 787
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From: Hattiesburg, MS
Wait....back up!! You have an F-250!! Not a dump truck!!
2 yards of gravel weighs 6000+ pounds. Your frame and axle are not designed to carry that much weight........no matter what kind of springs you put underneath it. The highest factory GRAWR was was only like 5300 pounds on the F-350 4x4's ......... which use the rear axle as your F-250. I don't know what your current GRAWR is, but you can safely upgrade your springs to carry about 5500 pounds. But, that's total gross weight.....not payload. Anymore than that, and you are seriously overloading the rear axle.
The cheapest and easiest upgrade would be to get a set of overload springs that mount on top of your spring pack. You may be able to find a set in a junkyard......even from a later model truck. Your frame should already be drilled for the brackets.
.....and those are probably the factory blocks. The 77.5 - 79 trucks have blocks too, but they are a little different than the "Highboy" blocks.
2 yards of gravel weighs 6000+ pounds. Your frame and axle are not designed to carry that much weight........no matter what kind of springs you put underneath it. The highest factory GRAWR was was only like 5300 pounds on the F-350 4x4's ......... which use the rear axle as your F-250. I don't know what your current GRAWR is, but you can safely upgrade your springs to carry about 5500 pounds. But, that's total gross weight.....not payload. Anymore than that, and you are seriously overloading the rear axle.
The cheapest and easiest upgrade would be to get a set of overload springs that mount on top of your spring pack. You may be able to find a set in a junkyard......even from a later model truck. Your frame should already be drilled for the brackets.
.....and those are probably the factory blocks. The 77.5 - 79 trucks have blocks too, but they are a little different than the "Highboy" blocks.
Elder User
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 796
Likes: 1
Yeah that's seriously too much weight.
I haul firewood a lot and have looked seriously at airbags for my trucks. I would likely have them if I had any money. The reason I would look at airbags over more springs is that when the truck is empty, which it is most of the time, I could deflate the bags and it would still ride halfway decent.
Firewood, although when green is very heavy, has nothing on gravel though. An air spring kit may say it has 5000 lbs of leveling capacity, that doesn't mean you can put 5000 lbs in the bed without the axle breaking. Assuming the truck manages to hold the weight without damage, you're putting extreme stress on your drivetrain that it was never intended to deal with.
I haul firewood a lot and have looked seriously at airbags for my trucks. I would likely have them if I had any money. The reason I would look at airbags over more springs is that when the truck is empty, which it is most of the time, I could deflate the bags and it would still ride halfway decent.
Firewood, although when green is very heavy, has nothing on gravel though. An air spring kit may say it has 5000 lbs of leveling capacity, that doesn't mean you can put 5000 lbs in the bed without the axle breaking. Assuming the truck manages to hold the weight without damage, you're putting extreme stress on your drivetrain that it was never intended to deal with.
Posting Guru
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 1,427
Likes: 1
From: Huntington WV
go an look for a Hellwing it is for load leveling & you can get them for extreme loads I know partstrain has them. They are around $300 for the heavy duty version I am looking at installing that on mine & upgrading my suspension to 1 ton later on to handle heavy loads.
Thread Starter
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Senior User
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 328
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From: northwest,WA
Wait....back up!! You have an F-250!! Not a dump truck!!
2 yards of gravel weighs 6000+ pounds. Your frame and axle are not designed to carry that much weight........no matter what kind of springs you put underneath it. The highest factory GRAWR was was only like 5300 pounds on the F-350 4x4's ......... which use the rear axle as your F-250. I don't know what your current GRAWR is, but you can safely upgrade your springs to carry about 5500 pounds. But, that's total gross weight.....not payload. Anymore than that, and you are seriously overloading the rear axle.
The cheapest and easiest upgrade would be to get a set of overload springs that mount on top of your spring pack. You may be able to find a set in a junkyard......even from a later model truck. Your frame should already be drilled for the brackets.
.....and those are probably the factory blocks. The 77.5 - 79 trucks have blocks too, but they are a little different than the "Highboy" blocks.
2 yards of gravel weighs 6000+ pounds. Your frame and axle are not designed to carry that much weight........no matter what kind of springs you put underneath it. The highest factory GRAWR was was only like 5300 pounds on the F-350 4x4's ......... which use the rear axle as your F-250. I don't know what your current GRAWR is, but you can safely upgrade your springs to carry about 5500 pounds. But, that's total gross weight.....not payload. Anymore than that, and you are seriously overloading the rear axle.
The cheapest and easiest upgrade would be to get a set of overload springs that mount on top of your spring pack. You may be able to find a set in a junkyard......even from a later model truck. Your frame should already be drilled for the brackets.
.....and those are probably the factory blocks. The 77.5 - 79 trucks have blocks too, but they are a little different than the "Highboy" blocks.
so a take away, aside from load capacity is if I want to haul the camper around which the truck has been dooin for years (the camper is 2-3500 I thought) and want to increase the handling of the truck air bags are better then helper springs for when the camper is NOT on the truck
Elder User
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 669
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From: Crestline, California
I hauled a 4,000lb cabover camper for years on Burt. I did, however, use the Hellwig adjustable overload springs on the back and in-the-cab adjustable air shocks for the back. It was very stable at 65mph. Then I realized (duh!!!) that my AXLE was not rated to carry so much weight, no matter what the shocks and springs could, so I upgraded to a Dana70HD one ton rear end with larger brakes, etc. I would do it again in an instant, if for nothing else, safety and peace of mind.
Be careful and good luck!
Dak
Be careful and good luck!
Dak
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Senior User
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 328
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From: northwest,WA
what about the Air Lift LoadLifter 5000 kit, it is reasonable price from JC and appears to be bolt on to the dent as well as capable of the load
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Elder User
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 796
Likes: 1
That's basically the kit I was looking at. I even emailed them about it, they said it would bolt right on to my F-100 even.
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