Is It Feasible To Convert Lowboy Truck To Dump Truck?

[Deere Mack]

I'm thinking of changing up my operation and will need a dump truck with tag along. I know the truck I have and like it. It already has PTO and geared good for a dump truck. What kind of cost would I be looking at? Or would it be cheaper to buy dump truck?

[bullhusk]

Deere Mack,Post the spec's of your tractor,single frame,double,size of rear's all that nice stuff.We'll all give ya our 2cents worth BULLHUSK

[cgallamore]

converted tractors are just that, not dump trucks.

to much frame flex

i think you have a very nice tractor, it would be a shame to ruin it, and still need a dump truck.

if you stretch it, then it's stretched. no good can come of that.

if you don't stretch it, there will be to much tail. it will look goofy, drive even goofier, because you can never get enough weight forward.

and then you have the exhaust thing.

if you have been around dump trucks a lot you have stood with your friends,shook your head, and laughed at goof balls with converted tractors.

just my honest opinion, no ridicule intended.

[cgallamore]

i drove a truck like yours for 3 years pulling a 24ft. dump trailer and did okay, only tumped over once.was actually easier to get around in the city than a quad axle

[HK Trucking]

converted tractors are just that, not dump trucks.

to much frame flex

i think you have a very nice tractor, it would be a shame to ruin it, and still need a dump truck.

if you stretch it, then it's stretched. no good can come of that.

if you don't stretch it, there will be to much tail. it will look goofy, drive even goofier, because you can never get enough weight forward.

and then you have the exhaust thing.

if you have been around dump trucks a lot you have stood with your friends,shook your head, and laughed at goof balls with converted tractors.

just my honest opinion, no ridicule intended.

No offense taken, but I must admit I have converted several day cab tractors into dump trucks with good results.

Here are some photos of the 1994 CH that I put together about 8 years ago, it's got a 15' long dump body:

I did upgrade to 9" wide rims and 315/80 rubber on the steer axle and also added an extra leaf to the front springs.

I also set it up with a pintle hich for pulling my tag trailer to move equipment.

Since I didn't need all that fuel capacity of the right & left tanks for dump truck operation, I removed the crossover line, allowing the truck engine to draw fuel from the left tank only, then used the right side tank for "off road fuel" for fueling up equipment. I welded in a pipe fitting and ran a line into that toolbox right behind the tank, where I installed an electric tranfer pump (the kind you would use on a fuel tank in the back of a pickup truck) with a 15' hose and nozzle. Sure was nice to have fuel on the job whenever that dump truck was there!

It was single frame, naturally it wasn't as tough as a truck with a double frame, but it hauled a lot of big ass loads both on the road and on job sites and performed well.

I also set up a R 600 and 2 other CH tractors as dump trucks for another guy here in town back around that time.

.

[bullhusk]

DeereMack,Carrying weight an pulling it are two dif. stories thats why you have to start off with the right spec truck. I have seen a lot of low boy tractors with 11x24 tires 65,000 rears 18,to 20k front ax's double & trip. frames that have 70,000 to 80,000 G.V.W.'S that i wouldn't think twice about putting a dump body on. But I agree with HK if you start out with a tractor rated for 50,000 to 56,000 G.V.W. I think your lookin for trouble. Don't forget the less GVW your truck is rated for gives you less brake,frame and so on

[cgallamore]

No offense taken, but I must admit I have converted several day cab tractors into dump trucks with good results.

Here are some photos of the 1994 CH that I put together about 8 years ago, it's got a 15' long dump body:

I did upgrade to 9" wide rims and 315/80 rubber on the steer axle and also added an extra leaf to the front springs.

I also set it up with a pintle hich for pulling my tag trailer to move equipment.

Since I didn't need all that fuel capacity of the right & left tanks for dump truck operation, I removed the crossover line, allowing the truck engine to draw fuel from the left tank only, then used the right side tank for "off road fuel" for fueling up equipment. I welded in a pipe fitting and ran a line into that toolbox right behind the tank, where I installed an electric tranfer pump (the kind you would use on a fuel tank in the back of a pickup truck) with a 15' hose and nozzle. Sure was nice to have fuel on the job whenever that dump truck was there!

It was single frame, naturally it wasn't as tough as a truck with a double frame, but it hauled a lot of big ass loads both on the road and on job sites and performed well.

I also set up a R 600 and 2 other CH tractors as dump trucks for another guy here in town back around that time.

