My 93 dad bought new. He towed a 34 foot 5th wheel camper that was 12’ 8” to the to of the a/c unit. And gross gvw of 14000 lbs. claimed to get 12 mpg going back and forth to Florida pulling the camper. I’ve gotten 22 mpg on back roads. He was a truck driver before I was born, so he was a much better driver than I’ll ever be. I also have an 03, it’ll absolutely run circles around the 93. I just picked up a 2016 3500 with less the 19,000 miles

I’ve towed very heavy with my old 90 with a gut bag 5 gear. Anyone defending them is insane. Even a 2nd gen especially 96-up with hydro boost is light years better. My 90 now has 4th gen brakes from torq Motorsports 2002 Dana 80 disc rear and an nv5600. That finally made it a truck you could call a tow rig. I really enjoy your videos bubba, I’ve tinkered with 89-02 Cummins trucks basically since I could drive. Me and my buddys been doing the same stuff like you for years, keep up the content!

I drove a 93 3/4 ton, extended cab, 2wd, auto with a service body for a work truck about 20 years ago. It had 330k and ran around good with the bed full of parts and tools. It probably weighed 8500 to 9000. Thanks for the great videos!

Just think what the ol' boys thought back in 93 about the first gens compared to a 63. They probably were saying "boy arent we spoiled with cummins diesel. Question is though, can a 2023 last 30 years and still put in work?

It's so awesome seeing your lil man out there with you,take it from me,take advantage of every moment you can have him out with you,get him involved,show him teach him ..god do I know they may not always be there with you to do it. Take care brother,love the content! Keep putting em back on the roads one at a time . God bless.

It's great to hear you say that you dont consider the 1sr gen a tow rig. So many people would say its got a diesel under the hood so it can tow anything. I like to see you do your rebuilds. I also agree with you on the leaps and bounds differences between the truck years. My 2022 Ram 3500 with the HO tows so much better thsn my friends 2001 Ram 3500. Keep the videos coming.

89 regular cab 4x4 250 towing 30’ gooseneck cattle trailer weighing around 15000lbs loaded. I only use it to get the cows from the fields to the trucking yards

Truck looks great as is. Good old honest truck you can drive and not worry about. Ac , cool factor, decent to great paint, and you can pick up something or haul trash for fun and appreciate today’s trucks but relive the memories of the past all at the same time.

It's everything you just said, plus it just looks, and more importantly sounds very cool! A few loose ends tied up, a detailed power spray, then some rattle can black. Poof, she's ready to run parts from/to town, and most important, gettin soft ice cream from the drive in on a hot day!! Large cup chocolate, chocolate sauce and chocolate whipped cream w/no cherry please!! Chocolate is my fave if you haven't guessed. LOL 8) It seems around the end of the 80's, when the GM LS motors started showing up, GM bought Allison, things started getting better with all brands. Each year they got better and better. Now I have a 368 cu/in that is 360hp/360tq 3.71 locker and great trans that tows like crazy on flat roads and will spin both rears unloaded!! That would be a "hot rod" when I was in school! It sounds like one too!! Sorry I got off subject, Thanks Sam!! --gary

Great truck, Sam.

I love watching your content, Sam! I have my fathers 89 d250 getrag 360 regular cab 2wd. He bought her new back then, I grew up in it with him pulling hay wagons and stock trailers on his cattle farm. I’m hoping to get it restored someday since he’s passed away 2 years ago now. I remember him pulling double hay wagons..more than the truck probably should’ve ever towed and definitely more than it could safely stop 😅. It always took a while climbing some of those hills in southeast PA. She’s a gorgeous tan/brown color.

Man, I sure wish you could bring that truck to our 3rd truck show in Logan Utah!

Cant say anything to an auto first gen, but my dad hauled livestock commercially for years with a 1991 W250 5 speed all stock. Had 405k when he sold it and a cracked/patched frame. He'd haul 16 fat cattle in a full load with the weight of the trailer it was about 21k.

Love this truck! Would like it better with the duals back on it and Bob the bed! Nice work!

I'll be restoring a flat bed here soon and putting it on my 18 3500 dually 👍 Great job there bud.

With my 93 automatic, I found that shifting thru the gears manually made all the difference. It stayed cooler and got up to speed much faster. But still no where near like my 2012 3500. I love driving Ole Blue, but the '12 does ride much better. Love the truck brother. It came along real nice.

❤ the Cummins content

Definitely turned out to be a sharp ole rig

Callahan for the win today. Them semi trucks just seem to come out of nowhere sometimes.

Cool video Sam 😁👍🏻

That should be well strong enough Sam 👍👍💪🏻💪🏻

That old 5.9 gasser is a nice truck

My 1989 4x4 wd250 with 354 gears tow weight was 9000 lbs . I towed 11000lbs 3rd gear in the hills but it still did the job without all the electric junk.

