Best tractor for flatbeds & stepdecks

I'd like to say thank you for all the members (especially to SHC, Autocar and AIW) who have given valuable information. I like to hear a lot as I soak it up and like to learn it. Please keep it coming.

My question is: Would a cabover like the K100 SHC mentioned be able to do normal flatbed loads?? Would that long of a wheel base have an issue getting into job sites??

KH

 

Absolutely! I've been in places that were very tight with my 234" WB. When you start getting into older sections of the city, warehouse districts and stuff where the streets were made a century ago, it just isn't made for trucks, let alone a 300" WB tractor and even a 48' trailer.

Come to Dubuque, I swear this city has the most F'd up road system ever.

 

My Pete was a 265 inch wheel base, I have no clue about 300 inches myself but thinking about building a tri-axle cabover Pete next year and would still stay with 265 inches, but hey 300 would be pretty cool.

I also hauled stretch trailers with up to 90 feet with my tractor, now that was a challenge since every job was a back in and that also was a street or two deep to the crane in D.C. It was a real beast with 265 inches and if it were 300 I would have never backed in much, depends on where you are delivering and what the site is like.

The major factor between my decision of COE or conventional was open space in the rear and tractor weight, I already had tractors to pull anything but they were heavy and mostly all permit rigs.

 

That long of a wheelbase CAN have issues getting into jobsites. I have a 279 wheelbase on a Canadian spread and find myself trying to wriggle into some tight spots at times and I've been driving this same truck for just shy of 13 years. So I know what I can get into and what I can't.
Keep this in mind. Very few cabovers were built with electronic engines. Electronic engines for the most part did not exist during the time of the cabovers. FMCSA will mandate EOBRs. It is not a matter of if, but when. You can not hookup an EOBR to a mechanical engine, as no EOBR exists to do that and the manufacturers are not developing any, as there is not a big enough market for them to recoup the development cost and make a profit. I have it from a very good source that FMCSA does not plan to grandfather or exempt mechanical engines from any EOBR rules. They stated flatly, "All interstate trucks WILL have an EOBR". I have an N14 Celect Plus "Red Top", setting at home, stripped down to the block ready to rebuild and a new conversion harness, to replace my trusty old Big Cam Hummin Cummins, when that day arrives.

 

I have a 280" wb now on my Western Star and I have yet to find a place I could not get the truck into that another sleeper truck could.

I've been to 1 place so far that required a daycab. Not ever the 215" Columbia could get into the gate (golf course) and they had to rent a daycab Cascadia and even then it still ran over the curbs.

 

I managed to get into that little hole you guys have downtown and deliver those palatized coils into.....took me about 8 tries but I managed.

Tho the next load I just had the city driver deliver it

 

Haha that's a dandy isn't it? Sometimes I haul 12-15 loads in there a day, doing it that much you get pretty good at it.

 

I have a pete 386 with 265" wheelbase and yea once you're in a longer frame for a while you learn how to drive and back it around. I've had guys say they don't kno if that long truck will go where they need it but most times till I'm done they say wow that's better than most guys do. You just have to take your time and do it right and get in the mindset to take everything you can get on a turn.

 

Thats exactly right, take everything you can in a turn. I have a 2002 freightliner classic xl with a 53 step and it takes everything you can get and then some. Sometimes you gotta do a little shimmying but you get'er in.

 

You want to see a guy take even more than what's given to him in a turn come drive the 385" c500 twin steer I used to drive with a 48 ft float behind it that teaches you to ge everything and then some. Backing is a whole different story as the truck was 52 feet from nose to tail so it couldn't catch the trailer. You only le the trailer get away from you once. Oh yea and add 35 inches for the setback on that C500 and you get the wheelbase for a set forward axle rig.