Cattle Lorry instead of Tractor & trailer

Easten

Anyone using a cattle truck instead of a tractor +trailer or Jeep + trailer. My system is currently a tractor and trailer, I've no trailer license. I've been lucky enough to add another 45 acres this year but the problem is it's over 20 miles away. I'm done with over and back with the tractor trailer, plus the roads are now a nightmare with lads overtaking on the white lines. etc

So instead of getting a jeep + a bigger trailer + having to do the driving trailer test I've gotten the idea of buying a cattle lorry instead.

Is there much involved to getting a truck license, can I operate on a provisional?

What kind of costs am I looking at for the year?

Any recommendations on what type to get or would I be better off with a fasttrac and big trailer?

funkey_monkey

It doesn't really matter about the distance, I'd say the frequency would be the biggest factor for either approach. Truck has to get the ticket on it every year, plus insurance, plus diesel (road diesel, I believe), maintenance, plus you'll get hammered on tax now as the environmental regs on pollution tighten in.

If you give an idea of the frequency of travel then we could give a better opinion.

What tractor do you have currently and what sizes are your trailers?

Cavanjack

I’d say your best bet is to pay a haulier to bring the cattle over in the spring and back in the winter if that’s what you are going to do with the land. If no crush on the land put up a temporary one.

whelan2

Very hard to get insurance on a lorry too, if you've just gotten the licence.

Easten

Depending on the time of year I'd be moving cattle on a weekly basis. Farm is very fragmentated, good land but the divides are killing me.

I'd say most of the Summer I wouldn't be moving them at all. Current setup is a case MXU115 with a IW 12X6 trailer. It'll bring 3 handy cows at a time.

I just thought I'd throw the question out there to see if the lorry would be cheap to run. I'm thinking a larger cattle trailer but I'd say I'd be up grading the tractor for that too.

Paying a haulier might be the best option, that's his line of work after all

Hard Knocks

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158065#Comment_118158065

A tractor of similar size goes by here pulling a trailer with maybe 8 cattle

A canter with a cattle body would be similar to the 12x6 trailer

Grueller

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158065#Comment_118158065

I have a 12 x 6 trailer and have often put 5 x 700 kilo cows in it. Not legal, but they will fit.

Easten

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158083#Comment_118158083

8 isn't bad going. I'd be ok with that if the trailer was suitable to my tractor. What is a canter?

emaherx

I've a fragmented farm here and pull an 18ft cattle trailer here with a 390T without issue. I sold the jeep trailer since getting it as it was no longer being used.

Donald Trump

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158262#Comment_118158262

Yeah, I'm not sure why lads might be thinking they'd need to upgrade a 100+hp tractor to upgrade from a 12x6 trailer.

Think what load of silage bales you might pull behind it..... you wouldn't be stopping at 3 or 4

Wishbone Ash

If you get a learner permit for the truck you'd have to be accompanied by someone with a C licence which may not be practical. At least with the tractor no additional licences are required regardless of the trailer size.

Base price

You could pick up an older 7.5 ton DAF/Iveco/Man lorry with a 16'-18' cattle body but I reckon you are going to have to pay €10k-€15k for anything that is tested. You will need C1 driving licence. You don't need a haulage licence or annual CPC's as long as you are only hauling your own cattle and you also don't need to use a Tachograph if moving them within 100km radius of your home be it to a outfarm, factory or mart. However as Whelan posted insurance is going to cost as you are classed as an inexperienced driver. Then you have to do your annual CVRT test with associated costs of repairs, maintenance, tyres, diesel, etc

Donald Trump

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158357#Comment_118158357

I'd reckon you could only justify it if you were going hauling for other lads ............. and I don't know how those fellas make any money either ........

funkey_monkey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158262#Comment_118158262

What distances are you doing?

funkey_monkey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158166#Comment_118158166

Mitsubushi Canter:

Base price

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158381#Comment_118158381

A lot of guys buying and finishing have their own lorries and they don't haul for anyone else. We buy in and finish a few cattle however our lorries have removable cattle bodies and realistically the flats earn their keep when we buy/draw and sell bales of hay/straw.

Bass Reeves

Use a haulier. There is grants there for crushes under Tams. You have to make up 2k before doing it I think. It's under the he H&S part of the TAMS. If you need a filler put up a few 60 or 100 watt LEDs on the farm. Only problem with them you need an electrical cert as well

A RAV and 10X6 trailer( illegal but all jeep and trailers are legal except a LC and a 10X6 trailer) will haul 5 stores or three finished cattle.

Problem with a truck is the yearly CCRT tax and insurance expect it to cost 1.5k/ year. Find a lad with a small truck or a lad with a LC and trailer to do the smaller loads.

