Hello all.
Amongst other things we are on the look out for a 7.5 ton crane lorry, we need to deliver and pick up builders 1 ton bags from the kerbside.
We need as much reach as possible but definately 4 metres plus to lift one ton!
The lorry has to be 7.5 ton because of lack of hgv licences at our firm,if this exercise works then for sure a bigger more capable lorry will be bought.
This type of lorry would also be used to put a bit of small plant on as well, one commercial vehicle sales firm suggested that i buy a lorry with a rear mounted crane? not so good though for running plant on though.
Can anyone tell me why a rear mounted crane is better than a behind the cab type crane please?
Has anyone had anything to do with a little o 7.5 tonner with a crane /grab or are they worse than useless??
Look forward to your replies.
Tricky Dicky.
Tricky Dicky:
Can anyone tell me why a rear mounted crane is better than a behind the cab type crane please?
some front mounted cranes can overload the front axle (when empty) 
Check the axle weights before you buy one ( plated weights and actual weights)
You will only be able to put 1 maybe 2 tons on it at a time.
I would think that by the time you have fitted a crane and all ancillaries there will be no chance of carrying a commercial payload.You might have to recruit or put an existing employee through the test for class C.
All the 7.5tonne crane lorries I have used have had tiny tiny cranes on them. Max lift something like 750kg and barely able to reacht he back of the lorry bed. The main problem you will have is a crane big enough to lift 1tonne 4metres is going to be take the weight of the vehicle to nearly 7.5tonne. Even if you spec a crane to just lift 1 tonne off the lorry to the floor the weight to carry will probable be one or two bags and mean plenty of trips back and forth to reload.
It would work out cheaper for you to pay for a driver to get a class C licence or to employ one. There are plenty of drivers around at the minute especially from the building industry. then just buy a second hand truck and second hand crane.
It’ll be possible but you’re only going to get to carry two ton bags at once legally. A normal 7.5t flatbed will perhaps have a 3.5t payload and the crane will eat up a ton of that. If being able to carry two bags at a time is enough for you then you might find it works, otherwise you’ll be better off paying to put someone through their C test.
Bear in mind also that anyone who works for you who passed their car licence after the start of 1997 can’t drive a 7.5t vehicle anyway so if you have any younger employees then they’re going to need to do another test regardless.
Paul
As said earlier the crane will eat into your payload giving you perhaps 2t of payload. An Isuzu or Mitsubihi would be the best bet as they are a lot lighter than 7.5t Mercs, MAN or DAF equivalent. You wouldn’t be able to move much in the way of plant though, skiploaders and mini diggers that is about your lot, maybe a 2t dumper.
A rear mount crane can be useful as you can reach a bit further with it. Also if you are pulling a trailer you can load on and off the trailer without uncoupling it.
8wheels:
As said earlier the crane will eat into your payload giving you perhaps 2t of payload. An Isuzu or Mitsubihi would be the best bet as they are a lot lighter than 7.5t Mercs, MAN or DAF equivalent. You wouldn’t be able to move much in the way of plant though, skiploaders and mini diggers that is about your lot, maybe a 2t dumper.
A rear mount crane can be useful as you can reach a bit further with it. Also if you are pulling a trailer you can load on and off the trailer without uncoupling it.
Thanks for all your replies very helpfull.
I have sort of looked into the 7.5 ton isuzus and mitubushis as they really do have a superior payload compaired to the normal 7.5 tonners but are they any good must be very light to start with,are they as good as the bigger ones or are they all over the road when loaded??
Anyone ever driven / owned one?
Just been on the mitsubushi truck website blimey they start at nearly 30k just a chassis cab then you have to spec them getting well dear by then!
ps; if we could carry 3 one ton bags at a time that will be ok as all our work is local!
Thanks
tricky Dicky
Not a snowballs hope in hell of carrying 3tonne by the time you’ve got your body/crane. If you’re looking at £30k for a chassis cab, why not spend half that on a serviceable 18 tonner and set on an experienced driver? Running costs are a little more but look at the extra payload. Just for once, big may just be beautiful!
I used to drive an ally bodied Isuzu before getting HGV entitlement, at the time it was a massive improvement on the D reg petrol engined Transit that it replaced. It had a nice simple set of controls and a surprising amount of power even when loaded. When it was empty it was horrendous as it bounced about all over the place.
A couple of years ago when I was doing a fill in job at a scrap metal company, they had one with a crane for picking scrap cars, I only drove it a couple of times but having got used to Scania & Volvo sized cabs it was a bit of a shock how small the cab was.
There are tons of ex builders merchants 18t cage side & block grab wagons about, if you get one with a front mounted crane it’d be quite easy to adapt for carrying small items of plant.