Hundred dollar trucks hauling wood!

[Woodhauler]

So sick of the want to be truckers that are around!! Show up with a old beater truck, payed 10-15 grand for it, start cut throating guys that have been around for 30 yrs or more!! 90% of these guys i see won't be around contract hauling next year! Just had a cutter leave here saying so and so is paying Xmany dollars per cord roadside!!  He hasn't got a truck that will pass dot check. Also pizzed off at the coffee shop, wood cutters that cut a load a two a year at peak price and set around and tell the guys they are getting screwed the rest of the year!   >:(

[Rick Alger]

This summer an overloaded tri-axle had an accident in town. Word is the truck wasn't inspected, wasn't insured, and wasn't even registered. I know of another local truck that was driven for years by a guy who didn't have a CDL.

I feel for you guys trying to do it the right way.

[Corley5]

Yet somehow it's the guys doing it right that seem to be the target of the DOT.

[coxy]

 I feel for ya woodhauler  we have the same thing here there is guy that has a truck (on the road :-\) that I wouldn't use for a landing truck in a 500a field     he runs late at night  but is the first one to cry to the DOT cops so they look for some one else and he goes scott free  its getting to the point it doesn't pay to do it the right way   if ya cant beat them join them   but my pride gets in the way

[Peter Drouin]

Yet somehow it's the guys doing it right that seem to be the target of the DOT.

Only because you have the money to pay the fine. And remember, it's not about safety It's about money.

[lopet]

Yup,  you can't get blood out of a stone.

[redprospector]

It's not just in trucking, it's in everything. If it looks like you're staying a little bit busy and making a little money, then every Tom, Dick, and Harry will go and buy that particular piece of equipment. When I bought my chipper I was the only one with a chipper in a 40 mile radius. The next year there were 6, and now it seems there's an old worn out chipper in every other driveway.  :D
I went to a meeting the other day, and one of our officials was asking what could be done to make the "contractors" without equipment more competitive, and more able to complete these thinning projects.  smiley_dizzy I just shook my head and muttered "you can't fix stupid".

[thenorthman]

everyone needs to start somewhere, but ya can't be screwing the other guys out of work for long...

There are a lot of new gypo's around here, as well as tree services, the only difference between me and them is a couple of years and I have my own equipment.  If they can make a go at it low balling and still manage to pay their bills great, I just have to figure out a way to compete with em or go out of business.

Luckily most of these morons are well... morons. No equipment, or barely running equipment, cobbled together junk and no experience... let them bid low let the mouths wag, yer still in business, and so
am I, Hel I get busier every year!

[Southside]

Well, if you do come down to Virginia in the spring at least you will won't be shocked by the trucks you see running around.  We all start somewhere and there was a time I was turning heads, and not for the right reasons, but some of the gypos rigs and contracted semi's around here are down right scary.  Seems bald tires on trailers are pretty common.

[sawguy21]

The commercial inspectors are kept busy here too. The worst offenders seem to be the dump trucks but it goes across the board. A shiny well kept rig usually gets a quick once over but a plain, dirty truck with rust and dents is going to get the third degree.
I work in an industrial park with lots of trucks lining the roads. I shake my head at the mismatched tires, (I saw one with three different treads on the same axle) bald tires, missing mud flaps and just dirty and unkempt. A certain group runs beaters until they get caught, pay the fines and keep going. If it gets condemned they shrug and put another junkyard refugee on the road. They view it as part of the cost of doing business.
It is not limited to trucking. Nearly every industry has it's share of gypo operators. I went with a friend who hauled wood on the side for a small logging contractor, some of the stuff we saw scared the bejabbers out of us. The bucker almost had a load dropped on him due to lack of communication and his own carelessness.

[Dave Shepard]

I had to get the Jeep towed last summer. I was talking to the tow truck driver about a certain landscaping/excavating company in the area. He said that he had one of his trucks on the hook at least once a week, if not more. The driver had had jury duty recently, and the owner of the business was in court. He had so many fines and moving violations that he hadn't had a license in over a year. He was trying to get a working license of some sort so he could actually do something.

[BargeMonkey]

 We refuse to load the junk trucks coming into the pit. Had a couple tailgates open on trucks heading up the road and that ended it. They cant stay in business to long when you cant buy material.  ;)
I feel your pain, but around here the worst offender i see is a few local mills, constantly loaded beyond max, so the little guys with a good truck get the eye all the time.

[HiTech]

I use to see many old dump trucks hauling logs. Most would have been iffy as site trucks. lol They would haul mostly after dark. Now it seems everyone is a tractor trailer driver/owner. The chip business boom has all kinds of these trucks on the road. Most look reliable but some I wouldn't trust. No matter what you do, someone is going to try to cut your throat. Maple syrup is a good example. For years only those who loved doing it would work that hard in the spring. Then the price started going up. People saw this and anything that would boil was bought and set up. I had many customers leave to buy so and so's syrup because he was cheaper only to have them come back that same year looking to buy my syrup or came back the following year. These get rich quick guys don't seem to last long but they are a pain while here.

[Birchwood Logging]

So if my truck cost less than 10k it is junk. I guess my trucks are rolling wrecks then I only gave $2500 for one and $1800 for the other one I have put money in to them though making them safe and dependable. I like the older trucks simple to work on and alot cheaper. I only haul my own logs on occasion when I can't get a contract hauler to haul. I don't see a problem with someone hauling with a older cheaper truck if it is safe and legal every one has to start out some way and some would prefer not to have that big payment on a new truck.

