Generally... what would I have do to upgrade the hauling capacity of a half-ton pickup to that of a standard one-ton? Is it even possible?

I have a Dodge Ram 5.9 liter V8 with the towing package. I always wanted to buy a truck camper but they seem too heavy for my truck. Do you think such an upgrade would be possible?

 

No. The 3/4 ton and 1 tons have heavier frames, larger & stiffer springs, and stronger axles. You COULD upgrade some of those things, but for the time and $$$ you'd have to put into it, you'd be better off trading your truck on a 3/4 ton or 1 ton...both are available with the 8800lb GVWR.

You can get the camper package springs that were available for the 1/2 tons. You should be able to handle a camper with those...depending on the options of the camper. I'm not into campers, but from what I understand it's the options that determine the weight of one.

 

You can also add over loads and air bags for the rear. I am personally a fan of the air bags because the fact you can get the kit with the compressor and have the ability to adjust the bags to the level you want.



Another thing, make sure your tires can take the added weight. Nothing like hauling a camper and having crazy body roll because the side walls of your tires are only a 6 ply.

 

Don't forget brakes!

When hauling extra weight everyone seems to think that towing capacity is improved by a stronger frame, springs, gearing or engine power enhancements.

But the most important thing of all is better braking....especially with a bed mounted camper.

I would agree that buying a 2500 used Ram is the better upgrade solution.
You get better brakes, deeper frame, a PCM computer programmed to watch a transmission temperature sensor and half inch wider springs that improve stability.

Hawk or Bendix pads for the front 1500 discs
and GM 1 ton rear wheel cylinders is the bare minimum for upgrading.
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old post below
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Over the past 3 weeks I have been changing out the brakes on my 1995 model
year 1500 Ram ClubCab 2wd.

The original factory front pads and rear shoes were changed out on this truck
back at 61,000 miles. Chrysler instruction sheet K6855323AB says these
original brake parts were a "Delco 243EE" set, although the front pads had
markings that said:

DM 128FE 7259/0 2/1 on the outboard pad
DM 128FE 8154 7259-1 1/1 on the inboard pad
Delco243EE**Delco243EE on rear shoes

I changed these original brake parts to 'improved' Mopar Replacements that
were recommended by Dodge in 1998 to improve brake performance in 1994-BR/BE
1996 Ram Truck 1500 Series.

This was a $156 kit bought at the dealer, part number 05013447AA.
I wrote up a report to DiRT on this Thu Apr 08 07:27:13 1999.

The instruction sheet K6855323AB included with the kit says that the improved
brake parts are a "Delco 224 FF" set of front pads BXH3EEE9278127E matched
with special rear shoes that are indeed marked Delco224FF.

These brake parts lasted on my truck from 61,000 miles to 140,000 miles, at
which time the front pads still had 3/16 inch thickness, but the rear shoe
thickness had worn away enough that the rivets had scored the brake drum
surface. I have to admit both styles of Delco parts lasted for a very good
life.

Prior to taking off the Delco 224FF brake parts I did 5 full stops with the
truck from 60 mph on a level asphalt road in dry 60-70 degree weather. I
would accelerate up to 60 mph then hit the brake pedal when I felt the front
tires hit an expansion joint in the road. I measured from the expansion joint
to where the nose of the truck stopped with a tape measure.
Results were:

219 feet
223 feet
204 feet
228 feet
197 feet
Average = 214 feet

When I had Bridgestone Dueler HL 245 75 R16 tires on this truck the tire tread
had so much dry traction that I could not cause the tires to skid in a panic
stop from 60 mph no matter how hard or quickly I hit the pedal.

In the above 5 tests I found that with Michelin LTX MS 245 75 R16 tire tread
pattern and rubber the truck would skid easily.

I have the standard Rear Wheel Anti-Lock (RWAL) system built by Kelsey Hayes,
not the optional ABS system.