Paint job looks great bro. Nice old truck. My buddies got a 92 350 and all he hauls is fuel and a welder. Definitely not a heavy tow rig. Truck has 500k miles and always cranks and runs unlike the his immortal 7.3 that never wants to start and has way less miles. Lol

My opinion is that i would leave the dual wheels on it and have different rear springs put on. Looks good

I towed my 8000lbs travel trailer with a 93 dodge diesel 4x4 with a auto, it did it, but as soon as you hit a 5% or steeper grade you were down to 70km/h period. Brakes sucked, and rode horrible, but it was super reliable. I upgraded to a 2008 ram 3500 4x4 with the 6.7. The 2008 is the most reliable vehicle I have ever owned.

We still have our 89 first GEN Dully that thing routinely pulled 10 to 14,000 pounds it had a dump bed on it used to fill that thing up over 5 yards twisted the frame, but she still drive straight

Seeing you not refer to a first gen as a tow rig is great lol back in the day I’m sure they were top of the line tow rigs and work trucks and they can still be used today of course if you want to….but just becuase your truck can handle a load doesn’t mean it should always love the gvwr conversation your trucks rated at 11k no I pull 18k all day well just cause it can doesn’t mean it should 😂 she turned out nice man thanks for the videas

Personally I would have shortened bed, that would have moved your hitch closer to frame and reduced some of that lever action. But still looks good

Something about a 1st gen. That being said I could say that about like 10 different trucks lol I just like them all. Looks sweet though would be an awesome ranch truck

Dang Callahan is getting big..... Also I might be having another charger few years newer then the last on up for sale 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔. I will let you know in about a week 🤞🏽🤞🏽🤞🏽

Yes, the newer trucks handle loads better but these old 1st gens have towed heavy heavy loads all over the country for many millions of miles just fine.

I have never towed with my 1st gen . It's in retirement mode. I try and daily some weeks . But the cost of diesel in Cali just hits my wallet too hard. . Oh it has dual tanks

Nice👍🏻 I see multiple new projects in the background huh 😉

I “accidentally” put 18k behind my 1992 4 speed automatic first gen. It wasn’t happy about it one bit but it got the job done.

Google says the 1st gen dodge trucks w the Cummins have an 11k max towing capacity. Just bought a 36” camper that weighs 8400 dry. All stock 92 d250 5 speed. We’ll see how she does 🤷‍♂️

My sister has an 86 ramcharger, 360-4v, real similar interior

if the hitches lined up the best would have been connecting the two hitches some how

I pulled 15k all day long with a 93 w350 5spd, was an honest 12mpg…I know you said automatic but I hauled a load of hogs over a scale at 32k total so pulling about 24k…..your truck squats and has steering issues couse it’s beat to shit, my 93 is tight down the road and comfortable with a load.

Probably should get rid of that giant bed, it's killing the tow ability of the truck. The leverage of that bed is terrible and not safe for towing even with what you have on it. My 2500 is completely stock and don't squat anything like that is with bigger loads. You have the load so far back to cheat past the leverage that you made it unsafe in the tongue weight area.

While you did all that work should have just snubbed the back of the bed off so you could use the factory hitch cut the back rail board off cut off what was needed then weld the tail board back on flush with the end of the frame

Off question, on your 2nd gen I seen you had the curt upgraded hitch. Do you know what model is best? I've checked and they made 3 different ones but don't say the difference between them.

i got a 85 heavy half ton and i’ve had about 7500 pounds up a 6% grade hill but i have a 3.90 ratio

I got a 91 first gen with factory tack it turns on with the key but don't work I think it's the crank sensor but mine is a 2 wire all I could buy is a 3 wire do you know about this???

On the truck

What are you doing with the gasser? I have 3 of them plus my red 01 quad cab longbed 4x4 dually 24v that pretty much needs someone like you to go through it end to end, but I'm in S.C.

Problem with the old trucks are the brakes. U can pull a load but u got to stop it to

if you don’t mind me asking, how much was the diamond C trailer?

I have a 91 w250 5 speed that tow daily around 4K lbs no problem but hers doesn’t like the 14k lbs dump trailer. Hauled that once and no sir I definitely need to find or build something that isn’t so sketchy lol . Any suggestions? Must be a pre 97’ cause here in commiefornia I don’t follow their carb bs .

Definitely shorten the bed. Its way too long for multi-use. I'd cut it back so you can use the factory hitch.

i give you props towing with a 4 speed A518 horrible steering design, leaf springs in front and crappy brakes. Those are just some of the problems of a 1st gen. I daily my 1st gen and it’s definitely a roller coster. Lol

First

Not feeling that bed at all. The hitch is 2ft further back than the O.E. Of course it’s going to sag more, the weight has more leverage. Shorten up that bed man.

You only have 1 brake light

I pulled about 10k of hay on old equipment trailer last year in my 92 auto w250. I think at gross i was at 19 maybe 20k. Was only runnin field to couple miles down to hay barn though... 12:07