is there a standard for how far back on the bed the axle would be placed on a single axle dump truck? i have heard 60%-80% of the way back from the bed. then i see on smaller ones where the axles appear to be in the middle of the bed and larger ones where the axles seem at the very end of the bed. i appreciate any help on this. just trying to learn the pro's and cons of either way. thanks, metin
As a general rule, the further back the rear axle is, the less load it carries, as more weight will be on the front axle... Dump box dealers usually have charts for this information. In my opinion that is a good thing as: 1.) most of the singles that I have seen are overloaded on the rear, and 2.) it makes for a lot more stable dump truck when the box is up in the air and the load transfers to the rear. I've spread road gravel with single axles when the front end is off the ground and it is not a good feeling. srs_mn
MY opinion is that you should put the axel as far back as you can and extend the rear of the body back just far enought to do the task you intend to do with the truck. Dumping into a paver/placer will require a bit of overhang to ensure the material does not flow back out of the hopper.
yes but watch out some older paver don't allow to much overhang newer ones seem to compensate for it.
Also I guess I should have asked what size we are talking about. Might make a difference if we are talking about a truck that is gonna haul its max weight or is gonna max out on volume first. Are you gonna be hauling dirt or something light like landscaping debris?
Turning radius may become a factor depending on what sites you need to access. Having the axle farther back may allow for the installation of a drop axle later if needed.
not looking to be carrying heavy weights and it would be a 6500 sized truck. just wodering if there was a standard ratio to go by based on what the front and rear axles are weighted for. thanks for the replies,
LOL, I have been in the heavy haulers too long, I automaticly assume that everyone is hauling the max gross weight possible all the time. :Banghead I am assuming this is like the F-650 size we are talking about? If so, I would see how much weight I could haul with the rear axel centered under the dump body, then compair it to the amount of weight I could haul with the rear axel as far back as I could put it. Check to see how much weight the front axel can carry, I would assume that on that size truck the front axel will be just big enough for the trucks empty weight, I am gonna guess that they are not designed to carry much of the weight of the load up there. If that is the case you will want your rear axel centered under the load. I am shooting from the hip here, I honestly know very little about trucks this small, but I can tell you that I see them all the time VERY overloaded leaving gravel pits in this area. Remember that with materials like crushed rock a 3 ton truck can only haul about 2 yards. Also might check with Kenworth, Peterbilt, and International for pricing on there medium duty trucks. I remeber talking to a mechanic who got a single axel Peterbilt for about the same price as a medium duty Ford... and it was much more for the money. Good luck and let us know what you figure out, I would like to learn from your experience as well.
The axles a lot of time on say the small trucks are set farther forward then on the big trucks cause that puts more weight on the rear axle and less on the front. Youc ant put a lot of front axle weight on the front of a f450 axle.
axle position first we have to know what class trk.? class 3,4,5,6,7,8. another thing to consider will you have a pintle hook on it ? balance and piviot!!!
the truck is an international 4300, it will have a pintle hitch. 10' dump bed behind 2' toolbox. thanks for the replies.
Welcome to Heavy Equipment Forums celticcrusader! :drinkup
is the truck s/a or tandem axle and how big a trailer are you going to pull? either way you will probably need the axleback as far as you can get it
one thing if you pull a heavy trailer and no load and the axle is fairly far forward the trailer willl try to p\ick up the front axle.