We had a Ford 9000 road tractor pulling our
moderate sized gooseneck for awhile. We bought it used with 200,000 miles
(that is nothing for a semi) on it for $13,000.
The drawbacks:
1. Not intended to be driven into fields where it
might get muddy-we got stuck a time or two where a 4WD pickup would not
have. Once you are stuck, you have a definite problem, as no one is big
enough to pull you out.
2. Need a CDL to drive it. (over 26K pounds in
NY) We had it licensed in NY but were pulled over in CO and INTERROGATED
as to why we did not have fuel stamps, log book, and other stuff we did not need
for a non commercial operation. The problem is, all states are different
and in NY, all truck plates say 'commercial' so we were suspect. They held
us up for hours with horses on before they believed we were not a commercial
entity. They would never have looked at a p/u pulling a
trailer.
3. Maintenance is higher- you will need to go to
truck special garages to get inspected and worked on. Tires and brakes are
hugely expensive, though to be fair, last longer.
4. Personally, I am fairly bold, but was
never comfortable driving it.
5. Had to be retrofitted for a gooseneck -
the slider plate removed and a ball added. Not too big a deal, but something to
think about.
6. Ours was uncomfortable, though not all
are.
7. People actually made fun of us at rest stops and
rides. Now it is becoming more common.
The advantages:
1. You can stop that sucker anywhere,
anytime, no matter how steep the hill. You are safe. Many people do
not realize their truck is too small for their trailer until they are
approaching an obstacle going downhill and can't get it stopped in
time.
2. Fuel efficient. We drove from NY to Denver
on one tank of fuel, getting 20 m/g.
As you can see, I can only cite two
advantages! I asked my husband to buy me a pick up before
I left for XP04 and got a GMC one ton diesel with Alison
transmission - I love it, and it gets 20 miles to the gallon w/o the
trailer.
