Many of you use rollback trucks rather than trailers?

[Dargo]

In an effort to reduce inventory and also make things (possibly) easier, I'm considering the purchase of a rollback truck rather than pulling my 30' GN trailer with my pickup. Being that all of my moving is 99.999% less than 30 miles, I can see where it may be easier to get rid of my trailer and a vehicle or two and buy a relatively older rollback. I've seen some with 25' to 30' beds on them that could haul both my CTL and mini excavator. It looks like one of these can be had for around 10k if I'm willing to buy something with 300k miles on it. Most I've seen seem to have either a Cat diesel or DT466 in them. It appears as if Jerr Dan has a lock on the rollback portion.

It just seems to me like I can get in and out of some tight places easier with a rollback than a crew cab long bed pickup with a 30' GN trailer behind it. I was just curious of the pros and cons of using a rollback over a trailer. Thoughts or comments?

 

[LoneCowboy]

it's a cool idea. You could get into ugly spots.

big trucks ain't cheap. it just adds up.

Would you be over 26,000lbs? (I.e. do you need a class B license?)

Even here in land of outrageous registration fees, trailers are cheap. trucks however are expensive. Just a though, registering and insuring one mid-size truck might be more than 1 pickup and many trailers.

It ain't cheap to fix hydraulics. My trailer (Trail King TK70HT) has a hydraulic tail (like what you see the rental yards use). A pin broke on a ram. It was $400 to fix it. (I've now had both break, they each cost about $400).

Still, I think it's a cool idea.

Lot fewer tires and brakes to be messing with. IF you had a multi-day job, you could bring the equipment out one day, then drive back and forth with the regular pickup.

 

[dawzie]

We have a 2 car & a 4 car RB. Once we put our pc-78 excavator on the 4 car. That angle is still steep! Things are really tall setting up there. We moved our T-300 bobcat also. Most of the time we just use the dump with a trailer. Seems we always need to bring pipe or stone or something else with us. Or we need to haul away something. So we just dont use the RB's for moving equipment that much.

But - with the right insurance & tow truck plates you can find plenty to do with the RB if things are slow for ya.

We went to the local rental places and equipment dealers. Always moving something for one of them. We also got hooked up through a freind moving cars that got wrecked and towed to a shop. After the insurance adjuster totals the car, we get to pick them up and bring them to the auto auction.

The other gig is after someone buys the wrecks, we get to haul them to wherever they want them.

 

[flusher]

In an effort to reduce inventory and also make things (possibly) easier, I'm considering the purchase of a rollback truck rather than pulling my 30' GN trailer with my pickup. Being that all of my moving is 99.999% less than 30 miles, I can see where it may be easier to get rid of my trailer and a vehicle or two and buy a relatively older rollback. I've seen some with 25' to 30' beds on them that could haul both my CTL and mini excavator. It looks like one of these can be had for around 10k if I'm willing to buy something with 300k miles on it. Most I've seen seem to have either a Cat diesel or DT466 in them. It appears as if Jerr Dan has a lock on the rollback portion.

It just seems to me like I can get in and out of some tight places easier with a rollback than a crew cab long bed pickup with a 30' GN trailer behind it. I was just curious of the pros and cons of using a rollback over a trailer. Thoughts or comments?

Interesting. I'm also considering that option along with the one-ton flatbed truck with GN option for hauling my parade tractors (4000-5000 lb load). Also interested in old stuff (mid-1990s on the truck) to keep the up-front cost down. Don't plan to haul loads more than 7 or 8 times per year. However, some of the trips will be several hundred miles of foothill/mountain roads.

The rollback probably will be cheaper than the flatbed/GN alternative, but I haven't done enough homework yet on this issue to say definitely.

The GN has the advantage of simplicity--I can do the maintenance and repairs myself, no problem. And parts for the GN aren't very expense.

If the hydraulics on the rollback need work, I could be facing considerable cost unless I can do the servicing myself. Don't know about cost of parts for those hydraulics. Again, need to do my homework.

In fact, when I bought it last Jan, I had my 1951 Minneapolis Moline BF tractor hauled to my shop on a rollback (not running, no engine compression, engine now being overhauled).



It was a bear getting that rollback into position to winch the tractor onto the ramp (narrow gate, tight turns). But the hauling guy got 'er done.

My other constraint is the 26,000 lb load limit on non-commercial vehicles (don't have a commercial driver's license). I've seen rollbacks on one-ton trucks (F350 class), so I don't think this is a show-stopper.

