I haul firewood, sawdust, woodchips, and a few other things and am looking to get a bigger dump truck. I'd like a 6-7 ton payload. The body will be 16 ft long. It seems I'm always going off a driveway and use 4x4. I've heard single axle dumps don't get much traction, and heard they get less traction after you dump your load with no weight on the back. A Kodiak 6500 has enough GVWR but I can't find any in 4x4, just the 5500 which only has 19500 gvw. What are my options
http://www.truckpaper.com/listingsdetail/detail.aspx?OHID=5296281 . Truck paper
I think the Japanese manufacturers are going to be the choice in that weight category, if you go up to 32k you'll find most manufacturers offer 4x4. Keep in mind with the lighter GVW you'll sacrifice payload capacity for the front axle and transfer case.
International http://www.internationaltrucks.com/trucks/trucks/series/durastar
I have never used a all wheel drive truck on the road but i would think the extra cost of fuel,upkeep and the cost of buying one would make buying one a last resort unless you had to have it.
I think going 4x4 is going to cost to much and not be practical for fuel mileage. Also, the 4x4 trucks look like they sit a lot higher??? I hate the look of the old topkicks or any big bulky truck. I want something that can get into somewhat tight spaces. I geuss I like the Isuzu b/c they look more nimble and can get into driveways/ back yards better. Do any dumps in the 26-33gvw range offer a locking differential/ full rears? I think that would be good enough if I watch where I go offroad.
You can get a locker for almost anything, but if looking for a locker I would get something that you can control the lockup. I have a tandem dump truck that locks all the wheels but when locked you can't hardly turn.
Lol the local water district bought a fully optioned freightliner with the 8.3L cummins 6spd allison full locking everything 2spd transfercase sat radio air ride everything with the 4x4 and a gorgerous dump body heck they even put on spot tire chains on it considering we havent seen snow in this part of california for over 150 years of recorded history i think they went all in. problem was they could only put 1.5yards in it before it was overweight.