The rig earning it's keep!

[bigblue12v]

Here's my wood cutting rig in full force. 2004 3500 yes of course it has a Cummins yes it's the 5.9. I got 5 rick of oak on it here. Truck weighs a bit over 9,000 empty. Trailer is 30' 21k gvwr and weighs around 6,000 empty (full 2" solid oak deck). Apparently the rest of the equipment on the trailer weighs around 4000# because this was 19,100 without any wood on the truck and 24,640# loaded, 15,760 just the truck loaded and tongue weight. Truck handles it awesome for being a single wheel. It was a dually wheel I got it and I converted it. The garden tractor I converted to 4wd and the tires are loaded with fluid. The big orange beast behind it is a Jacobsen Turf Cat front mower with a splitter attachment I built myself, 34" stroke 13gpm single stage 21.5hp Kubota 3 cylinder diesel.
This used to be my trailer but the guy I sold to lets me use it sometimes. I will be in the market for one this year maybe brand new just can't decide what style and how I want it spec'd out. I use trailers for tons of different uses.

 

[mijdirtyjeep]

WOW, that a cool setup!

Dang that truck is heavy! My 2003 Chevy 2500hd Durmax/Allison 4wd crew-cab only weighs 7200lbs when I cross the scales with it.

 

[bigblue12v]

Thanks! Well it's a long wheelbase one ton diesel, ranch hand front bumper, 10k winch, 8x9 steel flatbed. I think as a stock pickup bed truck it would be around 8,000#

 

[mijdirtyjeep]

Thanks! Well it's a long wheelbase one ton diesel, ranch hand front bumper, 10k winch, 8x9 steel flatbed. I think as a stock pickup bed truck it would be around 8,000#

Yeah, I bet that flat bed adds quite a bit of weight!

PS: how do you get past the the Motor Carries with that load on the bed? Around here, it need to be 6" below the bed of the dump trailer or it needs to be fully covered. I have been hit on more than one occasion for this offence!

 

[bigblue12v]

I'm on Tapatalk so it doesn't show your location but I'm guessing not in the US? Here we have Department of Transportation and they don't have any laws like that that I'm aware of. Just extra width or extra height requires permits and escort cars. I think that's anything over 102" wide and 13' 6" on the height. They will ticket you if you loose part of your load but generally will only do that if it caused an accident or complaint.

 

[Whitespider]

how do you get past the the Motor Carries with that load on the bed?

Transportation laws/regulations/licensing are State controlled.
What is true on one side of the line ain't necessarily true on the other side... especially for commercial entities.
We travel 7 states for our work... every State is different.
For example, in Iowa the driver is responsible for the load... meaning, if something falls off the driver is liable... but there ain't any law stating how (or if) the load must be secured.
*

 

[bigblue12v]

Transportation laws/regulations/licensing are State controlled.
What is true on one side of the line ain't necessarily true on the other side... especially for commercial entities.
We travel 7 states for our work... every State is different.
For example, in Iowa the driver is responsible for the load... meaning, if something falls off the driver is liable... but there ain't any law stating how (or if) the load must be secured.
*

That's basically how Indiana law is as far as I understand it. I used to have my hazmat cdl. Not completely ignorant of it all but at the same time I paid more attention to the liquid and hazmat parts since that's what my job pertained to.

 

[turnkey4099]

I'm on Tapatalk so it doesn't show your location but I'm guessing not in the US? Here we have Department of Transportation and they don't have any laws like that that I'm aware of. Just extra width or extra height requires permits and escort cars. I think that's anything over 102" wide and 13' 6" on the height. They will ticket you if you loose part of your load but generally will only do that if it caused an accident or complaint.

State of Washington is getting pretty picky over it. Loads have to be secure and covered if need be. I don't know wthe exact law but I've been warned once.

Harry K

 

[bigblue12v]

That sucks. I'm sure Indiana is quite a ways away from getting to that point mostly due to enforcement ability. Lots of rural areas here and also INDOT patrol got yanked and they trained ISP (Indiana state police) and somewhat equipped them so now DOT is disguised as ISP troopers. I've not yet heard how that's affecting commercial transportation drivers. Personally haven't had to deal with them myself.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

Ok, I've got to ask, what is a "5 rick"?

