nothing will hold up as well as a Mack. I wouldnt use anything else for a dump truck, be sure to get a steel bed, aluminum will limit what you can haul.

 

I agree except I would go with the Mack 8 speed with deep reduction, then you can go anywhere. my company has 25 of them and they just run and run with no problems, the few autos they bought are nice but they have trouble on steep hills and only get 3 mpg

 

Here's a nice truck, it is a little more than you were looking to spend but it is in great shape. In fact I've even seen that truck around while at work when I go to a customer there in Roseland, NJ. That guy kept that truck spotless all the time.


http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2001-...QQcmdZViewItem

 

Great advise from many people on here but I will add my .02.

What type of bed you get is going to vary alot on what you plan to do. Here in Maryland alot of dump trucks routinely travel upwards of 100 miles with regular "gravel" on the interstate. Most if not all of this work is paid by the ton. A steel body would garner some extra work but not enough to sacrifice an extra ton or two in per ton rates.

I have always run an air ride truck and have never had a problem as a result. Sure there are some job sites you are not gonna get as far into as a result but my opinion is you don't really want to go that deep anyways.

I run a 3.73. Alot of dump truckers would tell you that is no good but I prefer to plan on what I do 99 percent of the time and not 1 percent. Now when I get off road(seldom to never) I have to take it easy. When I am running in front of a milling machine, I have too run in low range and let the miller fill from back to front then pull up and start over.

When you do asphalt it is very handy to have the full 24 inch overhang on the back of the truck. This helps it mate better with the paver and prevent spilling on the ground in front of it.

And feel free to IM me if I can answer any specifics of Maryland dump trucking from weights too tags.

 

just be aware of the limitations with aluminum beds. we had a haul where we were clearing out some woods, there were HUGE rocks, some weighing several hundred pounds. it paid $32 a ton, and went 25 miles..the guys with the aluminum beds were left out on that one, one of the owner-ops went and got a new truck after that with a steel bed

 

DON'T GET AIR-RIDE!!!! You can't go wrong, with Hendrickson, or chalmers suspension! KW T800 ALL THE WAY MAN! I've owned a t800 tri-axle, with 18k fronts, big flotation tires, double frame, the model, has the best driver visability, turning, ride! MAKE SURE YOU GET A DOUBLE FRAME.....TRUST ME.... a demo box, air-ride cab ONLY!! DON'T GET A SQUARE BOX, that's a mistake I made, & when there was big rocks, demo, to haul, I couldn't, or tear up my sand & gravel bed only..
the other trucks are o.k., just remember, no matter WHAT model, demo box, & NO AIR RIDE suspension, they lean to one side, don't work, worth
a damn off-road, & damaged air-bags are expensive!
DONT TRUST TRIPLE R DIESEL either......
Truck paper.com........ :wink: