Moving shop cross country, does it make sense to go FTL / hire a semi-trailer?

Anybody with recent experience moving shop via FTL?

Looking at moving from Connecticut to Orange County, CA and trying to decide what are my options as far as moving and what to do with stuff.

Compared to some of the guys on this forum, I don't really have all that much. Just a small shop with your typical metalworking/woodworking/car-lift and auto-repair stuff. But between the shop, and a few boy-toys plus a bit of household stuff, I might have enough to fill a semi-trailer. So trying to decide if doing FTL (full truckload freight) is a sensible way to go about it.



My unit has a loading dock plus I have a forklift, so don't foresee much trouble loading, though I haven't really done this before. The idea is to find some cheap/free shipping crates for shop machines and other bulky stuff, palletize storage cabinets, and pad the rest of the trailer space with loose loaded boxes.



Don't know what I'll have on the other end yet. The move is a year or so away, but if I bring the forklift with me, I guess I'll have to figure some way to get it down from the trailer if there is no loading ramp.

Anyway, I heard that it runs about $2.50 a mile to go with semi-trailer for moving, at that rate - for my move about 3k miles from CT to CA will come to about $7500, which right now does not sound bad. My biggest questions - is this a reasonable estimate? Also any pitfalls I'm not seeing?

Advice much appreciated!

Thanks
Russ

If you want to move the forklift and large top-heavy machines in a "dry van", you may not get any encouragement from brokers or fleets, due to safety concerns.

Most dry vans have no facility to tiedown, no D-rings on the floor. And your ability to distribute the weight (to avoid fine$ and delay$) won't be known to the broker or the fleet. Roughly speaking, you will need to keep the weight distributed to 900 pounds per lineal foot of trailer for older shorter trailers (48 foot) or about 800 pounds per lineal foot for a 53 foot trailer. And you need to negotiate/discuss this detail before loading the trailer, to avoid a trailer that needs to be unloaded and reloaded.

One carrier has created dry vans with D-rings on the floor, a few years ago. If the carrier is still around, they are an option, and if they aren't, those trailers now are on duty for other carriers. I will attempt to dredge my memory. The trailers were intended to serve a specific client on a specific route.

And you could always buy a trailer and have someone move it for you.
Listing #2872 | Wabash | 48' Trailer | Trailers For Sale | TBG

1997 Wabash 48'x102" w/Liftgate Inside Of Trailer At Rear, very specialized trailer, air ride, swing doors, D-rings in floor, 5' of steel liner, sides & front of inside battery box & hydraulics under trailer, recently inspected

Click to expand...

The fleet name is Nussbaum Transportation. Nussbaum calls these custom trailers "X-Duty" trailers.

CCJ - February 2012

http://www.nussbaum.com/

http://www.nussbaum.com/X-Duty

I guess I'll have to figure some way to get it down from the trailer if there is no loading ramp.

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Not a problem at all, every metro area with industrial parks has local businesses that rent and deliver forklifts, scissors lifts, tele-handlers etc. for installation of lighting, pallet racking, interior walls, etc. Just call one and tell them your situation, they will send over a delivery truck capable of dock height or ground delivery. You will drive the forklift from your "dock height" to their "dock height", and then the trailer will kneel down and your forklift will be driven onto the pavement.

A rollback wrecker performs that function, but a forklift weighs a bit more than a minivan.

djenyc said:

A

if I bring the forklift with me, I guess I'll have to figure some way to get it down from the trailer if there is no loading ramp.


Russ

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A very easy way to unload the forklift would be to hire the nearest towing company with a roll back truck. Back the truck up to the trailor , drive the forklift across , move the truck forward and tilt the bed to drive the forklift down. I have used this method several times and it has cost any where from $45 to $90 depending on location, time of day and day of week. Most roll back trucks also have a wheel lift on the back and the wheel lift pressed against the ground can be easily used as a jack to raise the rear of the truck to level it with the trailor

djenyc said:

Looking at moving from Connecticut to Orange County, CA

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Just curious. Why are you moving to a state that many are fleeing from?

Tom

Plan sounds ok except for the forklift part. Better to buy another forklift in CA that is sitting there ready to unload.. and sell the current one after you have loaded the last bits in CT.

Forklifts, even small ones, take up too much weight to make shipping a long distance economical...not to mention the securing problems. Of course I realize the tricky part is selling your current forklift immediately after loading the last piece with it. That depends on how precise the timing is I suppose.... perhaps sell it cheap with condition you keep it until a certain date, or perhaps a local forklift dealer would take it on consignment after you move....uh...nevermind...just took a good look at it...doubt any forklift dealer would see any profit potential in one that old. On the good side it should be easy to sell since it's not worth much.

