New member to the overloaded club, 53140 lbs!!!

[Jeremiah]

Apples to oranges

Originally posted by SFranzer

Why are comparing trucks and aircraft like comparing apples and oranges?



I believe its called altitude!

That's one difference. The other difference is you can pull over and stop when something goes wrong in a truck. Try that in a plane and you come down - fast.



The other difference is procedures. Get in a plane and close the door, everything becomes rate. Single and multi-engine rate of climb, mimimum control speed, center of gravity, weight and balance, load, turbulent air penetration speed, knots per hour, gallons or pounds of fuel per hour, etc. I could go on and on.



Driving a truck isn't nearly as complicated and things don't happen nearly as fast. Hauling a 60,000 lb. load of hay at 30 mph isn't nearly as knarly as transitioning a plane from a 100 mph ground vehicle to one that flies 200 kph in the air.



And if you fly jets or high performance twins, you have systems to manage in addition to procedures.



Like I said, apples and oranges.

 

[c-hawk]

NVR FNSH,



Could you please use some of your "science superiority" and calculate how much easier it is to stop one of these trucks loaded at rated max GCW traveling at the legal speed limit (55+mph), vs one of these trucks loaded to twice GCW traveling at less than half the speed limit. Also, how much time would someone have to avoid a bad situation traveling at less than 30mph, vs traveling at 60+mph? You can round the numbers if you want, to make it simple enough for me to understand.



I will admit, that i'm not the most learned person on the board, but i know without a doubt, that i have a much greater chance of being killed by someone driving the speed limit in their new SUV, than i do of being killed by a farmer hauling his equipment or harvest down the back roads at less than 30mph.



And beyond that, if i HAD to choose an accident to be in, i'd rather get hit by a farmer creeping along, with a lot of weight, than i would get slammed into by a truck moving RATED max weight down the highway at the speed limit. Just the same as i'd rather be pushed than punched.



Oh, and why are you reaming someone out for doing a LEGAL thing to make a living? If you don't like what he's doing, maybe you could spend your time writing your congressmen.



Just an inferior opinion from a farm boy who's been to college.



BTW, I have no problems with NVR's point of view, just think that he's not looking at the big picture. These farmers have no choice a lot of times. Some do, and some don't. Bottom line, common sense is the most useful tool. There are safe ways, to do "unsafe" things.



Chris

 

[GFritsch]

Farmer vs. Engineer?



The Engineer will win every time.



No truck can pull as much as a train.

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by c-hawk

NVR FNSH,



Could you please use some of your "science superiority" and calculate how much easier it is to stop one of these trucks loaded at rated max GCW traveling at the legal speed limit (55+mph), vs one of these trucks loaded to twice GCW traveling at less than half the speed limit. Also, how much time would someone have to avoid a bad situation traveling at less than 30mph, vs traveling at 60+mph? You can round the numbers if you want, to make it simple enough for me to understand.



I will admit, that i'm not the most learned person on the board, but i know without a doubt, that i have a much greater chance of being killed by someone driving the speed limit in their new SUV, than i do of being killed by a farmer hauling his equipment or harvest down the back roads at less than 30mph.



And beyond that, if i HAD to choose an accident to be in, i'd rather get hit by a farmer creeping along, with a lot of weight, than i would get slammed into by a truck moving RATED max weight down the highway at the speed limit. Just the same as i'd rather be pushed than punched.



Oh, and why are you reaming someone out for doing a LEGAL thing to make a living? If you don't like what he's doing, maybe you could spend your time writing your congressmen.



Just an inferior opinion from a farm boy who's been to college.



BTW, I have no problems with NVR's point of view, just think that he's not looking at the big picture. These farmers have no choice a lot of times. Some do, and some don't. Bottom line, common sense is the most useful tool. There are safe ways, to do "unsafe" things.



Chris

Lemme come to NVR FNSH's aid a little here. He was critical of drivers and truck owners who break the rules hauling heavy and he got his bones jumped for it. But he was only thinking like the cop he wants to be - that the law is the law and that settles it.



