50G's to spend on bucket truck and chipper

[Sunrise Guy]

OK, what kind of quality am I going to get for my money? What should I look for in terms of age and mileage on the truck, hours on the chipper, etc.? What do you recommend for make, model, etc.? I've put off buying this for too long now, and I know I can use it enough to justify the expense. Loading/unloading the trailer has gotten very old now and having worked with a bucket and chipper crew last week, I know I want the same for my company. Any horror stories out there about spending the bucks and then watching the equipment sit and sit, I want to hear 'em. Any success stories, ditto. All info is appreciated. I'm getting my Class B license in the next month, or so.

 

[John464]

50k to spend on both? Id hold off on buying that bucket truck if 50k is your budget. a chipper is one of the most essential pieces of equipment you can own in this business. The smallest chipper I would recommend is a Bandit 150xp and that will run you about 27k. You can buy used, but I personally would never buy a used chipper. They take a beating and if not properly maintained can be a huge problem. Chippers require daily, weekly and monthly maintenance. I trade my chippers(250xp) in when they hit 4,000 hrs and run great with little to no problems at that point, but I have seen a lot of guys with under 1,000 hrs have major problems all from lack of maitenance and operator error.

If you are planning to be in this business for a long time there is no reason you shouldnt spend the extra $10k for a new one rather than risking that on saving of about 10k on hoping the previous owner maintained it properly.

As for a bucket truck. A used bucket truck is a safer bet used if you know your motors and get the boom inspected. A bucket truck takes less of a beating(usually) than a chipper, but is pretty hard to find a decent one for under 30k. Increase your budget by 10k, to 60k, with the increased profit and production you get out of your new chipper and pick up a decent used bucket truck.

One step at a time and buy nice equipment.

 

[BostonBull]

I would say a chipper in the 14"-16" range would be the key. And WITH a winch! NEVER buy a chipper without a winch!!!!!!
A local guy here has a saying..........Anyone who buys a chipper without a winch is an ASSSHOLE!!!!!
You are going to spend your 50K on a brand new one, and then save for a bucket.
Or if your handy with mechanics get a good used chipper, with a winch, and buy a Forestry unit style bucket to get started. But again if your not good with mechanics a used piece of equipment can be your worst nightmare.

 

[daveyclimber]

Deals are out there, be patient. I bought my '01 Bandit 254 in '06 with 340 hours from a water department. Half the price of new $21k and it has a winch. Get the winch! They are not that powerful but they save alot of beating on yourself.

 

[mikecross23]

don't buy raggedy used equipment, it sucks. I bought a $25 k loader truck. It gets the job done, but is in the shop every other week and my repair bills typically are not less than $1500. I'm ready to sell before it loses all it's value and just buy something out of my league because I will find a way to keep it busy and won't have the repair bills or down time. Down time sucks a lot. I recently paid $50k for an '01 international with 40,000 miles and a 60' hi ranger aerial lift. the truck is immaculate and we are knockin out work so much faster now. Buy the best you can muster and work it. It will pay for itself. I don't have a chipper yet b/c I can rent my buddies for $100 day. It's a morbark 12". Go bigger than 12" and rent a crane, your days will no longer be long and hard.

Mike Cross

 

[Sunrise Guy]

Thanks. Now, are there any national dealers, with web sites, that any of you guys have had good/bad experiences with? As I anticipate flying all over the place checking out rigs, I'd rather rule out the bad ones and concentrate on the offerings from those dealers you think are reputable, as I can see how air fares, rental cars and hotel rooms are going to run up a pretty high tab fairly fast.

 

[daveyclimber]

I'm pleased with my purchase from schmidy's machinery in Illinios.

 

[arbor pro]

$$$ to spend depends on how busy you plan to keep

I suspect that most of the guys advising you to spend more money on new equipment are into tree care pretty hard and heavy. I'm sure that the advice they give is well-intended based upon their workloads and experience with new and used equipment.

I would, however, advise you to first look at your own workload and come up with some figures for how many hours per month you estimate you can use a bucket truck. Do the same for a chipper/chip truck. Then do it for a forestry bucket/chipper package.

Those figures will tell you your time/cost savings by implementing the new equipment. If your greatest savings will be in being able to chip brush rather than haul it, then follow the advice given in this forum and spend more money on a quality chipper. (I don't use a winch but I do have a mini skidsteer to haul debris). This may be another option to consider - especially if you have large logs to haul also.

If your greatest cost savings wil be in using a bucket truck, then invest your money in that direction and continue to haul brush for awhile longer. Personally, I believe you can buy both a good used bucket truck (55' overcenter boom) and a good used chipper (12" disk) for the $50k you have budgeted - $30-35k for the truck and 15-20k for the chipper. Make sure both are inspected by a reputable service company before you buy - it'll be worth the money to know what you're buying.

