Bucket truck help

matdand

TreeHouser
Joined
Oct 9, 2013
Messages
313
Location
Near Montreal, Qc
I'm placing a bid for a large government contract. About 10% of the work needs to be done with a bucket truck. So, since I don't own one, I figured I'd call around to see if any non-tree people would want to rent out a bucket when I need one.

One excavation company has one that they rent out for 90$ an hour with the driver. But they have been trying to sell thsi bucket for a while:

http://www.lespac.com/vehicules/mac...-camion-nacelle-LPaZZ28311732WWcpZZ49WWgrZZ12

7K but the owner said he was negotiable, they just don't use the truck all that much. Don't know the year but it's been inspected.

If I would shop around, I would more than likely go toward a forestry package so I could split up two teams during busy season; one bucket team and one climbing team. The rear mount does seem interesting for the reach and better access for the chip truck. I guess the bucket could pull a dump trailer with the mini.

I was also thinking of removing some of the gear boxes and making a platform for the mini, that would be sweat but not sure if it's doable. Also, is it possible to remove one of the baskets on the two-man-basket trucks? That must be a PITA.

I really wasn't in the market for a bucket, most of our jobs can be done climbing. I don't even have my CDL. But it would have been practical for some sketchy or easy access jobs. Also the numbers make sense: if I get the contract at around 50k, 10% of that would be around 5k. That would basicaly be given to this guy for renting his truck.

What do you guys think? Does it look like a lemon? What about you guys with smaller companies that made the move? Worth it? How much weight have you put on? :)
 
It looks like a late '80s truck. With 50,000 mi and inspected, hopefully the boom, I'd say it could be a decent deal. I am not sure of gas prices there or if it has a pony motor, so that may be a big factor.
 
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  • #4
I'm sure he would let it go for 5K, which makes it even more tempting.

Gas is about a buck more a gallon here than even just one mile across the border...gotta love our liberal taxes!!! My parents used to cross over to Vermont just to buy gas and milk. I doubt this unit has a pony, but I'm not too worried about it. A diesel engine must not suck THAT much fuel wehn idling.

What is a realistic lifespan for a bucket? I've heard 25 years, not sure if this is true. If so it would be nearing it's final days. I'd def get it inspected before purchase. maybe it hasn't been used to hard.

Has anyone ever removed one basket of a two-basket truck?
 
I have a '93 forestry truck for sale. Should be a recent thread in the gear forum or the for sale forum.
 
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  • #10
Butch, I can't seem to find where to edit my age, must mean I'm Timeless 8)
,t
Went and saw the truck today. It's a '90 but the boom hasn't been inspected in 10 years!!! I don't even feel like renting it anymore.

Willie, nice truck and thanks for the offer but it's a little far. Plus the problem with importing it is, well... importing it.
 
Importing is a zero issue IMO. Just hire a broker. They'll look after all the paperwork. For most major purchases it's worth looking south of the line if you're up here.
 
5 k for that Material handler sounds like a steal.....if the boom is okay. Aside from a certified inspection you can do a an inspection yourself. You can't do an untrasound of the pins etc but you can pull the panels and check the leveling cables , run it to see that everything works, look over the turret and the rotator for issues etc. At that age you may not be able to get a certification without a boom restringing at a cost of thousands but you could be reasonably certain that it is functional and unlikely to kill you. I have a '89 that hasn't been certified for 15 years ...but it does get inspected. I also have a 99 with a current inspection sticker.....frankly they seem to be in similar shape age and stickers notwithstanding.
 
Yup if you're going down the road of having a boom which you trust your life to. You'd better learn to look it all over quite closely yourself.
 
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