 

[Dargo]

Asking around it seems a mixed bag. Some guys tell me that they run their rollback trucks up to about 600-700k miles. I've had a CDL in the past but didn't renew after I sold my equipment. I've run across some deals on buying some off lease fork trucks but I can't get them up on my GN trailer. It kills the bargain if I have to pay to have them delivered. I'm tossing the idea around but haven't decided yet. Most every tractor shop around me uses a rollback to pickup and deliver their tractors etc. rather than trailers. I wondered if they were onto something easier than running around with a trailer.

 

[DIRTROAD]

Just remember a GVW of over 10k is considered commercial, therefore a medical card and federal annual inspection are required, even though a CDL isn't needed.

A good friend of mine just got stopped this week in a 26k GVW International. Guess which two charges the officer made?? Yes, It was no Federal annual inspection and an expired medical card.

 

[MarkV]

Dargo you own some pretty big tractors and an excavator. Are there any issues with how high that equipment would sit on a roll back? I see dealers using them for delivery but not sure I have seen them with larger tractors on board. I also think of roll backs as being metal decks and wonder how that steep angle works for loading if you have wet conditions. Metal decks can get slick.

MarkV

 

[farmboy12]

You don't need a CDL for a 2-ton rollback, which is what most are. I.E.- IH 4300 w/ DT466, Dodge/Chevy/Ford 5500-550. small Freightliners.

My neighbor uses one for his car rebuilding business, but also hauls the family's 26 antique Deere's around on it. He has a 21' bed and easily accomidates a 1936 AR with a planter behind it. He's put 13,000# on the back, but from a loading dock. He said he wouldn't tilt and load any more than about 9,000#. He runs a 2 ton IH 4300 w/ DT466. He's considering selling it and hopin to get $35000-$40000 for it, it's a 2004 with just 80k on the odometer. He wants to get down to just one vehicle for work and personal. PM me if your interested.


Kyle

 

[flusher]

Just remember a GVW of over 10k is considered commercial, therefore a medical card and federal annual inspection are required, even though a CDL isn't needed.

A good friend of mine just got stopped this week in a 26k GVW International. Guess which two charges the officer made?? Yes, It was no Federal annual inspection and an expired medical card.

So, if the GVW of the 1-ton flatbed in less than 10,000 lb, it's not considered commercial and I don't need the medical card and annual fed inspection?

To make things more complicated, here in CA, the DMV defines "pickup truck" as follows:

471. A "pickup truck" is a motor truck with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating of less than 11,500 pounds, an unladen weight of less than 8,001 pounds, and which is equipped with an open box-type bed not exceeding 9 feet in length. "Pickup truck" does not include a motor vehicle otherwise meeting the above definition, that is equipped with a bed-mounted storage compartment unit commonly called a "utility body."

And, CA has something called the

"Commercial Vehicle Registration Act (CVRA)

The Commercial Vehicle Registration Act (CVRA) changed the way the Department of Motor Vehicles registers commercial motor vehicles and some trailers.
Which vehicles are affected?
This law affects:

• Commercial motor vehicles with a declared gross vehicle weight (GVW) or combined gross vehicle weight (CGW) of 10,001 lbs. or more.
• Most trailers (for example, semi-trailers, boat trailers, utility trailers, or horse trailers.)

Which vehicles are NOT affected?
The following commercial motor vehicles are not affected:

• Pickups, even though a pickup can operate over 10,000 GVW.
• Light-weight trucks and vans if the declared GVW or CGW is 10,000 lbs. or less.
• Taxis and rental limousines (which include charter-party carriers operating limousines that pick up and deliver airport passengers) if the declared GVW is 10,000 or less.

NOTE: Weight fees for the above vehicles (not including trailers) will continue to be based on the unladen weight.
Also excluded are:

• Park Trailers.
• Trailer coaches. "

I'm planning to get a 1-ton flatbed truck with GVW less than 10,000 lb (a lightweight truck?) and not used commercially. And I'll be towing a GN weighing say 4500 lb carrying a 4500 lb tractor. Figure the CGW of the entire rig will be around 16000 lb. I trying to figure out where this leaves me in relation to both the CVRA and the DOT regs (medical card, annual inspection).

Any words of wisdom are appreciated.

 

[Dargo]

....an unladen weight of less than 8,001 pounds,....

Hmm, so what is my truck? I posted a picture and video of my truck at the drags a month or so ago and I weighed, unladen, 8170. My question is, what is it that I drive?