 

[bigblue12v]

5 ricks. That would be 1.33 cord. Everyone I know of here measures in ricks not cords.

 

[brenndatomu]

5 ricks. That would be 1.33 cord. Everyone I know of here measures richards, not cords.

Fixed it for ya!
Sorry, couldn't resist.
Nice rig, we gotta see some pics of that custom splitter setup though...

 

[kodiak]

Please tell me you weren't going at highway speed with that load of logs on the back.

 

[nathon918]

Please tell me you weren't going at highway speed with that load of logs on the back.

he wasn't...he was going mach 1 with the SPLITS on the back!

 

[bigblue12v]

he wasn't...he was going mach 1 with the SPLITS on the back!

Darn straight!
Every one (split) was strapped down tight and I traveled at 55 mph the whole way home which involved some interstate.
I just cut up two trees and fixing to split them in just a bit I'll get fresh pictures! Maybe videos?

 

[nathon918]

Darn straight!
Every one (split) was strapped down tight and I traveled at 55 mph the whole way home which involved some interstate.
I just cut up two trees and fixing to split them in just a bit I'll get fresh pictures! Maybe videos?

I also have an 04 factory SRW, 6 spd. 3500 CC short bed pickup box with cab high side boards, I can fit right around a cord stacked, it squats a little, but it pulls it no problem

 

[mr.finn]

That is one heck of a set up you have there!!

 

[cat10ken]

Are you sure 5 ricks isn't 1.66 cord?

 

[turnkey4099]

Are you sure 5 ricks isn't 1.66 cord?

T'would depend on how long the splits are.

Harry K

 

[bigblue12v]

Are you sure 5 ricks isn't 1.66 cord?

OK Yea it is lol sorry was having a brain fart. I guess here on AS a rick is called a face cord. We're all a bunch of backward Hoosiers so we have different terms for everything lol. Like I said no one here measures in cords even firewood people here often don't know what a cord is. I only know because I researched it online after many people I know couldn't answer it the same twice lol

Blessed is he who can cut on his own land. I have 2.5 acres and no real trees to harvest. So I have to cut elsewhere. I live in a bunch of hills and hollers in bfe. I became a first time homeowner, moved here and became new to wood burning a year ago so I'm still new to this but have spent the winter scrounging and doing firewood the hard way to scrape by. Thankfully the OWB isn't picky and i burnt a lot of slab wood which was cheap, readily available and required minimal trimming to burn. Spent last summer getting settled in, playing catch up on everything and getting a divorce and only had a 009 to my name anyhow. Even when wood was offered to me I didn't have the equipment to deal with it. So I bought a used MS170 and a MS360 pro. The 360 dropped a wrist pin clip in ten hours of usage and trashed the piston and cylinder so when I rebuilt it I ported it and bumped the compression and did MM, upgraded bar and chain. Was so impressed with the gains that I put an adjustable carb on the 170 and MM it. Both impress me everytime I use them, for what they are they are mighty machines. Somewhere in all this I started on the splitter build. The winter has been productive in the shop working around my full time factory job. Now I have a decent equipment line up but having 4 hours of daylight after work and having to haul my stuff everywhere is frustrating. My back isn't really good enough to lift rounds into the truck or I'd just do it that way and leave all the other stuff here. A lot of what I've been getting is in people's yards which currently are too soft to drive the truck in but I'm not letting good weather and free wood pass me by. So I use the tractor and wagon to haul it to the truck. Too much crap to drag around and too much time spent loading unloading dealing with straps etc. Gotta find a better way to do this. It works well but i just wanna get stuff cut, loaded and get out so I can get it home and deal with it on my time. It would be different if I had a full day at a time instead of just evenings after work. I've got a great start on my wood pile though and I've got about a dozen trees lined up at the moment. The next job will be easier can drive all over the property, the owner is going to deal with all the tops and will drag and load the logs with his tractor for me. After that I should have enough for next winter, or very close, and the rest is working ahead or I'll sell some.

My Lawn Boy GT18H hydrostatic drive garden tractor I converted to 4wd, power steering, bit á £