I've been searching around the forums for quite a while looking for this, and haven't found it. I've also been googling quite a bit as well with no luck. It might be because this is a pretty basic question, but I'm new to semis, and looking to get one for work. We need to move tractors, a forage chopper (30k lbs), and wagons 300-500 miles several times a year. I was thinking a detachable lowboy trailer would be the best option as we may deliver to locations without any kind of loading dock. It looks like Landoll makes a model specific to Ag equipment ( http://landoll.com/content/index.php/products/trailers/detachable-trailers/model-835e-ag/ ). I need to come up with a spec list for the truck to tow these loads. I would also use this truck to haul a walking floor trailer for moving chopped material (think lawn clippings). I was hoping to get advice about the minimum specs (HP, wheelbase, axle weights, wet kit specs, etc.) I should request for the quote for this truck. I apologize if this is a very simple question, but I need to get this quote moving forward.
You looking for new or used? What's the maximum weight you're going to haul in a single load? Maximum height? One of the Landoll trombones with a winch might be a better choice if 30K is your heaviest load, depending on height restrictions. If you're not in a hurry any good tractor with 350hp or better and a fifth wheel will suffice, if you're loading heavy uprate everything from engine on down to the ground to suit. The wet kit will depend on the trailers you end up with I should think?
How many total miles a year? Budget for the rig? Several companies build trailers designed for AG equipment. Besides Landoll, XL which is in Manchester, IA can build anything you want and has built quite a few with the nice heavy slide out aluminum outriggers. Heavy enough a combine, big 4wd tractor or a sprayer will load right on there. You can run your hydraulics one of a couple ways. Trailers can be ordered self contained with motor/pump and you can design the wet kit on the truck around your waking floor trailer. Those take a lot of flow volume wise but generally not so much pressure whereas a Lowboy is more pressure than overall flow. I've ordered and owned several XL trailers. Trail King builds them, Talbert, Etnyre to name a few more. As far as the truck, due to emissions headaches I would stay 2009 or older to avoid DEF and about 2007 to avoid DPF. Nothing, and I mean nothing, with a Mercedes in it. Too expensive and finicky. I've owned several. Still have one in the race toter..... :-/. 10 speed is plenty, the auto-shifts aren't terrible bad but I prefer to shift myself. For your use a daycab truck should be fine unless you want to take a nap. Better maneuverability and visibility from daycab. 200-220 wheelbase is nice, short enough to get around but long enough to ride good. Unless you plan to grow heavier a standard semi with 12k steer and 40k rears is fine. Just about any gear ratio between 3.42 and 3.90's will work depending on tire size. Honestly you're not heavy enough for it to matter a lot and in the midwest there aren't any mountains. Go for full locking rears, they'll help you get out of a jam from time to time. I've been trucking for almost 20 years, all specialized heavy haul. I could go into stupid specific detail if you want lol. If I had to choose I'd spend more on a trailer, trucks can be found more readily than a specialized trailer such as a lowboy with the big slide outs and a walking floor trailer. Clear as mud?? Haha. Junkyard
Thanks for the information. I would actually prefer all the details. This will be for a state department bid, so it needs to be specific. As far as budget, it's hard to say to be honest. It will depend on what the quote comes back as. I think I would prefer to have the hydros on the truck since the trailer will be sitting outside through the winter. Is there a wet kit setup that could have two settings, one for the walking floor and one for the lowboy? The first reply suggested another kind of trailer, what is your opinion? The miles for the year could vary, because if we get this rig it will likely get used by our partners as well, but I'd say it won't be more than 10k miles per year for sure. I know this is exceptionally light use, but we're hauling equipment to be used in research plots, so the timing is critical and I can't have things breaking down. Our windows to get the work done are too small which is why we're considering getting our own setup instead of just paying for the trucking. I really appreciate your and everyone else's input!
Also the heaviest load will be the chopper which weighs in around 35,000 lbs. I suppose the walking floor trailer might get a little more weight in it than that, but we won't be over 80,000 gross I don't think. We will be over width on multiple loads we haul, and potentially over height. The height of the chopper to the roof is 12.75'.
Sounds like you'll need a lowboy style trailer due to height. For the wet kit, size it to the largest flow needed and get a flow divider control setup so you can dial it down, can be a knob in the cab or a valve or switch to control it, as simple or complex as you want.
