Bucket Truck

[darkstar]

I must purchase some equipment soon as id like to build the biz instead of pay more tax . Im leaning towards a bucket truck with a forestry package . Do you guys have any reccomendations of what type of truck i should buy ? It seems like most are 60 foot over center . I would like more height but cant seem to find anything .I cant spend over 35k . Any suggestions ? Dark

 

[PTS]

Over 60' and under $35K sounds like an unlikely situation. I have been scoping out the LR-3 I believe it is made by Altec and used by Asplund. They are dielectric tested and a forestry package a good used one with around 40-50,000 miles i am told will run you around $40K. I use an old utility truck which is perfect for around here. Trees are no more that 80 ft rare to go over 100. Truck is lined with tool boxes in which I carry everything. So that way I don't have to load and unload for each job. Good Luck!

 

[darkstar]

Thanx , Ill likey have to settle for 60 foot working height . I found a really nice one for 39000 . Im thinking there is a better deal just around the cornor . Dark

 

[PTS]

I spent nearly 3 months looking for the right truck. Mine books at 38,000 and I picked it up for under $10,000 completely clean and clear title and truck. Don't find them everyday. I found that if you go to large companies with large amounts of trucks that you will find a lower price because they need to move them. Plus they have regular mechanics who regularly service them which is a plus.

 

[Nortonlike]

Bucket truck, related costs

I'm trying to assess whether it makes sense to buy a bucket truck (rather than just paying someone else whenever I absolutely need one).

Can anyone provide some guidance as to what the other costs associated with owning one might be? ie. insurance, taxes, etc.?

many thanks.

 

[tophopper]

Buckets are mighty expensive, specially considering they only get worked 50% of the time. Why not just climb evrything and use that money elsewhere.

 

[kujoe]

You would have to calculate to see if you could justify the cost I guess. If you do mostly all of your work by climbing and rarely have the need for a bucket truck, then you may not be able to justify the cost. Insurance for our trucks isn't that bad. Repairs are expensive unless you know how to do it yourself (then it takes time).

 

[kf_tree]

Buckets are mighty expensive, specially considering they only get worked 50% of the time. Why not just climb evrything and use that money elsewhere.

between 2 crews our bucket gets used every day. today i pruned 19 tree's at an apartment building for 330.00 each. if i had to climb them, i maybe would have hit 10 tree's.

 

[darkstar]

Personally id rather stay old fashion ,me and the crew climb everything . But this year ive made over 40,000 profit, and with the surplus, i need to buy equipment or ill pay more tax ;so the bucket with forestry package seems viable . My pipe dream however , would be to buy real estate but ,i cant figure out any way to pay my tax and obtain the real estate unless i but a buisness location . Great system we have ,builds good buisness [not being sarcastic ]. Ill continue living in my 1200 foot square home worth far less than my chipper's and trucks . Maybe someday . Dark

 

[darkstar]

WOW Tree Co , lots of trucks . I recon a center mount is the best option . What do you think ? Im hoping to invest well . Kinda funny i work for the owner of altec but hes so big i cant actuall buy a truck from him . They are to busy making pavement . Dark

 

[TipTop]

payed 7500 for my first bucket ran truck for 2 years updated chassie for additonal 8000 and used for another 4 years and sold it for 8500 75 feet is very very nice

 

[tophopper]

between 2 crews our bucket gets used every day. today i pruned 19 tree's at an apartment building for 330.00 each. if i had to climb them, i maybe would have hit 10 tree's.

You nailed it Ken!!

Between 2 crews your bucket get used everyday.

Did I not say 50% of the time.


I wont argue you on the speed of a bucket, Ive been an operator in the past.
If the job will allow its use, yes it is usually faster than climbing(depending on the type of pruning your doing). Buckets are good for elevating and line clearance, for most maintenance pruning(interior work) they are very limiting, and more often than not trees pruned with a bucket, look like they were pruned from a bucket.

 

[kf_tree]

You nailed it Ken!!


I wont argue you on the speed of a bucket, Ive been an operator in the past.
If the job will allow its use, yes it is usually faster than climbing(depending on the type of pruning your doing). Buckets are good for elevating and line clearance, for most maintenance pruning(interior work) they are very limiting, and more often than not trees pruned with a bucket, look like they were pruned from a bucket.

i agree with that. so many times when "production pruning " out of a bucket i'll take out limbs just to make room for the boom. today's tree's were all london planes. there a good tree to prune with a bucket, easy to sneak through the leads.

