Genius winter driving hack for truck owners

[97RangerXLT]

https://www.reddit.com/r/Justrolledintotheshop/comments/e0imyz

I gotta say this guy is on to something, but I don't think there is much room between the back bumper and the spare tire on my Ranger... judging from the photo, this looks like an early Dodge Dakota with the 8 ft bed

Keeps the bed free as well.

AJ

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

The weight is a long ways to the back which can cause some weird handling issues.

 

[Dirtman]

What the hell is he gonna bench press all winter?!

 

[sgtsandman]

I like the concept but like 85_Ranger4X4 said, the execution is flawed. Off the top of my head, I don't think this would fly with either of mine and not much room else where for them. Over the axle hung from the bottom of the bed maybe...

 

[sgtsandman]

What the hell is he gonna bench press all winter?!

My guess, the bench is performing more like a coat rack than a weight bench, like most exercise equipment does.

 

[Broo]

I use 5 concrete landscaping tiles during winter. I put them so the weight is distributed about evenly on the bed floor. Two in front of the wheel arches, a larger one in between and two more behind the arches.

 

[91stranger]

That's a terrible idea... So as the concrete inside them old weights start breaking and falling out they can take out innocent people?? Not sure how it is attached either but I think I see a u-bolt on the one side. Bet money that those are going to slowly crumble and once one is broke off then the rest will have slop and side-to-side play which will make them break faster..... It's probably illegal too just by looking at it. Sand bags are only a few bucks and these burst on impact instead of concrete.... Plus the weight is all behind the axle which we all know aint right.

 

[Dirtman]

Sand... sand is the only practical solution for winter weight.

 

[pjtoledo]

That's a terrible idea... So as the concrete inside them old weights start breaking and falling out they can take out innocent people?? Not sure how it is attached either but I think I see a u-bolt on the one side. Bet money that those are going to slowly crumble and once one is broke off then the rest will have slop and side-to-side play which will make them break faster..... It's probably illegal too just by looking at it. Sand bags are only a few bucks and these burst on impact instead of concrete.... Plus the weight is all behind the axle which we all know aint right.

not if they are frozen

in my experience bags of play sand aren't waterproof and will absorb some moisture, thus freezing solid.
I use 6 or 7 50lb bags.

 

[Dirtman]

I buy crap bags of sand at ace, put each one in a contractor bag to keep them "dryish". Never had one so waterlogged and frozen I couldn't scoop it by hand when I needed to throw some under the tire.

I'm drunk so not sure if we are arguing over the safety of sand bags or those stupid barbell weights... the barbell weights are retarded. And I can say that cause I'm drunk which means I'm legally retarded.

 

[1990RangerinSK]

That's a terrible idea... So as the concrete inside them old weights start breaking and falling out they can take out innocent people?? Not sure how it is attached either but I think I see a u-bolt on the one side. Bet money that those are going to slowly crumble and once one is broke off then the rest will have slop and side-to-side play which will make them break faster..... It's probably illegal too just by looking at it. Sand bags are only a few bucks and these burst on impact instead of concrete.... Plus the weight is all behind the axle which we all know aint right.

That's a really good point. And, frankly, *anything* under the bed can be a road hazzard, if it's not secured properly (and those aren't). If *I* was going to do something like that, I'd put them in the bed (an open bed is not really usable in the winter, anyway!), and I'd mount them either directly above the rear axle, or forward of it. Actually, I might put them right up against the cab, since then they also put weight on the front axle (but the closer to the rear axle they are, the higher percentage of the weight will be on the rear axle).

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

If I'm not using the bed, I fill it with snow. Come spring it all melts out. No muss, no fuss.

 

[1990RangerinSK]

If I'm not using the bed, I fill it with snow. Come spring it all melts out. No muss, no fuss.

That's the easiest way to add weight to the bed, for sure. I threw two sandbags, and two inflated tires (on rims) plus my spare) into the bed, along with the snow.

 

[97RangerXLT]

I do like the idea of having the weights out of the cargo space. probably using cast iron would be better than the plastic coated concrete/ sand weights. a nice rebar rack up between the frame rails to clamp said weights on just above the axle would be nice

AJ

 

[RonD]

A Spare tire should hold about 9 gallons of water with anti-freeze
So 72lbs of water plus the weight of the rim and tire, like a tractor tire
Be 100lbs at least
And you could still use it as a spare, lol, although hard to move around, and drive slowly

Not sure how much weight the spare tire winch is rated for....................lol

I like sand, yes water resistant bags of sand, in the bed, 100-200lbs behind the axle, you have other issues if that causes steering or handling problems