Dump Trucks

[Builder]

Times sure have changed things. Back in the late sixties/early seventies I worked for some contractors that ecked out a pretty good living with a couple of single axle dumps and a few pieces of equipment. Seems like everything just got much bigger since then.

You could pick up a used road tractor and throw a dump bed on for pretty cheap. Other than weight watchers, as long as you kept your lights working, there was not much worrying about the DOT.

One guy I worked for had a couple of R190's and a later model (forget which) with the 549 V8 in it. He had a around a TD9 and a Hough payloader with a pretty good sized detachable hoe attached to it and an IH175 track loader. Anything else, he would rent. He used to put the two 190's and the payloader on with the state during the winter months. Always picked and chose who he would work for, no deadbeat payers. Never worked a saturday or a sunday save for the winter work. Always had plenty of green in his wallet.

Without going into politics and really changing the tone of the conversation, it's just a sign of the times.
People who made their living with equipment and hard work didn't get the increase in pay they need to keep up with rising costs, inflation, fuel, insurance, etc.
I'm not charging much more per hour on my backhoe now than I did 10 years ago, but everything my business consumes seems to have doubled.
I paid $29,000 for a loaded 4x4 diesel pickup in 2000. Now it would cost $55,000. Fuel-double. Insurance-double. Parts-double. Yet my rates have only gone up slightly because there's so many guys out there willing to work for nothing.
It has become a race to the bottom and small-time excavating & dumptrucking is a participant in that race.
Look at a lot of guys on this website. No offense to those who do this, but many of them buy equipment and on a part time basis undercut a guy like me who tries to make a living doing this and they do it more for fun or extra spending money. They don't always stay in business for long and if they lose money on a job, so what?
You have to consider this when considering going into a business that anyone can compete in.

 

[Bob Rooks]

You could pick up a used road tractor and throw a dump bed on for pretty cheap.

I have seen this done several times, with not very good results. Shy away from double o'drive transmissions, aluminum frames, SQHD's, and rubber biscuit rear suspension. A highway tractor is also likely to have too light of a front axle.

 

[LoneCowboy]

Without going into politics and really changing the tone of the conversation, it's just a sign of the times.
People who made their living with equipment and hard work didn't get the increase in pay they need to keep up with rising costs, inflation, fuel, insurance, etc.
I'm not charging much more per hour on my backhoe now than I did 10 years ago, but everything my business consumes seems to have doubled.
I paid $29,000 for a loaded 4x4 diesel pickup in 2000. Now it would cost $55,000. Fuel-double. Insurance-double. Parts-double. Yet my rates have only gone up slightly because there's so many guys out there willing to work for nothing.
It has become a race to the bottom and small-time excavating & dumptrucking is a participant in that race.
Look at a lot of guys on this website. No offense to those who do this, but many of them buy equipment and on a part time basis undercut a guy like me who tries to make a living doing this and they do it more for fun or extra spending money. They don't always stay in business for long and if they lose money on a job, so what?
You have to consider this when considering going into a business that anyone can compete in.

This.
QFT (quoted for truth)

Illegal contractors blow. Of course they are cheaper. no insurance, (liability or otherwise), no plates, no DOT stuff, no drug tests (DOT), inspections, etc, etc, etc.

Of course, they won't be around in 3 years either.

 

[Builder]

This.
QFT (quoted for truth)

Illegal contractors blow. Of course they are cheaper. no insurance, (liability or otherwise), no plates, no DOT stuff, no drug tests (DOT), inspections, etc, etc, etc.

Of course, they won't be around in 3 years either.

Yup. Unfortunately they take enough from me to cause some pain. In PA as of '09, we now have state wide contractor registration. When you register, they backround check for insurance, bankruptcy, complaints. etc. Not fool proof, but better than the free for all we have had here in the past. If you're found doing biz w/o a licence, they hang you up by your ears.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Without going into politics and really changing the tone of the conversation, it's just a sign of the times.
People who made their living with equipment and hard work didn't get the increase in pay they need to keep up with rising costs, inflation, fuel, insurance, etc.
I'm not charging much more per hour on my backhoe now than I did 10 years ago, but everything my business consumes seems to have doubled.
I paid $29,000 for a loaded 4x4 diesel pickup in 2000. Now it would cost $55,000. Fuel-double. Insurance-double. Parts-double. Yet my rates have only gone up slightly because there's so many guys out there willing to work for nothing.
It has become a race to the bottom and small-time excavating & dumptrucking is a participant in that race.
Look at a lot of guys on this website. No offense to those who do this, but many of them buy equipment and on a part time basis undercut a guy like me who tries to make a living doing this and they do it more for fun or extra spending money. They don't always stay in business for long and if they lose money on a job, so what?
You have to consider this when considering going into a business that anyone can compete in.

