Is it a challenge to find loads that accept a 48' trailer?

If you are gonna pull a van or reefer, 53' is best. It is the industry standard length. My experience is with dry vans.
Maybe with a reefer it may matter less. But look at all the big fleets. They run 53' .
When it comes to flatbeds, seems like the majority are 48'. I have noticed that some big flatbed companies are now buying 48' after running 53' in the past.
Years ago I missed a few loads because I happened to have a 48' that day. Sometimes I had to go drop the 48' and go find a 53' and go back to get loaded. Eventually the company got all those 48' traded and the company had all 53'.

 

Depending what places in Canada you visit, a 48 with a spread axle could present a problem weight wise for Manitoba and west. They only allow about 20,000 pounds combined weight. As a single owner operator you need the most flexible equipment and it can cost you big if you miss out on loads that require a 53'. I would love to have a 48' spread axle, but it just doesn't make sense business-wise for me ... yet. If I had a steady work where I could use one and not have to think about it sitting at the yard, that is the time I'd get one.

 

As an o/o, you'll deal with a lot of brokers who are clueless. They will say you need a 53' van or reefer to pick up a 10' partial. I ran both back in the mid 2000's and it was tough to find loads for the 48' at times, because every one asks for 53's whether they need it or not. Thankfully that has not spread to the flatbed side as much.

 

when i pulled a van with landstar and uacl all the agents, brokers, and shippers knew was 53ft. no way would they think for 2 seconds to figure out if a 48 could haul it. for that very reason i literally gave my 48 ft van to my dad who uses it for a local 4-10 skid gig. 53 vans are a dime a dozen at auction so why mess with a 48. personally i prefer a 43 by 96 tanker so i can nab that 1 sob parking spot left with out too much of a hassel.

 

fortycalglock is right. I considered getting a 48' when I got my new reefer, but went with the 53'. The vast majority of loads I've hauled would fit on a 48' (last one I just did wouldn't). General thing with reefer freight is, it's loaded to maximum weight for most loads. Depending on the density of the product, that can mean the whole trailer (especially with light things like breads, doughs, pies, cakes, etc) will be full and still not reaching max weight. Space matters for those loads.

General rule is to ask for the pallet count. Even if it fits, doesn't mean you want it. I refuse to haul 30 skids in my reefer unless the load pays REALLY well. Otherwise, you're assuming risk of damage to your trailer for no monetary gain (also, be on the dock for those loads, too). If a broker doesn't know the skid count, then they probably don't know much about the load at all. I've hauled loads that were 20k on 10 skids and was told "needs a 53 reefer, bla bla bla" from the broker. I don't know how many times I get someone and find out the load is much less than brokered to me (42 thousand pounds, requires 53, bla bla bla) only to find out it's 10k of frozen bread, etc. Brokers just will state the 'max values' to make sure they're covered when you show up.

I had one load out of Atlanta that was booked at the last minute because the broker sent a dry van in to pick up a temperature sensitive load. That worked until summer hit, and 90F outside is way too hot for the product. Apparently they had little clue that the product was really that sensitive to temperature. So, they had to go searching for a reefer to haul it. And pay probably more than they wanted.

 

Its getting hard to find a 48ft in good shape, you can buy a 53ft in good shape pretty reasonable, ive noticed tjat shippers are loading heavier loads further back than they use too, they are putting on as much as they can, there are still some places that it dont matter if you got a 48 or 53, I use to haul cotton and fertalizer and roll paper with my 48ft van.

 

You really ought to get a 53' if it's dry van. I've hauled a bunch of good paying auto parts loads that were lightweight and from front to back of the trailer. That's what those customers pay for regardless if it's one pallet or double stacked nose to tail. Show up with something not able to take the load and they might cancel your truck for another. Or be ticked they have to make 2 shipments instead of one.

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