Time to get rolling

How much working capital do you have? I'd get a less expensive rig and run it like you said. Then if business really takes off, put the money out on something nicer.

 

Get a lawyer, get a lease contract created that meets the state/fmcsa requirements, at the same time seek out a couple trailers to lease and sign on a few owners.

Finding drivers who won't destroy your truck is much more time consuming and costly.

And you are adding to your risk of failing your customer by picking up any truck and throwing a driver in it blind.

 

Right on, brother. If it were me, I would run equipment that I knew could get the job done for the next 6-12 months. In that time, get the kinks worked out on the business side and make sure theres a healthy market out there for your services. Maybe make some more business connections along the way that will serve to grow your enterprise. And then after thats done, pull the trigger on better/more capable/more expensive equipment. Rock solid contracts are also something to get in place, like ridgeline said.

 

Make sure you get a truck that can handle that logging off road.

I would look very hard at the tractor. You would not want a swift used tractor in this line of work.

 

Why swift tractors go off road all the time. Lol

 

Those F/liners dont last but a few mo. in the woods with a driver put in them?

 

If your having to pull teeth to find haulers
Then you're not paying enough for them to
Pick up your logs.

What's the going rate in your area
And what are you paying.
Pay someone enough and they'll have
A truck and trailer there tomorrow morning.

 

This is where my mind was going, too. There's plenty of capacity out there (in most areas) to attract equipment into your niche. Why aren't you?

As far as leasing a driver on, do you have your DOT and all your insurance, safety and employee protocols in place? It's a fairly complex set of rules and requirements you have to meet before "leasing someone on".

In your case, I'd see if a colleague (maybe in a non-competing area or market) would sit down with you over a cup of coffee or lunch and talk to you about the ins and outs of operating a trucking company. We run two trucks, and the amount of overhead and management time to do it right is amazing. The insurance costs are amazing. The amount of capital required is amazing. The costs of maintenance is amazing. If we had any choice, we would never run our own trucks.

If you're just getting started, I would look at running my own trucks as a last resort, unless I already had extensive experience in trucking. Putting "a driver" in your truck and sending it off road would end up, guaranteed, with a torn up truck in short order.