The 'Today's Job' thread

[Storrsy]

She’s watching gold rush with me currently haha she loves getting her wellies on and getting in the mud. Might be my successor as 15 old lad thinks he’s going to be a pro skater

Ah to be 15 again.

 

[doobin]

Trouble is the UK situation for trucks does not favour them.... I'm currently wondering WTF I stay legal and proper....... DVSA, Plod and HMRC seem to have no concerns about tractors running around bent
.

Same.

 

[doobin]

think it got me out of competing with every numpty with a mini working for nowt.

Yup, I deffo don’t do that. Specialist stuff.

 

[V8Druid]

Same.

annoys the **** out of me around here, with what gets hauled about, without a care in the world for compliance.

 

[Giles]

I can think of a lad who runs 3 new Volvos with rototilts all moved on John Deere and trailer as can’t afford a truck!

 

[Hg2702]

Testing some light / beacon ideas out for micro but 1 magnet mount isnt sufficient, 100 hours on it and it’s doing great. Teams up well with the 1 ton swivel dumper.

I call them home lights . If I turn them on I go home

 

[Lancs Lad]

annoys the **** out of me around here, with what gets hauled about, without a care in the world for compliance.

Just been thinking lately ..not seen much reduction of the tractors round here or stories of big clamp downs that were predicted ....in fact possibly the opposite seen at least one PC210 behind tractor recently...

 

[Furniss]

I actually haven't found that to be the case with my case. Bloody handy for the right job but tbh I'd sooner just beast one of my 3 tonners most of the time. It really has to be the right job to justify burning an extra 40l a day and all the associated transport costs. Plus in and out of the machine all day is a hell of a lot easier on a 3 tonner

Totally disagree - after a lot of it I got sick of bouncing around on a 3t - remember well the feeling of sat there in a 3t feeling overwhelmed with a fairly big job.

6.5t on 1/2 throttle doesnt use 40l a day more than a 3t flat out surely ?

Shimmying through the door of my kx71 is harder than getting in the 6t

 

[Furniss]

I can think of a lad who runs 3 new Volvos with rototilts all moved on John Deere and trailer as can’t afford a truck!

Is a tractor/trailer really more cost effective than a truck ?

 

[doobin]

Is a tractor/trailer really more cost effective than a truck ?

For local stuff I bet it is. No regulations or checks, no licensing requirements, sure it drinks a bit more diesel but it gets much closer to the jobs too and can also be the dumper.

All the vosa guys round here do is check if white diesel is being used in the tractor.

 

[pettsy]

Seen a couple of tractors with big dump trailers running out of a small development locally. Probably still running red. Also ignoring the weight restrictions. If I was a haulier I’d be savage!

 

[Furniss]

For local stuff I bet it is. No regulations or checks, no licensing requirements, sure it drinks a bit more diesel but it gets much closer to the jobs too and can also be the dumper.

All the vosa guys round here do is check if white diesel is being used in the tractor.

It might get closer to jobs but slow and expensive for agregates in or muck away and needs to be a fair job to get a tractor trailer in as a dumper.

 

[JD450A]

Is a tractor/trailer really more cost effective than a truck ?

Not unless your bent.

Lorries eat money, but they are more fuel efficient than a tractor.... On paper the tyres are cheaper, the parts are cheaper and the brakes etc are cheaper.

Trouble is this only works if your comparing a well maintained lorry to a well maintained tractor..

Add in that a lorry needs it's maintenance checks, tyres replaced if they develop the slightest cut, annual plating, several hundred to sever thousand for road tax, a proper HGV license..... Oh and O license.

Plus lorry's generally aren't that easy to change bodies on...... Unless you buy a hooklift which you pay a premium for and loose payload. Or run a artic, which costs even more and maximum taxation.

A tractor..... You buy, run on a car license, buy a plant trailer, dump trailer, tanker, flatbed.... Don't worry about the brakes on any of it, don't worry about rust to the cab or anything.... Let's face it there's very few mudguards or spray suppression to be damaged.... Tax? That's free. O license, don't need that.

If you put white in the tank all this becomes magically legal.

I'm bitter. My truck will likely be around 6k finish to overhaul this year. Admittedly it's a big one but I'd say we spend 2k a year minimum keeping it right..... For a lorry that likely does around 2000miles tops.

I can count one other contractor that has a lorry locally.
Three with there own tractors, 4, 5, 6, 7.....:scratch that they are all doing it.

Police pfft.

If rules where enforced properly it'd be right.... But there not

 

[doobin]

Not unless your bent.

Lorries eat money, but they are more fuel efficient than a tractor.... On paper the tyres are cheaper, the parts are cheaper and the brakes etc are cheaper.

Trouble is this only works if your comparing a well maintained lorry to a well maintained tractor..

