So you want to hot-shot? (Will be updated/edited frequently)

Lite Bug and Flatbedcarrier, you guys are awesome at providing suggestions and answering so many questions throughout this forum. It's little wonder both of you run successful operations. Anyone who sacrifices that much time and effort to help others learn usually carries that trait over into their business practices. My hat's off to both of you.

 

This may sound strange to some of you new guys but if I was going to be pulling a 35+5 I’d remove the flip over ramps. Why? Because not only are they to steep, flip over ramps tend to get in the way.

Hers a for instance. Let’s say the front half of your trailer is loaded out with freight and you can’t find any other freight to put with it. With a ramped trailer you’ll want to look for a vehicle to fill the trailer out. With most vehicles they tend to hit the front bumper, or ground effects on the ramp before the tire reaches it. Let’s say you get past that, at the top of the ramp where it breaks over and the deck flattens our many vehicles drag bottom. The last thing you’ll want is to be grinding the bottom of the vehicle in front of the receiver, or Shipper. Can we say insurance claim. Another problem you’ll run into is let’s say you load on a couple of pick up trucks. The one on the rear will likely overhang a little bit and you won’t be able to close the ramps back up. The vehicle will be in the way. There’s a slim chance you can pin them straight up but most of the time you won’t even be able to do that.

And let’s face it, there’s not that many tractors outbreeding to move. Unless you have a account with a tractor dealer anyways.

If I was going to be pulling a 35+5 not only would I remove the ramps but I’d also build what’s called a load leveler for the dovetail. A load leveler basically props up the rear of a load that’s consuming the entire deck space.

 

Yeah that’s a great little trailer, doesn’t weigh much. We were running a 32’r like yours out here for a little bit. Could be we were just lucky with it (?)but I was putting LTL loads on it paying $2.00 to just over $3.00 a mile.

 

So would you think of going with just a straight 40? I'm just getting into this section of the industry from a tractor and dry van. So I didn't understand a lot of what you said. :-/

I'm trying to follow what folks are talking about but it's difficult at times. No clue what Litebug is talking about trailer wise either. Lol

 

No I wouldn’t go with a straight 40’ deck unless it was really low profile and could be set up with a good ramp system. Having a versatile trailer is very important. You seen the style trailer we use in the pictures I posted. I’m not saying that’s what you have to get but that trailer helps keep us moving when a lot of other guys are sitting around. Depending on where you live (if there’s toll roads) you probably wouldn’t want a three axle trailer like we run. You can get a 35+5 but in my opinion you’d want to order one without flip over ramps. Instead you could get one 8’ aluminum ramps and have a load leveler built for the back of it do you could haul straight 40’ loads.

Something else to think about is the prices of these trailers. The trailer we use costs us approximately $9,000.00 brand new spec’d out the way we order them. Most 35+5’s are costing in the $18,000.00 range.

 

I'll have to look back through the thread to see. The big tex I was looking at goes for about 12k new but if what you are using is around 9 and it works for the job then I would certainly like to look into them.

 

So I just called my insurance agent for a quote for full coverage and a million liability. And 250k cargo since that was the most Progressive offered. Now, before I called her, I got a quote myself from Progressive for about $8000 yearly. The agent came back with $19000. Perhaps it was for full coverage I put on the truck and trailer? I wasn't sure if I had included that with my online quote.

Can I get the million liability through one person but insure that truck and trailer elsewhere? The truck will be a 2018 ram 3500 and i figure a new trailer of some length ot another. But...My personal truck, which is a 2014 Tundra, runs me about 2k a year through Allstate (yeah I know it's alot, my son had some accidents in a vehicle I had coverage on which has been removed I believe. It was about 3 years ago but my record is spotless.) I do have a motorcycle through Progressive with no claims.

Also, what is cargo insurance for? Wouldn't the 1 million cover that as well or no?

Thanks for the help in advance.

 

I was talking to Flatbedcarrier. We use the same Trailer manufacturer.

 

I know, I was just tying to follow the conversation. I am curious as to who yall use.

 

Loadtrail also goes by name Loadmax