[Glenn]

I used to be a logging foreman for many years.  We had five to seven tree length trucks hauling every day making three to five loads a day from the landings to the mill - depending on how far they were hauling.  I hated the shiny new trucks cuz the drivers always complained about everything from the gravel on the roads to the branches sticking out on the landings.  The older trucks were the best - they never complained and never lost time.  If i had my choice it would be older trucks hauling for me !!  Keep the chrome somewhere else !!!  And if you can't climb into your cab without changing your shoes you may as well be driving a taxi !

[BargeMonkey]

 No one said less than 10k was junk, but historically a 70's truck is a magnet for DOT. Lets face it, the older stuff was good, but 20+ yrs of use and fatigue and it brings issues. We have an LTL tandem at home thats being replaced for that reason, good truck but getting up there in age. I think around 45k in ours, thats doing the work ourselves, and thats a CHEAP truck for around here.  ;)  We have 6 trucks, 4 dumps, tractor and log truck and the maintenance just on them is alot. The guy who hauls my pulp tells me what hes spending and i shake my head, i think replacement value on his truck and pup is well over 200k.

[Ianab]

I don't see a problem with someone hauling with a older cheaper truck if it is safe and legal

That's the main issue. An older truck isn't an issue, it's the rolling wrecks that no one want on the road.

But pretty much all the trucks you see on the local roads are late model. Main reason? They are reliable. You don't make money if the truck is off the road, and you don't keep contracts if your aren't reliable. The HP, aircon, auto gearboxes,. traction control, adjustable tire pressure, on-board weight scales etc just make like easier.

As an aside, when my buddy was driving log trucks I passed him carrying a log truck and trailer of green sawn wood. Thought that was a bit odd so I asked him about it next time we caught up. Was 2 truck and trailer loads of Rimu hauled out from a remote sawing site under a logging permit. The load of wood was worth more than the trucks! ! !

[sawguy21]

It's going to get tough here on the older rigs after January 1, tier one (pre 2000 diesels) equipped on and off road are going to be gradually phased out  due to emission regulations. Those older rigs also won't meet safety regs without expensive upgrades.
It's a tough call. Do the operators work with a low dollar rig that spends time in the shop or go all out and make big payments so they can keep working?

[KyLogger]

So if my truck cost less than 10k it is junk. I guess my trucks are rolling wrecks then I only gave $2500 for one and $1800 for the other one I have put money in to them though making them safe and dependable. I like the older trucks simple to work on and alot cheaper. I only haul my own logs on occasion when I can't get a contract hauler to haul. I don't see a problem with someone hauling with a older cheaper truck if it is safe and legal every one has to start out some way and some would prefer not to have that big payment on a new truck.

And once again, the Yankees would DIE if they came to E. Ky, or SW Va, or E. Tn............. They would stroke the heck out..... I will try to get some pics at the mill today..... ;)

[Woodhauler]

So if my truck cost less than 10k it is junk. I guess my trucks are rolling wrecks then I only gave $2500 for one and $1800 for the other one I have put money in to them though making them safe and dependable. I like the older trucks simple to work on and alot cheaper. I only haul my own logs on occasion when I can't get a contract hauler to haul. I don't see a problem with someone hauling with a older cheaper truck if it is safe and legal every one has to start out some way and some would prefer not to have that big payment on a new truck.

NO i didn't say yourbtruck was junk, Its the guys that buy the hundred dollar trucks, then start cutthroating the guys that are in it forever!!!  I no a guy that has a 1994 ltl ford with a 120 prentice on it that i would give my first born kid for! Looks better then it did new , inside and out!

[timberlinetree]

My problem is the old truck go slow(at lease mine) and new cars go fast really fast! I pull over or wave them by if its safe and I can. We also try to keep them clean and looking nice and safe.

[Woodhauler]

So if my truck cost less than 10k it is junk. I guess my trucks are rolling wrecks then I only gave $2500 for one and $1800 for the other one I have put money in to them though making them safe and dependable. I like the older trucks simple to work on and alot cheaper. I only haul my own logs on occasion when I can't get a contract hauler to haul. I don't see a problem with someone hauling with a older cheaper truck if it is safe and legal every one has to start out some way and some would prefer not to have that big payment on a new truck.

And once again, the Yankees would DIE if they came to E. Ky, or SW Va, or E. Tn............. They would stroke the heck out..... I will try to get some pics at the mill today..... ;)

This yankee wouldn't die, i worked in Burning springs west virginia one spring/ early summer... seen about everything!!!!

[loggah]

The owner/operator can get by with an older rig if hes just hauling his own wood. The contract haulers hauling for four or five outfits  pretty much got to have a fairly new ,up to date truck. They also got to love being behind the wheel many hours a day.!!!!!! ;D

[treeslayer2003]

The owner/operator can get by with an older rig if hes just hauling his own wood. The contract haulers hauling for four or five outfits  pretty much got to have a fairly new ,up to date truck. They also got to love being behind the wheel many hours a day.!!!!!! ;D

good point loggah.........wish i'd thought of it lol.
we ran a 72 KW up untill a few years ago, we got a 95 ford 9000. guess what........but for the engine, the 72 was better. we always kept new brakes and tires and kept up on lines and chambers. most the newer company trucks around here have no brakes and nearly slick tires...........and newby drivers.

[Ken]

Very few old beaters on the road here now.  There are also fewer small production loggers so the loggers left require a trucker that is punctual and reliable.  Keep providing a good service, keep the truckers whine to a minimum and you will continue to have work.