I think the race to the bottom expresses the issue very well. Sadly many are in that race and will wonder why they were even racing when they cross the finish line.

Farmers have been know to wear out their equipment and not be able to afford to replace it. I know a tool and die shop that did the same thing.

While I can potter around with old worn out equipment around the place I would hate to have to produce a living with it.

 

[Builder]

Sadly, that's true. America seems to have lost it's desire to work hard and customers no longer will pay adequate wages for on hands-on hard work. Wages are so stagnant. I think a lot of that coincided with the explosion of the illegal alien population starting in the 90's. The illegals brought down the wages of Americans who work with their hands. We have illegals that not just work for, but OWN drywall, roofing, landscaping companies, etc now. There's one that owns a dumptruck and moves other peoples equipment around-cheaper than I would. They climb the ladder into the "higher end" (carpentry, masonry, electrical, etc) trades and we who are in those trades watch helplessly as our once productive lives paying respectable wages living nice lifestlyes are disappearing. The work is being taken away by people with an unfair advantage and a willingness to make lower wages and live a much more modest lifestyle. It's the ruination of the middle class small business owners in construction, maintenance, etc.. One of my equipment dealers tells me they walk into the dealership and buy equipment like tractors & implements with cash. Piles of small bills. They have networks to hire more illegal workers. Legal natural born Americans are hiring them, too. That takes away the chance for a young enterprising kid to start off beating nails and then we have fewer Americans who start their own companies in carpentry, landscaping, trucking, etc.
It's a terrible mess and "dumptrucking" will fall into the problems I have described above. It hasn't happened en-mass yet, but when I drive around, I see a lot more immigrants driving CDL vehicles & operating equipment.

 

[Taylortractornut]

We have a ton of part timers here with no insurance. THeres a groups of us that all work together. We share a service I do the small hauling and debris removal, another does the big hauling and we dont under cut services as a courtesy. It keeps the loop closed. THeres a guy that has a rag tag group of a tree service. He has a pitiful time to. Tractor break downs wont invest in newer equipment. He decided to get into the dump truck business an and ended up backing over a 10 000 dollar wrought iron and concrete fence with no insurance.

My niche is that places like in town and the lake that cant stock pile materials. My truck I added some sections like a recycling dumpster has sections. I can get 3 seperat colors of mulch at 2 yards per section. THat makes mulch hauling more effient as I can line up 3 customers.

 

[gregsons]

I posted on here a while ago maybe it is where i live or the size trucks i had or i was just lucky but i did pretty good running a dump truck mind you this was part time i have a (real) job 40 hrs per week and i did this after work days off. I delivered stone, topsoils, dirt, mulch, lime, firewood, and anything else someone wanted, even moved furniture and one time lumber. it wouldnt have made me rich but made it worth my time. i would on avg. make $20.00 per. when my life slows down and i get time i will do it again. I get about 25-30 phone calls per week and i have not advertised in 2 years.

 

[tlbuser]

Yup. Unfortunately they take enough from me to cause some pain. In PA as of '09, we now have state wide contractor registration. When you register, they backround check for insurance, bankruptcy, complaints. etc. Not fool proof, but better than the free for all we have had here in the past. If you're found doing biz w/o a licence, they hang you up by your ears.

I'm not so sure the enforcement side of the house is worth a turd. One of our local building contractors submitted a certified payroll on a federal gov't job with illegal alien employees on the list. Still doing shady business, with illegals. Same guy gets caught repeatedly for doing things wrong and except for some small fines, always seems to come out on top.

Do immigrants get some kind of special "good deal" financing from the feds.?? Sure seems like everywhere you go, they are buying up all sorts of businesses.

 

[Builder]

I'm not so sure the enforcement side of the house is worth a turd. One of our local building contractors submitted a certified payroll on a federal gov't job with illegal alien employees on the list. Still doing shady business, with illegals. Same guy gets caught repeatedly for doing things wrong and except for some small fines, always seems to come out on top.

Agree, but it's a step in the right direction. PA had nothing prior to registration.

Do immigrants get some kind of special "good deal" financing from the feds.?? Sure seems like everywhere you go, they are buying up all sorts of businesses.

Can't say for sure, but I hear lots of rumors about women & minority owned businesses. The story I hear more than any is they don't declare income and keep it all as cash allowing them to accumulate savings tax free and therefore buy more than I can. It could all be rumor though.