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Transporting Press Brakes

johfoster

Cast Iron
Joined
Dec 15, 2016
I am in the market for a press brake currently. I have seen some decent deals a day or two away, but a ltl flatbed will more than likely make them too expensive to be worth the hassle of going out of state with my current budget. I am looking at machines around 10k and under, and adding a $2000 freight expense makes a large enough difference in price. I have a 14k gvw trailer and a 3500 dually I can haul with. The brakes I have been looking at are in the 8,500-10,000lb range, so within the limit of what I can move myself.
I am just wondering from anyone with experience moving press brakes of how stable they will be. Are the brakes center of gravity low enough to be fairly stabIe? I figure the average brake is twice as tall as it is wide (front to back), but I could bring some steel drops the width of the trailer to bolt it to effectively making the base of the machine about as wide as it is tall. I wouldn't want to move an unstable load that far at 55+ mph without having tandem duals on the trailer at the least. (Which I do not)
Open to any thoughts on this. Just kicking the idea around in my head right now. Thanks.
 
try uship.com . If you are open on ship dates you can score a dead head going your direction. rigging/loading on loading end is one thing to negotiate into price upfront.
 
Press brakes are stable, you just need to use chains and cross straps since they are mid top heavy.

The next problem may be the cost of loading it.

I find it is cheaper to find a rigging company who can do everything from load to transport to set in place.

I would say moving a press brake is harder then shipping it.

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I have been surprised by what these 'hotshot' load haulers are pulling with a 1 ton dually. Gooseneck trailers with tandem duals and 15,000# loads. I have a Dodge 3500 and would be worried about my stopping power.

I moved a Diacro 17 Ton on a deckover trailer out of a Chicago suburb without isssue, But I think those are only 3,500# ish.

I had a 90 ton, 8' move by a rigger on a step deck trailer. He placed it with an old 15,000 Pound Hyster.

Personally, I wouldn't do a 10k machine on 14,k axles as you trailer should weigh in around 4k. Being at max with a tall item isn't my idea of fun.

Conversely, I have moved that kinda weight on tandem 8k axles comfortable, in a gooseneck drop deck. Height and center of gravity nearly 18" lower and the brakes on 8K axles are significantly larger and stronger than 7k axles.
 
Press brakes are stable, you just need to use chains and cross straps since they are mid top heavy.

The next problem may be the cost of loading it.

I find it is cheaper to find a rigging company who can do everything from load to transport to set in place.

I would say moving a press brake is harder then shipping it.

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I agree, it was interesting trying to rig my 11,500 lb. brake with my 8000 lb. hilo, even with 2000 lbs of additional counterweight added!

I ended up taking the ram off the brake to unload the machine.....even with blocking the mast, plenty of cribbing and chaining the machine to the lift, it still made me very nervous! I ended up picking the brake off the truck after we got it to the side, then pulled the truck out and just set the brake down, that was it for the day!

Once the brake was in my shop and on the floor, I was able to pick it up a couple inches and move it with out too much hassle.......

Like the previous poster said, I would let the riggers do the all work.......

Kevin
 
Press brakes are fairly top heavy, especially units that have the motor and hydraulics up top, and more than a little bit front heavy.

Note the forward location of the factory rig point on mine.

IMG_20190118_153212.jpg

Also, a toe Jack placed just behind the sheet metal guard on the end (Jack is roughly centered front to back) tips there machine forward, rather than lifting the end. To lift an end, I had to place the Jack under the very front corner of the machine (sheet metal guard prevented access to spot under factory pick point).
 
Thanks for all the replies.
If time allows I will post a load to uship first, even if I plan to go haul it myself. You never know when it will fit up perfectly with a drivers route and be cheap. I figure a two day trip will cost me at the least $400 in fuel, so at that point I would probably pay $11-1200 for the same load hauled to me. A lot of the ones I am looking at will be rigged out by the sellers, and I will be placing it outside of my building here so ~$200 for a crane and it's done.
I would not hesitate to move one like this locally for a short distance, but yes something that tall and heavy on the highway requires more thought.
 
I hauled my old Verson in the bed of my F350. I think it's about 3500 lbs. Definitely maxes out my 3000 LB forklift right at the mast. I just put lots of straps on it and did the speed limit in the corners.
 
The main thing is to pay close attention to the center of gravity. To load them with the weight centered I've had to set them all the way to the edge of the trailer on one side.

Also, on hauling with something like a gooseneck, be very careful of where the "legs" sit. They usually have fairly wide crossmembers and pine flooring. I've seen them fall through a trailer when the legs were placed between crossmembers.
 
That is a valid point about centering up the weight, and not the dimensions. I would guess most brakes will end up with the front side almost to the center of the trailer.