Add in that a lorry needs it's maintenance checks, tyres replaced if they develop the slightest cut, annual plating, several hundred to sever thousand for road tax, a proper HGV license..... Oh and O license.

Plus lorry's generally aren't that easy to change bodies on...... Unless you buy a hooklift which you pay a premium for and loose payload. Or run a artic, which costs even more and maximum taxation.

A tractor..... You buy, run on a car license, buy a plant trailer, dump trailer, tanker, flatbed.... Don't worry about the brakes on any of it, don't worry about rust to the cab or anything.... Let's face it there's very few mudguards or spray suppression to be damaged.... Tax? That's free. O license, don't need that.

If you put white in the tank all this becomes magically legal.

I'm bitter. My truck will likely be around 6k finish to overhaul this year. Admittedly it's a big one but I'd say we spend 2k a year minimum keeping it right..... For a lorry that likely does around 2000miles tops.

I can count one other contractor that has a lorry locally.
Three with there own tractors, 4, 5, 6, 7.....:scratch that they are all doing it.

Police pfft.

If rules where enforced properly it'd be right.... But there not

100% this. Couldn’t believe it when I found out that all vosa checked the local suspects for was the diesel colour.

 

[Storrsy]

Totally disagree - after a lot of it I got sick of bouncing around on a 3t - remember well the feeling of sat there in a 3t feeling overwhelmed with a fairly big job.

6.5t on 1/2 throttle doesnt use 40l a day more than a 3t flat out surely ?

Shimmying through the door of my kx71 is harder than getting in the 6t

Your coming at it from a different perspective though having your own transport. I'd probably use mine more if I didn't have to organise transport, it's not even the cost of it that bothers me- it's the organising. Getting machine ready for collection, sending directions to driver- inevitably he can't get me near due to access so have to meet at nearest layby and track it from there. By the time all this hassle has gone on half a day has past. Recently I had 8t and 3t on the job, I found myself getting in the 3t everyday. Lifting rocks all day with grab the 3t uses 10 liters a day Vs 30 or 40 for the 8 ton and at the end of it I probably achieve the same productivity. The local hire co will send out an 8 ton with £60 delivery- just no longer adds up for me having an 8t.

 

[doobin]

Your coming at it from a different perspective though having your own transport. I'd probably use mine more if I didn't have to organise transport, it's not even the cost of it that bothers me- it's the organising. Getting machine ready for collection, sending directions to driver- inevitably he can't get me near due to access so have to meet at nearest layby and track it from there. By the time all this hassle has gone on half a day has past. Recently I had 8t and 3t on the job, I found myself getting in the 3t everyday. Lifting rocks all day with grab the 3t uses 10 liters a day Vs 30 or 40 for the 8 ton and at the end of it I probably achieve the same productivity. The local hire co will send out an 8 ton with £60 delivery- just no longer adds up for me having an 8t.

yup, you can always hire a larger machine. Can’t easily hire a specialist machine though!

 

[JD450A]

100% this. Couldn’t believe it when I found out that all vosa checked the local suspects for was the diesel colour.

It's a f****ng disgrace.

Another thing seriously pissing me off is farmers using there access to Red and going off on building sites....... I've clocked 5 so far, and yes I've seen the filter bowls.

Shouldn't be my job to rat them in and I refuse to on principle. But it's f****ng appalling that the playing field isn't refereed properly!

 

[Lancs Lad]

It's a f****ng disgrace.

Another thing seriously pissing me off is farmers using there access to Red and going off on building sites....... I've clocked 5 so far, and yes I've seen the filter bowls.

Shouldn't be my job to rat them in and I refuse to on principle. But it's f****ng appalling that the playing field isn't refereed properly!

I may or may not have reported a certain occurrence lately ..only because the culprit is a total twat...
Running out of big new hutch site with dump trailer filling hollows in with utter crap...utter joke..not one iota of a fk given by ea...yet you spill 10L of derv on industrial estate and all hell lets loose

 

[Quattromike]

I dunno, I've got a few ton of steel going to Lawrencekirk tomorrow it's gonna be a 4 hour round trip in the truck but if we relied on a traccy and trailer it'd be 8/10 hours and I'd be crippled by the end of it. Plus probably cheaper to buy a lorry than an equivalent tracor trailer setup.

 

[JD450A]

I dunno, I've got a few ton of steel going to Lawrencekirk tomorrow it's gonna be a 4 hour round trip in the truck but if we relied on a traccy and trailer it'd be 8/10 hours and I'd be crippled by the end of it. Plus probably cheaper to buy a lorry than an equivalent tracor trailer setup.

But you can chuck a 18 yr old on £9hr on the traccy..... Vs a £18hr wagon driver.....

It's cheaper to buy a lorry, but the tractor will hold its value better.