 

[Lumberjack]

I bought a genie 50' platform height (56' working height), the TZ-50. It hasnt yet paid for itself, but its well on its way. Its advantage over a full on rig is its only 5'6" wide when stowed, only weighs 4300 pounds. It has 30' of horizonal outreach. It wont go over center on either boom but it does have a 4' jib on the end of the primary (extendably) boom, it can operate on gas or batteries.

Its downsides are it takes another vehicle to tow, isnt as fast as a full rig, the height is a little less than a 60', and the boom isnt insulated.

The pluses are it can get to alot of trees around here, has the height to get most trees to a floppable state here, weighs alot less so it does alot less damage to the lawn and is easy to move. It can operate basically silently, costs a few hundred a year to insure, it has an extendable primary boom with a jib on the end allows it to get into some unique positions. It has a 500lb unrestricted capacity, one outrigger cant put more than 2830lbs on the ground or 30psi. It takes alot less maintenance than a truck mounted unit.

The price new is $27,000, its way easier than climbing, it really shines when you have multiple removals at the same lacation, i slayed 5 trees between yesterday and today, suppose to take one day but the chipper fragged on me. Last week I removed an oak on monday, thursday and friday I removed 4 pines in a tight area. Sure I could have climbed them but I like getting home and not feeling totally worn out, having some energy to spare for some of the finer things in life. When its not being used it doesnt break the bank, its easy to tell if it will save time/money/effort on a job when I bid it. Another handy thing is having different places across town to let it spend a night so you dont have to make a special trip to get it, assuming you have a schedule to follow. With its outriggers down its ???? near hard to steal, not very easy to operate for the untrained.

 

[Lumberjack]

Let me add that I do mainly removals. For crown cleaning it flat out sucks compared to climbing on most trees, its much better suited for removals.

 

[tophopper]

Sounds neat Carl, stay safe in that thing would ya?

As far as forestry bodies go, I like how you can pack evrything on one rig. Gear, saws, ladders, chipper, and chipbox, its a nice all inclusive package. But job set up with them sucks!
To go back and answers stars question, Id actually prefer a rear mount, for better access. Well, you cant get a rear mount on a forestry body. This means nosing up to the trees to work them in most cases, the problem there? Wheres the chipper? Way back there. And what about jobs where you simply cannot access the tree with the chipper in tow? Are you gonna stock pile brush up until the bucket work is done then, fold it up, hook the chipper back up , get situated then chip?

Really depnds on the work you do I guess. If you prune Blvd trees for the city it would work great, but for residential work your much better off with a good utility or flat bed body, preferably a rear mount tower.

My 2 cents anyway.

 

[bigskygriz]

We use our bucket everyday, big fan of the rear mount, use a separate chipper truck and haul a grapple behind the bucket when necessary. We do pretty good with crown cleaning on the trees we have around here. If you set up right, and watch where you are going (and coming from) you can poke into almost any little hole without damaging the tree.

 

[tophopper]

It almost never works out that it's easy to chip into the box of a forestry body.

I guess thats my point really. Why the forestry body if there is a dedicated chip truck?

Now a log box makes sense!

 

[darkstar]

I have no expierence in a bucket truck at all ,and i can honestly say this morning im about 20 % more confused .We have a good chip truck and a good f 700 with short sides for holding logs . People tell me around here i can get a rear mount much cheaper than over center . Ive got till Jan 1st so ill chew on it some more .Thanx for the replys. Dark

 

[priest]

Darkstar,

Schmidy's Machinery in Illinois has the lowest prices I've found on used bucket trucks. They bought a bunch of the used Nelson Tree Service fleet. I bought one from them last spring.
If you're looking for a way to buy real estate and use it for a tax write-off, maybe you could buy some land outside the city limits and use it for stacking and processing firewood and piling and/or composting mulch, and other business-related endeavors. You could create brush piles for wildlife such as rabbits, and then do a little hunting yourself if you're into that, or let your friends hunt there in exchange for fishing privileges on their property.