Custom sleepers vs. Coventional trucks

If you go with a company with shorter trailers like flatbed , tanker , or hopper bottom it's less of a problem . Many van lines use larger sleepers because the trailers offload at warehouses and straight trucks make the city deliveries .

 

your talking about a truck that will likely end up with a wheelbase over 300 inches. How do you think it will manuver?

the cost of these sleepers often are as much or more then the truck.

most companies won't lease a truck over 20k pounds and you'd likely be at least 25k

you usually see these sleepers on bedbuggers where weight is no issue and they spend weeks waiting on loadsm specialty oversize stuff that's permited anyways, amunition and explosive loads that require teams and one person to be on the truck at ALL times. and other specialty jobs

 

now custom sleepers are nice and i dearly love them but they come in all sizes and most are heavy not to mention expensive. if you get one your going to have to be sure your tractor is long enough to handel the size sleeper your getting for example the one i had the tractor had a 310 inch wheel base , pretty long.

now it wasent much of a problem with me because i pull a drop deck trailer and i dont do loading docks so i always has plenty of room the biggest problem is the wait they are heavy.

if you plan on leasing to a company then it depends on the company i would ask them first if they run ny city there going to tell you no you just cant find a street wide enough to turn the truck.

as i said there nice and i love the things of course im 6ft 3 in tall and i like the room.

check in to it carefully before you buy.

good luck to you. southernpride

 

Get a job for it first, then get the truck to fit that job. They are expensive, but you don't need all the extras to be comfortable. I have a 102 on a 379 Pete, wb285". Get a setback axle and you can get lighter and shorter. Sleepers with a rear bed have more room and work better with 2 people than the ones with a back door. Get a generator with a 3 cyl Kubota, not a Apu.

If you want new it will cost, $180,000 to $225,000 +++, won't work with 90 cent freight.

 

is that a bit tight on the trailer swing with 285" on a 102"? We had a little more then that on our 379 with 96". but we were also running reefers

 

18" KP setting

 

Hoppers not so much you get paid by the ton on that stuff

lighter weight+ more payload = more cash
Just my .02 thought i used to pull those things

 

I figured as much but in my mind it still seemed a bit tight. I do believe were were running 18" pin setting on those 48' spreads we had also. This old reefer units took up a good bit of the space though

 

The ARI's are beautiful and functional but each company has their own laws and regulations as to what wheelbase trucks they will allow to be signed on. I am considering getting down the road when I retire and use it for a travel vehicle (many years away from that though as I am only 30 yrs old). I am not the RV type though and it won't be pulling a trailer. They are classy as you want them to get. I would call ARI or whichever company you are considering ordering it from and have them go over the truck specs and mods required for extending sleepers.