What do you call it when they customize their truck to have an extra long catwalk?

I think most of the guys with stretched frames run special freight and dedicated lanes. Most probably don’t work the spot market and load boards.

 

I'll run my truck anywhere and everywhere I need to go, from tight job sites to narrow back roads and everywhere in between. When you know how to drive and are familiar with the way it handles, it's not that big of a deal. Now for those less competent at their job, I can see where an extended wheelbase might be rather intimidating...

 

Aren’t you in a Day cab? What’s the wheelbase on your truck?

 

240" Mack that takes a 40 acre field to pull a u-turn, and I'll go anywhere a truck 3-4' shorter can go. Company I used to work for had 198" WB day cab columbias that cut on a dime...it's what I had up until I bought my Mack. It didn't matter if I was hooked to a pneumatic tank or an end dump, there wasn't any industrial site or job site they could get into and I couldn't...but several I navigated just fine while they had battle scars by the time the day was through. Worked one job with 6 company trucks, and I was the only one NOT tore up by the end of the day.

Hell, that old (well...NEW at the time, as it only had 4xx miles on it when it was assigned to me) 2004 Pete 379 w/60" sleeper had a tighter turning radius than this Mack I bought...and hooked to a 48' flat, it was 75' long. I'm only 70' with a similar trailer. Just 'cuz it's long doesn't mean it can't turn...and just 'cuz it can't turn doesn't mean a driver that knows what he's doing can't put it wherever it needs to go.

 

So much this! Frustrating to watch all these so-called "drivers" who do crappy setups and use the super tight full lock wheel cuts of these setback axle trucks to make up for it!

Learn to freaking drive!

 

53' is just the limit of trailer length not load in some states.

Some states allow both front and rear overhang of the trailer with no permit. 4' to the rear is common like you suggested. 3' to the front of the truck, (not the trailer) is also common.

Then there are like 11 states that allow much longer trailers/loads.

So depending on where you run, the longer chassis may be an advantage. However, I am sure most are done for appearances.