best weight to put in bed of truck for winter traction?

[mazdarotary]

Hey guys,



I know I am not a 1st gen owner anymore,but I still love them. I owned a 2wd 2st gen for the last 4 years,and I used various things for weight in the rear,but none of them were ever very good for traction in a one-wheel-peel with 500+ ft lbs of torque.



My new truck is a 1500 quad cab 2wd,but this time it has a limited slip rear axle. It also has 345 horsepower,and is light in the rear. I just bought a set of Nokian Hakkapiliitta snow tires for it,and they will help,but what is the best way to weigh down the rear for better traction?I was thinking something like sand or kitty-liter so I could use it for traction if I needed it,but is that the best idea?Thanks in advance.





Chris

 

[16919]

I use 150lbs of sand bags.

 

[OKish]

i use anywhere from 500-1000 pounds. salt, sand, rocks, anything.

 

[DWeiler]

350lbs of sandbags+150lbs of tools+100lbs spare tire/rim and a couple of 100+lbs American Bulldogs,if i do get stuck the "BULLS" can always earn there keep and i can hook em up to the truck. DW

 

[AKaiser]

Back when my parents had a water softener, I'd pick up 10 bags of Morton System Saver for my old 92 Dakota, as they came in heavy plastic bags. Don't recall putting anything in my 99 Ram 1500 QC, but with this new one, will probably have to do something, being it's so front-end heavy. Whatever you do, make sure you can secure it. God forbid you have a wreck and a couple of 95lb tractor front-end weights go flying thru the cab, hitting you, or worse, someone else. Can you say "lawsuit" for negligence.

 

[JLEONARD]

I use 8 or 10 cement blocks held in place over the axle with a grid of furing strips.

 

[MChessick]

I had a 2003 quad cab 1500 2wd as well. I used the 60lb bags of tube sand found at Home Depot. With good snow tires all the way around , I found that 600lbs gave me the best traction. Don't go less that that or you are wasting your time. I live in the Northeast and get all types of snow and ice. I have an 03 Dually 2wd now and use about 1400 lbs for winter traction. Good luck.



Mark

 

[GIT-R-DONE]

I used to have a 1500 lb cement block made with a steel piece through the middle that I then attached to the hitch via chain / strap. Had to load and unload with the highlift tractor. No longer use it but am sure nobody will steal it either... :-laf



Should have seen the guys face that was pouring in the cement . :-laf :-laf :-laf

 

[JStrasser]

Chris,



We are a couple of hours north of you (but you have probably had more snow than us over the last few years!). I also use 600# of sand bags in the truck bed held in place over the rear axle with a simple treated wood frame- the frame is probably more important with our long bed than a SB.



I agree that more is better and if I was driving a 2WD in the Northeast, I would probably have between 10 and 15- 60# sandbags in the bed, since you can't grab the t-case lever and double your traction.



Good luck,

John

 

[KMUNCASTER]

I've used 8 24" patio stones in the past for plowing traction, and they still allow for use of the box for hauling sleds, atv's, or what have you, With a bit of snow and ice they freeze in place and don't move around too much, and in the spring I put 'em back in the wife's garden..... dual purpose...



I drove my 93 for the first time in the snow last Sat. on the way to work, It's about 8 miles of gravel road, and there was 3-4 inches of really wet snow on the unfrozen ground, had no weight in the truck and had to get out and lock the hubs... . well, didn't HAVE to, but wanted to get to work in a timely fashion. I guess I'll be adding weight this week too !!!

 

[Kayers]

I'd imagine that girl I took to high school prom would do the job. No worry about tire spin with her in the bed.

 

[therabbittree]

a round bale works good. 1000 or so lbs.

just takes up a lot of space. same with 2 yards of sand /salt mix. . i filled to bed level anda little hump. . it had traction for sure . . hehe

Later,

Deo

 

[keimmmo]

I know a farmer up in Illinois who fills the bed with snow when it snows. He uses the loader on his tracter to fill it. It is easy to load and he never has to unload it when the snow melts. A bit primitive, but effective and safe.



Steve Keim

 

[Kiohio]

I don't put anything in the bed.

All my weight goes on the front and middle... . it's called an axle and tranfer case :-laf

Sorry... .



I bought a truck off of a guy that had a snow plowing business.

When he got his start he only had a 2wd 1 ton dually Chevy with a plow.

He went to the local concrete yard and bought one of their big solid retangular blocks.

Most block and concrete places have them.

They have one or 2 eyes sticking out of them, to load and unload with.

He said it weighed somewhere around 2k lbs.

They may make smaller ones too.



KO

 

[Grizzly]

On the down side, if you put concrete or cinder blocks or sand bags in you bed, you can't haul anything else in it. Try a 4'x8' 1/4" steel plate with a rubber mat over it. If you need more traction, use two 1/4" steel plates.

 

[Nate]

Snow isn't all that heavy though.

 

[Kiohio]

He might have really wet snow there... . or wait till he has a wet one.

Could wait till a really cold night and wet it down.

That's a big dang ice cube.



KO

 

[Greenleaf]

Best Weight

Make a stop at your local FORD or GM delaership... ... ... ... ... they'd most likely PAY YOU to haul away one of the Wanna-be-diesel coulda-been V-8's.



Oh, and ain't no one ganna steel it either.

 

[JLEONARD]

if you put concrete or cinder blocks or sand bags in you bed, you can't haul anything else in it

That's why I use cement blocks... I can easily remove them if I need the bed space and there is no mess to clean up.

I find the 300 lbs or so to be plenty for Ct winters, especially with studded snow tires. I really don't want to haul around too much useless weight...

(now there I go leading with my chin... LOL)

 

[Nate]

My Dad has a little 96 Ford Ranger 2wd. What he has setup is a large steel shaft, I believe 6 or 8" that is the width of the frame rails. It weighs probably about 150-200lbs. Bolt that right to the frame at the very back.



He also keeps some sand bags in the bed usually.