He isn't the only one who thinks like this. It's true that the law is the law, but there are always "yes, but's" to consider. Yes, the law says don't hang 30,000 lbs. onto a TD and head off down the road. But sometimes it's necessary to "bend" the law in order to make a living.



The law says don't drive faster than whatever the speed limit is. How many times do we break that law? A lot. If the limit is 60 and we drive 70, do we deserve a ticket? Maybe, maybe not. It depends on the circumstances, his attitude, etc.



How many times have we had a tad too much to drink and driven home instead of calling a cab? Probably more than once or twice.



It isn't the slightly impaired driver who is two or three times as likely to be involved in a crash - it's the person who is 10 or 15 times as likely!



For the most part, it's not the . 05 or . 06 driver who kills, it's the . 14, . 18, etc.



You get the picture. You don't wanna ruin a person's reputation and driving record unless he really deserves it. How can you tell if someone really deserves it? Use discretion!



I've had a few other conversations with NVR FNSH and he seems like a nice guy. Now that he's heard from some of us, he might even be rethinking some of his positions.



That doesn't mean he should come around to our way of thinking. It does he should realize that in life there are shades of gray between black and white and govern his thinking accordingly.

 

[NVR FNSH]

Jeremiah,

I'm not aware of a specific law that requires you to not exceed the mfg GVWR or GCWR. There are laws, at least in CA, that prohibit unsafe loads although they don't specifically mention GVWR or GCWR. My issue is not really with the 'legality' of overloading but from the engineering/right tool for the job/total ownership cost of overloading. DC/Ford/GM (whomever) design vehicles with a given set of use assumptions and then build in a safety factor (whatever they happen to choose). I'm reasonably sure DC didn't use a SF of >100% when designing our trucks - as far as I know the frame is the same on a CTD and a V8 or V10 truck. I can't tell you how many miles/cycles of towing at 53K it will take before something major on my truck will fail. But I can say that it will fail before a truck towing 20K. It's called fatigue life and with steels as long as you operate below the knee in the curve you will have infinite fatigue life - I'm willing to bet that 53K is well above the knee.



I'm the master of the gray area but in some cases the gray area just needs to be avoided.



Brian

 

[ndurbin]

the differnce between engineers and farmers is engineers build a new tool for every job, the farmer redesgins an old one to make it work (usually several times). The more versitile the tool the more valuable it is. If I can use my truck as a daily driver/family wagon, work truck, and a semi when needed, it saves me money rather than having 3 different trucks for each purpose. Sure it's nice to have the right tool for every job but sometimes it's not practicle. Ya gotta make do with the cards your delt sometimes.

 

[NVR FNSH]

Originally posted by ndurbin

the differnce between engineers and farmers is engineers build a new tool for every job, the farmer redesgins an old one to make it work (usually several times).

Give it a rest - it's getting old. You ever worked as an engineer? There's never enough money or time to start from scratch so you're always redesigning and re-using existing equipment.

Originally posted by ndurbin

The more versitile the tool the more valuable it is. If I can use my truck as a daily driver/family wagon, work truck, and a semi when needed, it saves me money rather than having 3 different trucks for each purpose. Sure it's nice to have the right tool for every job but sometimes it's not practicle. Ya gotta make do with the cards your delt sometimes.

Gee, thanks for the economics lesson. I'm all for multiple use - up to a point. And 'a semi when needed' is that point.



Brian

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by NVR FNSH

Give it a rest - it's getting old. You ever worked as an engineer? There's never enough money or time to start from scratch so you're always redesigning and re-using existing equipment.









Gee, thanks for the economics lesson. I'm all for multiple use - up to a point. And 'a semi when needed' is that point.



Brian

Joe Rancher loads up his trailer with whatever he thinks the truck can pull. He factors in the load with the distance he must travel and then goes for it. When the truck wears out, he buys another one. I have a friend who owns a local feed store. He regularly pulls a gooseneck to Missouri and comes back GVCWR 30,000 lbs. , which is 14,000 lbs. over. I tease him about the mud and crap on his truck (it's an '03 duallie), whereas mine is usually spotless. He looks at me through narrow eyes and says "Mine's a work truck," meaning, of course, that the heaviest thing I haul is 2500 lbs of water (and even then I am 110 lbs. over gross).

