OK, I am not that great at math so let me throw some numbers and questions out here to see if I am crazy or not. This is a payload issue, not towing.

Scenario: 450 bricks @ 5 pounds each = 2,250 pounds

Truck: '06 XLT 4x4 Screw, 150-in/6.5 bed, 5.4L, HD tow package

GVWR: 7,200 pounds
GRAW: 3,850 pounds on the rear axle

Now, the manual and door sticker say that everything total should not be more than 7,200 pounds but never really say how much the truck itself weighs. They just say that all passengers and cargo should not exceed 1,500 pounds. Does that mean the truck weighs 5,700?

1.) Does 1,500 include the contents of the bed or just the passenger cab?

2.) If 1,500 pounds is the max, how much of that can be over the rear axle? Meaning, how much of that 3,850 GRAW is the weight of the truck itself?

I did manage to haul that much weight about 10 miles and the truck didn't even know it was there. It only lowered the rear end about 4 inches. I unloaded half of it at the in-laws to make the 100-mile trip home.

So, am I nuts or is all the weight from my truck's setup leaving me with a puny payload? At least I have a lot of towing capacity so maybe the answer is to buy a trailer!!

I basically need to know what is the max you would safely put in the bed of the truck for long trips? I usually have about 350 pounds of people/stuff in the cab.

Thanks all!

 

Yes your truck will weigh in at about 5700 lbs with about 1/2 tank of fuel and no passengers your math is correct if the numbers you are giving is correct i would question as to how many bricks would be on a skid to begin with cause likely you wouldn't want to hand load 450 brick when you are going to have to unload by hand as well and i can't see how you would fit any more then 1 skid in the truck to begin with, now the towing capacity is when you are uesing the carring weight of also the axel on your trailer so that is where you get the higher numbers closer to 10000 lbs. when you are in fact only transfering over a few thousand lbs thru your trailer toung at the most on a 5th wheel setup more like a few hundred.

 

Just remember that the F150 is listed as a 1/2 ton truck (1000lbs). So your payload capacity is not puny it is what that type of truck is designed to do (Chev 1500, Dodge 1500, Tundra and Titan are also all 1/2 ton trucks). If you want more payload capacity you gotta move up: F250 = 3/4 ton (1500lbs) or F350 = 1 ton (2000lbs). These ratings of course assume about 500lbs of passengers.


All that said though you can get alot more in there than that (as you already found). It just isn't reccommended. Ultimately you need to use your best judgement based on the circumstances. Long trip + excessive load = not so good but mega load + around the corner = maybe OK.

 

An F350 rated at 2,000 lb payload, . Now thats funny!! Since my dads F350 is rated at 5400lb, and thats right off thier web site.

But back to the topic. Yes your truck is only rated at 1500lbs, but I often have 2000 lbs+/- of tongue weight on my truck, and the trips are any where from 1-30 miles. But you did the right thing by not taking all 2250 lbs your 100 mile trip.

 

Thanks for the confirmations. Any idea how much of that 1,500 pounds can be centered over the rear axle? If it is rated at 3,850, how much of that is truck and how much is cargo.

Also, those bricks weren't on a skid. I had to hand load all 450 bricks, drive 10 miles and unload 225 bricks. I then drove 100 miles and unloaded them at my house. I get to drive back and pick up the other 225 bricks. At 5 pounds each, my lower half is killing me. They only took up 2/3 of the 6.5 bed and never went above the lip of the bed in height. It was about 8 courses of 60 bricks each give or take.

 

one time i got a load of red clay in the back of my 2004 5.4 F150 Supercrew..i didnt realize how much it weighed until it was ropped down into the bed...anyways, it turns out that i had about 3000lbs of clay in the bed of my truck...it had completely exhausted the rear suspension and was riding on the axle bumpers...i drove it about 5 mph to my house 5 miles away....everything worked out OK...bit i was very concerned at the time