Opinions on truck freight shipment-which carrier?

[B.Ikard]

Hello All, I am considering buying an engine that must be shipped truck freight. I am guessing the crated engine will weigh 140 lbs and I can take delivery at a business with a loading dock/forklift. Anybody have any experiences or opinions on which carrier to go with? Thanks, Ike

[ehertzfeld]

The cheepest! Any carrier would be ok. I work on Trailers and from what I've seen, there all about the same. Elon

[orangeone]

Where would the engine be shiped from and where to?

[Ronald Hribar]

I had one item shipped truck freight. It was to be delivered to my place of employment. The company makes regular stops there. However because my verified address was my home address it was going to be shipped there. It would cost 20 dollars extra. I don't know how many of you are home at the time of delivery. I think most are not. I work minutes away from home. So it was arranged that I would be called when they were coming. You have to be there to pay the bill. When item arrived, I did get a call, I had to drive 60 miles to truck depot and bring item home. Since then I have tried to have it shipped prepaid. They would not do that. So now if UPS, Fed EX or postal service. And never have anything shipped priority mail. If you are not home to sign you have to go to post office to claim shipment. I don't know if all freight companies are the same. But that was my experience.

[KSever]

Might want to check into Greyhound Bus Lines. I had a truck door shipped from LA, California to Wis. and it cost me $85. I'm not talking some new plastic truck door.

[D-17_Dave]

I learned something about shipping priceing for heavy freight a few days ago. They base what your shipping with the size and weight. This way the truck is full and the weight balances. The salesman told me that a pallet of pingpong balls would cost more to ship than say an engine straped or cratted on a pallet. In other words the mass must match the weight and size for an average palet. He told me they go by a code and whatever the commodity is they review it and assign it a code. Then figure the rate. He told me an average code for something like used farm equipment, something that balances weight and size and isn't very likely to be damaged durring shipping. This code was an 85 on a scale of 50-400. With 400 being the most expensive. This would be useful understanding how they classifie your product and keeping them in check on a resonable rate. I think if you tried to get a qoute or have to have something shipped , specify used farm equipment and see if that drops the rate. Hope this helps, Dave.

[sandyhillbill]

I had a 20 hp Kohler shipped freight truck to a close by place of business (saving $30.00) and had no problem at all. It was pre-paid and I bought it from Small Engine Parts Warehouse, a sponcer of this club. Don't remember the freight line but it was SEPW'S choice and the only one they use.

[rokon2813]

I use freightquote.com for my truck freight shipments. They utilize several companies to get the best rate for the area you need. You can get a quote right on the website or call the 800 number listed there to speak with a representative. If you try the quote yourself, I use 92.5 for the freight class. By the way, most UPS counters wont tell you, but if you go to a place like "The UPS Store" UPS will take a package up to 150 #. Just to see, I ran 150# from Buffalo NY to Tampa FL, $116 by UPS ground. That is compareable or cheaper than truck freight.

[B.Ikard]

Thanks guys for all the input! Ike

[Woodydel]

The BEST is ForwardAir.com. Go to their website.

[Jovee]

I work for a national airfreight company but we also handle ground items. Everyone is correct about weight making the difference and in most cases its based on 50 or 100lb increments. The biggest factors are at the pickup and delivery points. Rates are better usually cheapest when they are direct city to city and business to business. As you move away from a town it changes to zones. The farther off the beaten path the more it will cost because most companies dont like sending trucks out of the way without being compensated. If it is a residential pick up you will have to factor in the possibility off liftgate charges. It being pre crated is a bonus as that can cost more also. There can be no gas in the engine and oil depends on the carrier as far as being hazardous which can make it more expensive also.