Another good reason to bring some steel to bolt it to; helping to spread the load and make sure I am hitting the trailer frame. I wouldn't trust the configuration of a press prake just sitting chained down on regular wood dunnage.
 
I brought my 8' x 75 ton Promecam home on a 14,000# bumper hitch. Single tire tandem axle trailer and 3/4 ton pickup. I only had 160 miles, but 1600 miles wouldn't have been a problem. It was craned on and off.
 
I hauled this thing. I think it's a 60 ton. No problem for my rollback truck. They loaded it with a 15,000 lb forklift.

I'm not sure I'd try it with a single wheel trailer. The weight is up at the top, especially on a flywheel model.

003.jpg 002.jpg
 
Although I usually pay to have anything very big hauled, I have quite successfully rented 20' 5 ton flatbed trucks before. Penske, for example, will rent you a 24' flatbed that doesnt require a CDL. I find I have more peace of mind, and easier driving a real truck than pulling a trailer with my pickup. It doesnt make you less manly.
 
Although I usually pay to have anything very big hauled, I have quite successfully rented 20' 5 ton flatbed trucks before. Penske, for example, will rent you a 24' flatbed that doesnt require a CDL. I find I have more peace of mind, and easier driving a real truck than pulling a trailer with my pickup. It doesnt make you less manly.

Yeah, but you can haul 30K with a pickup and the scales don't even notice you. I know it's wrong, but there are a lot of people that do it.

Press brakes don't always look as heavy as they are so they're a pretty goo candidate for not getting pulled over.

The best is when the State Troopers stop to help you change the trailer tire that blew out because it had twice it's load rating on it. "Boy, the rest of those tires look low too" "Yep, I'm going to air those up next exit". When they really all have 110 PSI in them.
 
I sold a brake weighed just on 8 ton to some farmers .......they turned up to pick up with a 6 ton tray truck.........here we got "chain of responsibility " law.....basically ,the state can jail me for just loading up the thing.....So ,I offered use of the crane ,and went and had a coffee out the back.....As these guys drove out into the street,I could see daylight under one set of duals on the back axle.......nevertheless,they drove the 150 miles to the farm Ok,and got it safely into their shed without crane or forklift....I loaned them some chains and dogs,they didnt have enough,and they made a point of bringing them back.....honest farmers.
 
I have priced out flatbed truck rentals from places such as Penske before, but that too got expensive. I think it was close to $600 for a day last I considered it, but also I think it is more if you plan to go out of state or drive any large distance. Add on to that fuel costs and the cost of time, and it seems close to what I could pay to have it hauled. Can't remember what I needed moved last time that I priced that.

Last trucker that I hired left a sour taste in my mouth too. Quoted me a price to move a full 48' load of concrete forms about 4hrs each way. He showed up 5hrs late to load up and the first thing he said is he was over hours and gonna stay the night there. Stuff happens, and I didn't give him any greif we just got to work loading. Next day they tried telling me I owed them compensation for an $1800 load he should have hauled that morning, because we took too long loading him up. While I have had mostly good experiences with the LTL companies that does also seem hit and miss, and we have all heard stories of really bad experiences there too. Both reasons to try moving things myself whenever it seems sensible.
 
I have priced out flatbed truck rentals from places such as Penske before, but that too got expensive. I think it was close to $600 for a day last I considered it, but also I think it is more if you plan to go out of state or drive any large distance. Add on to that fuel costs and the cost of time, and it seems close to what I could pay to have it hauled. Can't remember what I needed moved last time that I priced that.

Last trucker that I hired left a sour taste in my mouth too. Quoted me a price to move a full 48' load of concrete forms about 4hrs each way. He showed up 5hrs late to load up and the first thing he said is he was over hours and gonna stay the night there. Stuff happens, and I didn't give him any greif we just got to work loading. Next day they tried telling me I owed them compensation for an $1800 load he should have hauled that morning, because we took too long loading him up. While I have had mostly good experiences with the LTL companies that does also seem hit and miss, and we have all heard stories of really bad experiences there too. Both reasons to try moving things myself whenever it seems sensible.

Next time try a heavy haul tow company. They have class 8 trucks and any trailer you can imagine. $600 a day will usually get you a hard working driver that shows up on time.

Big farms often haul too if your rural.
 
The heavy haul towing companies I have dealt with around here are all $125 an hour, port to port, when you hire them to move equipment and such things. Though I will agree that they are usually the most on top of it, professional, and consistently deliver as one would expect. I usually hire rollbacks to move equipment in town, and have always had great results with that.
 
When I hire big trucks for long haul, I use a freight broker. They are more likely to stick to their quotes- as in, every time I have used one.
I have rented flatbeds for local use, not long haul- although, since I have a neighbor down the road now with a 20' bed truck with an articulated crane on it, and a 40' trailer as well, I use him.
 








 
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