.

that is a very nice conversion, an OLDER experianced driver/owner using it on his own jobs, that he has total control of, it will do a very good job.

you cannot put a young or inexperianced driver in them, best if owner only drives it.

in late november when your tired of watching tv and doing honeydo stuff and the only thing going on is johny warbucks subsurface job in the 1000 acer corn feild thats gona be a 600 home subdevision by summer, so you get in line with 15 dump trucks.if you try to keep up your conversion will go out on a wrecker if your lucky, ive seen many that had to be hauled away, never to be seen again. i have seen smart guy's take their first load back to the quarry and dump it back on the pile. but ussauly pride stops them from doing the smart thing.

when the bottom falls out, and they are belly down in the haul road, and they pull the tow hook off the frame, and there is three dump trucks waiting to get out and seven waiting to get in, and a 30 year old forman that has to be accountable for what did or didn't get done that day. well lets just say ive seen some very nice conversions turned into nothing more than scrap iron in minutes. but they do a very nice job hauling asphalt, or material to a plant

[cgallamore]

i guess im saying be very sure of what you are going to use your truck for.

if the job calls for a DM or a CL,GRANITE you better not show up with a conversion.

[hatcity]

YES it can be done. The big thing is to make sure it is done right. Frame cut at an angle, plated at joints. Best thing is to also double frame if needed. OR if doubled already, do not cut both frames at the same place.

Lots of conversions from Miami area are seen buckled along 95.

My truck was an OTR truck. I checked the company well before deciding to buy.

[bullhusk]

Deere Mack, Go an look at your original question,ok now read it a 2 or 3X's too yourself,now read all of the answered post's sent in reguards to your orig. question? (I do this myself when i post a question)OK ? GO buy a dump truck.

BULLHUSK PS not tryin to be a wise guy but sometimes it get's crazy!!!

[GreenGiant2]

YES it can be done. The big thing is to make sure it is done right. Frame cut at an angle, plated at joints. Best thing is to also double frame if needed. OR if doubled already, do not cut both frames at the same place.

Lots of conversions from Miami area are seen buckled along 95.

My truck was an OTR truck. I checked the company well before deciding to buy.

HATCITY IS RIGHT. BUT COMMON SENSE HAS TO BE USED, DEPENDING ON WHAT YOUR AXLE RATINGS ,LENGHT OF BOX , AND WEIGHT THAT YOU WANYT TO HAUL.MANY TRUCKS IN MY AREA THAT ARE ONLY LEGAL FOR 15 TON. ALSO WHAT IS YOUR TRUCK, AIR RIDE OR SPRING. AIR IS NICE FOR RUNNIN ON HARD SURFACE, BUT SPRING IS THE BEST FOR OFF ROAD AND MUD, AIR SPINS OUT TO EASY.

GG2

[HK Trucking]

The O.P. stated:

I'm thinking of changing up my operation and will need a dump truck with tag along. I know the truck I have and like it. It already has PTO and geared good for a dump truck. What kind of cost would I be looking at? Or would it be cheaper to buy dump truck?

Kinda sounds like he'd be using it the same way I used mine, sometimes for hauling dirt and other times for pulling a tag trailer.

I did hire mine out hourly too, and was "deep in the heat of battle" with it many times, on jobs where the pressure was on, so you either had to keep up or get the hell outta the way.

I did drive that one myself 99% of the time though and I knew what I could and couldn't do with it.

.

[cgallamore]

The O.P. stated:

Kinda sounds like he'd be using it the same way I used mine, sometimes for hauling dirt and other times for pulling a tag trailer.

I did hire mine out hourly too, and was "deep in the heat of battle" with it many times, on jobs where the pressure was on, so you either had to keep up or get the hell outta the way.

I did drive that one myself 99% of the time though and I knew what I could and couldn't do with it.

.

in the last 15 years their has been at least one or two major projects every year in the st.louis area. some of them would take over 100 trucks per day, so there was guy's that had small excavating co. or plumbing co. that came out because it was winter work, and tried to work allong side a fleet like yours.back off in a 60ft. deep mudhole take his 3 scoops(around 25 ton) like everyone has to

if a guy is smart enough to stay away from that kind of stuff they do okay

[Joe Ditchkus]

Deere Mack I run a tri-axle dump every day. If your truck is set up with long double frame 18,000 lb. front axle and at least 44,000 lb. rear with ratio of 4.30 or lower,double box PS or at least ram on right side,trans with 14.00 + low gear. There are some other dump specs but this is basic if doing off road work or site work. If hauling stock or asphalt you can get away with lighter specs. but it shows up eventually in worn suspension or blown rears. I see you are from Alabama and they have a high GVW for tri-axles so think twice about light specs. Factory tri-axle dumps are fairly reasonable now with construction off there is a glut of them in most areas. Joe D.

[MACKS]

This old Mack was a tractor when I picked it up at an auction,I bought it with the intention of building a dump the thing is it had the right specs as most of the DM's had,there are plenty of tractors out there that can be converted into dumps but like everyone else said make sure you got the right specs for what ever your jobs are gona call for.Good Luck .

