Biggest truck camper not for f450 550

My 550 rides most comfortably with 7,000 lbs of payload, which likely would overload most 350 duallys.

My F450 is way more comfortable than my F350 SRW.

My 5500 is surprisingly comfortable on the highway but I have about 2000 lbs on the rear with my spare, steel deck, gooseneck and SuperHitch. Rough city can be felt more than a pickup when empty.

i'm curious to know how you guys use those trucks when the don't have a camper on them.they must be as comfortable as falling down stairs when they're unloaded.

oilburner-dave wrote:
You may have to add a few more colors to the list of heavy haulers.

Just think how much more those trucks would haul in white, grey, and silver! :)

You may have to add a few more colors to the list of heavy haulers.
08 F450 Truck sold.

07 Kodiak C4500, New ride.

Dave

bka0721, interesting but I fail to see why I and mkirsch were quoted. Should we talk about the importance of a nice sound system next in this thread? :)

jimh425 wrote:

mkirsch wrote:
Payload factors in tires, brakes, steering, and gearing so you don't have to think about those things.

I think the point is that F450s can stop better than a F350 because they are rated higher for towing. Obviously, that translates for braking better with payload, without payload, or pulling a trailer.

Unfortunately, and proven here by the number of posts asking for help in how to do it, is to pile on more stuff to overload trucks beyond their model's recommended loads. Often these people put their efforts in upgrading areas of the truck bed and neglect the shocks, brakes and gearing. It is correct in making your initial purchase for a base truck already equipped, but the experience we have in this forum the norm is to stack aftermarket items on their truck to upgrade these trucks beyond their OEM design parameters.

Mark Donohue once stated, as a college educated engineer and world renowned race car driver; "The parts must be friendly." Meaning that many aftermarket parts might not be compatible with the other parts that already are installed by the manufacturer.


More weight requires longer braking distances, thus larger brakes and higher temperatures for longer Duration braking.

More weight changes the dampening of a vehicles suspension than what was originally designed into the shocks and springs.

More weight takes more "Push" to get the mass into motion and up a hill than the original gearing was designed for.

More weight puts more stress and control onto the front steering components were originally designed for, while negotiating turns into parking lots and curves on mountain roadways.


So, it is not always a bunch of Air bags, stabilizers, sway bars and helper springs. Think about the entire picture of your truck and the safety of your family those others traveling down the roads around you.

b

b

mkirsch wrote:
Payload factors in tires, brakes, steering, and gearing so you don't have to think about those things.

I think the point is that F450s can stop better than a F350 because they are rated higher for towing. Obviously, that translates for braking better with payload, without payload, or pulling a trailer.

bka0721 wrote:
Finally, someone gave us a Reality Check! It is not all about the payload. Tires, brakes, steering and gearing are important too.

Payload factors in tires, brakes, steering, and gearing so you don't have to think about those things.

If the truck is designed to handle XXXXlbs of payload, then it is expected to keep that payload off the ground, stop the payload in a reasonable distance, allow the driver to reliably maneuver the payload under all but the most extreme of driving conditions, and accelerate that payload at a reasonable rate.

Rated payload capacities on pickup trucks are well below the limits of tires, brakes, steering and gearing. It's when you start throwing aftermarket add-ons that change the characteristics of the truck, that you can get into trouble.