This is what is referred to as"fate" my friend.
CRANE!! AM I DREAMING?
- Thread starter ROYCE
- Start date
Well took delivery today. First thing. Man oh Man are the out and down outriggers so much more stable than what I am used to. Also very fast to set up and get level compared to the A-style. 105 feet of live boom and it makes a big difference compared to 90 feet. It is going out Saturday to do it's first actually crane job. Right now, it's getting all geared up to go.
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classictruckman
Participating member
- Location
- Ottawa Valley, Ontario, Canada
Finally some pics! It's looking good, it will look even better when it's bringing in some money.
tc262
Branched out member
- Location
- SE Wisconsin
Royce!!! Wake up your dreaming again!
No surprises with the truck. It actually is in really good shape with very little rust if any at all on the frame. The cab is slightly faded. That will change in a few days. The only down fall is the 300hp engine. It is a slow devil on the hills and takes some time to get up to speed. I can deal with that. On the flats its good and steady and can cruise at 70 no problem.
I am afraid I am not dreaming anymore. I am a crane company now. If you told me a year ago I would buy a crane I would of laughed at you.
tc262
Branched out member
- Location
- SE Wisconsin
Oh oops I guess it's just me that's still dreaming lol. I'd like to get there some day. Not sure if my area would support a crane in my fleet but it sure would increase the fun and the wow factor. There are no tree services near me that I'm aware of that own their own crane, and I'm only aware of just a few others that have used cranes before.
Jeff
Branched out member
- Location
- Marlborough, MA
Yeah, when I saw the Cat 3126B listed on the spec sheet, I didn't want to rain on your parade, but I knew you weren't going to win any drag races with that. Great engine, surprisingly strong for only 7.3L, but... definitely not a big block, and kinda small for a Ford Louisville chassis. On the other hand, it's perfect for crane operation, fuel efficient for just idling on the pto pump all day, and hopefully that's where she'll spend 95% of her time, right?!?
I know it's early, but any thoughts on adding a counterweight like @Courierguy did? And the paint job is going to include flames, right? It'll drive up hills faster if it has flames.
Again, congrats Royce. If you had told me a year ago that you'd buy a crane, I wouldn't have believed you. It's awesome how much your fleet has grown!
Looks good man! congrats If you don't mind me asking how hard was the financing to get being in business for such a short time?
Jeff
Branched out member
- Location
- Marlborough, MA
Financing? Pfft, Royce just pulled out that big knot of C notes he carries and straight out bought it!
Yeah, I knew going in that the engine was going to be small. I had a hard time finding a crane with a larger engine. My mechanic is the one who let me know that it was too small of an engine for the truck. But, like you said it will be real good on fuel. Plus, most of my jobs are within a 40 mile or less radius. Most often only being 10 miles away.
Crazy how this thing has just kinda taken over. The business is just doing it's thing. It has been fun and slightly stressful. Bu this year is 10X better than last year.
I would like to add a counterweight. I think it would be break for this size crane. The chart really drops off after about 50 feet radius. So, If I could get to 70 foot radius and be good for a bit more I think it would be worth it.
Thanks for the support Jeff! You have answered a ton of my questions and really guided me through this. If you ever need anything just let me know. I mean that!
It was difficult. I own all my other equipment and even that did not matter( except the crane now!). Banks are crazy. They only look at numbers. I have a three year contract with the government for a guaranteed amount of money. That means nothing to them. I have the next three months booked out, still means nothing to them. They want to see two or three years of really good numbers and they want to see a record of payments made to something. I didn't have any of that. I paid for everything with the companies profit. I was really bummed that I wasn't being considered by a bank.
I went to an equipment financing company and asked if they could help me. I told them I would put a 50% down payment on the crane. I singed the papers a few days later. I think the high down payment secured me the loan. Now, I just have to not do what I want. Which is pay the crane off in two months. I will try and pay the payments for a few years to build good credit. I personally hate debt. With a passion!
tc262
Branched out member
- Location
- SE Wisconsin
Pay most of it off right away and just carry the little bit at the end as long as you can so you can build credit without paying all that interest. I'm in the same boat here, I have not taken a loan out on any of my equipment. I'm thinking it might hurt me down the road if I want to make a big purchase but I'm not sure I'll ever want to finance anything. What kind of interest rate where you able to get if you don't mind sharing?
Yes, but the time you do need financing you might be in a pickle and need it right away. Not necessary and bad thing that you could need the financing for, could be a good thing like advancing your business. My situation is one that I have so much work the crane will speed up jobs. If I couldn't get this crane then I would actually be loosing money and losing jobs. I am not sure your company structure. But what happens if an opportunity presents itself to you and you can not capitalize on it because you can not get financing. Might never happen. But you never know.
I know people who can get fining with nothing but their name on an application. That is what I want. The power to have that kinda money at my disposal, but the self control to never have to use it until it is absolutely needed.
The interest rate was around 7 or 7.5%. Which sounds high, but you have to remember that I put 50% down. The difference from 5% to the 7.5% each month equated to about 71 dollars more at the higher interest rate. I can handle that.
tc262
Branched out member
- Location
- SE Wisconsin
That's a reasonable rate considering the banks consider you "high risk" (although I wouldn't). I've been considering buying a new Terex chipper and financing it just to build the businesses credit. There's some pretty good deals on some left overs out there that the dealers can't seem to move. I can get money personally but I think the business alone would struggle to get a sizable loan. But if I want to take out a loan on the personal side (home equity likely) it would require approval from the Warden and she's a whole lot harder to get money from than any bank I've been to lol.
Listen to the warden. There smarter then us. Trust me!!!
So here are a few shots from a storm job with the new crane. Large Locust tree up-rooted and fell on a house. We were called in to remove the tree and all debris. It was a very tight driveway with a very tight set up. Not a lot of room and I would have preferred to be a bit closer to the last butt log. Here are the pictures. I have some questions for the more experienced operators but will ask they after I post these pictures.
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So some questions. Take a look at picture number 4. I was really more over the side than the rear. I was okay with this until I had to reach the butt log. I had to boom way down off the side to clear the house. The opposite side- outriggers came up off the ground. This is what my load chart looked like. Obviously I was boomed down way too far off the side. What is a good rule of thumb to not drop down to off the side?
