The recent posting of the air bag questions reminded me of an incident in which I was indirectly involved. I have a Timbren spring set up that allows my truck to set high and level regardless of the load.

Several years ago, my contractor needed some bags of concrete to complete our project. I and one of his able bodied young men were sent to obtain the necessary materials. Arriving at the store, the area was packed with customers and the checkout lines were busy. Even the contractor's area, in which we were present, was active with many people.

We had our small steel carriage and made our way to the pallet of concrete bags. The drill was to load fifteen or twenty onto the cart, go to check out and then on to the truck. This would have to be repeated several times until the sixty two bags we needed were loaded.

The young man that accompanied me was up to the task. Strong and active, he had quickly volunteered from among the crew at the house. Anxious to prove his virility, manhood and strength, this was an ideal exercise to prove to all, that he was well qualified for the task. He would have to do it alone, without benefit of my help. This would be a tiring, dirty, tedious project for the brave lad.

Good fortune arrived as we were contemplating our course of action. He, the driver of a forklift loaded with a full pallet of concrete bags, had arrived to restock the very product we were purchasing. The pallet consisted of fifty bags, each weighing eighty pounds.

When asked if the pile could be placed in the back of my truck instead of on the display floor, the amiable driver asked where my truck was located. Arriving in the parking area of the loading dock, he quickly and carefully placed the load into the bed. While I went to pay at the check out, he and my helper went to get another twelve bags to finish the purchase. Repeating the loading, my helper only had to guide the remaining bags into place, as they were dropped off the fork lift.

With generous accolades and blessings to the forklift driver, we treated ourselves to sodas from the vending machine, and toasted our good fortune. The trip home with almost five thousand pounds of concrete was uneventful. The back of the truck, sitting in its usual 3 1/2" lower stance, showed little effects of the additional weight. 

The next morning I was told we needed an additional twenty bags of concrete. My friend, now, and I eagerly anticipated a repeated event of yesterday's trip. When we arrived at the store, the view was much different. There were no long lines, many fewer customers were present, and the stock personnel were not to be seen. I went to the service desk at the contractor's station, and asked if there were anyone available with a forklift to help with the additional loading. Shortly the sound of a propane fired, Toyota forklift was heard. When the driver approached us, we could see the recognition cross his face, and his eyes grew large as he quickly started to speak.

After we had left the previous evening, another customer, who was also shopping for the same concrete, observed our loading techniques. When the forklift driver returned from our last load, he was approached by this new customer, who asked if he too, could benefit from the services of the driver and forklift.

Loading up with a new full pallet, the driver was asked if more could be added to it, with the total amount being loaded at one time. The Toyota and driver were easily up to the task, and another half a pallet of concrete bags was added to the first. Driving outside, he was directed to the back of a pick up, that was parked a few spaces away from where I had been. The tailgate was lowered and he began to place his load into the bed.

When asked later, the forklift driver had replied that this truck looked the same as mine, it had the same size bed, but he did remember that it was lower to the ground.

When he started to unload the weight off of the fork tips, he had the first indication that something was amiss. As he was slowly backing out of his load, and lowering it into the bed, the driver suddenly saw his forks shooting into the air. The tips were ripping the end of the wooden pallet apart and shredding the concrete bags in an upward direction. A confusion of sounds, movement and sights quickly overwhelmed his senses. A cloud of dust engulfed the rear of the truck, as the forklift driver moved as quickly as he could to its side.

A nearby spectator said the first thing he heard, was "a loud metallic snap."

After a loud crash of metallic sounds, there was a pop and the  loud whistling of air. Then silence. The driver, and the nearby spectators were quiet, until they began to realize that something drastic had taken place. Then the shouting began, and a crowd quickly gathered.

The first thing the driver saw was the back tire. It was fully enveloped within the wheel well, with only the bottom visible against the ground. Walking around the front of the truck, which looked unnatural as it was tilted upwards, he approached the other rear fender. The top of the tire was jammed into the wheel well,and the bottom was out away from the body at almost a forty five degree angle. It was giving up the last of its compressed air. The rear of the truck, which could now be seen, was laying on the ground. The bumper was flush with the pavement. The tailgate, still extended, was a few inches off the ground, and the area was being quickly covered with black gear lubricant.

The intact concrete bags were off loaded by hand. The fork lift was used to lift the back of the truck high enough, for a wrecker to let his cables access some attach points. Several loading straps were used to tie up the loose suspension components underneath as it was towed away.

The truck's owner, never having worked with concrete, had been sent by his buddy, to pick up some bags so they could build some steps the next day. Never having handled an 80# bag, he had no idea of the amount of weight that the pallet and a half weighed. When he observed the loading of my truck, he believed his half ton truck, being the same size, would be equally capable.

Almost ten years old, his GM half ton truck was a competitent daily driver. It was the owner's first "construction" load, as he had relegated its previous burdens to rubbish, errands for his neighbors and daily transportation.

When asked why he wanted so much concrete, the owner replied  I don't know what happened, it was only half full."

Gard

It's gd to know what your truck is rated to haul & tow.

Just because it's a pick up, doesn't mean it can carry as much as another pickup.

I frequently pick up construction materials in both my truck and my dump trailer. I'm very aware of what each can carry and ask those loading  me what the materials will weigh. The most difficult for me is when I load broken concrete into the dump trailer for a trip to the dump. How much does a broken piece of concrete weigh and many broken pieces make up the 9000 lbs load limit of my dump trailer?

I hope your not saying Timbrens on a 1500 will make it a 5500?

I doubt that is what he is saying.  This Dmax had Timbrens on it when I bought it.  They work great for carrying a load, but are a pain in the ass trying to tell when the truck is loaded......it doesnt squat.  Like mentioned above, how much does firewood weigh?  Broken bricks, blocks and dirt?

I said and meant exactly what I said, nothing more or less.

Okay...so which model truck is it?? The story doesn't say...

So, out of curiosity, does a Ford SD F250 have a full floating or semi-floating rear axle?