Rugby Manufacturing's redesigned line of Eliminator LP dumps are available in carbon steel, aluminum and stainless steel construction in 9-foot and 11-foot lengths with interchangeable parts. A 12-foot model is available in carbon steel and aluminum. The steel model now features a seamless, one-piece 10 gauge steel floor, a lower mounting height and a full 9-foot inside diameter. All models are available with fold-down sides. Fixed-side, steel bodies with hoist run from around $6,000 to $7,000 depending on size. Fold-down side, steel bodies with hoist are priced at around $6,500 to $8,000. Aluminum, fixed-side bodies with hoist run from around $9,500 to $11,000 and fold-down versions add about $500 to each different size. The stainless steel models with hoist cost about $1,500 more than their aluminum counterparts.

This is a manually operated, folding, dovetail ramp. For ease of operation, it is made of lightweight expanded metal, uses tension assist springs on the fold down section and has a "split ramp" design. The loading capacity facilitates ride-on lawn equipment.

According to the latest LC/DBM survey, standard trucks are owned by over 70 percent of our readers but custom work trucks are owned by under 50 percent, which indicates that a fair number of you are primed for a truck upgrade. When that opportunity comes, your choices are to convert your current truck or buy a truck already tricked out.

It's no surprise that custom work trucks continue to become more innovative and sophisticated. And with that comes more pressure to get the purchasing decision right. Buying enough truck to meet all your needs but not overdoing it, getting stuck with high operation and maintenance costs, can take much thought and research.

Switch-N-Go is a mini "roll-off" truck bed conversion system that allows contractors to switch between many different truck bodies. Converting a regular truck takes a common sub-frame, which mates with the system's hoist. A 12-foot system costs about $13,000. For 12-foot-long bodies, expect to pay around $2,000 for a flat bed, $3,000 for a dump, $3,300 for an enclosed body, and $7,000 for their landscape body. Other options include a water tank, hydro-seeder, and salt spreader.

The Crysteel Deuce E-Tipper combines rear and side dumping capability in one body: rear dump for typical applications and side dump for hard to reach places. It is also available in stainless steel for added corrosion protection. It features a double-acting Lo-Boy hoist on a bayonet swivel that can lift up to 11 tons. A 15-foot body with 44-inch sides and a 52-inch tailgate was listed near $10,000.

Map it Out
The association for the work truck industry, the NTEA (which derives from the National Truck Equipment Association though they don't use that moniker much anymore), has outlined 4 steps to follow before purchasing a truck.

The first step is to determine your needs. Some questions to ask are:

• How far will it be driven and how often
• What type of equipment and materials, if any, will it need to haul
• Will it have different uses at various times of the year
• How many workers will the truck carry regularly
• How might available features improve or hinder operator productivity

Very popular with landscape contractors, stake bed trucks can be configured in a variety of ways including with tool boxes on the frame rails under the bed, a lockable cage in front of the body for smaller equipment like blowers, a dump hoist, a fold–down ramp step bumper, or lift gate. A 9-foot-long bed with wooden floor and 40-inch-high wooden gates was quoted at less than $3,900. With a diamond plate floor and steel gates, the quote came in at less than $4,300.

The uni-body designed Landscape Tipper from Crysteel Manufacturing provides a swing-out side door with a built-in retractable ladder underneath for easy entry to the body. It comes standard with a dual-purpose upper tailgate that functions as a swing-out tailgate and a ramp. Additional options include a two-piece barn door gate, full weld-on cab shield with tie downs for wheelbarrow storage and a tarp system. A 9-foot model with 50-inch sides, barn door gates and full cab shield was quoted at just under $9,000.

A New Direction
Another option is to buy the truck and customized body as a complete unit as what usually happens at Tom's Trucks in Santa Ana, Calif.

According to Greg McKinney, landscape fleet specialist, they get the trucks with cab and chassis but no body and then build it to spec. They start with either a conventional or cab-over truck though McKinney said that most landscapers want a lightweight cab-over.

Stake-beds are the most requested landscape body type at Tom's. Some beds are configured with a beavertail: the rear portion of the bed is inclined, which when combined with a ramp provides a better equipment-loading feature. The stakes can be wood, steel or composite.

McKinney says landscape professionals usually request a couple of toolboxes that are installed on the frame rails under the bed so they are out of the way, and a lockable cage in front of the body where they can put their smaller equipment like blowers.

Tailgate options include a fold –down ramp, a step bumper, and a lift gate. Other options include a dump hoist, extended cab that can hold 7 people, roll-up tarps, tow hitch with or without electronic brake controls for the trailer.

Or they can configure the truck with a dump body if wanted.

As for the process, McKinney says he finds out about your operation, what you are driving now and what kind of equipment you have then brainstorms with you about what works best.

An Alternate Route
An innovative conversion option is a roll-off system that lets you switch between many different truck bodies. "Switch-N-Go," is one such system. It entails a subframe installed onto a truck chassis, an electric winch, electric driven hydraulic hoist cylinder and structural framework that allows quick, secure body changes, full 50 degree dumping capability of payloads, over-the-road transport, and winch loading of up to 15,000 pounds of cargo onto the truck chassis.

Bed options include a dump body, enclosed van box, flat bed, water tank, lawn maintenance landscaper body, platform, stake bed, drop box, chipper body, salt brine sprayer, salt spreader, and hydro-seeder.

No matter which direction you choose to a custom work truck, you will likely discover increased productivity and prestige.