It's no big deal to set the wet line up for double duty, it works as mentioned above. I would start shopping and see what's out there trailer wise, already on the ground. Buying new is ok if you have the money in the mattress but you will pay 12% FET on anything new. That always chapped my you know what to pay. If you have to order anything it's a minimum 6 weeks to several months, I don't know what each respective manufacturers back log is. A few more spec examples I can give are PSI tire inflation on the trailer, as many D-rings and keyslots as you can get on it, I prefer 12" crossmember spacing, aluminum wheels are not only nice looking they do help tires run a bit cooler. On the truck, definitely do full locking rears but also make sure to click the box that installs a valve which releases air to them once you hit the high side of the Tranny that way you don't burn them up if you forget.....don't ask how I know!! That's assuming you order new. I would also do a setback front axle like a KW T800 or similar model. Helps with getting around and gives you a little more frame space for the same wheelbase vs a conventional set forward. Hope that answers a few more questions. I'm gathering my thoughts a little more while I work so I may post again with more info and questions. Junkyard
Some trucks have it set up to run the warning beeper when the locker is in. I never found it too annoying for the short time I was running the locker.
Yeppers that works too. I had one driver call me, hey boss the truck won't turn is just plows.... I said unlock your rears. He said do you think I'm *%#^#* stupid? I said double check, call me back if that's not what it is. Never heard back.....haha. We used them more to get the big loads moving trying to distribute the stress to all the axles than we did in the mud but sometimes it was just enough to get you out of a jam. Pretty darn handy to have. When we were doing dual lane dolly loads it sure made me wonder how much stress we were putting on drivetrain getting north of 400,000 #'s rolling. I never personally broke anything but I got the pleasure of changing a 1241 aux on the side of the road, split along the bottom from yoke to yoke. Can you say shock load!?!? Junkyard
Way back when, a CLARK rep told me on their axles the shafts were capable of one and one half turns of windup for normal use... which kind of blew my mind, lol. Fer sure want to lock them in to get the load rolling, one wheel hop or slip and something's going to grenade...
That is similar to what I've heard. All that energy is stored up looking for an outlet. How many cycles of 1-1/2 rounds of wind up before calamity ensues? Haha. I've heard and seen plenty of drive lines go and it's never fun! The ones at highway speed always bother me most. If you've got a low rear end gear and you're cruising 70 mph that drive shaft is really making some revs. When they go it's hard on wiring, plumbing, air dryers, fuel tanks and the poor SOB following you if the truck spits it all the way out! Junkyard
My Dad worked for the local county road department... they had a solo dump with 10+ yards of hot mix on rolling about 60 heading for the paver... coming around a hard downhill curve one of the drivelines let go, and as you say took out all the air lines, one air tank, light wiring, etc.... given the speed, the downhill, and the fact that the spring brakes on the rear axle had been removed because they interfered with the apron on the paving machine, it went for miles unimpeded... for some reason in a moment of insanity the driver thought crossing the opposing lanes of traffic and rolling up a sloped gravel drive would be a good idea. Upon coming to a stop he soon realized he still had no way to secure the truck and it rolled backwards down the hill, across four lanes of highway and still proceeding backwards against traffic finally came to a stop up against a small gravel berm on the shoulder. Fun. Wrecker, an empty dump truck and the scoopmobile to get the asphalt up off the state highway, clean pair of shorts and all was well again, lol. Good angels.
I'd like to see that go down, assuming there were no injuries. It's crazy how stuff goes from uh oh to holy buckets in a hurry.... Junkyard
Yeah... those moments when you go from blissfully happy to the gut wrenching realization that you need to panic...
as far as lowboys go easy 2 load work good and so does a landall i am pretty sure both have air assist detach so you wont need your wet kit for the trailer the implement company is hauling the new deeres on an easy 2 load and a custom cutter is moving the new class on his landall. if you shop around real hard you might find a flip tail with a deep well in it they work great on a budget but you have to have your game together to put a chopper in one the first time. On the dairy i work for this is what we setup and it gets the job done but i wish i could have convinced the boss to buy a detach cause we have to let air out of the tires on one machine to gain the 3 inches to clear a bridge but its still over height. Now silage boxes you have a few options in my opinion chain floors are the best they can be a little heavy but with my day cab 9200 i all 4 trucks are with in 500 pounds of 36500 empty i recommend mas trailers for the price they are you cant beat the product but they are made in mexico there is a guy in dalhart tx that sells them in the u.s. good dude he can tell you what you need but out of the 6 or 7 brands i see and the 3 different brand i run i think they are the best. if you start hauling alfalfa or wheatlidge you will need your relief valve on your wet kit turned up to at least 2950 psi. these crops can be wet and i have seen trucks come in at 90 thousand or more. when this happens the chain motor stalls cause the hydraulics are set to light to unload. if the chopper driver is remotely experienced and pays attention you can avoid that problem. all my trucks have a 100 percent pto and are minimum 35 gpm pumps we also put big hydraulic tanks on they hold 50 gallons when your on a short haul it can heat up cause you dump so frequent