1 ton with a 350

[Mr. 5000]

Hello all

I am considering buying an additional haul truck for my tractor, loader, grapple, and ballast box around 7000 pounds. Would a 1 ton dually with a 4 speed 4:11 gears and a 350 small block do the job. Mostly I work around 1 town and rarely travel over 20 miles per transport but I do a lot of transporting. My business has me moving locations 5+ times a day.

 

[Dmace]

It depends on the truck (year, make, model), a newer 3/4 ton single rear wheel truck could haul that load and even the newest 1/2 ton trucks can haul that these days.

 

[Mr. 5000]

For arguments sake lets say a 1997 Chevy 3500 dually with a vortec 350, 4 speed and 4:11 gears. I'm considering getting a gooseneck dump trailer with next years business expansion. Would this same truck handle 20,000 lbs?

 

[magicheater]

Get a diesel. The dually gives you stability but you can achieve that with timbren overloads on a single wheel truck.

 

[Ryan03]

What type of roads are you towing on, mountain grades, flat lands, city, highway, etc etc. Do you live in an area with a high elevation. That rig may work fine in Illinois, but may realy struggle on a mountain grade at 7000 ft in Colorado. More info would be helpful.

 

[Dmace]

The max tow capacity on the 97 CK 3500's and most 1-tons of that era were 10,000lbs so you would not have a problem with the 7k load on a trailer behind one. 20k? No, I wouldn't trust putting that kind of load behind most newer diesel trucks let alone the old gasser's.

On a side note, I wouldn't want my enemies dealing with the pre-Duramax 6.5l GM diesels let alone my friends. If you want a diesel in that era, the Cummins and Powerstroke are the only options worth looking at.

 

[Diamondpilot]

For arguments sake lets say a 1997 Chevy 3500 dually with a vortec 350, 4 speed and 4:11 gears. I'm considering getting a gooseneck dump trailer with next years business expansion. Would this same truck handle 20,000 lbs?

No way it will handle 20,000#. It would do 7,000# but be a pig. You need a big block gasser like the Ford V-10, GM 8.1L, or the Dodge V-10 or a diesel form Ford or Dodge like Dmace said. Really the diesel is the only way to go for that type of weight. The big block gassers can be had in about 10 year old trucks and newer.

Chris

 

[QRTRHRS]

I used to have trouble getting moving with my turned up 97' Dodge Cummins, 5spd, 4:10's with my 20k dump loaded up. Once underway, it was okay but you had to "plan ahead" for the hill's.

With a 350? No way.

 

[rdln]

for the 20k trailer, I'd say you are mostly buying that for the large volume it offers due to the high sides. Correct? would you be maxing out the trailer?

My first dually was an f350 with a tired 351m and 4spd stick. I never used first gear unless I had a loaded trailer, I could see it pulling a 15k load in a gooseneck. But you need patience once you got into 4th.

 

[RobertN]

I'll buck against the grain in this thread.

Buddy of mine is a concrete guy, and had the same truck you describe, except a couple years older. He loaded the doo doo out of that truck daily. Hauling material, wood, forms, gravel, old concrete, towing a large Bobcat. Worked the snot out of the truck for about 150k miles. It had the dump bed, pto driven hydraulic pump.

Did just fine for local work. Not a powerhouse, but did just fine. By 150k miles, it did need bushings in the front end.

It was not the same ad the F450 diesel that replaced it, or my Cummins Dodge. But, it got the work done just fine for a number of years.

20,000lb though, that would be pushing it. Truck would probably handle it, but that 350 would be underpowered tooooo much for that.

For arguments sake lets say a 1997 Chevy 3500 dually with a vortec 350, 4 speed and 4:11 gears. I'm considering getting a gooseneck dump trailer with next years business expansion. Would this same truck handle 20,000 lbs?

