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Buying 13/14 3500 for heavy hauling.. Heavy haulers check in!

4419 Views 31 Replies 14 Participants Last post by  06 tan cummins, 
TruckinFool
Looking at the Trailer towing chart .pdf from the ram website I should be able to build a 3500 4x4 crew long bed with HD Aisan at a rated 14k GVW and 37,500 GCWR with 4.10 gears...

One question..

Why cant I build this truck on the website or find any in dealers?

I have a HD 30ft 25k gooseneck and would like to sell my 05 dually and buy one of these trucks. At 37.5 combined I should be able to haul 10ton of hay per trip... legal.. (8.3k truck, 7.3k trailer, 20k Hay) Need to do this twice per month otherwise the truck will be my daily driver/ranch truck/horse hauler etc.

How are you heavy haulers liking them at capacity? Any known issues showing up yet?
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ranchertx
My 33' deck over trailer is rated for 20,000 (in Texas you need a class A License to pull a trailer with a GVWR over that) and I routinely put 7 tons on it putting me at 21-22k weight.

I have 3.42 gears in mine and it does just fine. If I could order anything I wanted I would probably get 3.73 gears, which are what I had in my 2010 truck.

You should have no problem pulling that load with the truck you are talking about. If it is also your daily driver you really may look at the .373 gears though.
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M
Agree with Ranchertx. Mine is equipped the way you want, except 3.73. Pull a 42' tall 19k toyhauler, and it handles it fine.

I have pulled a 30' double deck stock trailer with two decks of sheep at 28k trailer with my 98 stick ram. This new 14 will pull it like a dream, I am sure.

If you drive it unloaded much at all, get the 3.73. I would go with the 4.10 ONLY if you are loaded full almost all the time, like over 95%.
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J
I have 4:10 and they found mine in north carolina, i drive it daily not a big deal compared to my '12 with 3:73. I look at it like this gearing is alot like a gun, its better to have and not need than to need and not have...
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TruckinFool
What are the manufacturer weight ratings on your trucks? The reason I'm talking about 4.10 is because the ram .pdf shows thats what I need to get the 37.5k combined door tag. Is this not true?

I haul under farm tags so cdl doesnt matter (for my location and what I'm doing) but I need to keep within axle/combined weight specs to be legal. Axle is easy but the combined is where I'm needing the max rating.

3.73 would be a nice compromise if I cihld get it with the 37.5k door tag. Although with that 6spd I dont think 4.10 would be all that bad. I'm usually only on the highway if I'm hauling.
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C
TruckinFool said:
What are the manufacturer weight ratings on your trucks? The reason I'm talking about 4.10 is because the ram .pdf shows thats what I need to get the 37.5k combined door tag. Is this not true?

I haul under farm tags so cdl doesnt matter (for my location and what I'm doing) but I need to keep within axle/combined weight specs to be legal. Axle is easy but the combined is where I'm needing the max rating.

3.73 would be a nice compromise if I cihld get it with the 37.5k door tag. Although with that 6spd I dont think 4.10 would be all that bad. I'm usually only on the highway if I'm hauling.
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No, you're absolutely correct that you need the 4.10 gears to get full capacity. Were I you' I'd get them. This is a working truck but it's not too low for daily driver duties either, that becomes an issue when you get to 4.88s, I even think 4.30s are fine.

Also, as you can tell I'm a manual fan, but I'm ordering my 2014/15 3500SRW with the Aisin as it's the first auto in a Dodge that I'll trust with the work our farm asks of it. Having the derated engine with stick would annoy me too as I keep the engine on my trucks totally stock.

Air Ride comes in Spring, that's all I'm waiting for. Just some food for thought, but the current full leafpack trucks won't let you down either.
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ranchertx
TruckinFool said:
What are the manufacturer weight ratings on your trucks? The reason I'm talking about 4.10 is because the ram .pdf shows thats what I need to get the 37.5k combined door tag. Is this not true?

I haul under farm tags so cdl doesnt matter (for my location and what I'm doing) but I need to keep within axle/combined weight specs to be legal. Axle is easy but the combined is where I'm needing the max rating.

