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old
Well-known Member
- Location
- Camdenton Missouri
Tow as in on a trailer or tow as in on its own wheels. Trailer yes on its own wheel NO WAY. An M is a tad heavy for a 1/2 ton but if your careful it can be done I know because I have done it and many others that are as heavy
Hobby farm
Hobby farm
old
Well-known Member
- Location
- Camdenton Missouri
You should be ok then as long as the trailer has brakes and you don't get in a hurry on your way home. Remember you will have as much weight or more behind you then what the truck weights so leave extra room between you and the car in front of you and then some
rustyfarmall
Well-known Member
If your truck is a heavy duty half ton, you will probably be OK. If it is a common, garden variety half ton, the M will put too much weight on the rear of the truck and you will have problems keeping the trailer from wagging the rear of the truck. Also, that M is probably heavier than the capacity of the trailer, and will most likely NOT fit in between the fenders on your trailer, and if you can't get the rear wheels of the M in between the fenders, you will overload the rear of the trailer and be in an out-of-control situation so fast that you will not even know what happened.
Bob M
Well-known Member
Towing an M few miles at low speed is OK. However I'd avoid flat towing the tractor 140 miles for several reasons:
1 - At road speeds the transmmission main shaft will be spinning furiously in the pilot bearing inside the tranny input shaft. But with the transmission in neutral and the engine not running, NO oil is being thrown up by the (stationary) countershaft to lube that poor pilot bearing. The bearing will likely fail before you make your destination, unless you stop every 10 - 20 miles or so and run the engine to re-oil the bearing.
2 - While your truck may be rated to tow 8,000 lb, towing a load that large assumes the trailer has brakes. The M weighs around 5,500 lb. Most states now REQUIRE trailer brakes for towed loads over 3,000 lb. (A panic stop even from 20 mph with your 5,500 tractor pushing from behind will be a terrifying experience!)
3 - 140 miles on hard pavement is a lot of unnecessary wear on (expensive) rear tires.
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Were it mine I'd borrow or rent a flatbed for a day and haul it safely. Or simply drive the tractor the 140 miles if you have to - you'll likely no more fuel than if you flat towed it with your truck. And you'll get to enjoy some scenery along the way!
1 - At road speeds the transmmission main shaft will be spinning furiously in the pilot bearing inside the tranny input shaft. But with the transmission in neutral and the engine not running, NO oil is being thrown up by the (stationary) countershaft to lube that poor pilot bearing. The bearing will likely fail before you make your destination, unless you stop every 10 - 20 miles or so and run the engine to re-oil the bearing.
2 - While your truck may be rated to tow 8,000 lb, towing a load that large assumes the trailer has brakes. The M weighs around 5,500 lb. Most states now REQUIRE trailer brakes for towed loads over 3,000 lb. (A panic stop even from 20 mph with your 5,500 tractor pushing from behind will be a terrifying experience!)
3 - 140 miles on hard pavement is a lot of unnecessary wear on (expensive) rear tires.
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Were it mine I'd borrow or rent a flatbed for a day and haul it safely. Or simply drive the tractor the 140 miles if you have to - you'll likely no more fuel than if you flat towed it with your truck. And you'll get to enjoy some scenery along the way!
We've pretty much established that he will be towing it on a trailer, not flat towing.
If the M does not have fluid in the tires, and no wheel weights, it will be borderline for a 1/2 ton pickup, but doable if you are careful and load the tractor properly. An M is about 5500lbs bare, and a trailer heavy enough to handle it will weigh about 2500lbs. That's 8000lbs.
You will need a "deckover" style trailer (with the deck "over" the wheels instead of between them) to haul the M without flipping at least one of the rear wheels around. An M will not go narrow enough with the rear wheels "dished out" to fit on a regular flatbed trailer.
The trailer will need to be rated for at least 10,000lbs GVWR. A typical car hauler only has about 4500-5000lbs capacity, not enough for an M, even bare. Remember, the trailer's own weight counts against the ratings too.
You MUST back the tractor on to the trailer. Most of the tractor's weight is on the rear wheels, and trailers need to be loaded front-heavy or they will waggle all over the place on the road. Unless the waggle, or sway, is controlled quickly, the trailer will flip over. Best to prevent it in the first place.
With a 1/2 ton pickup, you'll probably also want a weight distributing hitch to take some of the load off the rear of the pickup.
