I’m a part-time farmer and needing some advice. I have an old 77 GMC C65 dump truck with a 366 big block (not much power but it works). It runs but it’s pretty rough. Good as a farm dump though. Anyway, I need to haul about 120+ loads of gravel from across the county (where the quarry is), to cover a couple new 3/4 mile roads on my property, but I really think the old truck isn’t up for the job of running so far back and forth, plus it eats fuel. I also need a flatbed truck (dump) for hauling lumber, so I’m looking at just buying 1 truck. What’s the downsides of using a flatbed dump bed for 120+/- or so loads of gravel (I could get a spreader gate and short metal sides). The GVRW of the flatbed is 32k, so it should haul 8-10 tons of gravel fine, but not sure if I should use it, or go ahead and buy a used (but newer) dump truck just to haul 120 loads. At $500 a load delivered I don’t have $30k+ just to spend on delivered gravel, but don’t have a lot to spend on 2 trucks. Thanks for your input!
I would think if it will serve its main purpose for you it would haul the gravel just fine. Not sure you’ll get 10 tons on there without it spilling over the side though. Not sure how quickly you need to get the job done either. What does the flatbed truck have for engine and transmission? Juice or air brakes? Mileage and cost of truck?
It can be done, I've been known to improvise with what I have to work with. The flatbed will need sides as pictured and you'll have to overcome the temptation to overload the truck as the flatbed will have more space. Make sure the hoist has enough capacity as well.
Welcome to the Forums DT! Glad to have you. How many tons are they delivering for $500?
@DavidinTennessee Stick with a 2 ton truck with air brakes, & I would recommend a mechanical engine. My pick would be a DT466 powered 4900 International from 1994-1997. Wear parts for all of those trucks are available at good local parts houses. I’m not a Ford, I mean Ford, Freightliner, Sterling, bla bla bla, pick one medium duty truck fan personally. My Opinion. The older 8.3 Cummins powered Fords were something to have as long as they don’t have the Lucas Brakes: walk wide around them. A single axle dump will do what you need, it will just take longer. Once you are done with the gravel task it will do whatever you want from now on.
Flatbed dump has air brakes, cat engine, 6-speed manual trans (new clutch, works great).
It’s a tri-axle, so usually about 20 tons.
Solid set of air brakes, cat engine, 6-speed manual trash (Eaton I think but not 100% sure), Mileage is 70k and cost is about $15k. It’s a 93 model.
I do like the DT466. My loader uses that engine and they are solid (loader is an old Dresser 175-C). The truck I’m looking at has a cat 3208 engine. Don’t know which air brake system, but it has a new drier on it, seems to work well.
Manual trans, not trash. Lol
Which Cat engine? if it is the 3116 be careful of that. Work poured a lot of money into the pump on one of those. i don't know the why of it, only that it happened.
I would advise you to steer clear of the 3116 Caterpillar & the 3208 is getting 35 years removed from being used in such an application in favor of the DTs & the Cummins. I would stick with DT first & Cummins 8.3 second.
If i had the chevy i would fix it up . How far is the quarry? Fuel mileage is always something to think about but its way down on the list when hauling stuff.
while you are thinking of spending money, you might consider how much power the current truck has, and get a 14K dump trailer to improve your hauls. It is far enough to warrant it. That trailer might be a permanent thing to have around.
$25 a ton delivered is a pretty good price. How much is the stone per ton at the quarry? I know you want to haul it yourself but for that price I would get a couple of loads at a time, let them tailgate the stone and build the road as funds permit. Keep your current dump for a farm truck. Just a thought.
∆ a good driver can make your day tailgating.
Gravel at the quarry is currently about $12/ton.
Might want to buy a tri-axle and start hauling for others for $13 a ton. What is the round trip time from quarry to your farm?
The main quarry to my farm, round trip is about an hour. I like the thought of that, but I can't quit my day job! lol!
How much is one of these trucks going to cost you to save $1500-2000 over the whole project? Registering, insurance, and everything else will surely cost the same or more plus now you get to fix all the trucks issues.
Some folks (me included) just want to own their own truck. I would use the C60 you have. If possible, pick up a dump trailer for more capacity. Or, buy a newer truck for more comfortable hauling. Either way, enjoy working on your project.
It's not between getting a truck verses getting no truck, I need a new truck anyway, just wondering which type I should ultimately go with. A flatbed would serve my purposes better in the long-term (over the next few years), but a dump will serve my purposes better in the short term (over the next 6-12 months). I was trying to not have to buy 2 different trucks. So either way I go I will still have to register, have insurance, maintenance, etc. But I hear ya, owning equipment (especially used equipment) can be an expensive endeavor.
Thanks! The way it's going, it may just be best to bite the bullet, buy a newer dump truck, then sell that after my project is done and buy the flatbed. -Hard to get a truck that's really going to match every need. Thanks for the good wishes!
The current truck has a 366 big block (not much power), but the new one probably would have enough power. That's definitely food for thought! A good 14k dump trailer would add a lot. I might look into that, thanks!
Sorry missed you needing a truck any ways. I've had to tow a 14k dump trailer and I've never felt it moved enough to be worth while, bulky stuff like brush sure but gravel, wet, is only about 3 yards worth. Seems like a 32k flat bed dumb with side rails would meet all of your needs
I was saying in addition to the dump truck. When you have an hour round, unhooking a trailer is nothing when it adds 25% to each trip.
I am in about the same boat hauling scrap iron . Were i live a dump trailer used cost more than a truck . He says its a hour round trip but some of the roads are so bad here it has taken a hour and half to go 35 miles. Fixing up that Chevy is a no brainer then if it dosent work out he can sell it. It takes around 3 hours for me to haul a load . I have trailers to pull behind my f600 and i do sometimes if i have the right stuff to haul. Were the trailer works good if i am about to finish up a clean up and have more than the truck will hold. Then if i can get every thing left on the trailer its great but to use the trailer every trip isnt worth it. If i had the right truck and trailer i could see using it every trip. I would for sure have a hyd or electric jack.
A stretched tongue so you could dump over it would be nice too
My thoughts also. And, you are spending your labor when you could be doing something more productive than being a steering wheel holder. For rock, I too would have someone haul it.
Some days, a guy just wants a simple, productive task to accomplish. I run my own business, but it can be very stressful. Managing customers, planning, organizing, sub contractors, etc takes it's toll. At times, just doing a simple, productive task can be very rewarding as you don't have 80 things to deal with. It's as much therapy as anything. I don't want to do any one task 24/7, but at my own discretion, I enjoy doing a lot of different things, even if others consider them mundane tasks. Tomorrow, I'm going to go roll the hay fields. It needs to be done, the conditions are right, and its a simple task. I'll drive back and forth, pulling a 40ft roller for 10-12 hours, jumping from field to field. It gets done once a year. Then come May, I'll roll 500 acres of soybeans. Takes a few days. Its simple, peaceful, relaxing, productive. I'm all for anyone doing something themselves that they could hire out. There are skills to be learned, sense of pride to be earned, and inner piece to be had.