 

[Mr. 5000]

I live in central Oklahoma and the city I live in is mostly flat with no mountains. I currently have a 97 F250 with a powerstroke but I am wanting to move to a gasser. If the a gasoline motor could do the job, I could save plenty of on repairs long term. So if a 350 won't do the job, what about a 454 with the same setup.

 

[Duffster]

I live in central Oklahoma and the city I live in is mostly flat with no mountains. I currently have a 97 F250 with a powerstroke but I am wanting to move to a gasser. If the a gasoline motor could do the job, I could save plenty of on repairs long term. So if a 350 won't do the job, what about a 454 with the same setup.

A 454 would be much better suited.

 

[RobertN]

It would move it a bit faster; good in a race

The one benefit to a 454, is it gets about the same gas mileage as 350, with more power. Had friends who made that "upgrade" over the years.

I found, that my 351W Fords got better mileage than the 350 Chevies I was around, in pickups.

That 350 in my buddies 3500 dually flatbed though, it never needed anything besides a tune-up. And, he ran that truck hard.

A 454 would be much better suited.

 

[Diamondpilot]

The F-250 you have will pull and handle that load much better than any gas, dually or not. I personally do not like duallys but that is just a opinion. I pull 25,000# with my F-350 SRW 4x4 Diesel and my uncle does the same load with his V-10 powered F-350 SRW 4x4. His is a 2005 and mine is a 2006 and they are identical except my diesel has 3.73 gears and his V-10 has 4.30 gears. The difference is pulling that load I get 13mpg in the diesel and he gets 5-7mpg with the V-10. This is only a 30 mile trip 2 times a year mostly on secondary roads at 50 or so mph.


We also pull a load around 15,000#. In my truck on the highway I can get over 15mpg and he is at around 8mpg in the V-10.

Chris

 

[Bird]

In 1988, I bought a new one ton extended cab chevy with the 350 cu. in. engine and 3.73 rear end. And then I bought a fifth-wheel travel trailer; 7,300# on the axles and 2,500# on the pin. I wasn't unhappy with the performance, but the temperature gauge ran too high to suit me. It never ran low on coolant or showed any other indications of overheating except that temperature gauge running higher than I liked. But in 1989, I had a brother selling RVs and Chevrolets and Buicks, and he got me a deal too good to turn down for a new 1989 one ton extended cab dually with the 454 engine and 4.10 rear end. Naturally, I did like that better. Of course back then they were 3-speed automatics and I had a Gear Vendors overdrive added to the dually; sure was a pleasure to drive.

 

[wkpoor]

Give me a break Chris. 7K behind a 350 and you think that is too much???? Man I know you like FORD's but come on! I have nearly identical drive train under my 1T 3500 express and 7K ain't even a load. I personally think it does quite well at 10K. Admittedly if I were in mountainous terrain the 454 would be much better but 7K you got to be kidding me. My trailer weights 4300 empty and I barely know its back there. Another 3K doesn't kill it by no means.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Give me a break Chris. 7K behind a 350 and you think that is too much???? Man I know you like FORD's but come on! I have nearly identical drive train under my 1T 3500 express and 7K ain't even a load. I personally think it does quite well at 10K. Admittedly if I were in mountainous terrain the 454 would be much better but 7K you got to be kidding me. My trailer weights 4300 empty and I barely know its back there. Another 3K doesn't kill it by no means.

You must have misread. I said no way to the 20,000#. I said it would do the 7,000#.

Chris

 

[wkpoor]

You must have misread. I said no way to the 20,000#. I said it would do the 7,000#.

Chris

Sorry I misquoted you there.

 

[Egon]

Wonder what the fellows back in the 1950's were using for motors??

A flathead V8 or six making ?? in a five ton truck. Seemed to get where it was going.

 

[wkpoor]

Wonder what the fellows back in the 1950's were using for motors??

A flathead V8 or six making ?? in a five ton truck. Seemed to get where it was going.

Good point. 5:13 gears behind a 454 might do nicely to pull 20K just not going 70mph down the highway.