Tailgate Limit and loading Motorcycle

[omniphil]

I thought I read somewhere that the rating of the tailgate was right under 500lbs.
Is this limit based on the cables? Not sure if they make a more heavy duty cable.

I have a few bikes and one of them is 500lbs. So that certainly seems ok, until I also stand on the tailgate while loading, then we're over the 500lbs.

I'm sure you guys have loaded some motorcycles into the back, how has your experience been?

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[TheDo114]

Honestly, I wouldn't worry about it. People load tons of things in the back of their truck and there's always a safety factor to these things.

If you want to play it safe, you can put a piece of plywood under the wheel on the tailgate of your bike so it distribute the load evenly across the bed and tailgate.

 

[omniphil]

Honestly, I wouldn't worry about it. People load tons of things in the back of their truck and there's always a safety factor to these things.

If you want to play it safe, you can put a piece of plywood under the wheel on the tailgate of your bike so it distribute the load evenly across the bed and tailgate.

I went with the 6 foot bed as I wanted the room to put in the motorcycles in the back with the tailgate up. So while driving I'm not worried about it. Just while loading/unloading and putting too much weight on the tailgate...

 

[TheDo114]

I went with the 6 foot bed as I wanted the room to put in the motorcycles in the back with the tailgate up. So while driving I'm not worried about it. Just while loading/unloading and putting too much weight on the tailgate...

Even better!!

I would not worry about it. Yes there's a 485lbs load limit but you are still distributing the weight between the bed, tailgate and the ground when using a ramp and depending where you are in the loading up process.

 

[omniphil]

Yeah, I suppose when steeping up into the bed while loading I can make sure to avoid steeping on the very end of the tailgate...

 

[omniphil]

If I detach the cables for the tailgate, will it continue to hinge down out of the way without having to unbolt it? If it dropped down enough I could just put the ramps on the bed directly....

Edit... This answered that question, looks like it would just fall right out without the cables. So pretty easy to remove with minimal tools...

 

[fergthulhu]

I just did a 250lb refrigerator and my 280lbs of human meat hauled up some loading ramps without any issues. I was also concerned at first, but I figured that the ramp was also distributing some of that load to the ground and I suspect that's a conservative number in the manual.

 

[Danager]

If I detach the cables for the tailgate, will it continue to hinge down out of the way without having to unbolt it? If it dropped down enough I could just put the ramps on the bed directly....

Edit... This answered that question, looks like it would just fall right out without the cables. So pretty easy to remove with minimal tools...

It will, until it hits the bumper. The angle still isn’t great and now you have to find a way to protect the paint from getting damaged. You’ve seen how much the truck moves when loading, not a risk I would recommend. I work at a store where we load customer vehicles and regularly put a pallet with North of 1,000 pounds partially on the tailgate before pick it it to reposition it or push it further into the truck.

 

[fergthulhu]

If I detach the cables for the tailgate, will it continue to hinge down out of the way without having to unbolt it? If it dropped down enough I could just put the ramps on the bed directly....

Edit... This answered that question, looks like it would just fall right out without the cables. So pretty easy to remove with minimal tools...

Ha. I had no idea it was that easy to remove or I probably would have done that.

 

[FunInTheSun]

I thought I read somewhere that the rating of the tailgate was right under 500lbs.
Is this limit based on the cables? Not sure if they make a more heavy duty cable.

I have a few bikes and one of them is 500lbs. So that certainly seems ok, until I also stand on the tailgate while loading, then we're over the 500lbs.

I'm sure you guys have loaded some motorcycles into the back, how has your experience been?

Don't forget, if the whole bike weighs 500 lb, and if the weight distribution is 50/50, that you only have 250 lb per wheel, so you are probably ok, as both wheels are not on the taligate at the same time. There is a safety factor too, as others have mentioned.

Not sure what their failure mode is for the 485 lb, so I can't say any more. Does it dent the surface of the gate, or does the hinge fail, or does the cable break? No way to know how to improve the load rating, unless Ford gives more information about exactly what breaks at max load. (or maybe some other selfless brave soul risks the damage and does the experiment)...

Anybody have a tailgate fail? What were you doing when it happened and what broke first?

 

[DukeCanBuildit]

dgmtailgatesupport.com

 

[TheDo114]

dgmtailgatesupport.com

They do not make one for the Ranger5G

 

[db_tanker]

They do not make one for the Ranger5G

Confirmed - they sent an email saying this to me when I was trying to figure out if I wanted to haul my KingQuad 400 in the bed.

I finally said to heck with it. I rolled that way for a fair number of months until finally going to get a little 2k utility trailer. IMO alot safer and more convenient - gives me better ways to haul bulkier items and a lower lift or roll on with the built in ramp. And since its 2k or less I won't have to worry too much about trailer e-brakes.

D

 

[grammat95]

Loaded my 400 some pound tenere 700 up using ramps... no issues to report.

 

[OFC Ranger]

You guys are way over complicating this. Unless he plans to balance the bike on the tailgate doing a wheely at no point during loading or unloading would all the weight of the bike be on the tail gate.

Easiest solution to put your mind at ease would be to cut some 2x4s to length as support legs and just use some wingnuts or something to attack them to the side of the tailgate when loading/unloading. Or do the same thing with some 2x4's as those yellow things in the picture above.

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