K20 pulling 19k lbs...

[Radiohead]

2800lbs is in no way "well within the payload" for a 3/4 ton truck.

People forget how much liquids weigh. Gas is around 6# to the gallon, diesel @ 7#, water around 8. $#!t adds up too. I'm talking the latrine, too. Cases of pop, barley and otherwise, pigpiles on too.

I scale stuff all the time. More out of curiosity than anything else. Bad habit from the large car days, and it's ridiculously easy for me since an unattended state scale is only 5 miles up the back road from here.

 

[Bextreme04]

Thanks for the input, but in my previous responses, I had mentioned changing what needed to be changed and not suggesting to do it with current set up, but I sure did read the payload capacity wrong for the springs and of course the ultimate problem of the frame. Hard to find good info on these trucks.

I didn't see the codes in the glove box, so I don't know what this thing came with. It does have the 13" drums and 8 pack leaf springs, if that means anything at all. lol

That's the point. The parts you need to change to make this legal and responsible are the entire truck. The only squarebody I MIGHT consider for what you are talking about doing is to start with a Crew Cab dually K30 or C30 and then upgrade the drivetrain for more power and reliability.

The only other option is to blow the entire truck apart to beef up the entire frame and rebuild/upgrade all of the old, worn, and rusty components.

You don't want to replace the rear hollow suspension block with a solid one, you need to replace it with no block and the correct rounded U-bolts.

There is zero chance that you will be time/money/comfort/safety ahead by upgrading this squarebody to tow that weight over just buying a used modern 2500 or 3500 truck.

 

[Blue Ox]

Thanks for the link though! I will take a look.

It still never hurts to gain as much knowledge about your truck and it's operation as possible.

Happy reading.

 

[Buck69]

According to the link posted above, (https://www.gmsquarebody.com/threads/1985-gm-towing-guide-and-1981-dealer-towing-video.16699/) replacing the diesel in my '86 K30 with a 5.7 is going to increase my tow capacity.
Thanks @Blue Ox!

 

[Keith Seymore]

According to the link posted above, (https://www.gmsquarebody.com/threads/1985-gm-towing-guide-and-1981-dealer-towing-video.16699/) replacing the diesel in my '86 K30 with a 5.7 is going to increase my tow capacity.
Thanks @Blue Ox!

Of course.

I used to help assign the trailer ratings. One of the criteria in establishing the GCW is "launchability" up a 16% grade.

You have to be able to get that mass moving.

K

 

[Grit dog]

I guess a wider frame and wider stance makes all the difference.

That’s a small part of the equation, yes.
Having driven, towed with (many many times stupid chit way more than the truck rated for) and owned or been assigned (company trucks) most all light duty trucks from the last 30-40 years, the differences are numerous to say the least.
Frame, boxed/stiffer vs old c channel.
Brakes
Better Suspension.
Materials technology in general
Stouter axles
Wider longer trucks (in general)
Tire technology and ratings (easy upgrade on old truck of course)
Power and efficiency.
Exhaust brakes
Intuitive grade braking and seamless shifting.
Way higher rated transmissions with 2-3x more gears.
And yes even a fair number of the safety Nannies make towing safer and easier.
And they’re NEW. Or newer.

Where I can cruise down a miles long 6% grade at whatever speed I want without ever touching the brakes or cancelling cruise control, with 12klbs of high profile camper, in 10-15 year old truck technology, on your best day with the best brakes you could ever buy for a squarebody, you’d be right lane doing 30mph wishing for a lockup converter and praying those brakes are as good as the size of the hole in your wallet after upgrading!
And we haven’t even gotten to the comforts that are not present in old squarebodys.
Like this thread started, you don’t know what you don’t know. And from a practical point of view, lack of towing experience and lack of ability to do major work diy is the perfect recipe for very expensive disappointment.

 

[Frankenchevy]

All this talk about frames, steel and inventors of imploded submersibles…

I was listening to a story yesterday about people going out at night disguised as fishing boats, dismantling ww2 ships off the ocean floor. It’s a story because they are considered graves; but it’s also a story about steel.

Pre-war steel is highly sought after by many industries. Since dropping nuclear bombs, the strength of new steel has degraded. I haven’t researched exactly why, but it’s fascinating. The radiation must change ferrous metals in their raw state, but not once combined to make steel alloys. Otherwise, the pre-war steel would have suffered the same fate.

Anyhow, I guess this unaffected steel is used in medical equipment, certain types of detection hardware, and other things. It’s highly valuable because there’s obviously a limited supply. Apparently whole ships have been completely scrapped, leaving only a several hundred foot long depression on the ocean floor.

…and here I was thinking metallurgy had come a long way. I’m sure the story about the properties of pre-war steel versus modern alloys is much more nuanced than the short story could detail. I’ll definitely read up on the matter.

 

[Blue Ox]

All this talk about frames, steel and inventors of imploded submersibles…

I was listening to a story yesterday about people going out at night disguised as fishing boats, dismantling ww2 ships off the ocean floor. It’s a story because they are considered graves; but it’s also a story about steel.

Pre-war steel is highly sought after by many industries. Since dropping nuclear bombs, the strength of new steel has degraded. I haven’t researched exactly why, but it’s fascinating. The radiation must change ferrous metals in their raw state, but not once combined to make steel alloys. Otherwise, the pre-war steel would have suffered the same fate.

Anyhow, I guess this unaffected steel is used in medical equipment, certain types of detection hardware, and other things. It’s highly valuable because there’s obviously a limited supply. Apparently whole ships have been completely scrapped, leaving only a several hundred foot long depression on the ocean floor.

…and here I was thinking metallurgy had come a long way. I’m sure the story about the properties of pre-war steel versus modern alloys is much more nuanced than the short story could detail. I’ll definitely read up on the matter.

I understand it's all to do with the radiation, and not the strength. Use in medical equipment and anything else that involves measuring or dealing with radiation get corrupted if the material itself is radioactive.

I agree though, it is quite fascinating that a trace of radioactivity from singular event has compromised most of one of our essential materials. It's not something one would normally think of.

 

[Ajax19]

Sell the camper and get something lighter like the guys saying it's a paper work issue like in my state(CA) any trailer over 9999# requires a Class A even though my truck is rated for 14k and we'll within fed limits (I have also doubled the frame when I built the flatbed and added extra cross members plus cab and chassis are thicker frame and have extra cross member behind the cab instead of cab mounts) I have seen these trucks(1ton cab and chassis duallys) tow well over 20000# I plan to use mine as a tow rig I just will keep it within factory limits even though the truck can take more