Asplundh bucket trucks, that bad ?

[newsawtooth]

Dumb questions

Hey Electric Trimmer,

So, I have one of your companie's old trucks, a 97 TopKick with a mancab. The mancab was filled with old lottery tickets, they must work you guys so hard that the lottery seems like a good investment. Just Kidding. There is a rack sort of thing with slots on the driver side wall in the mancab, I cannot figure out what it was for. Also there were half a dozen steel rods with flat ends and pointy ends, can't figure out what those were for either. I can post pictures if my descriptions make no sense. Rope, you worked for big orange, maybe you know what I'm talking about.

 

[jefflovstrom]

Hey Electric Trimmer,

Also there were half a dozen steel rods with flat ends and pointy ends, can't figure out what those were for either.

Probably to insert in the cargo boxes to keep from someone breaking into you stuff.
Jeff

 

[beowulf343]

Hey Electric Trimmer,

So, I have one of your companie's old trucks, a 97 TopKick with a mancab. The mancab was filled with old lottery tickets, they must work you guys so hard that the lottery seems like a good investment. Just Kidding. There is a rack sort of thing with slots on the driver side wall in the mancab, I cannot figure out what it was for. Also there were half a dozen steel rods with flat ends and pointy ends, can't figure out what those were for either. I can post pictures if my descriptions make no sense. Rope, you worked for big orange, maybe you know what I'm talking about.

The rack is to hold your saws, you can insert them bar down into the slots.
The rods, like said above are to pin up your trucks. If you look around the mancab floor, there should be a hole on the driver's side that you can drop a pin into for the saw boxes on that side, and there is also a hole on the other side near the water cooler if i remember correctly. Then if you lift the dump bed, you should see a couple more holes on the boxes that you can drop a pin in and a long rod is used to pin the mancab door.

 

[electrictrimmer]

the rack behind the driver side probably at one time had hooks on it to hang gear..ropes, saddles etc and the pins are for pinning the truck up for extra protection. Those trucks are nice trucks and your right about the lotto tickets....its the only way out!

 

[Ertreesurgeon]

I'm looking at buying a used bucket truck sometime this year (with a chip box) to retire my other bucket with no box. There seems to be alot of '97-'00 Asplundh trucks coming up for sale, and was looking for some opinions on them. I know there all gassers witch doesn't bother me to much because there cheap and easy to rebuild but other than that i'm looking for the good and bad on these trucks. My one concern is i'd have to travel to go get one and didn't know if they could handle 9 Hrs. of interstate travel or not. Thanks for any help.

I work at asplundh. Some foreman take better care of their trucks then others. Their used to be a lot of idling in the winter months. But now our trucks are fitted with a nifty gps so they can micro manage us more. So trucks that have 50,000- really have like 100,000. They also have slipped on routine maintenance and only fix it when it breaks. Even oil changes are rare. Booms are safe though.

 

[Ertreesurgeon]

Hey Electric Trimmer,

So, I have one of your companie's old trucks, a 97 TopKick with a mancab. The mancab was filled with old lottery tickets, they must work you guys so hard that the lottery seems like a good investment. Just Kidding. There is a rack sort of thing with slots on the driver side wall in the mancab, I cannot figure out what it was for. Also there were half a dozen steel rods with flat ends and pointy ends, can't figure out what those were for either. I can post pictures if my descriptions make no sense. Rope, you worked for big orange, maybe you know what I'm talking about.

The pins are to lock all the bins while the dump is up. And the box with the slots is for handsaws.

 

[ropensaddle]

I work at asplundh. Some foreman take better care of their trucks then others. Their used to be a lot of idling in the winter months. But now our trucks are fitted with a nifty gps so they can micro manage us more. So trucks that have 50,000- really have like 100,000. They also have slipped on routine maintenance and only fix it when it breaks. Even oil changes are rare. Booms are safe though.

Yup I had a top kick brand spanking new in 91 had like 300 miles on it from des moins to Ar.
It was like new when I left. Two months later it was toast! It was beat up then the guy that took it over let debris build up behind the cab and the way they build pony motor exhaust it caught fire and burnt the hoses off before they got it out! If I bought one I would re-route pony exhaust.

 

[rtsims]

Wanted to bump this thread and see if everyone is happy with there trucks. My 97 c7500 has been a champ. Just got the pony motor running, it pers like my Ol lady's kitten now!

 

[climberjones]

366, 396, 402, and 427 all have exactly the same stroke and it makes no difference if standard block or tall block. All have 3.7" of stroke.

427 and 502 both have a longer 4" stroke.

Tall deck blocks for trucks having more piston rings, longer pistons, and higher blocks to accomodate. No different in stroke. They DO have heavier cylinder walls and gear-drive camshafts.

Years back I put a tall-deck 427 in my SS Chevelle because I got it cheap. It was a real dog. I wanted to put a hot cam in it, but then found out the tall-block motors are gear-drive instead of chain drive.

Ive got the 94 model f 700 is there a sure fire way to tell what size the motor is by looking it has the lr3 unit! thanks

 

[RAG66]

Nice to read about some of the experience with these xfleet trucks. I have been wanting one for so long and just waiting for the right deal and a bit more capital. The local dealer gets them in from time to time. He actually goes through the truck and fixes safety related items. He was a career mechanic on this style of truck and does know what's going on. He gets a lot of money for a unit but you get what you pay for too I have seen his offerings and they are excellent. Boom is certified weather you want it or not, like the entire rest of the truck could be in tough shape but the boom gets certified regardless, you have NO choice. He claims that is non negotiable to cover his liability. As for the gas motor, if the motor goes out, I would put in a 502 crate motor or rebuild the current motor with a different cam. A gas V-8 power range has mostly to do with proper cam selection in relation to gear ratio and type of application.... low end torque vs. high rpm high horse power.

 

[treeclimber101]

I have a 97 7500 , with the 366/427 heavy cam and I love it , I mean its not built for speed but it has been a decent truck , the boom is nice too , hesitant to say this but almost bullet proof ! As a matter of fact I just looked at the exact same truck today .

 

[treebilly]

get an ariel and dialetcric test cert on the boom and use judgement on the truck. You need to be certified to work on booms. I know they're just hoses and pins but osha don't see it that way. Booms get costly quick if they're out of compliance

 

[RAG66]

Just talked to the local guy and he said Asplundh is not retireing the buckets as quickly as they had in the past. He had a 1999 GMC gas truck 60ft WH. After paint and full inspection, new tires, brakes, certified boom, he sold it for $32500.00! I asked if he had any more inventory and he said no...

 

[jefflovstrom]

Just talked to the local guy and he said Asplundh is not retireing the buckets as quickly as they had in the past. He had a 1999 GMC gas truck 60ft WH. After paint and full inspection, new tires, brakes, certified boom, he sold it for $32500.00! I asked if he had any more inventory and he said no...

LOL!,,, That is what I would say!
Jeff

 

[RAG66]

What do you mean Jeff?