Much of the variation from the worst 223 feet to the best 197 foot stop I feel
was due to skidding causing me to release the pedal momentarily. Even so, I
developed a flat spot on one of the rear wheels and there is now a slight
vibration - or maybe the Bendix drums aren't balanced properly.

I put Bendix AF462 shoes ($32.99) on the rear
with new Bendix #140660 drums ($54)
{both the above drums had 2 disturbing big balance weights welded to them}
replaced star wheel adjusters on both sides:
1531/F73182S USA Brake Parts ($12)
1530/F73181S, "Made in USA"
{the two sides have different left/right threads}
and replaced the original 1500 series
15/16 inch dia wheel cylinders with
1 and 1/16 inch diameter wheel cylinders:
TruTorque W79767/Raybestos WC37290 ($11) "Made in Italy"
that are standard equipment on 3500 series Rams.

The larger wheel cylinders
with their 28% greater piston area
bolted right in with no modifications needed.

With just the rear shoes changed to Bendix,
and wheel cylinders changed out to the larger diameter,
I did 5 more 60-0 stops:

199 feet
208
220
195
210
Average = 206 feet

I then:
changed the front pads to Bendix MKD369FM ($54.39),
polished the 4 rusty caliper sliding surfaces with a abrasive rubber wheel on
a Dremel tool,
lubed these 4 surfaces with a coating of NeverSieze the thickness of a
cigarette paper,
lubed the caliper bolts and sleeves with 10 drops of "BreakFree",
flushed and bled the brake fluid using two large bottles of Valvoline SynPower
Dot 3/4 brake fluid,
-- and then did 6 more 60-0 stops:

176 feet
191
177
200
167
192
Average = 184 feet

On these 6 stops the brake pedal had a good 'progressive' feel that allowed me
to stop with less skidding, but I think the pedal is not as firm as it should
be if all the air bubbles were out of the lines. I intend to bleed the 4
brakes again.

{Why did Dodge put a different size brake bleeder fitting on the rear versus
the front? Why is the front bleeder a metric wrench size, and the rear one
English?}

It is possible that I am feeling more brake pedal movement because it takes
28% more brake fluid to move the larger rear cylinders the same distance.

The above numbers are not as precise as I would like,
but my best guess is that these changes improved the
rear brakes about 4%,
and the front brakes improved about another 6%.

I feel better knowing I can stop about 30 feet shorter now.

My best two stops from 60 mph were 167 ft and 176 feet.

The best sports cars stop in 110-120 feet from 60 mph - at least according to
magazine reviews.

I guess we should all leave an extra 60-70 feet between our trucks and a
sports car in front of us - because they can stop shorter than we can. I have
seen a lot of Rams on the road with front bumper damage indicating they could
not stop in time.

 

yeah i'd really recommend the air bags for the rear.. those things can handle alot of weight plus their really neat they only kick on when theres a certain amount of weight in the back (atleast the ones i've seen do) i was hoping to find a set that will manually let me pump up the back whenever i want.. just to give me that nice mean stance in the back when i want

 

does hank ever make a short post??? or does he just have books saved on his comp? man that guy is full of useful information. what would we do with out him???????

 

I have done some searching for upgraded calipers for a 99' 1500 4x4 and only have come up with a couple options wich are pretty exspensive. Does anybody have any suggestions or links? My stock calipers suck and stick and warp my rotors, and they dont stop fast enough. It reminds me of my old 78' Ramcharger...when I had to stop fast I would turn into the grass instead because I knew I couldnt stop in time. It rode good on the grass off the interstates though

 

Sorry to dig this back up, but I thought all frames were the same.. What exactly is different? I have a 1500 4X4 and I was thinking of finding 2500 axles and springs to toughen my truck up and lift it..

 

how big is the camper you want to haul. I pull a dump trailer everyday with all kinds of loads and the only thing i have done are brakes and bigger springs. i have never had a problem.