 

[MCummings]

It COULD be worse ya know.....



https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=101658



Merrick

 

[JoshPeters]

Alright guys. I have Paint hanging on my wall and a BS in Common Sense. Stepping back and thinking about this... .



Sled pullers are VERY VIOLENTLY yanking a 40,000lbs sled down a dirt track. How often does something break. A fair ammount with a modified truck. Stock... . not very often. Now this isn't a "normal" 40,000lbs. Get your slide rules out BSME guys... . What's the coeffecient of drag on that sled? I don't know, but I'm sure it "overloaded. " Hitch, reciever... ... whatever.



Take these hard working farmers... . Sure there is alot of weight. Can they stop on a dime... . nope. An object in motion tends to stay in motion. What changes that the coeffecient of drag again. Now take those grain hauling trucks/trailers. Whats the coefecient of drag on the massive baloon tires when they are loaded, wheel bearings, etc. I'm sure it's not the greatist. Last I heard they didn't like to roll easily. Therefore, slow down on their own. Add brakes and you can stop them.



As far as being on the road with farmers. I grew up in a small town. When I got my license, my parents were VERY verbal about my being on the roads with farmers..... ESPECIALLY at harvest time. For those of you who don't know... . Harvist time is every fall rain or shine. If you dont' like it... ... Stay off the roads in the fall. Those who are concerned with the IDIOTS that pull out infront of a farmer that can't stop easily. They get the Darwin award. Todays society has gotten rid of Natural Selection. Someone dumb enough to not pay attention, deserves it.



Just my . 02

Josh

 

[cyborg]

I just spent the evening reading this thread. Can you feel the love?

Through this entire nine pages not one person said : I knew/heard about a farmer who was overloaded and (insert traumatic event) and (insert disasterous consequences here).



Dodge Trucks, Job Rated.



Thank you for a great thread on a great site.

 

[NVR FNSH]

Originally posted by cyborg

Dodge Trucks, Job Rated.

'splain, please.



Brian

 

[MCummings]

It's from the Old Dodge Commercials.



Merrick

 

[ndurbin]

Give it a rest - it's getting old. You ever worked as an engineer? There's never enough money or time to start from scratch so you're always redesigning and re-using existing equipment.

No, I've never worked as an engineer. You ever worked as a farmer?

 

[PHellen]

I love your stories on overloading. Good times reading them. When i was 15 or so my grandpa and i overloaded his 1 ton truck with 17 wet bails of hay IN THE BED AND MORE ON THE TRAILER. It was so heavy the transmission gave out as soon as we hit so mud. But that truck kept running with 1st gear and still had reverse. Some people dont understand what you have to do when the animals need to eat or the crops get cut. Do what you have to do

 

[smokejunkie]

Good On Ya Dammit

 

[Sled Puller]

Do I understand the dates correctly?

First post at 10/18/2001? Last post now?



You have been arguing the same overload, for 3 years?



Let me never finish it for you.



If the wagons axles were lubed with Amsoil, yer good to go!

 

[DennyDay]

More Heavy Loads

CTD will move heavy loads!



Used my '99 to move a loaded RR car about a city block to where we could transfer it easily. weight 275,000# Product - Sodium Chlorite (a granular powder)



The truck was a '99 5 speed and yes I did use 4 X 4 lo range. It did fine, a little wheel slip in gravel and I had a guy on the car to apply the brakes when we got it where it had to go.



Denny

 

[Jeremiah]

I can see it now: a southbound coal training leaving Wyoming being pulled by a Dodge diesel. Hahahahahahaha!

 

[redfuelrules]

It's hilarious that this post has lasted as long as it has.



Here's to Dodge/Cummins for making a truck thats impessive enough to cause this arguement in the first place.



Here's to CTD owners that care enough about their trucks to endure this arguement for over three years.



Here's to Brian for being an engineer. Instead of a postal worker.



Cheers.