Tailgate loading

[Arc Ranger]

So this weekend I was hanging out with some friends outside and my buddy asked me if I could lower the tailgate so that his wife could sit. So I did, and then one of my other buddies decides to also take a seat... but he's not a small guy. If I had to guess he is probably over 300 pounds. Then my wife also decided to take a seat on the tailgate. I did some quick estimated math in my head and there was somewhere in the ballpark of 550 pounds sitting on the tailgate. I was starting to sweat a little bit but I didn't want to offend my friend and tell him that he might need to get down so I just let it go. Thankfully all is good and nothing happened to the tailgate, but it got me thinking, what is the max loading for the Ranger tailgate?

Sponsored

 

[NickTheEnforcer]

FORD TESTED IT WITH A BABY RHINO, UR GOOD BRO!

 

[Arc Ranger]

FORD TESTED IT WITH A BABY RHINO, UR GOOD BRO!

So that's what they mean by "Built Ford Tough"

 

[NvrFinished]

That's a pretty good question, actually!

 

[Trigganometry]

The tailgate would probably droop/bend before it broke. Last weekend using ramps hooked over extended tailgate we loaded a full dress Harley into my bed. Back end sat down nicely with that load. So that was over 700 lbs. No problems and gate closed the same as before doing it

 

[Arc Ranger]

one thing to note....are your cable lengths perfectly matched now???

It's funny, while they were sitting on it both cables were fully taut, but without a large load one of them is loose. So maybe Ford designs it that way? One cable for light load and the second cable with slack only handles load over a certain weight.

 

[Arc Ranger]

apparently in 2021, offending people is easy to do.
too many people who think their emotions are someone elses problem.

Looks like I was over the maximum load. It held up fine though, and still opens and closes normally. The baby rhino test worked.

 

[Trigganometry]

It's funny, while they were sitting on it both cables were fully taut, but without a large load one of them is loose. So maybe Ford designs it that way? One cable for light load and the second cable with slack only handles load over a certain weight.

New feature coming, taillights flash Morse code. “Get off my ass!”

 

[DukeCanBuildit]

For those who are paying attention, it’s right there in the Owner’s Manual - no need for any fancy gizmos.

 

[Trigganometry]

For those who are paying attention, it’s right there in the Owner’s Manual - no need for any fancy gizmos.

Don’t be one of ‘those guys’. Get a forum approved damper and never worry again.

 

[Arc Ranger]

an ass tazer that is hooked to a pressure sensitive microswitch.
could also tie it into an LED lighting system on the damper...so when its overloaded the damper flashes red as a warning.

No damper for me, but I do like the idea of the ass tazer.

 

[Tim H.]

So this weekend I was hanging out with some friends outside and my buddy asked me if I could lower the tailgate so that his wife could sit. So I did, and then one of my other buddies decides to also take a seat... but he's not a small guy. If I had to guess he is probably over 300 pounds. Then my wife also decided to take a seat on the tailgate. I did some quick estimated math in my head and there was somewhere in the ballpark of 550 pounds sitting on the tailgate. I was starting to sweat a little bit but I didn't want to offend my friend and tell him that he might need to get down so I just let it go. Thankfully all is good and nothing happened to the tailgate, but it got me thinking, what is the max loading for the Ranger tailgate?

Question...do you have a damper installed? ?

 

[ProtonDecay]

Heh, them cables & ramps will give at some point - maybe not right away, but the stresses of a heavy bike while the truck is underway......one reason I had a Loadall ramp on my F150.....

The Loadall was pricey, and a heavy beast, despite being aluminum, but I never dropped a bike with it.

 

[Blmpkn]

Christ, taco tailgates fold right up like.... a taco almost.

I'm going to be hauling a 700lb 4 wheeler around all summer. My plan is to buy a couple 2x12s to park the wheeler on while its in the bed, that should take quite a bit of pressure off the gate.

 

[HenryMac]

"Maximum load of the tailgate is 485 lbs, per the manual... that's a static load rating, not a dynamic load rating (conservative assumption on my part). If you're driving with a load sitting on the tailgate... (a quad, motorcycle, etc) when you hit a bump in the road the weight the tailgate experiences increases... based on the severity of the bump."

Sponsored