[Lmackattack]

I think you can safely turn a single frame tractor into a 6 wheel dump if you dont cut the frame and stretch it. I have seen alot of cracked single frames on 6 wheel dumps. put a weld in the rails and it will happen even quicker. Now with that said your the owner/driver and can limit what the truck will do. 6 wheelers tend to get the crap beat out of them. work a day on site and you will likly be over loaded all day long. Expect some operators to over load you all day...dirt falling off the sides! thats very hard on a single frame so dont expect it to last as long as a double frame spring ride can. I drove some R model dumps on a golf corse sites with 44k camelback rears that after years of abuse felt like Cadillac built the rear suspension. these trucks would do front wheel stands going up the grades to the dump aera, 1st gear only to the top, easy on the throttle, dont stop.and hopegully the guy in front of you makes it to the top safely. we had some jobs that you had to back up the hills and the drive tires would start to slip! you hear that moan from the gear box that makes you wonder if your feet are safe on the floor boards LOL...not good. If you have air ride will the air bags hold up to these kind of over loads? will it have the traction and articulation for the jobs? hopefully you wont see that severe of abuse but it happens. I took my 77' RS700L and put it into lowboy and dump truck use. It was set up for over the road and weighed in at 15,500 from the factory, now its at 16,000 with the wet kit, kinda light for a R model tractor as many eastern R models were around the 17,100 mark when set up for on/off road dump use. regardless it does the jobs good with the camelback but dont think it would be great for a 6 wheel dump. the single frame is not that thick, Drive shafts are sized for on road use and has 24.5 tires. Its your truck and you know its limitations. Only you know what you will need to get the jobs done.

[Deere Mack]

I certainly appreciate everyone's help and I apologize for jumping back in so late, been a long day. I do have a single frame air ride. HK, thats a good looking truck you converted. I am somewhat new in the trucking world, been in excavation and construction the better part of my career, but we were developing large sub-divisions etc and were stationary for months if not years at a time. We would do all the land clearing and roughing things in and contract out the rest. About three years ago when housing went to poop, I started working for the general public doing mainly land clearing. I've learned quick that unless I want this just to be an expensive hobby, I've got to expand my services. Get a lot of calls from people wanting chert, gravel, fill dirt and top soil as well as demolition. So thats why I need a dump, but after reading everyones opinion and talking to others, I think I just need to get a dump trailer or go ahead with a dump truck purchase. The best think I like about my truck is that it's paid for and I know it. Didn't want to add debt buy getting another truck. Don't think I would get enough out of mine to justify a sale, market seems to be flooded here. So what do you men think about dump trailers and what direction should I look?

[Lmackattack]

that would depend on the laws of your state. Some stats will allow 72,380 on a quad axel others will require a 5 axel tractor trailer with a short 22' end dump. or you may be able to haul 80,000 with a 38+ foot trailer but then you will be limited on the roads you can travel with 80,000. I can go on and on but first let us know what state your in and we can go from there....

[Lmackattack]

a quicl search of AL laws looks as if your best bet would be to run a Quad axel dump... are they common in your aera??

http://www.dot.state.al.us/NR/rdonlyres/A795ACFA-5ED3-4C13-9606-289FE4AF3FE5/0/Title32Chapter9.pdf

[HK Trucking]

If you decide to go with a Quad axle, Tri axle, or Tandem dump truck and you're going to do demolition and land clearing, I'd suggest a Bibeau "BMT" rock & demo body with a high lift tailgate. We have several of those at the company I currently work for, one with the high lift gate, and the others have the combination dump/swing open tailgate. They sure work nice for dumping big shit that won't fit thru a regular tailgate, and they're just about indestructible.

Here's a couple pics of a Bibeau that I put on a new Paystar last year:

.

[bts-4120]

dump trailer would be a good option 24-28ft 28ft quad would let you legally scale the wt. but they aren't cheap lots of 24ft's on the market 26-28ft are always hard to find in any configuration due to so many people can use them

[GreenGiant2]

dump trailer would be a good option 24-28ft 28ft quad would let you legally scale the wt. but they aren't cheap lots of 24ft's on the market 26-28ft are always hard to find in any configuration due to so many people can use them

HAD THE SAME THOUGHTS, I WOULD STAY WITH THE SMALLER TRAILER. YOU CAN STILL DO ALOT WITH IT , IT IS SHORT,CAN LOAD WITH HEAVEY STUFF AND NOT AS EASY TO TIP OVER. WOULD ALSO GO WITH ONE THAT HAS A BARN DOOR GATE, THAN YOU CAN SWING IT WHEN YOU HAVE BIG STUFF. YOU CAN STILL USE YOUR TRUCK TO PULL TAG TRAILER

GG2

[Deere Mack]

It seams A dump trailer would be the best idea. Of course I wouldn't need a tag trailer, already have two low boys, need to sale one or make a trade for me a dump trailer. I see a lot of recommendations on dump trailers and I will consider them all. What do I need to stay away from?

Edited May 5, 2010 by Deere Mack

[hatcity]

It seams A dump trailer would be the best idea. Of course I wouldn't need a tag trailer, already have two low boys, need to sale one or make a trade for me a dump trailer. I see a lot of recommendations on dump trailers and I will consider them all. What do I need to stay away from?

Un-level ground

[Deere Mack]

Un-level ground

Good one. un-level ground and alligators.