What would it take to tow 25k+# legally?
 

Taking on a new customer in the panhandle of oklahoma that has had a very unique unloading preference for liquid products..

Basically 3 tanks sitting on a flatbed gooseneck. No straight Trucks, no Semi's..

We would load with product, deliver the trailer and then use the 4wheel drive truck to offload the product into a bed tank and down to some oil wells.. Its a pretty unique situation and neither of my freightliners will fit the bill..

Im seeing the F550 being the best choice so far, but Im not sure it could legally do the job..

Weight of the product in 3 tanks would be over 22,000# plus tanks, equipment and trailer..

I cant seem to find the towing capacity of the F550, just the 450..

Is this going to be a possibility or do I need to start looking in the big truck class?

An F-550 can tow 25,500 - 26,500 (5th wheel) depending on cab and options.

You have to go to the commercial section:
http://www.ford.com/commercial-truck...ations/towing/

Aha, I missed that page.. It shows a reg cab 4x4 diesel 550 can tow 26,200.. That truck better weigh under 7k to come in under 33,000#GCWR to be a class 5 truck.. Thats really pushin it with fuel, driver and a steel flatbed.. But it doesnt take it out of the running, thats good to hear..

I was looking here: http://www.commtruck.ford.com/bp.html?modelYearId=11693 and it was showing MAX was 16k towing.

Fixx
 

i would say at a minimum a f-650 on the plus side you will get the cummins isb engine instead of the ih/ford engine..

some food for thought..https://www.fleet.ford.com/truckbbas...d_Workbook.pdf

page 7 gives you class and true weights.

The problem with going to a Class 6 truck is that I lose 4x4 which is one of the key elements to the situation.. a 4x4 650 with the cummins gets 5mpg loaded. And the GCWR between a 550 and a 650 is the same, if Im reading that correctly, 33k..

If you got to an airbrake 2wd 750, then you can get 33k+ but I have to stay under 33k and have 4wd.

tulsa truck in oklahoma did a 4x4 conversion on my pete 26.000 gvw

Talk about overkill. I LOVE IT!!!!!

Fixx
 

its hard to believe that f650 gets 5 mpg,,we have a 04 monoco diesel pusher with a 5,9 isb and and weighs around 24k,average 9-10 mpg..

This guy here claims he gets 12-15 mpg,dont know if its fwd tho..

http://www.projo.com/projocars/conte...3.26267dc.html

We have an m2 with the MBZ in it and a 26' bed..It gets 8.8 on a good day.. When you add the rolling resistance of two more sets of duals and being over 25k in cargo, I think 6-7 would be appropriate with a 4wd.. I just spoke with the guy about the deal and his concern with requiring four wheel drive is the last two years weve had unreal blizzards here and the semis cant get through the pasture roads to the wellsites.. But Im thinking that even with 4wd, that much weight and a trailer, itd still be hopeless.. I mentioned maybe using a tractor to pull the trailer to the sites if the snow got bad..

Id prefer a 2wd, less moving parts, cheaper insurance, better fuel economy and higher cvwr..

When too much is JUST enough! :lolhit:

Thats one sexy rig though! What mileage do you get out of it?!

And therein lies the problem, unless i purchase an older f650, I wont be able to get the cat.. and the cat DOES have significantly better OTR capabilites than the cummins :party-smiley-004:

I may be way off here, but have you considered possibly legally hauling the load OTR with one of your big trucks, getting it to the site, and just dropping it in place with an older (maybe 99-03) F350 that's beefed up (airbags, etc). I'm betting you could safely move the load off road at low speeds, especially in 4L. Or am I missing the point? You could even leave this truck at the site.

Cale, Call the guys at Tulsa Truck. They are across the street from U-Haul at 51st and 169. They make nice trucks. Just do it right and roll with a rig that can handle the load with 4wd.

I've never dealt with them, but have seen some nice product come out of there.

http://www.tulsatruckmfg.com/

Thats kind of the direction we are leaning now, except instead of a 350, it'll be a glasscab tractor. That way we can use it here during the summer and there during the winter. But both of my straight trucks are maxed at 14k payload and 17k payload..

I don't know why you think the truck needs to be rated from the factory for more then what you are hauling. From my research and personal experience the FMCSA DOT only cares about what your driver is licensed for and what the truck is licensed for. How else would trucking companies hull 130,000lbs+ (with permit) on the same truck that hauls 80,000 on a normal day. You don't buy a kenworth based on what its rated to tow. I think you will be legal with one of those 4x4's as long as your driver has a class a and your plates are apportioned.

In most cases, YES.. The key factor that throws a whole wrench in that mess is that the product is not only placarded Corrosive but its also a Special Permit hazmat for inhalation.

And a kenworth is over 33k, which is a class 8 set of rules. Once you go over class 6, the weights aren't considered as "payload" or "towing capability", they are only based on "per axle weight unless specially permitted"..

Being as how the product is a double placard with inhalation hazard and special hazmat permit, our max will be 33k in Oklahoma unless we change our operating authority to a federal level and become an inTERstate carrier.

We had a flatbed SRW F250 that we used to tow a tandem dually 30' gooseneck with wideload poly chemical tanks. They permitted us to about 12' if I remember correctly. I got stopped in OKC for a permit check and was given a ticket for being 16,000 pounds OVERWEIGHT.. Now this is where it gets tricky, its up to the officers interpretation of the rulebook..His and HIS only, until you get in front of a judge. But he wrote me a ticket for exceeding the trucks CAPACITY by hauling a trailer with more CAPABILITY. The trailer was rated for 33k, the truck was NOT. So the difference between those two is what I was consiidered to be "overweight".
So if you haul a 44' boat trailer with your 1/2 ton (well within the trucks ABILITY and CAPACITY), in OK they will consider you to be overweight by however much the trailer has the plates to haul.

Against the scales, those truck axles will weigh the same PER AXLE as allowable by law.. They arent hauling 130k on 2 axle flatbeds. They are hauling that 130k on 6 or 8 different axles plus the drive and steer...

They built the bed for my sterling, its a beast! Theyve turned out some powerline trucks that look like they should be at SEMA..:eek:

You ought to be fine with a Hummer H2 and a Class-III hitch.

( Just wanted to fit the thought process around here. :D )

Ive got a welder and an attwoods gift card. I think I can make somethin work!

my pete gets 10 mpg all day long 2007 c-7 cat no emissions thats the trick 34 years welding experince on my end and when i went to tulsa truck and saw the work they did it is top notch!!!!

few more pix

and a few more

^ That Pete is awesome, I know it I've riden in it numerous times!! Looks good Bill!

Just use a pusher motorhome, that way you are exempt from all laws.

Amazing they let people with no endorsments drive these giant buses while towing cars.