(on edit) Just realized, if you have a loading dock maybe you don't even need a forklift for loading once you have the machines on skids. Sell the forklift once all on skids and pallets and get used electric pallet jack. Have new used forklift waiting in CA to unload if new place does not have dock. If new place does have dock you don't even need a forklift for awhile and can take your time shopping for one.

Frederick Harvie said:

. Most roll back trucks also have a wheel lift on the back and the wheel lift pressed against the ground can be easily used as a jack to raise the rear of the truck to level it with the trailor

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Yeah, it's pretty much got to have that or the rollback bed will be way lower than the semi trailer bed. Plus it needs the support right there at the end of the bed.

Also, it needs to be a steel bed roll back (most car types are aluminum). I once hired a rollback to drag up a small HBM and it broke off about a foot of his aluminum tapered tail in the process. Think what a disaster that might be in unloading a forklift from 4 feet up ! In other words, even if the guy got his bed tail up high enough to rest a few inches of it on the bed of the semi trailer, it's not impossible that the tail could break off !

Re unloading at other's docks, yeah that can work too if they are close enough to your new place. Back in the 1980's I bought a small forklift from my dad and used his 2 ton dump truck to bring it the 50 miles to my shop and unloaded it at the nearby post office ! (doubt that would go over too well today) Their dock was at step van height rather than dock height but it was still enough height to get it off with the dump truck bed tilted a bit.

Although I do vaguely recall some anal splinter tightness during the process. (no winch...probably had to drive it down the incline and hope I could brake it before crashing into government property) I swear it's a miracle I'm still alive thinking back on all the "too poor or cheap" things I did moving iron decades ago. Did I ever mention the time I used an AMC Gremlin to tow a VW bus fifty miles with a rope in the snow ? Did I even mention I used to be a complete idiot ?

Why California? If I was going to move it sure would not be to the state with the highest tax and crazy regulations

moonlight machine said:

Why California? If I was going to move it sure would not be to the state with the highest tax and crazy regulations

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I'm sure he's well aware of any issues in that regard. The largest producer of machine tools in the country still manages well enough there.

moonlight machine said:

Why California? If I was going to move it sure would not be to the state with the highest tax and crazy regulations

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Just getting tired of where I'm at - been living in a small town in CT (Groton/New London) for the last 12 years. My dad recently moved to Laguna Beach CA and I stayed there a few times - what's he's paying for rent is INSANE, but it sure is nice. My divorce should be getting settled in a few months and I want to get a fresh start somewhere. I think in California I'll have more options and better weather I write software for living (industrial automation/embedded systems) and think I can find a decent job there. A company I recently worked with on a project was looking for people in Long Beach with industrial automation experience, and I was really tempted.

To keep my shop I'd need to find an industrial unit somewhere within an hour driving, just need to get away from all the ritzy areas. Right now I'm paying $420 a month for 800sq ft unit with office/bath/3 phase and a dock in Westerly,RI. Haven't looked at rent prices yet on industrial lots in Orange County, I know it's gonna be more, but hopefully within reason.

S_W_Bausch said:

If you want to move the forklift and large top-heavy machines in a "dry van", you may not get any encouragement from brokers or fleets, due to safety concerns.

Most dry vans have no facility to tiedown, no D-rings on the floor. And your ability to distribute the weight (to avoid fine$ and delay$) won't be known to the broker or the fleet. Roughly speaking, you will need to keep the weight distributed to 900 pounds per lineal foot of trailer for older shorter trailers (48 foot) or about 800 pounds per lineal foot for a 53 foot trailer. And you need to negotiate/discuss this detail before loading the trailer, to avoid a trailer that needs to be unloaded and reloaded.

One carrier has created dry vans with D-rings on the floor, a few years ago. If the carrier is still around, they are an option, and if they aren't, those trailers now are on duty for other carriers. I will attempt to dredge my memory. The trailers were intended to serve a specific client on a specific route.

And you could always buy a trailer and have someone move it for you.
Listing #2872 | Wabash | 48' Trailer | Trailers For Sale | TBG



The fleet name is Nussbaum Transportation. Nussbaum calls these custom trailers "X-Duty" trailers.

CCJ - February 2012

Nussbaum: Illinois Trucking Company & Dedicated Contract Carrier

X-Duty | Nussbaum

View attachment 67950

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Hey, thanks for heads up on the trailers with D-rings! And I'll keep in mind what you've said about weight distribution!