Call me a chicken, but I, under no circumstances, would put an M behind anything less than a 3/4 ton "rated" truck. You may have the abilty to pull 8000 punds, but you do not have enough truck weight to control the trailer, not enough rubber on the ground, when you go aorund a curve, you have a lot of weight on the trailer trying to push you side ways. I would hire it to be moved, there are a lot of people out there that will haul for $2.00-$3.00 a loaded mile, and that is cheap if you destroy a truck and tractor because not being loaded correctly.
My Dixie chopper mower has a tow rating on 2000 pounds, so as you can see, tow rating is not a lot of assurance for towing.
Jim
My Dixie chopper mower has a tow rating on 2000 pounds, so as you can see, tow rating is not a lot of assurance for towing.
Jim
My brother hauled my "M" with his 1/2 ton, it was on a regular bumper pull 16' trailer. We had to turn one of the rear tires around so that the rim was on backwards so he didn't need to get a deckover. When we loaded it I put jackstands under the back of the trailer so that it wouldn't pick the back of his truck up. We pulled it all the way to the front seemed to balance out alright, his pickup definitly sank a little but it handled the load just fine.
Good luck
Good luck
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
i towed a narrow front farmall M with the front end in the back of my pickup, then hooked my chain from drawbar of M to the bumper hitch of pickup, you got to block front tires of M so it dont roll when slowing down, i done it with a JD B too, I towed the Farmall M 52 miles on black top hyway 30 MPH, idont know if its legal to do it that way but ive done it twice, with no problem.
My brother does the about that. When he hauls big bales he sets the loader bucket on the truck bed. Then raises the front end of his standard wide front 4020 off the groun about a foot. Ties a chain from truck to drawbar of tractor . He did it many times but he doesn't go very fast. Saves one trip with someone to come and get you to get back.
John M
Well-known Member
- Location
- Nunyafn business
I believe this is the first time someone asked about towing an M with a half ton that didnt get a smart a$$ responce. You truck doesnt have the "balls" to pull it right, but it can be done. If its a Z71 or such yea you can do it, but youre going to need brakes on the trailer and a very good controller.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
I haul a M farmall with a 99 1500 Chevy pickup with a gooseneck. Tractor pull couple times a month. Tractor weighs 6200 lbs
Never towed one 140 miles, but did haul one with a front end loader attached 55 miles thru the Montana hills. Had to use 4 wheel drive to get up some of the hills. This was with a 1/2 ton Chevy PU. This aside, I drove fairly slowly and had no trouble. Adjust your trailer brakes before you start!! Good luck.
Yes, it is possible. I have hauled my wide front M with both my 2000 ext cab silverado 1500, and with my crew cab 2007 silverado 1500....they both had the Z71 package if it makes a difference. We have a bumper pull deck over trailer with 12,000 pound rating. The M weighs in at 6000 or so. I drive it on forwards, so as not to put the back end of the truck on the ground. Drive it on, center the rear tractor wheels over the two sets of trailer wheels, and you should be close to where it needs to be. Chain it down with binders and go. Stop after a few miles and check the chains. I have hauled mine over 150 miles a few times with no incidents. Make sure you have working trailer brakes and test them before you go anywhere!
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
If that 8000 or 9000 is G.V.W.groose vehicle weight. that will include the truck trailer and tractor. you will be to heavy. If you get stoped by the police you will get a big over load ticket. Heck if you are near ST Johns MI I haul it for fuel. BIll
sammy the RED
Well-known Member
Givin the same drive train, a 1/2 ton is rated to pull more than a 3/4 ton.
I frequent a towing/RV forum, and this sort of thing comes up quite frequently...
That is a myth and totally false. At least in the United States, no state has any such "GVW overload" law. You will NOT get a ticket for exceeding your vehicle's factory ratings. Factory ratings are for warranty and liability purposes only, CYA for the manufacturer of the truck.
That's not to say that you can tow or haul whatever you want. The ratings do have some basis in reality, and unless you're an experienced tower/hauler, they should be adhered to.
BTW, the 8000-9000 is the TOW rating of the pickup. If it wasn't safe to tow that much, set up properly of course, the manufacturer wouldn't rate it for that much. They've got lawyers and bean counters whose express purpose is to come up with every way possible to keep the personal injury lawyers off their backs.
charles todd
Well-known Member
I have a 2001 K1500 1/2 ton and a 1979 C20 "Camper Special" 3/4 ton. The 1/2 ton is stout with tow package and 3.73 gears. The 3/4 ton has 1 ton spring packs with 4.10 gears. No question as to which I use for heavy hauling... The one that gets the best fuel economy! Have pulled excess of 10,000 lbs with this setup, not a pretty sight, the transmission hates me, and the trailer brakes have to work hard.
