I know that this issue can confuse the DMV. When I registered my 1946 farm truck in WV (titled as a 1.5 ton, GVW tagged at 12,500), the lady behind the counter said "1.5 ton? Your truck weighs more that 1.5 ton!" I said I thought that was the rated load. She then tried to enter the data into the computer, using a truck weight of 12.500. The computer rejected the entry. After that she called a more experienced woman, who said "Ok, the problem is that the maximum weight for a historic vehicle is 8,000 pounds". She then looked me in the eye and said "Sir, your truck weighs 7,999 pounds. It is now historic, and cannot be worked. If you carry so much as a trash can to the dump with it, you will be ticketed. Understand me?" I hastened to agree to that, and all was well.
I do know that, according to Chevy docs I have seen, that the GVWR could be altered with as little as a tire change, from (for example) 6 ply to 8 ply tires. But they might still call it a 1.5 ton truck! The only "logic" that comes to mind is that 1.5 ton was the maximum that the lowest rated combo in a particular chassis FAMILY could carry, in its lightest configuration. So, my 1946, with the lightest offered spring set and single rear wheels rather than dual, might well be GVWR'ed at 8,000 pounds, with an unladen weight of 5000.
My still-in-transit 1935 is also titled as a 1.5 ton, but I haven't seen the GVW tag yet. As it was made to mil-spec, I'll have to weigh it when I get it to have an idea of curb weight. Chevy says a civilian QB truck of that year and gear/rear/tire combo weighs 4575; we'll see. I suspect that mil-spec in 1935 was mainly OD paint and "delete options...".
According to Chevy, your 1940 stake body 1.5 ton weighed either 4370 or 4640 empty, depending on wheelbase. So, with a GVW of 14000, your max load was around 9500, and it had a 2 speed rear, dual rear wheels and 32.00 x 6 8 ply tires. 32 x 6 4 ply single wheels and tires would drop the GVR to 8000, and single 8.00 x 20s, 7700, all with the same chassis. At least if I'm reading the ancient docs right that is, I may have read some of the numbers wrong, but you get the idea.
Last edited by thurman; 09/24/2018 8:47 PM.