Now, I think with buying a trailer I'd be getting a bit over my head. My metalworking machines are mostly bench-top units - they are all under 1000lb, so I was hoping I would not need strapping - just put them in crates and put boxes with stuff around them. Boxes should keep crates from shifting if the trailer is packed tight. Is that reasonable assumption?

djenyc said:

Hey, thanks for heads up on the trailers with D-rings! And I'll keep in mind what you've said about weight distribution!

Now, I think with buying a trailer I'd be getting a bit over my head. My metalworking machines are mostly bench-top units - they are all under 1000lb, so I was hoping I would not need strapping - just put them in crates and put boxes with stuff around them. Boxes should keep crates from shifting if the trailer is packed tight. Is that reasonable assumption?

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E track is better for the relative light weights you are dealing with. Machines can be strapped against a wall and/or special shoring bars fitted to span the trailer walls as well. But to address your last sentence... yes.

Milacron said:

Plan sounds ok except for the forklift part. Better to buy another forklift in CA that is sitting there ready to unload.. and sell the current one after you have loaded the last bits in CT.

Forklifts, even small ones, take up too much weight to make shipping a long distance economical...not to mention the securing problems. Of course I realize the tricky part is selling your current forklift immediately after loading the last piece with it. That depends on how precise the timing is I suppose.... perhaps sell it cheap with condition you keep it until a certain date, or perhaps a local forklift dealer would take it on consignment after you move....uh...nevermind...just took a good look at it...doubt any forklift dealer would see any profit potential in one that old. On the good side it should be easy to sell since it's not worth much.

(on edit) Just realized, if you have a loading dock maybe you don't even need a forklift for loading once you have the machines on skids. Sell the forklift once all on skids and pallets and get used electric pallet jack. Have new used forklift waiting in CA to unload if new place does not have dock. If new place does have dock you don't even need a forklift for awhile and can take your time shopping for one.

Click to expand...

Yeah, good point about the forklift - it's really old (late 50's) and not really worth much. It's 2000lb lift, so not too heavy, but not sure about the weight - the plate on it has blank space in the gross weight column. When I first got it - put it in to a uhaul dual-axle utility trailer (2,110 lbs rated) and towed across 3 states with a ford 1/2ton van. The trailer was fine, but the brakes on it started to smoke in stop and go traffic - had to pull over once. It cost me $850 with propane bottle and everything, so I would not feel too bad about letting it go cheap. I did put 2 full days in to washing and cleaning it, and also replaced one propane hose. Still need to do brakes.

If I sold the forklift, I can actually get another forklift from the landlord - he has one in his unit next door. It's just less hazzle for me to have my own that is available any time - it's really handy to have around. My unit is really small so I keep projects on pallets and move them outside for the day or on to pallet rack - this way shop floor stays clear for more projects

In a new area with decent population, I know I should be able to get another forklift for under $1K. It's just the time it takes looking, and driving around checking them out (took a few months last time) and than more time fixing whatever was overlooked during inspection. I know that the one I have works fine. That's why I was thinking - may be I can just put it on a semi-trailer, and choke the wheels. But sounds like that is not a good idea.

Milacron said:

Re unloading at other's docks, yeah that can work too if they are close enough to your new place. Back in the 1980's I bought a small forklift from my dad and used his 2 ton dump truck to bring it the 50 miles to my shop and unloaded it at the nearby post office ! (doubt that would go over too well today) Their dock was at step van height rather than dock height but it was still enough height to get it off with the dump truck bed tilted a bit.

Although I do vaguely recall some anal splinter tightness during the process. (no winch...probably had to drive it down the incline and hope I could brake it before crashing into government property) I swear it's a miracle I'm still alive thinking back on all the "too poor or cheap" things I did moving iron decades ago. Did I ever mention the time I used an AMC Gremlin to tow a VW bus fifty miles with a rope in the snow ? Did I even mention I used to be a complete idiot ?

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Cool story! Reminds me of the old timers moving their stuff on retired school buses and campers. Something I've actually considered

I think I'd proceed like this.

- I would rent a 24' box truck from Ryder. They used to (may still have) a sort of a flatbed trailer they rent that's not the typical "2 channel car hauler skeleton". Your forklift with 2k capacity I would think would be less than 4k loaded, which is within reasonable distance of a car - just have to be careful of the wheel point-loads. I moved a tractor this way when I moved from AZ to GA. Most of the stuff I see in the pic is "packable" in a dry van without tie downs.

- Next regarding your machines, I'd build custom pallets for them so you can use a pallet jack or forklift. Then you can easily move stuff around. You might be able to bid a full load on uShip too depending on the carrier, and use a GN trailer if that fit the loads and space. One hint, flatbed semi truckers come equipped with impressive tarps. uShip drivers typically might have a $5 blue tarp and that's if you're lucky.




