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dually: more or less traction

2K views 22 replies 19 participants last post by  Logan 
#1 ·
I have heard from some that duallies have more traction in snow and ice than singel rear wheel trucks, and some say they have less. Please, someone knowledgable give me a definite answer.
 
#2 ·
They have less, The duels sit on top of the snow...Like a wide tire does....
 
#14 ·
That helps prevent your trucks rear end from sinking on a good note. Although you could always slip ontop of the snow anyways. Snowmobiler knowledge!
 
#3 ·
I'll let you know my thoughts on this when I head back to Ohio in december.:D
 
#6 ·
and in mud they ball up pretty bad giving you one fat muddy slick.... I have got the wreckers stuck a few times in the mud from that little problem
 
#8 ·
and alot of dually pullin trucks take off thier outter wheels.
 
#10 ·
My grandpa had a dually to use around the farm but it got stuck everywhere wet grass even with 4 wheel drive.
 
#11 ·
I know guys with duallys loaed with 100 gal. of fuel, saws, tools and lunch. That have alot of trouble in the snow, even with new BFG At's on.
 
#12 ·
although i remember i was out at a field party on some old farm where everyone was rompin thier beater trucks gettin stuck every 5 minutes and some mid 90's dually cummins came rollin in and idled through the mud no problem. :rolleyes:
 
#15 ·
yelp its all in the way there driven. not to say that duallys have more traction because i agree with the guys here that they tend to float on top of the snow or mud.
 
#16 ·
So, if there was a deep snow,around 4-6 inches, as 4-6 here IS a deep snow, would it be wise to take off the inner wheel? or would it still be ok with both rear wheels on?
 
#17 ·
It'll be OK in 4-6 inches of snow...as long as you drive correctly. My SRW 350 had zero problems in the winter...and that's with pretty wide 315 70 16's...(35's). Actually, I tried to get it stuck last winter and I couldn't.
 
#18 ·
Here are two factors that work against the Duallies for traction in Mud/Snow

1) You have the same horse power as a SRW Truck but you displace the weight over twice the surface area as a SRW truck, thus making the truck affectively lighter per sq in than the SRW Trucks.

2) The Duallies lots of times have a lower gearing, meaning lower end torque, and the ability to spin a lot easier, coupled with the weight displacement, just adds insult to injury!

They do have better ability for pulling a load on hard surface, and offer MUCH more stability, from what I am told.

My grandfather swore that the Model T was one of the BEST 2wd vehicles ever made because of the thin tall tires, and the ground clearance !!

Bob~!
 
#19 ·
Duallies are horrible in the snow and mud. I had a 98 Chevy CC gasser. I got stuck in my driveway in 2" of snow and got stuck on a little wet grass another time. It all goes along with what everyone else has said about weight distribution over the rear tires being less due to twice the surface area that the tires put on the ground. Maybe we need to take Rob's grandfather's advice and build a Model T with a PSD. I think it would be cool!?!
 
#20 ·
I have always had trouble with DRW unless you can get ALOT of wieght over the back, some friends of mine get theres stuck all the time, but you cant get our F550 plow truck stuck, maybe its the dump bed full of salt? it just sinks to the botom of the snow and drives. I stick to SRW in snow, and take off my mud terrains and put some skinny allterains on.
 
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