[Musicman]

I’ve been considering adding a trailer and I think that with regulations being what they are, I want to move into a niche where the number of miles you drive is less important than what it is in the reefer segment of the market we’re in now. I really don’t want to go back to enclosed auto transport, so that leaves Step Deck or DD RGN. I readily admit that in all the areas of trucking, I have the least experience with these segments of the market. Years ago I drove a flatbed for the water and sewer division of Hughes Supply, but that’s as close to RGN or step deck as I’ve ever come. I have some experience in securing equipment with chains and binders and have lots of experience strapping all kinds of loads. I’m leaning toward RGN because of the close proximity of equipment manufacturers to my residence, and I have little desire to be inconvenienced with tarping loads.

I know I’m taking a risk by moving into something completely unknown to me, but I’m pretty sure I can fumble my way through with cash on hand and with the sagacious advice I know I will get from experts here on CAD.

My first set of questions is about equipment options. I have a ’06 Pete 387 with a 565HP / 1850 ft*lb ISX (EGR programming hacked out) with 12k front and 36k rears running on LP 22.5 tires. Obviously I’m not set up for doing any serious heavy hauling, but would it still be worth buying a DD RGN with a flip up third axle? What would my max gross be in that situation? What about an expandable RGN? They are a bit pricier and without trading in my reefer (which I want to keep for now because it’s paid for and valued at about $26k) I would have to get a little financing to swing the $70k+ price tag they carry. I’m thinking the best way to go would be with something like the following I’ve seen for sale for $46k:

“Fontaine Double Drop Mechanical Detachable with 29’ 4” in the well. Versatile trailer with very low deck height. 10’ top deck and rear 9-10’ over the wheels. Trailer comes with weigh scale and 2 position ride height. 40 ton capacity”

With the above trailer, I could not only haul equipment but even a good deal of flatbed stuff, couldn’t I? It doesn’t have the third axle, but would I really need it, at least fumbling around in the dark like I will be doing at first?

[allan5oh]

Wow where do I start?

Doing RGN work is a lot more serious than step deck. You have heavy machinery most of the time, wide loads, high loads, etc.. For that reason I'd suggest pulling a step deck. As far as the equipment manufacturers, that's only good if you can get in on their freight. Some manufacturers have exclusive contracts with certain carriers. So if you can't haul their freight, what's the point? Tarping loads isn't all that bad. A lot of times these loads pay well.

The 36k rears could hinder you. Theoretically you're allowed to permit 20k on each axle and 12k on the steers. That would be 112k. However since your drives are only 36k that would be 108k. But I'm guessing your drives will always be at the limit compared to the trailer. So you might be able to gross 100k, depending on how it is loaded. Remember with RGN's you can't really move the freight around. RGN's don't really haul general freight. I've seen it very rarely. Mostly lumber and hay, which you wouldn't want to haul anyways. RGN's are very heavy. There's guys here with heavy trucks that tare well over 40k with their trailer.

Look into XL specialized, my company uses them exclusively. Pretty sure they have the lowest deck. Make sure to get a deck on the front and the rear, just in case you need to load tires or other LTL with the load.

Whatever you decide, I wish you the best of luck.

[Musicman]

Originally Posted by allan5oh

Wow where do I start?
Whatever you decide, I wish you the best of luck.

Like I said, I know I'm clueless about RGN. Stepdeck I suppose I'd have a frame of reference for because I've done a bit of flatbedding in my past. A stepdeck is a heck of a lot closer to a flatbed than RGN, I know. Perhaps it would be easier and cheaper starting with a stepdeck .

That being said, any suggestions as to the ideal stepdeck setup? There's tons of that stuff in my area. Currently 3438 loads posted on Internet Truckstop picking up within 300 miles of my house. I'm not going to go out and buy a trailer tomorrow, but I would like to start looking and maybe be up and running after my first big produce payday wraps up at the end of April or so. I think I'd like to keep the reefer trailer and run it in the winter months.