3.73 would be a nice compromise if I cihld get it with the 37.5k door tag. Although with that 6spd I dont think 4.10 would be all that bad. I'm usually only on the highway if I'm hauling.
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The only difference in these trucks is gear ratio. The .410 is rated for more weight but, axles etc are the same between the three.

The .373 or the .342 trucks will town what you want. Safety is not an issue, teh .410 will handle the load a little better, but, you are going to use a lot more fuel.

Like the other poster said, the 410 ratio is great if you are hooked up running hot shot or hauling trailers all of the time. Otherwise, I would not get it. No one is going to check a farm plate truck for being over Mfg capacity. If they did every farmer would be ticketed because all of us haul over weight from time to time.
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gsbrockman
TruckinFool said:
I have a HD 30ft 25k gooseneck and would like to sell my 05 dually and buy one of these trucks. At 37.5 combined I should be able to haul 10ton of hay per trip... legal.. (8.3k truck, 7.3k trailer, 20k Hay) Need to do this twice per month otherwise the truck will be my daily driver/ranch truck/horse hauler etc.
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Based on your proposed use...I'd lean towards the 4.10's as well. The main question I have.....What is the terrain like in the area you'll be towing??? What's your city & state??? 3.73's might be an alternative...
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grizzly660fan
I have the 4:10 and like it. I get 16mpg when not towing and 8-9mpg (hand calculated) with about 20k of weight. I also use it as a daily driver and really like the truck! My only real complaint and its a little one is that it uses DEF fluid like crazy. I see people post here getting over 5,000 miles to a tank of DEF and I can't get 2,000 from the same tank.
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TruckinFool
Going to swing by the dealer in a bit. I was looking into 4500/5500 flatbeds as well but 4500's max at 32.5 (makes no sense to me?) and the 5500 needs 4.88 for 37.5. I do not want to go to 4.88 and figure resale is better on the consumer 3500 so trying to make that work.

What % are you guys getting of list price? Never purchased a new vehicle.. Is it like tractor dealers where you can expect a certain %? Are these still in demand enough where the dealer has the leverage?
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gsbrockman
grizzly660fan said:
My only real complaint and its a little one is that it uses DEF fluid like crazy. I see people post here getting over 5,000 miles to a tank of DEF and I can't get 2,000 from the same tank.
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For what it's worth....I've went 2999 miles on one tank of DEF (5.078 gallons) with lots of towing. My best range on a tank of DEF was 5644 miles (5.138 gallons).
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TruckinFool
gsbrockman said:
Based on your proposed use...I'd lean towards the 4.10's as well. The main question I have.....What is the terrain like in the area you'll be towing??? What's your city & state??? 3.73's might be an alternative...
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I'm in Colorado. Foothills near denver. I try to stay out of the mountains, getting hay north/north-east is less wear on the truck. I25 and 76 out past fort morgan are relatively flat hauls with a few grades to pull. Nothing serious and I dont feel like I'm killing the truck. My 05 gets it done but complains when hauling over 8tons.

When I do go up the mountains I'm either hauling hay or horses. I almost died coming back down out of northpark with hay. No engine brake and lost truck/trailer brakes. I had it floored just trying to maintain 20mph up some if tge switchbacks. I do NOT want to be in that situation with horses but do want the option of safely retrieving loads if the cost send me up that way.
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0
I have a 13 3500 g56 cc lb drw with 3.42 gears. I carry alot of tools and equipment loaded in my truck at all times and its rolling on 245/70 19.5s last time truck was weighed she was pushing 11k give or take forget the exact number. Either way I tow a decent bit with the truck mainly farm equipment and construction equipment. Truck will drag a t300 skidloader with 2 attachments on a 20ft trailer no problem. Even with the 3.42s and the 19.5s I can still start in 2nd gear loaded keep in mind the g56 trucks have less power than the autos. Thing I hate about the truck the most when pulling a load is the torque management its really hardcore on the stick shift trucks ive heard same from the auto crowd but cant say from experience. Cruising on the highway is real nice with the 3.42s not bad on back roads either.
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TruckinFool
Are 19.5 a factory option? I'd love the commercial wheels on a consumer 3500.