Other than that work with comfortable stocking levels that reduce movement.

funkey_monkey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158065#Comment_118158065

How many are you shifting at a time? Would a 12'/14' be more appropriate than a tractor specific trailer?

Your tractor should be well fit for anything up to 20ft anyway. Emaherx has got a really nice TuffMac trailer and had it made 7' wide for narrow roads. Plenty of folk building trailers so if you decide to go that way then you should be able to get something to suit you budget and pocket.

Nice little 16ft here that should hold plenty and still keep maneuverability:

Donald Trump

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158532#Comment_118158532

I understand that of course. If he is managing now with a 3 beast trailer he probably wouldn't be being kept busy hauling his own animals. There is always plenty of work for a flatbed though!

OP, I just also noticed you mentioned a fastrack ........ I wouldn't want to be standing in the trailer behind that unless it is well sprung. Especially on average country roads.

emaherx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158449#Comment_118158449

Not as far as the OP anyway. 3 blocks 1km apart around the home farm and 1 block 5km away. We used to walk the cattle between the blocks close together, but the town has expanded and roads are too busy now.

Easten

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158151#Comment_118158151

Mine is a double axle IW afaik its 12X6 but I could be wrong. I'd get 4 big cows in but its a squeeze.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158544#Comment_118158544

That's a nice trailer

hopeso

I'd say your trailer might be a 10x6, if you can only squeeze on four cows.....

FintanMcluskey

If your asking the question and want to avoid hardship don't buy a truck. It would swallow money to keep on the road and would be a magnet for attention from every type of law enforcement.

That MXU115 would pull as many cows as would fit in any trailer for behind a tractor, and wouldn't raise any attention

Albert Johnson

I'd stay away from a lorry unless you had work for it a few days a week being honest. Otherwise it's going to spend 95% of it's time parked up and costing money. As other posters have mentioned you'll have to get a C license and then buy a suitable truck. Then the real expense starts with yearly testing, maintenance, insurance, tax, diesel ect for something that only gets sporadic use.

You'd be better off getting a bigger trailer for behind the tractor imo. You'd be able to operate straight away without a need for another license category and at least the trailer isn't costing a huge amount when it's parked up and you'll have the tractor for other work. You'd often see secondhand 14 or 16 foot jeep trailers advertised at right money especially models with the wheels underneath. Any decent tractor should fly it with them even loaded once you drive with any bit of care. Another bonus with the tractor is that you can go off road and not be afraid of getting stuck which would be a problem with a lorry.

orm0nd

There was an 18ft tuffmac tri axel sold for very handy money at one of the machinery auctions recently. Trailer was a1 it belong to one of the guys from the south east.

If op's box is any way straight it would go a long way in paying for it.

Lorry a no no imo

minerleague

What are peoples opinion on demountable cattle bodies on tractor drawn trailers? Seem to be common in UK. flat trailer then for moving bales ( 2 for 1 ). Fragmented farm here- think I'll go the same route as emaherx at some stage. Only advantage no problem loading cattle for factory here as they're so used to being loaded 😀

Cavanjack

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118160251#Comment_118160251

Wouldn’t like them. They have to be less stable than the proper cattle trailer.

wrangler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118158083#Comment_118158083

You can use a provisional if you have a qualified driver with you,

some guys are using the 7ton lorries with the 17ft body on a c1 license. C1E license would even allow you draw a 5 ton trailer with that

People my age got a C1 license that had a car license, A canter with a livesck body would be too heavy for a carlicense

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118160343#Comment_118160343

The license is the easy part, it the shear cost, you ate looking at least at over 1K in fixed costs before you ever haul an animal is n tax, insurance, CVRT and minimal maintenance. You will draw a lot of cattle for that with a haulier. Add diesel to it and you are probably at over 2k.

emaherx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118160251#Comment_118160251

Biggest issue I have with those demountable bodies is it's nearly the same price to buy two trailers and then you will never need to have to mount/ demount the body.

Yep no bother loading cattle here, calves learn from being moved with cows and by the time they are weanlings they are fairly used to it. I even have a few cows that are always keen to get in first.

wrangler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118160401#Comment_118160401

Once the cattle know they're going to fresh grass they run up, especially the cows,

It's the same with sheep, I'd always give them fresh paddock after going through the handling unit and they fly through every time then........ and people say they're stupid

Donald Trump

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118160401#Comment_118160401

I think that for older ones it also used to leave the floor high off the ground and you'd have a steep ramp for loading animals. Newer ones appear to be better designed in that regard. I remember seeing this article a few years ago. https://www.agriland.ie/farming-news/novel-3-in-1-trailer-launched-at-the-ploughing.