[Musicman]

To better explain why I’m thinking of making such a huge jump…

It’s not that I’m not making money running the reefer we have. This year so far, we’re averaging about $1.72 all miles, about $1.85 loaded (averaging about 3,500 to 4,000 miles a week) and I’ve managed to pay off a 4 year $35k trailer loan in eight months. I’m simply fed up with fighting for rates with guys who can’t speak English (yes I know that sounds racist, but it is true nonetheless), don’t have a house payment and maybe even live in their trucks. My two “go to” produce brokers tell me that we’re getting their standard rate plus a few hundred whenever they can spare it, but they aren’t very optimistic about where the reefer and van industry is headed. Both these guys have been brokering freight as long as I’ve been alive and both are scared about where they see things are going. They say they spend all day making calls fighting with customers who tell them Total Quality Logistics quoted them 20% (or more) less than the their normal rate.

With the government’s ever increasing regulation, it just makes sense to make a move away from the “high mileage” segments of trucking.

[allan5oh]

You sound like me 3 years ago. Those are definitely good rates, but if they cannot be sustained I understand your concern. Our mileage contract right now pays about $1.65 for all miles, usually around $1.70 with all the extras in there. Just to give you an idea. I'm on revenue and I'm doing much better, but I do some LTL.

As far as a step deck you have to consider a number of things:

1) Do you travel to Canada? Then you'll need either a closed tandem, a max 72" spread, or a sliding axle
2) 2 or 3 axle? With 3 axle there's less worry about Canada
3) Do you travel to California? RGN's can get exemptions, step decks cannot. A lot of guys stick with 48 foot steps just for this reason
4) What are your customers needs? A regular step has about a 42" deck height, you can go to 34" with 17.5 tires but your cost goes way up
5) Do you want to do LTL? Then a 53 ft trailer is a must IMO. But this can make California difficult
6) Aluminum looks nicer and is lighter, but has a higher up front cost and the ride is not as nice as steel trailers

The other thing to consider is with a 34" deck height there could be clearance problems and no room for tool boxes. Not much worse than an RGN though. I've seen more than a few of those hung up on rail road tracks.

[Musicman]

Originally Posted by allan5oh

You sound like me 3 years ago. Those are definitely good rates, but if they cannot be sustained I understand your concern. Our mileage contract right now pays about $1.65 for all miles, usually around $1.70 with all the extras in there. Just to give you an idea. I'm on revenue and I'm doing much better, but I do some LTL.

A little load board watching makes it look like stepdeck rates are about the same as reefer produce rates (in season rates, of course), but there is no reefer unit to maintain or feed, and much less risk of claims due to refused product. Just from the few loads that have rates posted, the simpler loads (no permits or tarps) look to be ranging from $2 to $2.50 depending on the lane. I will never go to Canada with any load, but I go to California now because I have a reefer and that is where the money is, usually. I wouldn't have any big desire to go to California if I didn’t need to for the money.

It looks like I’d be running a bit less miles with a bit less expenses and getting similar rates. All in all, I’m assuming that I’d see at least a small increase in NET income with somewhat less driving. One of the really interesting things is that there’s lots of stepdeck loads within 20 miles of my house. The prospect of not having to deadhead 100 to 200 miles from my house to get a decent paying load is certainly encouraging.

I was just looking at a trailer at truckpaper.com that looks to be pretty versatile. 53’, aluminum, air ride and a sliding CA-legal spread seems to have a lot of the bases covered.

2012 FONTAINE Infinity Drop Deck Drop Deck For Sale At TruckPaper.com

When I buy a trailer, though, it will probably be at auction. There’s no sense in putting some equipment dealer’s kids through college.

Of course, I plan on keeping the reefer to run in the winter months and for the two six week periods during the year where I can average $3.50 a mile with produce.

