transamz9 wrote:
TomG2 wrote:
bighog01 wrote:
Being the OP here, all I can say is OMG.
There you have it. I think of it as my 280 pound buddy sits in a chair rated by the manufacturer for 250 pounds. Does he get by with it? Sure, almost all of the time.
You have heard from the weight police, the pseudo scientists, the jailhouse lawyers, and the wannabe engineers. And from Ford. Take your pick as to who knows more about the vehicles strengths and weaknesses. If you think the yellow sticker payload is something dreamed up by a shipping clerk who knows nothing about frames, brakes, u-joints, engines, transmissions, or other vehicle components. Disregard it.
Just like anything else with a rating, the ratings are measured at curtain parameters . Then safety buffers are put into place to allow for Mr Murphy. With trucks we've all seen the tests they are put through. Not all of us pull 12% grades. Not all of us run in Sun-Times zero temps or 120 degree temps.
Then there are some of us that pull 12+% grades on a daily basis. Hence why I have said the specs are not that great. So as I mentioned earlier, the DRIVER needs to know what a rig will or will not do, handle etc. Just because you are legal, does not mean a troop can get you red tagged on the side of the road. If your brake battery has less than 11.6V, you have a failed braking system! This will be worst on your driving record than ANY of the overweight tickets one can get. You will also be red tagged, such that you can not move until that batter has more than 11.6Volts.
If you can not stop the setup on a level ground at least here in Wa st, with in 20' at 20mph, you again, have a failed braking system. You can be under ANY of the ratings weight wise talked about, but you are red tagged on the side of the road, you can not move under you own power until the brakes are fixed! Or most folks, have to get a low boy to tow them to a shop! Along with a failed braking system record on your driving record, which will hurt insurance rates etc.
Being over a bridge law amount, you have 8 hours if possible to move the load so you are under the legal amount you get. ASSUMING that is possible. OR< you pay a fine/tax that allows you to drive on the road doing more damage to the road than legally allowed. Of course, the amount over will depend upon if you need to bring in another trailer, more axels etc to make yourself legal. Hence what happened in Olympia near me the other day with the train that fell on to the freeway. A trailer could handle it weight wise was called in, but the legal spec for the road bed amount was too much. So a different trailer had to be called in to mover the locomotive off the freeway.
LEGAL on the road is usually determined via field tests like I have shown. Fail one of those, you're screwed, pass it, you're golden! Even if at 150% of the manufacture warranty rating! Fail it, even if at 50% of manufacture warranty rating, you get a ticket! and more issues.
MANY MANY ways to look at weight issues etc when it comes to towing, hauling etc.
Marty
