When it started it was only Cummins based, and the only way it make sense.

Arrrrggh.... Fake book.

I was going to mention that. My buddy had a 1980 with the ram decals on the fenders too but it was converted to a tow truck within the first year or two so I have no idea what it said on the tailgate.

In my opinion the 1st generation is 1972-1993. Forget Ram and Cummins. The frames were all very close, wheelbases were the same, cabs, boxes and sheet metal could be swapped easily with minor modifications. Bumpers bolted on and plow frames could be used throughout the 21 years. That's my take on it.

Yep 72-93 is the same platform. 22 years actually.

While I agree with 72-93 being all " the same" generation

But I don't agree with that being considered "1st" generation, as that is to say that Dodge didn't build "any" trucks prior to that????? BULL$#1T. All the more reason I wish I could afford to go find me a solid old "Dodge Brothers " version on which to restore. So I could then show everyone what "1st gen" Dodge trucks really were. Or at least find me a a 64-71.

Right. 1st gen implies nothing before IMO. Weird.

While we're on this topic, I believe the dropping of "Dodge" and making "Ram" a stand alone division was a major marketing faux pas by corporate. People are still confused and I'm constantly hearing "Dodge Ram". Dodge trucks were/are a legendary brand with loyal followers and this marketing move blurred the brand IMO. They could've kept the slogan "Ram tough".

They could've kept the slogan "Ram tough".



This alone doesn't exactly say "RAM TOUGH" to me..........

Was never a fan of the "ram" name, I also remember the commercials of the two rams locking horns. Could never figure out why they went with the name. Should have kept the old Dodge logo also.

The original "RAM" was actually a long horned sheep, but the idea was to show how tough the trucks were. Nothing produces the image of being tough better then to watch two long horned sheep banging their horns together time after time and keep going after it. They slam together hard enough to lift their rear feet off the ground, back up and do it again, and again. The term was first used to describe the early 30s Dodge trucks, the first redesign after WW1 that gave the Dodge trucks the reputation for being tough dependable trucks.

This truck "Gen" thing is another crossover (like the term "Square body") from the Chevy truck camp. When the Chevy trucks couldn't hang with the Dodges, and the Chevy boys that needed a real truck, they brought their pet name tags for their junk along with them, so they could feel better about themselves being traitors, more at home.

I suspect that part of the reason these trucks are so poorly supported is because Dodge ran this truck for so many years, when the 94 all new trucks came out, everyone except the hard core guys jumped ship on the new design. Now that the 94 and more modern trucks have a similar shape, the loved of the old design is making a come back, but much of the knowledge base is no longer around (or may not clearly remember ). 30 years will do that.

Pretty sure you mean big horn sheep. A quick Google search of "long horn sheep" goes directly to "big horn sheep" but I can't find any reference to the terms being interchangeable.

Could be, old age does that sometimes, and I'm too lazy to look for the book I read the info in. Long horn or big horn was still male sheep butting heads together to claim territory.

Not Dodge specific but has sections for Dodge as well as the other brands. It's an OK site but not as active as the "brother" sites like forbbodiesonly / forabodiesonly,....

https://www.fortrucksonly.com/truckforum/

Ramchargercentral is good too. Lots of overlap with pickups and plenty active.

The 1st gen sections of Cumminsforum.com also has Lots of information on chassis and body. Mainly for higher gvw but still good information.

The website - machopowerwagon.com was another one I used to frequent a bit back when I had my 2 lifestyle trucks. But that was 10 years ago. That site is now a ghost town. A bit of shame as there was alot of good package trucks on there like palominos, machos, top hand, LRE, etc. I guess I will check out Ramchargercentral.... But I agree with the OP. Drives me nuts that the Bow tie guys and Ford guys have dedicated sites and not much for dodges. It also kills me the amount of aftermarket stuff available for gm squarebody trucks. Its absolutley nuts but I guess its simple statistics... More GM trucks were sold than dodges and from a business perspective I get it. Just irritates me all the parts I see that are available.