2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission How much weight in bed for good winter traction?

[Chief USA]

Ol'TrailDog, more than welcome! Those John Deere suit case weights are pricey but they look nice on a truck. Gives you he "agricultural" look.

 

[Gregg Mig]

To off- set my Fisher plow I add 6 cinder blocks filled with concrete. I'm figuring they weigh about 70-80 lbs. each. I also made a wooden frame rectangular shaped that fits between the tailgate and the fender well's. I attached this to a piece of plywood. The blocks are placed onto the plywood frame,this keeps the blocks from dented the bed when going over bumps. This works great for me it's quick,easy,and safe. Gregg.

 

[Forrest Nearing]

bought 10 80# concrete bags at LOWES today on clearance for $1 a piece (hey, 10 was a nice round number) I built a little corral in the bed w/ 4x4's



today was my third day w/ the truck and my first on wet roads... traction was definately limited!! nothing insane, but I'm about to drive up to Oklahoma for a while, and it's gonna be snowing up there. on top of that, I think my 2wd truck has an open differential! so I decided why not put some weight over the axle?



Forrest

 

[Hammer]

Each year this comes up and begins the debate on safety. I'll add my . 02 worth and drop out. As we all know this is done by many people to aid in traction control or just helping the ride. IF anyone has ever seen the damages or injuries caused by the "chance" of a accident with items in the bed like this you would never do it again. Many accidents I have been to while driving a wrecker where a p/u has either rolled or come to a sudden stop with sand,gravel etc,etc in the bed have contained injuries due to items in the bed. I would not do it,then again,its not my truck we are chatting about... ... ... . Andy



P. S. -Easy way to answer your own question here is ask yourself this... .

I wonder what would happen to 100lbs or more of stone or sand(bagged or not) if I was involved in a head-on collision?.

 

[trucknut]

Bolt down load to the fifth wheel brackets

Both my ram trucks have the reese style brackets installed in the bed. There are 4 (1/2" holes ) with a nut tacked-on underneath each bracket. Useing both brackets, four 1/2" bolts hold down a 90 gallon methanol tank, and additional testing equipment can be slide on and bolted to the brackets



For the winter I like lots of weight in the bed to balance of the truck alittle. We all know how heavy the mighty diesel is. I find the truck reacts better on ice, keeping control,and getting control back from a little slide out. There are many times you are not in 4-wheel drive for small or short slippery sections



Being I work off-road and travel alot of ice, and snowy roads I like to see no less than a 1000lbs in my truck bed.



98 2500 Quad cab 5-spd diesel short box

03 3500 Quad cab auto diesel "

 

[jpickens]

plate weight vs. snow weight

Yeah at least 1000lbs for a nice ride and to keep the cummins under control in the slick stuff... Last year got lazy... hadn't put my 4x8 sheet of 3/4 plate steel in the bed yet (anyone know what that weighs BTW?) and thought I'd just pack the whole bed, clear up to the bed rails with snow, for the weight I was looking for. Worked GREAT! ... till it got a bit warm out... sorta started to melt then froze again... did this 3 or 4 times... turned into basically one huge chunk of ice! I eventually took the tailgate off and drove around for another week or two before it even attempted to fall out... spud bar to the rescue!

 

[JSykes]

Weight of Steel Plates

To calculate the weight of a steel plate, you can use this formula:



Weight = Volume x Density



Weight = Length (in inches) x Width (in inches) x Thickness (in inches) x . 2833 lb/cubic inch (density of mild carbon steel)



So, a 4' x 8' x . 75" plate will weigh:



48" x 96" x . 75" x . 2833 lb/cubic inch = 979 lb.



This 979 pounds is assuming that it is a solid plate with no notches cut out.



Personally, I like the steel plate idea. Gives me an excuse to go down to the scrap yard and see what they have laying around.



Jay

 

[Ol'TrailDog]

Scrap yard = Way cool place



Now that's my kind of calculation.

 

[Sled Puller]

Talk about a bedliner... .....

Scrapyards-