to all end dump haulers...

I think so. It’s kind of driver discretion we can customize what we want up to a point. They approve most things and will buy. If they approve something but don’t want to buy it, we have to take it if we are assigned another truck. Whatever they approve and they buy, stays with the truck. A coworker has lights down his air breathers and inside them I’m kind of intrigued by that I think it looks pretty sharp especially early in the morning.

 

Hey y’all,

I’ve done quite a bit of research on making a switch from flatbed to end dump. I am an owner operator running my own numbers here north of Fort Worth.

My wife has been having some medical issues the last two years and after probably 5 hospitalization (3 which occurred while I was on the road) I just need to be home daily. Not as easy decision for me as I love flatbed work for the most part but I feel I can do better at it here than local O/O flatbed or containers. 30 years married and she needs me home right now. Been researching it since she was hospitalized the last time before last and really got serious about it my last trip out as she had to take another ambulance ride.

I know I could lease on with someone but frankly I think I prefer to keep my authority active and keep my flatbed as a backup for awhile as I make the transition. I’m not far from Bridgeport, TX and there seems to be plenty of brokered loads available and I’ve made a few connections to get my feet wet.

I know there is a big learning curve to end dump so I will more than likely lease a trailer until I decide what is the best one to buy. I also plan to post up on one of the Texas end dump groups and see if I can pay someone to ride along a couple days to learn some good practices. I thought about actually just working for someone while keeping my insurance up to gain experience but not sure how that would work.

I own my own truck and flatbed trailer outright ol 94 379 sleeper truck Looking for a wet kit as we speak.

Anyone recommend good starting trailer? Any advice?

I’m all ears.

Thanks

 

Let me be the first to welcome you aboard. It’s always nice to have new names in this thread. I think @Trashtrucker1707 is getting bored with me taking windshield shots of open road in Kansas. As far as trailers I was really happy when I was under a Ravens spread axle. We’ve discussed this in here before, but I just feel a spread axle can’t be beat. Unless the loader just does something ridiculous, if you’re under 80k you’re legal on all axles. We ran Ravens “The DW” by Kruz. The “DW” stands for double wall. They are a bit heavier, but they can also take more abuse. Full of fuel in a stand up Pete 579 we’d tare right at 33k. So you could load 23 1/2 ton. We’d drop scrap metal, rail crop, and axles and motors in them, and as long as you dump them slow usually you won’t have much problem other than a few scratches. The barn door is easy to operate and the bows can take a good amount of abuse and you can bend them back to form if things get too out of hand.

@Arctic_fox is our resident end dump o/o he’s always good for suggestions and advice, and @Trashtrucker1707 has been in the game awhile and knows his stuff too. Here’s a link for your viewing pleasure.

https://www.ravenssales.com/

 

I have been researching the same thing trying to find where to get in at as an O/Op down here in AZ. Ill be following along with u . Wish u luck sir

 

Just a shot in the dark but ya might check into hub group. I know of a guy that pulls end dump for them locally in Arizona as a company driver. Ya might inquire as to if they lease trucks on or not.

 

I’m still around, had a little time off at the beach to try and recharge my batteries for the end of the year push. As far as trailers, I’ve only ever really pulled our Macs, seem to do well for the most part, but I have noticed if you switch between barn and dump doors multiple times, their mechanism to change over does get offline over time and can cause some issues switching back over. I remember when @NightWind bought her new trailer, a Wink I believe, she picked it up somewhere in Texas and has had success with it, plus it’s very light. Best of luck on your new venture.

 

I participated briefly in that world. But...! I was hauling gypsum. FYI, that stuff turns into peanut brittle during a good rain storm. During my last dump, on a level surface, the driver side broke free and slid out. The weight in the passenger side caused the bucket to shift to the right. Well, after I climbed out of the driver window...I went on to bigger and better things. It was determine that the bucket had failed when it shifted. I later found out from some of the other drivers that I had befriended that I am the third person that this has happened to with that bucket. If you're in Jacksonville, stay away from Cypress and Sunbelt.

 

Thank you for helping out by answering my messages also. Much appreciated.

I’ll look up the Ravens. I know the Travis aluminum trailers are very popular here. Where I park I think 5 or 6 guys run them. A couple from the same company and some independents. I did not realize they were double walled until I saw one with a Chuck taken out of the outside skin.

I have been looking at spread axle as I am running that on my flat so I am used to it. But it is a little scary seeing some of the frameless ones with only one set of wheels on the ground dumping lol. I see that one Raven is full frame? Seems a bit safer to me.

 

Tough decision really but for me I think it is the best one. Seems there would be a big need for it out there.

if you are on Facebook you might have some local end dump groups to look into. I feel like there are brokers just like what we’ve all dealt with and some decent ones. I reckon I’ll find that out as I go. That was my biggest concern is how to get loads. I’ve talk to a few who seem legit and I could not find any negative info posted on them locally and one thing I’ve noticed is if they don’t pay they get blasted pretty quick.

I’ll keep the oil flatbed around until I feel it is a good idea to let it go. With you trailer you might be able to mix things up a bit.

 

@Coolbreezin I worked for Cypress prior to coming back to my previous employer 7 years ago, I'm not sure why you're recommending people stay away from them. I understand falling over sucks, but Cypress has a good maintenance program on both their trailers and their trucks, some of their trucks pulling dumps are older, but in my year with them they were meticulously maintained. I really only left because we were pretty slow back in 2014, but I have a friend who is still with them and is making good money, it's a pretty good deal monetarily comparative to other dump work in Florida.