Im from central Mo and just wondering about buying a dump truck and working for hire : just wondering if a guy can make a decent living doing that,, id do all the mantance mechanic work myself,, im guessing its all by hour? Or would it be by the load, i kno fuel + insurance would probably be the biggest inputs of cost,, just lookingfor advise or someone who does this and see if its worth it, thanks
we pay anywhere from $65-80 per hour for tandem, about $90 for a tridem or bigger and around $100 for a semi-end dump. depending on workload and avail drivers most of the time its cheaper and easier to just hire it instead of running our trucks.......and its also a good place to apply the required MBE/WBE/SDVE money with all of that being said, yes i could make more money on jobs running my own trucks but the DOT will put you out of business pretty quick if you aint careful. I have known A LOT of owner/operators that have given up entirely because of them pricks. if i had any advice to you i would say to buy an old truck or a barrel bed so you can haul rip-rap and demo because most guys wont haul it and it is a very good niche to be in and pays more money, dont buy a small truck as most contractors want the guys that can cary some serious loads, I had a guy on one of my jobsites that commited a few trucks by the hour, one of them was a old state truck with low sides and a 14' bed and a ford diesel that only ran about 50mph, he only worked one day for me I dont know everything by any means but we arent all that far away from each other so if you need some help just shout at me I'm always glad to help with what little knowledge I have pj
Thanks for the reply, i have my CDL with experience driving and would be getting a tandem truck , the barrel beds a good idea, and ive heard the DOT can be very tough sometimes, i haul equipment in St Lou with company trucks now and they have checked them and they always slide thru , im just needing a change and thinking of the dumptruck thing
you dont have to get a barrel just don't set yourself up where your not willing to haul big stuff..... it seperates the men from the boys lol I always tell my driver's if it fits out the tailgate it goes in the truck, if it wont we will take the tailgate off! as far as I know there is only us and a guy with 1 single truck that will haul rip-rap or demo in the area.....I dont like beating my trucks up but i dont like setting watching other people make money either Check your PM box Doug pj
I would do alot of research in my area before i got one. Years ago you saw alot of guys that had dump trucks but now alot of buiessness that hired one when the need came up bought their own. Things have changed alot at least around here.
Im checking things out id be available all around JC , Columbia, Lake of the Ozarks , Rolla and during down time id work in my shop on tractors , trucks etc