How to move 13k# machine from Wa. to Ca.?

I am trying to come up with the best way to get an old machine (horizontal press) that weighs 13k down here in central calif. I have done a bit of research on puting it on a trailer and towing it. I liked this idea at first because I have lots of family near where the machine is. From the little I have seen so far it looks like you need a comercial driver licence (CDL) for any trailer over 10000gvw. I have no CDL nor do I want one. It could go in 26' box van with a 26k gvw but loading and unloading is an issue. The truck rental one way looks to about $600 plus fuel. Sure is looking like finding a trucking company to do it is easiest. Loading should not be a problem. Unloading here would need a crane unless the truckers had a landol to slide it off of . Then the issue becomes how to move it once I have it? I have a 5k gas and a 3k electric forklifts but are probably not much help. Between the two of the I might be able to lift one end and pipe rollers or??
Any and all ideas/suggestions are most welcome.

Enterprise rents flatbed trucks. Might be worth a look.

Out here in the plains of the Midwest I wouldn't think twice of hauling it myself across any state line... out on the west coast no way, they don't seem to have much of a sense of humor out there

Crane is the easiest and by far the safest way to move something like that... Moved a 18,000 lb planer from Kansas to Houston a couple of years ago.

kustomizingkid said:

Out here in the plains of the Midwest I wouldn't think twice of hauling it myself across any state line... out on the west coast no way, they don't seem to have much of a sense of humor out there

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Legally, everyone pulling a trailer over 10,000 lbs needs a CDL. Anyone grossing over 10,000 and crossing state lines needs a DOT number and UCR registration. Any vehicle or combination over 26,000 needs IRP plates and IFTA, or a trip permit. You also need all the other DOT stuff, letters on the truck, emergency equipment in the cab, drug testing policy, FMCSA minimum insurance, possibly authority, process agent, blah blah blah.

I grew up on the border of Iowa and Illinois. Generally, if you stay in your own state, you get a lot of leeway with those laws. But, if you cross the border, you have a target on your back.

Farmers doing farm things pretty much get a pass, but they cannot leave the state. They also cannot do non farm things with farm registered vehicles.

Now, if you are not doing this as a "commercial" venture, you can likely talk your way out of it. Recreational vehicles are exempt from all that crap. But, you'd have to prove you are not working commercially.

Trucking, especially interstate trucking, is one of the most regulated industries in the US.

ewlsey said:

Legally, everyone pulling a trailer over 10,000 lbs needs a CDL. Anyone grossing over 10,000 and crossing state lines needs a DOT number and UCR registration. Any vehicle or combination over 26,000 needs IRP plates and IFTA, or a trip permit. You also need all the other DOT stuff, letters on the truck, emergency equipment in the cab, drug testing policy, FMCSA minimum insurance, possibly authority, process agent, blah blah blah.

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Home of the brave, land of the free ...

Now, if you are not doing this as a "commercial" venture, you can likely talk your way out of it. Recreational vehicles are exempt from all that crap. But, you'd have to prove you are not working commercially.

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Stick to the back streets, Kato ! And use something enclosed, so they can't see it and get all nervous. Roll it in on pipes.

Otherwise, call up Two Brothers Trucking in Napa, Rob F, and see what they say.

Thanks guys, I will look into flatbed rental as well as Two Brothers.
If the flatbed truck and the load are less than 26000 I can drive it without a CDL if I understand thing right. Box van was $600 to rent and it is aprox 1000 miles, so $400? in fuel.
Looked at flatbeds on line at Enterprise and Budget truck rentals and for over 10000 payload trucks they want a CDL to rent the truck. I will have to call later today or monday to find out for sure.

kustomizingkid said:

Out here in the plains of the Midwest I wouldn't think twice of hauling it myself across any state line... out on the west coast no way, they don't seem to have much of a sense of humor out there

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I am with you if it was somewhat local. But my truck is only rated to tow 8000 or so, making this more "challenging".
Trucking LTL might be the best way.

I'd bet you can get that machine on a flatbed for $800-$1000. I doubt you can rent a truck and pay for the fuel for that, not counting your time.

Pretty much any time I need to go more than 250 miles for something less than 20,000 lbs, I figure it's cheaper to use a broker.

ewlsey said:

I'd bet you can get that machine on a flatbed for $800-$1000. I doubt you can rent a truck and pay for the fuel for that, not counting your time.

Pretty much any time I need to go more than 250 miles for something less than 20,000 lbs, I figure it's cheaper to use a broker.

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I am rapidly coming to that same conclusion, thanks for re enforcing it.
2 or 3 days away from shop now would be very hard to do.

ewlsey said:

Legally, everyone pulling a trailer over 10,000 lbs needs a CDL. Anyone grossing over 10,000 and crossing state lines needs a DOT number and UCR registration.

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Is this true if personal, say home shop stuff?
Our boat is way over this and runs the entire length of I-75 for many years (decades) with never a problem.
I had a friend move 40,000+ lbs worth of machine tools on a open trailer.
He told me that if we get stopped this is stuff for his personal use.
Bob

It's not legal just because you never got caught. I've certainly pulled trailers over 10,000 hauling my own stuff across state lines. I had a CDL, but none of the other DOT stuff. Truthfully, the laws are so complicated and, IMO, stupid, that most cops don't even know how to enforce them. My state actually has commercial vehicle enforcement police who just deal with the DOT stuff.