I am planning to extend the deck 4' + 5' dovetail + 1 more 5200 lb axle. Yes a 5200 lb. Its cheaper than removing the all an using 2, 7000 lb axles and the 15" tires (load range E) keep the trailer deck lower to the ground.
I am planning to extend the deck 4' + 5' dovetail + 1 more 5200 lb axle. Yes a 5200 lb. Its cheaper than removing the all an using 2, 7000 lb axles and the 15" tires (load range E) keep the trailer deck lower to the ground.
J., In 1979 I pulled my Dads old M to college to redo in Tractor Class. I pulled it with a tow bar we had, I pulled it 120 miles with a 66 chevy pickup with a Hot-water 250 6-cylinder and 3 on the tree!
IMO any good pickup 1/2 to or better should do the job. Do not get in a hurry, 25 mph it top speed for the show. Good luck
Later,
John A.
IMO any good pickup 1/2 to or better should do the job. Do not get in a hurry, 25 mph it top speed for the show. Good luck
Later,
John A.
Yes, you can do it with a 1/2 ton, you just need to remember that the p/u weighs less than the trailer/tractor combo. Anyone can get them going, you need to remember to keep distance and drive aware that it will take you far longer to stop. Just last night picked up a MasseyHarris 44 ~6200lbs with the 84 F150 and drove it 150 miles across the rolling hills of Iowa. No trailer brakes, 300ci 6cyl, 5 speed. Of course the stick gives you many advantages that a automatic doesn't. Just be aware of your stopping distance and take it easy. We usually run between 50 and 60. Don't use the overdrive.
Yes, you can do it with a 1/2 ton, you just need to remember that the p/u weighs less than the trailer/tractor combo. Anyone can get them going, you need to remember to keep distance and drive aware that it will take you far longer to stop. Just last night picked up a MasseyHarris 44 ~6200lbs with the 84 F150 and drove it 150 miles across the rolling hills of Iowa. No trailer brakes, 300ci 6cyl, 5 speed. Of course the stick gives you many advantages that a automatic doesn't. Just be aware of your stopping distance and take it easy. We usually run between 50 and 60. Don't use the overdrive.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
Wow you are all way to easy on your pickups, I farm and i buy them to use them. I've hauled 14 big round bales at 1700lbs a piece on a 35ft gooseneck with a 1/2 ton. I'm not saying thats a good idea I pulled the hell out of it. But its only an M your not hauling a 7120 or anything like that you'll be fine. Just put a little more weight on the trailer axels but make sure its a little tounge heavy.
charles todd
Well-known Member
I run 45-70 with trailer brakes (both axles) and do not use OD and the tow/haul is on (Chevrolets use this, increases the trans psi). I load it with enough tounge weight to be propotional with the gross trailer weight (approx 20% - 40% total). I know a 1/2 ton is about 500 lbs lighter than a 3/4 ton and has less brakes (Chevrolet 4 wheel disc SUCK!). Use good judgement.
There's a difference between over-the-road hauling and short distance hauls. If I needed to move a ton of gravel 20 miles in one trip and all I had was a half ton, I'd do it. If I were hauling gravel hundreds of miles every day, I'd get a heavier truck.
Same thing... Moving a 6000lb tractor 120 miles once, I'd use a 1/2 ton pickup and take it easy. Hauling a 6000lb tractor to half a dozen tractor shows every summer, I'd get a 3/4 ton.
Same thing... Moving a 6000lb tractor 120 miles once, I'd use a 1/2 ton pickup and take it easy. Hauling a 6000lb tractor to half a dozen tractor shows every summer, I'd get a 3/4 ton.
Wesley Stephens
Member
I've pulled our 175 MF behind my 05 F-150 base model 2wd V-6 truck on a heavy tag along deckover trailer before with no problems. I didn't try to get over 60-65 but I turned the overdrive off and it handled it with no problems at all. I know some states require trailer brakes, but this one doesn't have them. I have also hauled 6 1200 lb. bales of hay on the same trailer, but I couldn't go very fast. I'm not recommending that you do what I did, but a half ton truck will handle a lot. Handling of a trailer depends a lot on how you load it.
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