- If you do decide to use Full Load semi, I would build wooden crates for your stuff. You can pack heavy things in there stacked and minimize floor space. These could even be loaded on the box truck. In any case nobody is going to tamper with your toolboxes or rotabs, etc without a cordless drill and some time and if they are tarped they should stay reasonably dry.



Best advice is to buy a case of your favorite rust preventative, LPS3 or equivalent and soak everything well. You will be glad later, I was over and over.

The idea of "buy a forklift later" works well if you are flush with cash. Usually when you move things have a tight deadline, and there isn't equivalent time to scrounge for deals on stuff you acquired slowly and inexpensively, nor fix up used-but-needs-tlc. The times I've moved my shop has been about a year before I got everything working again like i had it before. I do have a case of garden-itis so that also preoccupies part of my time

Thought of some more...you can get a *lot* of machinery on a full load truck I actually overloaded by about 2k and had to take one machine off...it was all tarped before heading out. My new neighbors in Michigan were somewhat amazed, LOL

If you are still not sure where to go, think about Texas. No income tax, lots of work, and climate from HOT to COLD you choose... And no Gun Grabbers....

2¢

Matt's pictures reminded me of the reaction I got when I moved the machines out of my garage. I had the curb in front of the house lined with machines, the neighbors had no idea there were so many machines in a two car garage.

Steve

Just wondering any chance there is an industrial PODS type system out there? I would think there really should be some way to get one of those big shipping containers delivered on one end. Fill the thing up, have it picked up and trucked to either Boston or NYC where it goes onto a train and gets sound across country to a truck on the other end. I have to think a rail move is ultimately the cheapest way to move full size loads cross country.

matt_isserstedt said:

Thought of some more...you can get a *lot* of machinery on a full load truck I actually overloaded by about 2k and had to take one machine off...it was all tarped before heading out. My new neighbors in Michigan were somewhat amazed, LOL

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Matt, that picture just looks unreal! You have enough machines to run a whole plant

matt_isserstedt said:

- I would rent a 24' box truck from Ryder. They used to (may still have) a sort of a flatbed trailer they rent that's not the typical "2 channel car hauler skeleton". Your forklift with 2k capacity I would think would be less than 4k loaded, which is within reasonable distance of a car - just have to be careful of the wheel point-loads. I moved a tractor this way when I moved from AZ to GA. Most of the stuff I see in the pic is "packable" in a dry van without tie downs.

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Would going with Ryder save money compared to hiring a dry-van? I'm under impression that it actually cost less to hire this out than a DIY job renting through Ryder/Uhaul, but might be wrong about it, will need to get some estimates.

I expect forklift to weigh ~4000lb. If I can get the counter-weight off, it might be light enough to go in to dry-van with the rest of stuff???? It looks like it's only supported by 4 bolts. Haven't had a chance to mess with it yet, I'll see if I can get it removed.

matt_isserstedt said:

Best advice is to buy a case of your favorite rust preventative, LPS3 or equivalent and soak everything well. You will be glad later, I was over and over.

Click to expand...

I use Eureka Fluid Film (anhydrous lanolin) CPC on everything - cars/van/trailers/ sailboad. Good stuff. I tested seveal major rust prevention compounds a few years back - head to head. LPS3, Eureka Fluid Film and Johnson Heavy DUty grease where ones of the best!

matt_isserstedt said:

The idea of "buy a forklift later" works well if you are flush with cash. Usually when you move things have a tight deadline, and there isn't equivalent time to scrounge for deals on stuff you acquired slowly and inexpensively, nor fix up used-but-needs-tlc. The times I've moved my shop has been about a year before I got everything working again like i had it before. I do have a case of garden-itis so that also preoccupies part of my time

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Good point. I don't get that whole sell and re-buy deal a lot of people on moving forums like to talk about. To me - it takes time to sell and it takes time to buy - looking through classifieds, setting up appointments, driving/inspecting, moving, setting-up the equipment, and than fixing whatever was overlooked at inspection.

Our place has come together in three moves:
3 flatbed semi's from north Idaho (included personal belongings)
5 53' semi's from Ft. Lauderdale, FL. All shop and inventory.
8 53' semi's from Long Island, NY. All shop and inventlory.

Each time we booked with companys where we loaded and unloaded, they just sat and drove. First things off the truck was the forklift (rented larger one's to lift it on and off) and our parts dept. which kept the bills paid while things got up and going. If we had to do it again we'd do two things:
1 sell off as much excess inventory as we can.
2 ORGANIZE ORGANIZE ORGANIZE! The last two moves were a mad dash to empty the buildings and cram it all into our TX location (both company's were far from orderly) and it's taken us close to 15 years to sort it out (and it's till not done...)