I've been doing field service work for 6 years now, the last 4 years for myself owning my own company. I work on various equipment from vocational trucks (even some fire trucks/ambulances) to skid-loaders to large mining equipment. I've got a nice service truck but lately I just can't shake the thought that a large, built-to-suit enclosed trailer would be a slicker setup than any truck. Think about it, you'd have an indoor workbench, the ability to have a nice large solvent tank, and you could carry more shop tools that are difficult or impractical to keep in a traditional service truck, ie: shop press, drill press, transmission jack, floor jack and jack stands. Not to mention that all of these things and all of your regular tools would be totally inside. 2 winters ago was pretty harsh here NW Missouri and about the 5th transmission or steering valve I cleaned out standing out in single digit temps I thought, "you know an enclosed trailer with a heater and bright lights would be way better than this". So I'm asking for opinions, I know there's drawbacks but I just wanted to see what some guys with more experience than I have are thinking. Have any of you guys gone to a setup like this or thought about it? P.S. I'd be pulling the trailer with my topkick so I could still have my crane, but will probably just mount the crane on a flatbed and sell the service body. Then I'd also have more large object capacity for engines, pallets of pads, pallets of idlers/rollers, etc.
02Dmax, I'm not a Mechanic but I would have one concern towing a trailer which seems like a great idea until......you have to fix something off the beaten path and in a field requiring all-wheel traction to merely navigate to the broken piece of equipment. Have you considered a large service bodied truck with an enclosed stand-up top?
How about just using the trailer when you know you will need "a shop in the field" and keep the truck the way it is.
That's def a major drawback I thought of, but, I have a Polaris ranger setup with welder and tools for the stuff thats really nasty to get to and if I can get back to whatever I need to with my Topkick, I could unhook the trailer for a short time. But you are right, it definitely hinders your off-road ability, and Topkicks with a locking diff will make it alot farther off road than most people think.
Dunno, perhaps keep the necessary must have tools in the service truck and put all the other stuff you'd like to have on site in a trailer, that way you can drop the trailer if you need to get at a difficult site location.
And I've thought about a stand up enclosure service body, just kinda defeats the purpose of having something low to the ground thats easy to walk in and out of and roll tools/equipment in and out of.
I've used a service truck that was enclosed. It was a Freight liner business class single axle. It worked great and could hold all the tools you would need. But by the time the truck was fully stocked you were only left with a small bench area to work on. The hydraulic ramp on the back is a must as it provides you a temporary bench. And crawling up and down the steps all day is a minor pain. The fibreglass panels in the roof provided enough light during the daylight hours and the truck was fitted with lights for when evening rolled around. As far as getting off the beaten track, the truck made it just about anywhere. Sometimes on a hook.
Another idea could be locating a retired military 6x6 communications truck or van as the commo boys call 'em. It might look a but intimidating but it would surely get you there and back. Not sure how you'd manage a crane install on one of 'em though, just a thought. Good luck!
How about just using the trailer when you know you will need "a shop in the field" and keep the truck the way it is. this ^^^ is probably the reality of it, only I'd just pull it everyday. Because as soon as I'd get somewhere I'd need something that was in the trailer back home.
A friend of mine had a school bus with everything, right down to a small lathe, with everything run off of hydraulics from one small diesel engine on the back bumper. That was one slick setup.
During WW2, there were many "field" or "mobile workshops" set up on the back of trucks. There are advantages and disadvantages with a trailer, you have to weigh them up, as to how your working conditions relate to the problems associated with dragging a trailer. I think the guys above have covered most of the bases. A trailer is really restricted when it comes to accessing rough ground or steep slopes - no matter whether its bumper hitch or 5th wheel. IMO, a truck with a half pan-type body, and half tray - along with a rear-mount crane - offers the best of both worlds. You have the ability to lift major components and load them on the tray section for removal to service centers when major service is required. Then the enclosed section gives you a secure storage and work area that is out of the weather. The height of the truck tray can be overcome with a set of aluminum steps.
The sweetest rig I have seen was a tridrive flat deck with a small tool box/welding setup ahead of the deck and a rear mount hiab. with this truck was a seacan fully outfitted as a mobile shop that could be taken off and put on the ground if you were going to be in one spot for a while
I saw a guy use a tent over a large excavator and a salamander for heat, I guess the air transfer was good enough so he didn't suffocate.
The biggest draw back of a trailer is that anyone can hook on to it and drag it off. Mine got stolen a few years back. They got everything in the trailer all at once.
i have a trailer for some of the speciality tools. a little advice parts cleaner in trailer = bad idea , cleaning fluid will never come outa the parts cleaner on a nice paved road. lol its handy in the rain/snow/cold. i keep the track press,& things that are not needed on every job in there. i also park it inside the shop when not being used, have had a buddy wire a alarm/GPS unit to it also. i very seldom leave it overnight that its not locked to the service truck, i have a bar made up that goes thru the wheels with the round master locks on the end, so it cant be moved without alot of trouble. just remember its still aluminum sides,theives r everywhere looking for a easy target. it doesnt matter how much room you have on a service truck, you ALWAYS WANT MORE ROOM!!!
Ever thought of a low pro box truck? You could get one that has the aluminum cargo ramp that rolls out of the rear. Some of those trucks have a pretty good sized box and you could get a tandem if weight is a concern. Another idea would be a hook lift truck. You could rig an enclosed utility body to the truck or box truck box. Also you could have a flat bed with crane. The possibilites are endless with those trucks. The only problem would be that the beds sit a bit higher than a conventional truck.
Been thinking about it, and NO, I need the truck. Next one is going to be a box 16-20 feet on a medium duty chassis with a knuckle boom between the cab and body. I will have a power tailgate for moving heavy stuff in and out if the box. I do it all and need all my stuff on my truck.
