Contestogas? Are they worth it?

I have been trying to decide whether to pull the trigger on a conestoga kit. They run about $15k. Wanted to know if anyone has one and if it has paid for itself or are they a waste of time. I currently run with tarps but it would be nice to trash them if the loads are there to justify it. Let me know what you think.

 

Anyone Pulling A Conestoga? How is it?

 

It's the only way!

That's just my opinion though. They have their limitations, but for my operation (15-25 steel and aluminum drops a week) I couldn't go back to a regular flat.

Just pulled the trigger on a new Wilson combo step deck with a Chameleon kit (103.75" usable width), cant wait till it shows up in June!! Nothing wrong with the company quik draw unit I currently pull, it's just tired and the 102 MAX width really screws me sometimes with the lumber I bring back.

 

No. I am thinking about taking my conestoga kit off my step deck so I can run oversize loads and get better fuel mileage, unless you actually need a conestoga just stick with tarps.

 

I've heard/read on here it cost 1 MPG. That is 5-6000 a year for me at 60,000 miles on top of the $15k it cost.
That's a lot of money to give up for 20-45 minutes a day. For me anyhow.

 

Costs a mile a gallon? In a strong side wind, sure, but any trailer in a strong side wind will drag your numbers down. The shape of a conestoga/roll-tite/etc is that of a van with soft sides. Putting it behind an aero truck saves fuel. The savings actually might be good enough for it to pay for itself in a couple years. If the tensioning system is broken, it'll turn it into a sail boat, but that's just general maintenance.

Now, if the driver using it wants to pull anything oversize (over-length is a stretch, but do-able) they are completely SOL, but the benefits of the system definitely outweigh any detriments if the work you do is multi-drop tarp work. The time saving is legendary.

I've done 20-30 drop runs over a few days for my company with a roll-tite, and got paid $25 a drop on top of miles. Some drops were as little as a single pallet or box. Some weeks I made more in drops than I did in miles. And the company was raking in the dough on that deal as well, charging full tarp rates (I assume) for each drop.

It takes less than 5 minutes to fully open and close, and if all you are doing is pulling a strap or two, what normally could take an hour now took less than 10 minutes.

 

It’s also about there are a lot of loads out there that NEED a conestoga... less about having to tarp.

 

I have yet to hear anybody claim fuel savings by pulling a conestoga to flatbed no matter the truck. But I haven't heard everyone's story yet.
I only use 4' tarps.
If I do a multi stop which is not very often it is only 2 maybe 3 and you tarp accordingly. And 5-10 minutes I can have enough tarp pulled back for that stop. It only takes me 20-40 minutes to chain/strap and tarp a load depending on what it is.
Not many loads in my area require one.

20-30 stops in 2-3 days, you definitely need a conestoga. I would like to have one but the numbers don't justify it.

 

I get better fuel economy with a conestoga than a regular flat/stepdeck/rgn with tarps.

 

I always liked the idea of just closing up the wagon and not having to secure the load at all...