Another consideration for the truck is whether you're working in a small local area or doing a lot of over-the-road work. Obviously, the latter will require a truck in a little better running condition if you're going to put a lot of miles on the truck. Although I've now scaled down a bit and am part-time, my last truck was a 1995 F800 utility with a 55' Altec A600 boom. The truck worked great even though the boom wasn't overcenter (get overcenter). I had both the truck and boom inspected before I bought them so I knew I had a few repairs to make. I paid around $15,000 for the truck and put about $6000 into boom and engine repairs. I painted it myself at a cost of under $500. For about $21,500, I had a very reliable truck and sold it after using it for a few years for $1000 more than I put into it.

As for a chipper, I made a mistake and bought a used lemon sight unseen from Harv's Sales in Michingan (see post in the Equipment Forum about problems with this dealer). With a little care and a pre-purchase inspection, I'm confident you can get a good used 12" chipper for $15-20k. Just don't buy anything sight unseen or from photos. As I found out, photos can hide a lot of mechanical problems!

You'll be amazed at how much time a 12" chipper can save you. Sure a bigger capacity can be nice at times but, it also means more expense up front and higher repair costs. You'll spend more money at a big dealership but probably get equipment that has truly been checked out so, you'll know what you're buying. I wouldn't be afraid to buy from a private party or a small dealer but, either take a mechanic along with you or ask to take the equipment for a day or two so you can have it checked out by a local service shop. The few hundred dollars you spend on havign the equipment checked out by someone who knows what to look for may save you thousands in the long haul...

I presume you've checked out the Tree Equipment Trader magazine or website?

Good luck!

 

[Sunrise Guy]

(snip)I paid around $15,000 for the truck and put about $6000 into boom and engine repairs. I painted it myself at a cost of under $500. For about $21,500, I had a very reliable truck and sold it after using it for a few years for $1000 more than I put into it.(snip)

Tell me about your "under $500" paint job. Did you rent a clean & bake room/garage to paint your rig or did you take your chances doing it outside? Did you spray, brush or roll your primer and paint?

 

[rahtreelimbs]

Bandit has used chippers that they go over and sell at decent prices. Who better to sell a used chipper than the company who built it!!!

 

[arbor pro]

Tell me about your "under $500" paint job. Did you rent a clean & bake room/garage to paint your rig or did you take your chances doing it outside? Did you spray, brush or roll your primer and paint?

Luckily, my wife's family farms and has a nice big heated shop that works great for working on and painting big equipment. I purchased the $500 worth of professional grade paint, hardener, primer, general body prep supplies, etc from a body shop supply store.

As long as I don't have major body damage or rust to deal with, I can pretty easily prep and paint a truck in 2-3 days. It's not that hard as long as you have a dust-free heated shop to do it in and good professional-grade tools and supplies to work with.

 

[Can-Do-It]

Sunrise Guy .... I'm also looking at bucket trucks. Have been for the last 8 months. What I've found so far is there's a great disparity between the pricing of bucket trucks, as much as $15,000 dollars, for the same year, model and boom height.

Schmidy's Machinery in Clinton Il. ,who advertises in the Tree & Landscape equip. trader has a good selection of bucket trucks with what looks like a fair price. How about a 1999 International 4700, 57003 miles, diesel, 55' overcenter boom for $24,500. To me thats not a bad price. When you find a truck that you like get the boom serial number and call the manufacturer to check on past maintenance and any present maintenance due.

Good luck with your truck hunting.

 

[Sunrise Guy]

Sunrise Guy .... I'm also looking at bucket trucks. Have been for the last 8 months. What I've found so far is there's a great disparity between the pricing of bucket trucks, as much as $15,000 dollars, for the same year, model and boom height.

Schmidy's Machinery in Clinton Il. ,who advertises in the Tree & Landscape equip. trader has a good selection of bucket trucks with what looks like a fair price. How about a 1999 International 4700, 57003 miles, diesel, 55' overcenter boom for $24,500. To me thats not a bad price. When you find a truck that you like get the boom serial number and call the manufacturer to check on past maintenance and any present maintenance due.

Good luck with your truck hunting.

Thanks! I'll take your advice on the boom manufacturer. I'm very close to closing a deal at Schmidy's. The one I'm probably going with has a gas engine as opposed to diesel, but most of my gigs are within 20-30 miles of my office, so I don't think I'll need the diesel, fuel economy-wise. I know diesel engines last longer, but I'll take my chances with gas. Also getting an under-CDL rig since I can't see messing with the CDL rules and regulations right now. I may trade up to a diesel with air brakes and greater carrying capacity, but I can dump for a few bucks a load, so there's no reason for me to haul several tons of chips around. I have several chippers on the back burner, but I'm going to bring the truck home from Illinois first and then get the chipper. If I actually do get the truck, it'll be within the next few weeks. I'll let everyone know, in here, how it all turns out. Tomorrow I meet with my banker----That should point me in one direction or the other.