How much weight will tailgate hold when up?
10-09-2014, 03:31 PM
#11
Kind of off topic of op but when its down my bed panel on the tail gate has come up i am guessing from weight?
10-09-2014, 09:05 PM
#12
Junior Member
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 8
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
When in the up position the tailgate has to support about 50% of the load. The other 50% would be supported by the front of the bed. With the tailgate down it only has to support approximately 20% of the load as 6.5' or 80% of the 8ft load is supported evenly by the rest of the bed. Has to do with the moments of the load. And when the tailgate is down it is still supported by four points...the hinges and the cables.
At the same time, lumber loaded up over the tailgate is much less likely to jump out of the back of your truck while going down the road. Regardless of straps.
10-09-2014, 10:07 PM
#13
Senior Member
I have seen quite a few tailgates on the newer F150 bent by doing such a thing. I know a guy who had a schudule 40 8 inch pipe about 12 long in his pickup with the tailgate up. By the time he made it to his destination, there was a nice 3 inch V where the the pipe was.
I would not recommend it! Do it tailgate down.
I would not recommend it! Do it tailgate down.
10-10-2014, 07:14 AM
#14
Senior Member
I have seen quite a few tailgates on the newer F150 bent by doing such a thing. I know a guy who had a schudule 40 8 inch pipe about 12 long in his pickup with the tailgate up. By the time he made it to his destination, there was a nice 3 inch V where the the pipe was.
I would not recommend it! Do it tailgate down.
I would not recommend it! Do it tailgate down.
10-10-2014, 07:18 AM
#15
Senior Member
Im a bricklayer and we have owned everything from f150 up to f450. We always load our truck with tailgate up with planks and scaffold, materials. Never damaged a gate yet. Oh and you know those little bump stops in the rear. I swear they put those on just for us. 
The following users liked this post:
Crab Balls (10-10-2014)
10-10-2014, 07:48 AM
#16
As for the bump stops, I know what you mean. I've been known to carry over 3,500# of UPS batteries in the bed of an S10.
10-10-2014, 08:30 AM
#17
Senior Member
You're saying tailgate can handle more load when up?
When in the up position the tailgate has to support about 50% of the load. The other 50% would be supported by the front of the bed. With the tailgate down it only has to support approximately 20% of the load as 6.5' or 80% of the 8ft load is supported evenly by the rest of the bed. Has to do with the moments of the load. And when the tailgate is down it is still supported by four points...the hinges and the cables.
At the same time, lumber loaded up over the tailgate is much less likely to jump out of the back of your truck while going down the road. Regardless of straps.
When in the up position the tailgate has to support about 50% of the load. The other 50% would be supported by the front of the bed. With the tailgate down it only has to support approximately 20% of the load as 6.5' or 80% of the 8ft load is supported evenly by the rest of the bed. Has to do with the moments of the load. And when the tailgate is down it is still supported by four points...the hinges and the cables.
At the same time, lumber loaded up over the tailgate is much less likely to jump out of the back of your truck while going down the road. Regardless of straps.
Clearly a load of lumber as big as the OP was discussing should go flat with the tailgate open.
I hauled scrap metal all summer from a relative's home, over 7 tons of it. This included solid steel bars that were quite heavy and long. I put 1/2 dozen of them over the tailgate, padded, and tied down so they could not bounce. No issues - but I wouldn't consider doing that with hundreds of pounds of lumber that I had no way to really secure.
I also have a bedmat that is rubber and nothing slides on it. I still secure everything.
10-10-2014, 09:20 AM
#18
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Ended up going another route and not getting all the lumber i need right now anyway. Got about 16 2x4s instead. Thanks for everyones help
10-10-2014, 11:28 AM
#19
Senior Member
A schedule 40 8 inch pipe weighs 29 lbser foot. So a 12 foot pipe weighs 348 lbs. so if 6.5 feet is in the bed and another 5.5 feet is hanging over the tailgate when it's up. That's a lot of weight on the small section of the tailgate. Strap it down and hit a few bumps on the highway and yes it will bend the tailgate.
10-10-2014, 11:43 AM
#20
while i personally load stuff with the gate down, this is a common site all winter long... theyre strong enough to hold it
Last edited by schissler; 10-10-2014 at 11:51 AM.