M35A2 vs. M35A3 In Snow and Ice

[glcaines]

From personal experience and testing results at the Yuma Proving Grounds, there are few reasons to stick with duals:

1...you carry lots of weight on highway. OK.
2...It's original equipment. Perview of purists.
3...They make you feel good via the looks of them. No comment.

Other than that, big singles do more for any truck off-road or in crappy situations.
And you never have to pull two wheels to change an inside flat...

Another advantage of duals is if you have a flat on one of the rear 8 tires and not a lot of cargo weight, you can still drive.

 

[rustystud]

From personal experience and testing results at the Yuma Proving Grounds, there are few reasons to stick with duals:

1...you carry lots of weight on highway. OK.
2...It's original equipment. Perview of purists.
3...They make you feel good via the looks of them. No comment.

Other than that, big singles do more for any truck off-road or in crappy situations.
And you never have to pull two wheels to change an inside flat...

You forgot that with dual's you have better sway control on corners and curves. Especially when loaded.
If there was no good reason for dual's then every "over the road truck" would have singles.

 

[G744]

More & more I see semis with singles. At least 20 a day hauling trash to the local dump out of Phoenix. Just as many 7,000 gal 4-axle milk tankers as well. Lots of other O&O jobs as well.

Makes sense, as when a dual blows, it usually takes out the mate as well. Messy.

The times they are a 'changin'.

 

[Aussie Bloke]

G'day everyone,.....

I get 3-400K from my manuals before having to replace them. Ive never got more than 250K from a automatic except in a old 300D.

My daily driver has just done over 1,030,000 klms and the gearbox still feels like new.

Only ever changed the gearbox oil every 100,000 klms.

Still running on the original clutch!


Aussie.

 

[Karl kostman]

I live in ND and yes its VERY cold and we get lots of snow ans Ice almost every year. I will tell you my thoughts. If you look at the A2 and the A3 they are just about the same truck with a few different ways in which they get the job done. The biggest and number one BAD thing for ice and snow is duals and NDT tires, I truly do not believe you could possibly have a worse combination for winter conditions! Chains will work very well but you will never be able to take them off and still move if you go that route! A Deuce needs to be on singles with a tread pattern appropriate for these conditions and 5K of weight in the bed will help a lot more! If you do this and run your air pressure accordingly the trucks setup the same should have the same performance in these conditions!

 

[rustystud]

More & more I see semis with singles. At least 20 a day hauling trash to the local dump out of Phoenix. Just as many 7,000 gal 4-axle milk tankers as well. Lots of other O&O jobs as well.

Makes sense, as when a dual blows, it usually takes out the mate as well. Messy.

The times they are a 'changin'.

Garbage trucks went to singles in the late 1970's. I remember laying on my back having magots fall on me trying to change out a broken transmission in 1979.
That being said they are not long haulers. For short haul trucks singles are more cost effective, not safer.
The long haul trucks still use duals for the reasons mentioned above.
As far as losing both duals in a blow out, that is not true. When both wheels go that is usually due to the driver not paying attention to what has happened. He keeps on driving until the second tire blows from the other tire hitting it or catches fire from the first blown out tire which has caught fire.

 

[G744]

Hey Rusty, back to the focus here. No argument about Class 8 rigs on I-10.

But how many of us with retired tacticals run long haul?

Even in service, an OLD tactical will have less than 20K on the clock.

It took me over 25 years to get 21K on my 5-ton, and was with multiple trips from Phx to Modesto, Vegas, and Abq.

Jus sayin...

 

[davidb56]

I live in ND and yes its VERY cold and we get lots of snow ans Ice almost every year. I will tell you my thoughts. If you look at the A2 and the A3 they are just about the same truck with a few different ways in which they get the job done. The biggest and number one BAD thing for ice and snow is duals and NDT tires, I truly do not believe you could possibly have a worse combination for winter conditions! Chains will work very well but you will never be able to take them off and still move if you go that route! A Deuce needs to be on singles with a tread pattern appropriate for these conditions and 5K of weight in the bed will help a lot more! If you do this and run your air pressure accordingly the trucks setup the same should have the same performance in these conditions!

I chain up every winter and dont remove them for about 4 months. I never had problems going anywhere up here. I dont drive on the highway (no need/desire to) though. Also I run Michelins, not NDT. At first, I ran a set of A3 14s up front for the track pattern, but now I just run all 11s and run six single wheel chains. I drive all winter in the woods getting the blow over fire wood, and also have a big fixed V snow plow up front for busting out a path on my driveway and road approach.

 

[rustystud]

Hey Rusty, back to the focus here. No argument about Class 8 rigs on I-10.

But how many of us with retired tacticals run long haul?

Even in service, an OLD tactical will have less than 20K on the clock.

It took me over 25 years to get 21K on my 5-ton, and was with multiple trips from Phx to Modesto, Vegas, and Abq.

Jus sayin...

I thought we were talking about the merits of duals vs singles. So, my comments were valid, and my "focus" is fine. They both have their place.

 

[rustystud]

I thought we were talking about the merits of duals vs singles. So my comments were valid, and my "focus" is just fine. They both have their place.

 

[NY Tom]

I have never seen a garbage truck, roll off or a dump truck with singles in NY/NJ.

 

[ToddJK]

With everything, there's pros and cons. The best option will always vary upon individual, vehicle, and task.

 

[DaneGer21]

Has anyone ever added the “auto” tire chains? Like buses and ambulances have? Just push a button and have them deployed.

 

[glcaines]

I've never heard of automatic tire chains on military vehicles, but no reason they wouldn't work. However, that is an expensive option.

 

[davidb56]

I dont think they " bite" very hard, especially if you are stopped in the mud and try to take off.

 

[rustystud]

Has anyone ever added the “auto” tire chains? Like buses and ambulances have? Just push a button and have them deployed.

They only work on pavement. Off road they are useless. Even on pavement they have problems. We tried them on some of the 40 ft buses. For the expense and maintenance issues, they were not worth it. Also, they lower your ground clearance to 10" to 12" on the frame.

 

[DaneGer21]

They only work on pavement. Off road they are useless. Even on pavement they have problems. We tried them on some of the 40 ft buses. For the expense and maintenance issues, they were not worth it. Also, they lower your ground clearance to 10" to 12" on the frame.

Makes sense; I appreciate the actual experience.

 

[davidb56]

They only work on pavement. Off road they are useless. Even on pavement they have problems. We tried them on some of the 40 ft buses. For the expense and maintenance issues, they were not worth it. Also, they lower your ground clearance to 10" to 12" on the frame.

yea the school busses up here use them all winter. half the roads here are gravel but plowed, and they dont go down any dirt roads.

 

[Weldman]

.

 

[ToddJK]

Only way into town is highway after driving 38 miles of rock/gravel road up and down a ridge and some hills. I need a plow for my MV, not for just getting into town, but to get the wife to work when it gets too deep for a Subaru that has been lifted 2 inches.
Plus to help the locals out.

Does any of the local municipalities auction any of their old plows? Mounting it shouldn't be too bad but it be finding the hydraulic to fit on the truck or go the cheap and hard route of using a winch and moving the blade by hand to which side the snow is pushed. From a few YT vids I've seen, the deuce with a plow did really well using the NDT's and tire chains and it would push feet of snow. I know a 5 ton isn't going to struggle.