Seems everyone agree's that they have a ton of power. My 05 feels my 30ft gooseneck empty... Sure isn't anything like my 7.3l although its not chipped or anything.
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No I wish they were factory. Your really limited in tire size with the stock 17s. I didnt want to put wheel spacers in the rear since the trucks always loaded. I love the 19.5s ride is alittle rough but im running load range g tires. Let me tell you they are STIFF but I highly recommend them if you are towing heavy alot or if your truck is loaded heavy like mine. Stability is awesome not to mention truck looks alot better with the wheel wells more filled. Been meaning to upload some pics of the truck only pic I have on here is from the day I got it.
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C
TruckinFool said:
Going to swing by the dealer in a bit. I was looking into 4500/5500 flatbeds as well but 4500's max at 32.5 (makes no sense to me?) and the 5500 needs 4.88 for 37.5. I do not want to go to 4.88 and figure resale is better on the consumer 3500 so trying to make that work.

What % are you guys getting of list price? Never purchased a new vehicle.. Is it like tractor dealers where you can expect a certain %? Are these still in demand enough where the dealer has the leverage?
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Yup, just like a tractor there is a percent you can hit within 1-2% at any sane dealer. My local dealer will do 16% on a factory order (including rebates). That's a 50k Big Horn for 42k before t&l. Could do even better on a 2013 on the lot I'd think but for this money I want it exactly how I want it as I keep my trucks a long time.


I'd stick with the 3500 DRW w/4.10 aisin if I was you. The 5500 is a beast but will lose a lot more fuel and there isn't as much of used market for a medium duty vs a light duty. With the 37,500 GCWR, the 3500 dually is tailor made for you. I'm just an SRW guy so I'll make the 25k SRW work for me as it's still a 4k better than my current truck, and GVWR on the SRW is up to 11,700 from 9,900, a huge boost.

With regards to the 19.5s, they are very strong wheels but they suck for rutted our farm tracks and winter field work. I'd much rather have the regular 18s with the bigger sidewall especially no they are 33.3 inches from the factory. Now, for purely OTR towing the commercial wheels are a definite upgrade.
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TruckinFool
Carl L said:
Yup, just like a tractor there is a percent you can hit within 1-2% at any sane dealer. My local dealer will do 16% on a factory order (including rebates). That's a 50k Big Horn for 42k before t&l. Could do even better on a 2013 on the lot I'd think but for this money I want it exactly how I want it as I keep my trucks a long time.


I'd stick with the 3500 DRW w/4.10 aisin if I was you. The 5500 is a beast but will lose a lot more fuel and there isn't as much of used market for a medium duty vs a light duty. With the 37,500 GCWR, the 3500 dually is tailor made for you. I'm just an SRW guy so I'll make the 25k SRW work for me as it's still a 4k better than my current truck, and GVWR on the SRW is up to 11,700 from 9,900, a huge boost.

With regards to the 19.5s, they are very strong wheels but they suck for rutted our farm tracks and winter field work. I'd much rather have the regular 18s with the bigger sidewall especially no they are 33.3 inches from the factory. Now, for purely OTR towing the commercial wheels are a definite upgrade.
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Good point about driving in soft conditions. On my 05 I can feel the front sink with the skinny 33's I have on it.

Whats the average wait time on the 14 trucks if I have to order one? Any major changes from 13? I cant seem to find anything local with 4.10 gears.
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simplysmn
The 14's are going to have air ride susp. Or I believe that's when it hit's
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Ram3500Dually
simplysmn said:
The 14's are going to have air ride susp. Or I believe that's when it hit's
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LATE 14 availability. Don't expect to see them in show rooms till about May.
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TruckinFool
Just test drove a crew laramie with HD trans and 3.42 gears. Truck felt sluggish off a stand still. Once it shifted the power came on and highway speed it felt good. Not sure if thats the torque management you all were talking about?

I know its a new truck but I did think it was going to be more of a beast after hearing everyone rave about the power. Its not slow but was expecting more.. although those are the highest gears too.

Anyway, the transmission controls and exhaust brake were AMAZING. This truck is 100% built for towing. (unlike my pos 05 trans shift programming) Between the brakes, trans and exhaust brake I think I'm sold.

One BIG issue. I'm 6'5" and had to sloutch in this truck with a sunroof and the heated leather buckets. Looks like sunroof is out of the question but are the cloth buckets able to go down lower?

Air suspension would be cool but personally I just dont want to worry about it.
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