Root Grapple?

[bgosh]

Yes I agree the shipping is something else.Too bad but with fuel prices the way they are is crazy and our government does not do any thing about it.We have enough crude in the Dakotas to last a long time.C9ome Nov we can change that.

 

[IslandTractor]

i am so close to placing an order with wildkat for the 48" econo, i was given a price of $650 (price less skidsteer ports) but the killer is freight - $400 to bring it to washington state. even at that price i can't find one locally that even comes close but still high. i also priced these with markham (now NAI) and shipping the same, in fact they are located in the same town! why can't there be someone on the left coast that makes these things as inexpensive?

I've also wondered what it is about Denton, NC that stimulates grapple production. Maybe someone needs to get a little of their magic dirt or water and sprinkle it on to a light industrial park in some part of CA, OR or WA!

It is also rather shocking that transporting 400lbs of grapple on a pallet could cost $0.15/mile. Does it cost that much to ship 400lbs or a pallet full of WA apples to NC? I doubt it.

Maybe Wildkat and NAI should offer unwelded parts kits for their left coast customers. I'm sure there are plenty of potential customers who could weld and if not it wouldn't be hard to get a local welding shop to put it together. For that matter they could just license their CAD files to a local full service fabrication shop in the West and let them do the metal sourcing, cutting and welding.

 

[IslandTractor]

Yes I agree the shipping is something else.Too bad but with fuel prices the way they are is crazy and our government does not do any thing about it.We have enough crude in the Dakotas to last a long time.C9ome Nov we can change that.

Baloney. The government has little or nothing to do with either the cost of shipping or fuel prices. Fuel costs are up less than 25% over a year ago. How does that justify charging $400 to ship 400lbs across country. A full rig with 30,000lbs of cargo (moderate load) at 5mpg would burn 600 gallons of fuel or a total fuel bill of less than $2500. At a buck a pound for freight charges that leaves the trucker with $27,500 in his pocket. Fuel costs are less than 10% of the cost of transporting 400lbs across country.

 

[Hilltop Hillbilly]

Baloney. The government has little or nothing to do with either the cost of shipping or fuel prices. Fuel costs are up less than 25% over a year ago. How does that justify charging $400 to ship 400lbs across country. A full rig with 30,000lbs of cargo (moderate load) at 5mpg would burn 600 gallons of fuel or a total fuel bill of less than $2500. At a buck a pound for freight charges that leaves the trucker with $27,500 in his pocket. Fuel costs are less than 10% of the cost of transporting 400lbs across country.

I don't know about your math, but the real factor here is the routes. Trucking lines operate like the airline industry, with a hub and spoke distribution network.

It only cost me ~$170 dollars to have the Wildkat 48" grapple shipped up to Upstate NY, because there's many haulers going up and down the East Coast all the time, through a variety of trucking hubs, so dropping a small pallet on a rig is cheap and easy. The same with catching a flight up and down the east coast. Lots of flights, lots of airports, plenty of "paths" for me to take, means low costs.

Going cross country is another story. There's a reason they call them "fly-over" states you know. Fewer haulers, fewer hubs, fewer paths means higher costs (extra fuel notwithstanding, of course). Same thing with cross country flights.


HH

 

[IslandTractor]

I don't know about your math, but the real factor here is the routes. Trucking lines operate like the airline industry, with a hub and spoke distribution network.

It only cost me ~$170 dollars to have the Wildkat 48" grapple shipped up to Upstate NY, because there's many haulers going up and down the East Coast all the time, through a variety of trucking hubs, so dropping a small pallet on a rig is cheap and easy. The same with catching a flight up and down the east coast. Lots of flights, lots of airports, plenty of "paths" for me to take, means low costs.

Going cross country is another story. There's a reason they call them "fly-over" states you know. Fewer haulers, fewer hubs, fewer paths means higher costs (extra fuel notwithstanding, of course). Same thing with cross country flights.


HH

I certainly agree that trucking costs are more than just fuel, that was sort of my point. It is a pretty cut throat industry though so I'm sure there are very efficient ways of getting stuff from NC to WA state (Apples certainly get to NC from WA). I don't doubt for a minute you are correct about the trucking hubs and spokes but it still doesn't add more than a few hundred miles to a cross country delivery so I doubt it is a critical part of the true costs of shipping. There are lots of freight consolidators, drivers, companies and terminals who get a cut of the action so I did not mean to imply that my estimated non fuel costs were all profit by any means. The point was just that fuel costs are not the reason it costs a buck a pound to ship a pallet across country.

 

[bigballer]

would shipping by rail be any cheaper? i'd wait a few extra days if i knew it would be half the cost or less. **** i've waited 3 years already.. someone just mentioned yellowfrieght, has anyone used them??

for many projects i end up doing the labor myself (right now gutting/rebuilding a bathroom) because i hate paying someone else to do something i can figure out to do on my own and in the end am more satisfied with the result. + i like to learn new skills. there are only a couple cases where i would hire it out. one being if the tool i needed was too expensive to justify for a one time use (depending on job) and 2, it needs to be done quickly. i work 40-60hrs week so my time is valuable but again this is secondary, if i am learning something that i can use later or build on the experience then i'll do it.

i have seen others build grapples on here (3rrl) and wow it looks like an amazing project but he already owned the primary tool used in making this (the water jet or band saw), i am not in the trades so i don't have many of the connections needed to get a "good" deal so i am where i am. having a DIY kit of precut parts would make this an interesting project for sure and one that i would look at if offered.

 

[IslandTractor]

would shipping by rail be any cheaper? i'd wait a few extra days if i knew it would be half the cost or less. **** i've waited 3 years already.. someone just mentioned yellowfrieght, has anyone used them?? .

I bet there must be consolidators that organize small loads if there is no time concern. Not like you are worried about a grapple spoiling in transit. I haven't searched the internet but recall such companies do exist. The tricky part is getting the grapple to one of those consolidators but maybe you could work out an arrangement with Wildkat to do so.

 

[buck12]

i am so close to placing an order with wildkat for the 48" econo, i was given a price of $650 (price less skidsteer ports) but the killer is freight - $400 to bring it to washington state. even at that price i can't find one locally that even comes close but still high. i also priced these with markham (now NAI) and shipping the same, in fact they are located in the same town! why can't there be someone on the left coast that makes these things as inexpensive?

WildKat has increased the price by $100 since January but still a great deal. As to shipping I saved $50 by picking it up at a freight terminal.

 

[IslandTractor]

WildKat has increased the price by $100 since January but still a great deal. As to shipping I saved $50 by picking it up at a freight terminal.

I forgot to mention that. It is very expensive to have door to door delivery with something like a grapple. I forget the upcharge for lift gate trucking here but it was more than $50 for several things I had delivered to a terminal instead. I just grab a Uhaul trailer and go get it. The guys at the terminal are always nice about loading it for you with their forklift so just be prepared to have your tractor rigged to unload it.

 

[buck12]

I forgot to mention that. It is very expensive to have door to door delivery with something like a grapple. I forget the upcharge for lift gate trucking here but it was more than $50 for several things I had delivered to a terminal instead. I just grab a Uhaul trailer and go get it. The guys at the terminal are always nice about loading it for you with their forklift so just be prepared to have your tractor rigged to unload it.

When I bought my grapple it wasn't so much about the cost savings but the fact that I would have to leave work and meet a driver to unload a grapple. It was just easier to drive a few miles and pick it up at my convince and it saved me a few dollars.