I had a F 100 back in the early eighties and its load capacity was outdone by your average station wagon, probably even a Pinto could haul more tonnage or in the F 100's case the load capacity was rated in pillow feathers.
That may be true with the original leaf springs but I had a '74 F100 4x4 and every part of the frame was equal to or beefier than my brother's 77 F250 4x4. I put forged alloy axles, Timkin 3800lb taper roller bearings in the rear, beefed up the rear springs to the point that you could load gravel in the 8' bed and screet the top rails of the bed and the truck stood level. The axle housing would deflect with about 3000lbs in the bed and you could smell gear oil weeping out of the axle seals.
I towed a 6 ton trailer with it 2 or 3 days a week and put a hundred thousand miles on the truck which had rights to the junkyard before I even bought it, the previous owner clipped a telephone pole clean in half, had welded frame horns to prove it.The 390 in it got 12 mpg's with 4:10's and 35" BFG Muds on 15x10 outlaw two rims and would easily pull along side an IDI. The FE engine series was something to be reckoned with, ten times the engine that the smog induced M block was that replaced it. I'd put that ol' F100 right on par with the IDI vintage, simple and tough as nails....FORD TOUGH.