Article says 23k +VAT but that was 2017.

I reckon though you'd be better off with a fixed body

tanko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118161833#Comment_118161833

It’s probably €50K now.

funkey_monkey

Does it not say 23k at bottom of article?

The mechanism of the mounting would be key for me and if have to see it in operation before I'd even consider purchasing. However, a dual purpose would be of interest.

Donald Trump

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118161876#Comment_118161876

Article appears to imply the cattle body is on some stands, and you reverse in under it. Probably similar locking mechanism that you'd have with a container on an artic.

Article does say 23k but that was 2017 prices for steel. As poster above says, probably a lot more now

minerleague

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118161833#Comment_118161833

Nice trailer alright, though someone said to me once any lowloader type trailer tend to be much heavier ( collecting bales out of meadows might be an issue )

Get up earlier in the morning and do the runs, you've the road to yourself and far less stressful. Particularly in the summer you could be on the road before 6am and have a pleasant time of it.

Grueller

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118161876#Comment_118161876

To be honest I'd say that the extra engineering required to bring the trailer to a low loader strength, adding hydraulic ramps etc would be adding enough to the price to leave it costing as much as two dedicated trailers.

Donald Trump

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118162165#Comment_118162165

But I suppose you'd have a low loader then too! Might be handy for that as well for any lad who needs to bring machines to an outfarm to do work. Could save a few trips on that as well.

wrangler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118162165#Comment_118162165

I put up a youtube video a while back of a guy that built a very simple trailer that had the machinery ramps on the front and the cattle ramp at the back, both ramps were left on the trailer to hold the bales and the cattle body lifted off with a teleporter, the trailer was about 35ft long but the ideas were good

Donald Trump

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118162440#Comment_118162440

So you'd have to drop the trailer to take the machinery off? I suppose he could have some kind of handbrake system plus other stays/supports.

funkey_monkey

Hi-Spec make a slurry tanker and silage trailer all in one! You could get them to make a cattle body for it and have a tanker too all in one! I think you'd need a word with the bank manager before placing an order though.

https://www.hispec.net/demountables/#1495053788804-a8bb7ee9-ab3c

This is how the Johnston separates (from 2:30) - I think the Lagan is similar:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cP0TJERn1VE

One thing I don't like about a lot of livestock trailers is the lack of a safety zone behind the internal door when releasing cattle. I'd rather not get splattered letting stock out. There are options in UK, but there are sufficient manufacturers here to make you whatever you need.

There are options to suit all pockets.

funkey_monkey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118162165#Comment_118162165

It would only be for carrying bales or similar and even then it would likely be only to have the possibility of it if I needed it. For a small operator you need to get as much out of a purchase as possible for it to make sense - I suppose that applies to everyone, but at the lower end its more difficult to justify a dedicated flat trailer and a livestock trailer too. I'm pretty sure that the Johnston and Lagan don't run into much more money for the demount option.

wrangler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118162465#Comment_118162465

NC dump trailers have front ramps, I see a few homemade lowloaders around here for 6 ton diggers with front ramps, it leaves them low to load, short ramps are sufficient

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUfeskjCLCw

Dinzee Conlee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118162679#Comment_118162679

What’s the idea of the little shelf for the bucket out the back of the trailer?

it seems a little unnecessary, but maybe there is a very good reason for it?

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118164066#Comment_118164066

Probably if you did not have a puck up hitch you could use the bucket of the digger to raise the front hitch to a level that you could attach the tractor.

hopeso

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118164066#Comment_118164066

It's just to carry the weight of the bucket, as can be seen in the video. The floor of the trailer isn't long enough to sit the bucket on it.

J.O. Farmer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118164121#Comment_118164121

Unlikely to be that, how many tractors fit to pull that trailer wouldn't have a pick up hitch.

I'd say it's to allow the trailer to be a bit longer especially if you had a bigger digger. Getting the bucket out further would lower the height of the arm.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118164824#Comment_118164824

You would get the bucket on the area behind the tailboard.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118164842#Comment_118164842

You are limiting you trailer. Some operators may want to tow it behind a truck at times. As well it not just for use in Ireland they will export this to other countries. Quarries and mining often have older machinery that they never upgrade.

You are limited Inn he size if machine you can put on it. Overall road with is 2.4 meters I imagine. Therefore unless always using rubber tracks you are probably limited to a 2m wide machine on it maybe a tad with that .

On that machine the arm is well below cab height.

minerleague

Do those demountable bodies have their own floor or are cattle standing on floor of trailer?

kk.man

The demountable seems like a lot of work. The stays would not want to be damaged or placed on uneven ground imo. I just prefer two individual trailers. Think they are popular in the UK.