WHAT'S CONSIDERED OVERLOADING?

[No.2Diesel]

Hi,

I would like to know what everyone thinks is the maximum payload that can safely be carried in the bed of a Deuce? What is the max safe towed load too? I know the off-road rating is 5Klbs. and 10Klbs. on pavement. But I'd like to know what people really put in the back. I make regular visits to masonry supply places loading up on pavers, brick and bulk material like sand, and gravel. I usually take on 5cu.yds. of sand. I never guessed at how much moist sand weighed. Was I dangerously overloading the axles?

According to the operator's manual the maximum "heaping load" that a Deuce can carry is 3.76cu.yds. It also stated that moist sand was 120lbs. per cu.ft. Thats 3,240lbs. per cu. yd. 5cu.yds. would be 16,200lbs. The truck handles it pretty well. If the truck weighs 13,720lbs. then each axle would be carrying close to 10Klbs. I should minus the weight of the wheels & tires in that calc. What is the maximum vertical load that the axles will take before the housing or axle snaps? Five yards is about the most I can carry with no worries of spillage. The bed sides are not modified in any way.

Towing...

I removed the swivel pintle from the rear crossmember and welded on a "structure" of 1/2" plate consisted of large triangular gussets that tie in to both frame rails and the rear two crossmembers to acommodate a fixed 30ton Premiere Pintle mounted so that the top of the mounting flange just touches the bottom of the rear crossmember. Immediatley below this is a 2" receiver tube going through the plate. The tube is sandwiched on both sides with plate. I wish I was able to show pics. This modification allows me to tow a 12ton TrailKing and other smaller trailers with the tube receiver without sacrificing ground clearance. I have towed a maximum of 24Klbs. including the 7Klb. trailer. Most of my towing (even off road) is not enough to over articulate. I'm assuming that the advertised max in the OM is due to the fact that the swivel pintle is only supported by the rear crossmember and a bracket. The swivel pintle looks beefy enough to take a 20ton load. Does anyone know who made these hitches (Holland?) and what there max rating really is? I feel much safer trailering a heavy load because the trailers brakes work better than the Deuces. Any stories or opinions on the subject?....

 

[ken]

I've carried 19000 lbs of wet sand for my yard in mine. It's not fun when trying to stop. But accelerating isn't a problem. It will hold 8 yards.

 

[jwaller]

I've carried 19000 lbs of wet sand for my yard in mine. It's not fun when trying to stop. But accelerating isn't a problem. It will hold 8 yards.

I've done about the same with mine with the same results. I usually startd out in Low range with the transfer case and went up thru the gears in low then shifted to high 4th and went on. stopping took some extra distance but I was still about to cruise 55mph on level terrain.

 

[CUCVFAN]

Why not just buy something designed to carry that much weight, like a 5-ton...

 

[Westech]

when i was towing my friends 5 ton with the 6602 gasser starting out in 1st was not a problem and top speed was about 45 mph. the only thing is that the 5 ton is so heave it will really push the rear end of the deuce around when turning. I think if you put 5k pounds of whatever in the back it would be fine.

 

[imported_Squirt-Truck]

Why would you ever remove the rotating pintle? Fixed and fixed is a formula for real damage with a big tag alog trailer. That hitch on the 2-1/2 will handle anything the truck will pull and then that again. I pull a 24,000# Trail King and never have any problems, but my buddy tried that with his commercial truck with a fixed hitch (same trailer) and really damaged the commercial hitch on the other truck. The trailer just sat there and looked bored. Brakes are the big issue, a trailer that our weighs the truck (in tag along fashion) can be a real interesting ride. Regardless of the capability, DOT looks at the listed rating, what is on your data plates?

 

[ARMYMAN30YearsPlus]

It was an uncommon occurance but in the Korean War there were times when transportation officers loaded 20 tons or more of ammuntion on early dueces even the CCKW ones coming out of war reserve from WW II. This was a if the ammo does not get there we will be overrun situation and from what I have read in detail about this it did not break the trucks. I have repeatedly asked the dudes that bought the FMTV if we could do this in another national emergency with their trucks and they just roll their eyes because it would definately kill one of their FMTV 2.5 ton trucks

 

[No.2Diesel]

I removed the swivel because the nylon bushing was obliterated, its height to the ground is beyond most normal tongue settings, and having it mounted to only a stamped crossmember did not appear to be strong enough to withstand constant loads. Yes, I probably should have re-used the swivel but I made do with available materials and didn't have time (at the time) to get a new bushing. The topography on the north shore is very hilly and I've never had a problem. I usually load & unload equipment at the road.

 

[rmgill]

I don't know, but those stamped crossmembers (same as the frame) have bracing in the back and they seem pretty stout. I'd expect the trailer to fail before the truck all things considered.