Sportchassis, yes or no?

Wanted to do non cdl but I see that it won't be easy. Even had a perfect build in mind but I guess having the cdl will save me money in potential fines. So 26k out and I have a few questions about some larger haulers, cause if I get a cdl A then why not?
I see some very nice Freightliner sportchassis out there for not much more than a dually. Very low miles as they were mostly used for someone's RV. They are decked out and luxurious on the inside and can definitely do a better job hauling than a dually. Rear bench opens to a large bed and storage all over.

Does anyone have any input on these trucks? GCWR? Curb weight? Towing capacity? Reliabilty? Prefered engines to look for? How much more will these trucks cost to run compared to a dually ram setup? Used sport chassis vs new 2019 ram dually.
Any other single axle trucks I should look at that might be a better choice?

One more question I don't want to start a new thread for.
I have a connection to a guy that can keep a 5 car hauler full and says he got papers to back up his claim, I'm going to see him next week. He knows I am just getting into this line of work and says I'll take 20-25k gross a month at the least on my own rig and authority. Is this BS? Is 20k gross monthly min enough to keep the truck maintained and take home a good profit? Should I stick to regular freight with a flatbed?

 

I wouldn't do a sportchassis it's cool and all but it can't do an 18 wheeler job and a pickup can do a 5-car more efficiently. If you're gonna do a 5-car get a 5500, repair/maintenance would be much less expensive than a sportchassis.

How do you like my poor man sportchassis?

 

The 5500 ram has a gcwr of 38,500 lbs and a gvwr of 19,500. Is 19k lbs enough for trailer and 5 cars ?
The 3500 dually has better numbers, gcwr of 39,100 and a gvwr of 14,000. Leaves you with 25k to play with.I can't find any specifications for the sportchassis. Was hoping it could haul 30-35k comfortably and maybe safer? I wouldn't know because apart from what I am reading online I think I only ever saw one of these in the wild.
The width of SC is also appealing to me compared to the pickups. I won't be home everyday and am going to want to sleep in the truck, and I rather not pay for a hotel every night. Was hoping the cost to keep it working would be less than a single or tandem semi. Was hoping someone might be able to confirm the lifespan these. Haven't found any over 200k miles.

That's a cool looking franken-truck! I'd drive it all day.

 

Get the big rig. Everyone who starts small and stays in business ends up getting the big rig. 6 car trailer to pull behind it.

 

I'd love a big rig but they come with a bigger price tag.
I can outright buy a new $70k ram and new 4 car trailer and have a comfortable cushion left for running.
Better to run with no loans on your head, no?

 

What you say is true. What I said is also true.

 

A 5500 is perfect for a 5-car trailer such as Kaufman Mini5, don't worry too much about the gcwr no one is paying attention to it. A sportchassis is certainly more heavy duty than a 5500 being it has air brakes and even air ride I think, it is equipped with either a Caterpillar engine or Mercedes MBE series. My franken-truck has 23,000 lbs gvwr I think but it was a straight truck I'm not sure if a gcwr can be found for it.

If you're gonna spend lots of night on the road then definitely get a truck with a sleeper, if you run long distance it's better to get a tractor with 7-car trailer. For $70k you can have a decent tractor-trailer, won't be new but perhaps in good working condition.

 

My brother tried with a dually then a sport chassis then upgraded to a full size semi mid roof maint on dually and sport chassis was killin him and couldn’t log sleeper legal without a kit installed on sport or dually buy a good low mile semi be money ahead motors in sport and dually not designed to last or perform like a semi personally know several who went broke tryin it and others who do good good luck what ever you choose

 

My company used one. Brand new over $100,000. Once it for to 350000 it was breaking down constantly. Now we're close to four hundred thousand miles on it they are just paying on the truck and it has not been on the road for two years it actually has a pine tree growing off the back of it. For a third of that price you could get a decent Class 8 truck and it actually run for a while.

 

Completely different trucks. The pickup isn't even in the same ballfield of handling the load and longevity.