[allan5oh]

That's not all aluminum, it's a combination. The frame underneath is steel but the rub rails are aluminum. I imagine it would weigh around 11,500 lbs. You can get all aluminum steps around 9500 lbs or even lighter. That sliding axle adds around 400 lbs. Another thing is I greatly prefer sliding winches and lots of them. About 18-20 per side is optimal.

You'd be amazed how much freight you can load on these things. I went to a customer and they told me 7 pallets were going to take 30 feet. That would be one row straight down the middle. Instead they stacked it and staggered the rows. Ended up taking 13.5 feet. They could fit in a van, but no way you could stack and stagger them like that.

Here's a good trailer:

http://www.truckpaper.com/listingsde...?OHID=2538561&

triaxle with 17.5's. I don't think it's a 2012 because I'm pretty sure it's been sitting there when I was looking for a trailer 3 years ago.

[Musicman]

Originally Posted by allan5oh

Here's a good trailer:

2012 REITNOUER BIG BUBBA DROP W/35" DECK HEIGHT Drop Deck For Sale At TruckPaper.com

triaxle with 17.5's. I don't think it's a 2012 because I'm pretty sure it's been sitting there when I was looking for a trailer 3 years ago.

That is indeed one nice looking (and I imagine expensive) trailer. I wouldn’t mind financing the right trailer, but if I’m going to cash-flow one without trading in my reefer, I’d want to keep it under 40k, or lower, ideally. I’m also contemplating trading in the reefer, but it’s really hard deciding to get rid of a good piece of equipment that’s paid for. I don’t think I’ll do any worse with a step than with a reefer, so maybe I can talk myself into letting it go.

I was thinking I might opt for a lower deck for the added versatility. I know from my enclosed auto transport days that 17.5’s can be a cash vacuum, but maybe it won’t be so bad for me since I do my own tire work and get great prices from my local dealer.

What would be the advantage of the tri axle over an air slide spit axle? You mentioned that the slider would add 400 pounds, but I’m thinking a third axle must add about 1,200 lbs or more, right? My tractor is already on the heavy side (21,500 or so). As long as I’m not going to haul super heavy loads, wouldn’t the third axle be superfluous for me? I mean with a split, couldn’t I permit 86K if I needed to? What’s the likelihood that a noob stepdeck driver would be permitting loads at 106k lbs? From my short lived days as a flatbedder, I can definitely appreciate the need for as many sliding wenches as possible. I do plan on doing LTL, as long as I can make it worth my time.

[GMAN]

I have had a 53' step deck for several years. I prefer a wood and steel deck, even though it adds weight but offers more versatility. You won't be able to load some military loads with an aluminum trailer. My step deck weights about 13,200 pounds. Weight has rarely been a problem when it comes to loading the trailer. With the tractor that I usually keep with that trailer I can scale about 45,600. I have another track that I can only scale about 44,500 or 45,000 with the same trailer. I have a spread with a rear slider. I also have container locks. The container locks are a nice if you find a container with a good rate. The down side to wood is that you will need to treat it a couple of times a year to preserve the wood. I have 255/22.5 tires. There have been times when I would have liked to have the 17.5 tires, but for the most part it has not been a problem.

Before buying anything I would suggest that you think about what you want to haul. You will add weight with a third axle. Unless you have the work for it I am not sure that it is worth the added cost.

[allan5oh]

Third axle would be about 1500 lbs. It's not really worth it unless you're permitting the extra weight (112k). A 5 axle can permit to 92k, or in your case 88k. I'm thinking more along the lines of Canadian stuff when I talk about a third axle, and since you can't haul cross Canada freight the point is moot.

Also consider with the 17.5 tires you can dip into the big RGN freight, so that may be where it would be worth the third axle.

Your tractor at 21.5k is heavy. You'll probably add another 1000 lbs with the headache rack and gear at least. So a relatively light trailer should get you around 32k tare which is a good weight. GMAN's trailer would put you at about 35,700, and that is definitely pushing the scales.