Spec'ing out a truck to purchase to pull dry van?

Buy something that has room in it... peterbilts are nice and flashy but they have limited room... would you rather be comfortable in a KW or freightliner or have so much chrome you gotta have a security guard follow you around all the time... it all pays the same whichever truck you buy...

 

So would I, lol.

 

I'd rather drive the flashy Peterbilt and have some pride in my ride. But I'd cut back on the chrome if running bulk, can't afford the weight, lol. I spend my 10 hour off-duty period mostly sleeping, and when I'm not sleeping, I'm usually showering, eating or watching an episode or two of some show on my laptop. When I'm on-duty, I'm either driving, or blowing the load off from the trailer (or loading it up with more).

I could understand guys spending 3-4 weeks out on the road and doing full resets away from home wanting more room (or sitting 8-10 hours at a shipper/receiver), but I find I don't need much more for what I do. From what I've seen of the inside of sleepers currently available on new trucks, I'd say the most appealing one is the 58" high-top available on the Peterbilt 567. Best balance of space, storage and weight.



The trucks look kinda goofy, but they are pretty light weight as well.

 

Well I drive a flashy KW. Its older but it gets the job done. It does have pretty good room, but not like a freightliner like I had before... I'm a big man 6'4 300 so you can imagine how hard it is to move around in these trucks.. If I could afford a glider I would've bought one of those they seem to have a lot of room as well..

 

Yeah, I'm only 5'9", and only have to tilt my head to the side a bit in a flat top Pete. I can understand the need for more space in that regard, lol. I've got a buddy who is about your height and said he would never use a flat top.

My only gripe is the lack of space between the seats in a narrow cab truck. They do look better on the outside, but squeezing between them to get into the back is a bit of a pain. Especially with my fat ###.

 

I’m about 6’1 240 lbs and do ok in a flattop

 

It does and it don't.

Be careful not to step over dollars to pick up dimes.

 

@Brandt is correct about the axle housing flex.
The actual thicknesses are 9.5mm light weight housing (38-40,000)
11mm standard housing ( purhaps a super 40)
12.7mm heavy duty housing (46,000)

 

Anyone know the benefits of super 40 over a 46k?

 

I would not mind a pete that has much of if not all the flash removed or painted over. Flash is not what gets you down the road. (It's nice and I can appreciate a show truck done right...) My first tractor was a R model Mack that had nothing on it except that silver bulldog. I think we were light enough to take on potentially 50,000 pounds into the box depending on what box we had on it. We used that tractor for bulk so.. on the platform at Blue Circle downtown by the water comes out to around 26K I think tare including a 40 foot heil tanker for cement.

Today's modern tractors are obese by weight. It's not good to have so much crap at the factory on them. Any time you can get a older tractor that is much lighter with a good set of rears, such as 40K capacity etc. you are good to go.