Pickup trucks with gooseneck trailers used to pretty well get a pass until these "hot shot" trucks really took off 10 or 15 years ago. Those guys thought they could haul for hire and run under the DOT radar. It's not fair to the guys who play by the rules and pay their fair share of fees and taxes.

Just my opinion, but a person hauling goods they personally own, even if it is for a business, will likely be OK. A person hauling for others for hire will need to have all the "t"s crossed and "i"s dotted.


An anecdote for you to consider:

I was in line to pay at an auction. The guy in front of me was a scrapper. He told me he was pulled over crossing the bridge from Iowa to Illinois in a dual wheel pickup with a bumper pull trailer full of scrap metal.

Officer put his vehicle out of service 2 miles from his house. Driver had no CDL, no DOT number, no Illinois state inspection (required for any vehicle over 10,000 lbs), and some safety violations on the trailer.

In the end, the officer agreed to allow the guy's dad to come drive the truck home since he had a CDL. He was given a ticket for no CDL, but only a warning for the rest. Cost him $150.

So, you can roll the dice as much as you like. This guy was let off pretty easy. You may not be.

While I was looking into this I saw that "non commercial" CDL's are available, mainly for the guys that pull large 5th wheel trailers (10k+) and such for personal use.

Rob F. said:

It could go in 26' box van with a 26k gvw but loading and unloading is an issue. The truck rental one way looks to about $600 plus fuel.

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The bigger issue is that the legal load that the non cdl 26' box truck can carry is well under 13,000 lbs. I have rented non cdl 24' and 26' box trucks from Penski dozens of times over the years , the tare weight of the 26' box truck will be between 15,000 and 17,500 LBs so

Rob F. said:

Thanks guys, I will look into flatbed rental as well as Two Brothers.
If the flatbed truck and the load are less than 26000 I can drive it without a CDL if I understand thing right. Box van was $600 to rent and it is aprox 1000 miles, so $400? in fuel.
Looked at flatbeds on line at Enterprise and Budget truck rentals and for over 10000 payload trucks they want a CDL to rent the truck. I will have to call later today or monday to find out for sure.

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Flatbed will be a little lighter than a box truck but there is still no way you are going to legally haul 13,000 lbs on a non cdl flatbed

Frederick Harvie said:

Flatbed will be a little lighter than a box truck but there is still no way you are going to legally haul 13,000 lbs on a non cdl flatbed

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I think I saw one flatbed with a 12000 load capacity and 26000 GVW. Still not enough capacity to do what I want legally. I did not see anything 10000 or over load cap that could be rented without a CDL but did look hard either though.

edit:
If it matters to anyone here is the 26000 gvw truck with 12000 payload I mentioned above, it is box van not flatbed, I looked at too many to keep them straight in my head.

26 Foot Box Truck Rental: 4 to 6 Rooms | Budget Truck Rental

How are you going to get it into and out of a box.....IMHO,near impossible.....Also a lot of hire trucks have ally trays....very easily damaged by concentrated loads...I would get a tractor/trailer contractor with a big truck mounted crane.A crane big enough to handle 7ton at both ends,with no crane hire.If you are set up when the load arrives.This is how I have moved many big machines over many years. A few hours crane hire and travelling will equal any trucking saving.

I was not seriously considering using the box truck, More just trying to get a price ballpark to rent, these moving trucks are probably the cheapest way to rent a truck. As well as not being easy to load there are no real tie down points inside it. I wouldn't really want the load to end up in the cab.
You guys are lucky to have crane trucks in common use. Here they are kind of rare and even more rare for a long distance travel. I am putting up a metal building, so if I can time it right to have the crane come once and unload this machine, move the powerhammers into their homes and put some roofing up in one day that would be great. Sad thing is the good crane guy retired recently
Next weeks focus is to find a truck to bring it here.

Rob F. said:

I think I saw one flatbed with a 12000 load capacity and 26000 GVW. Still not enough capacity to do what I want legally. I did not see anything 10000 or over load cap that could be rented without a CDL but did look hard either though.

edit:
If it matters to anyone here is the 26000 gvw truck with 12000 payload I mentioned above, it is box van not flatbed, I looked at too many to keep them straight in my head.

26 Foot Box Truck Rental: 4 to 6 Rooms | Budget Truck Rental

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Not sur what you are reading but in the link you provided the payload is very clearly given as 9180 lbs which gives a tare weight of 16820 lbs . exactly in the middle of the range I provided.
yes you can rent a flatbed with a payload of 12000 lbs but it will not have a 26,000 lb gvw and you will not be able to drive it without a cdr. I have done enough trucking over the years to have a good idea of what trucks weigh and that truck just doesn't excist. If you look at the following link Medium Duty Truck Rental - Penske Commercial Truck Rental you will see two flatbeds that look identical . both single axle etc. but one has air brakes and can carry a greater load

Thanks for pointing this out, makes sense now. I saw the 9180 lbs load listed but also down below in the Additional Details area they say loads up to 12000, which they seems to be for the 26000 max gvw. Seems like they left out the part about the 12k load is not the same 26' truck. Not knowing these weights and loads it looked to me like 26k gvw and 12k load was a go, but that is why I am asking about moving this machine on here, I do not do this heavy a stuff often.