The upside of a trailer is If the truck pulling it craps the bed its NBD to repower it. A service truck dies your outta business till the truck is back up and running. another upside is you dont have to buy a specialized body every time you want to upgrade the truck, you just need a new truck. the biggest attraction i could see would be an nice awning on the side thats easily deployed and stowed in less than 5 min and AIR CONDITIONING and or HEAT. downside is trailer is much easier to steal and gut. You have the added hassle of having the extra tail hanging out behind you on tight sites could be a real PITA. that and you would loose your ability of having an auto crane or service crane mountings.
Ya, you're basically the same mind set as me. I'm keeping the truck but if it goes down, I hook my pickup on and go back to work. Mid mount knuckle boom isn't even an option. I'm always backing into a one bay shop to pick something up and I wouldn't be able to unfold one of those things, let alone reach over whats left of my truck and grab a 3500lb motor/tranny assembly. Enclosed, stand up service body would be ideal but then I'd be climbing 5 steps a hundred times a day and dragging it through trees on the off-road jobs. Big flatbed with a container box that I can sit flat on the ground would be awesome, lol. But unpractical for me. I think the welder, air compressor, crane, and basics are going on a flatbed onto my topkick, and everything else in the trailer. Most places I go off-road are in the middle of nowhere where I know everyone and I can hide the trailer and or chain it to some trees if need be. If they get away with it all then I'll get all new stuff from insurance.
I guess what I really need is $250k, to buy a new 4x4 Pete 337 with a 16' Summit body on it and 14k crane, and a 26' enclosed trailer outfitted with all my specialty stuff and heat/AC/satellite TV, a 19 yr old blonde wrench chaser, and a guy with a fully automatic weapon to guard it while its unhooked.
when i started working for my self it was out of a box truck worked great it was a shop on wheel great in the winter now i have a big service truck with a crain and its nice but i mis the box when the weather is bad
Could you post some pictures of this truck your speaking of. Sounds like great idea
I've seen pictures of a medium length school bus that had the back 8 feet or so of the enclosed part removed to make a flatbed back porch with a crane, then had a nice enclosed work space. Sounds about like what OzDozer was talking about..
Does anyone have any pictures of people using box trucks converted to mechanics trucks
You could always get an enclosed service body and have the best of both worlds! We buy all of our bodies from jomac .
Walk-in steel box shop with generator, lights, heat, benches, welder, compressor, etc. and a big porthole sunroof door on top, on an all wheel drive HOOKLIFT truck with winches front and rear and a knuckleboom! LMAO :usa
Yair . . . Someone oughta ask tctractors what he reckons, he gets onto a lot of muddy sites and handles a wide range of repairs. (wry grin) Cheers.
This service truck question is something we don't really suffer with in the U.K. as big service trucks and service trailers would be a liability, take my job yesterday as a for instance, I travelled to a Quarry up North into Cheshire a round trip of 220 miles to work on a CAT cylinder liner job, I know what tools I need and have a Map of our Rock, I have to go back next week to set in the pistons and time the balance shafts so I know what I need to take with me, if its cold and not raining its better than cold and raining but I still manage to just get on with things, 4 wheel drive is required near every day for me plus the need to move at about 65-70 mph on our Motorways, the need to have a complete mobile workshop dragging about would be with No cash benefit, I can and do tackle just about any repair on all the common sized earth moving kit over about 14 ton to 150 ton usually on my own out of the back of my L/Rover that I sometimes hook to an open trailer to throw a chunk in, sometimes less is best, I cannot think of anything I would not tackle by myself on equipment within this range at the moment, there is a few lads rolling about "with all the gear" but they seem to tackle things in an odd way to me. tctractors keep your cash in your pocket.
Yair . . . Thought that's what he'd say . . . like I mean I think someone mentioned a tri-drive? they must live in a different world I reckon. (big grin) Cheers.
We do! LOL
Yair . . . Gotcha lantraxco ! (big grin) Isn't it amazing though how different methods and needs for basically doing the same job have evolved in different places. I suppose it all comes down to cost . . . tools and equipment and interest rates in the US are much lower but the charge out rates are similar giving folks the ability and justification to acquire all the kit. Cheers.
3 yr update- glad I saw this thread pop back up. I went to a 14' enclosed trailer about a year after I started this thread. I absolutely love it. Obviously as has been said different jobs make different rigs handier. The type of work I do is somewhat similar to TC's. I usually know what I need, I usually need 4x4, and it needs to be maneuverable. I am able to keep quite a bit with me though. More than I could in a big truck. My main reason for going to this was 4x4 and shelter. I work outside basically every day. Current rig.
When I first started out on my own, I built a 5x10 trailer and pulled it around with my Jeep. I was crowded for space, and it was bit on the heavy side, but I always seemed to have what I needed to get the job done. Now, I have an F-450 service truck with a 34' manlift/crane combo boom. I have a lot more room for tool storage, and having everything in boxes is nice The funny thing is, I'm just as tight on room with the truck as I was with the trailer, I just have a lot more crap packed in their! In all reality, if it wasn't for the crane I would go back to a trailer setup in a heartbeat. I could do without the manlift, but the crane is an absolute necessity. If I had it all to do over again, I would setup a tandem axle enclosed trailer as a mobile shop, and buy a flatbed truck with a crane on it to pull it with, and if I get an opportunity to sell my current service truck for the right price, that's probably what I'll do. The advantages of a trailer setup definitely outweigh the negative for me. What really got my wheels turning on that idea was an auction I recently attended where I saw this truck, flatbed, crane, and just enough toolboxes to keep some essential stuff, or carry enough to a remote job that the trailer couldn't go