275 Michigan Military loader.

[LowBoy]

Here's a couple shots of a 70's vintage 275B that was in overall nice shape, used strictly for training, so it wasn't driven into the piles and banks like a normal one has been.
Njoy.

 

[95zIV]

That loader was moved from close to my home town in Vermont, It might have been used for just training, but there's nothing like a whole bunch of weekend warriors in machinery.

 

[surfer-joe]

What brand trailer is that you're using LowBoy? I've seen one like that before with the drop in the back, but can't remember for the life of me where or when.

 

[LowBoy]

What brand trailer is that you're using LowBoy? I've seen one like that before with the drop in the back, but can't remember for the life of me where or when.

It's a Fontaine Specialized 55 tonner, surfer-joe. That "drop" is what's referred to as an "excavator notch", or trough to accept various booms and sticks. Measures 102" wide, plus has outrigger brackets to make it 10 feet wide when need be. It works slick for most everything, I can squat it down to an 18" deck height with a little engineering, so it's a pretty versatile trailer. It also is set up for a 4th axle attachment, which I'm hoping someone here on this site has sitting around doing nothing and would like to part with for a decent exchange of currency...:drinkup

 

[LowBoy]

That loader was moved from close to my home town in Vermont, It might have been used for just training, but there's nothing like a whole bunch of weekend warriors in machinery.

Good to have another "Woodchuck" on board here...:drinkup

 

[surfer-joe]

I priced some Fontaines back around 2003/4 when we were looking to buy a trailer for the Wyoming operations. But Trailmobile was practically giving their trailers away at the time and my boss and I came across a nice brand new one in Boise when we went up there for a Ritchie Bros auction. It was at the Trailmobile dealer and they had it on display as the road to the auction went right past their place. So we ended up buying that one. It was a 3-axle 50 or 55 tonner. I had some others located in Denver and SLC, and some out of some factory in Nebraska, can't remember who.

 

[LowBoy]

I priced some Fontaines back around 2003/4 when we were looking to buy a trailer for the Wyoming operations. But Trailmobile was practically giving their trailers away at the time and my boss and I came across a nice brand new one in Boise when we went up there for a Ritchie Bros auction. It was at the Trailmobile dealer and they had it on display as the road to the auction went right past their place. So we ended up buying that one. It was a 3-axle 50 or 55 tonner. I had some others located in Denver and SLC, and some out of some factory in Nebraska, can't remember who.

Like many other purchase options, s.j., deciding on a trailer is like deciding which oil to use, which snake oil to buy, etc.

I don't know if I'd ever rush out and buy another Fontaine. Not that they're inferior to any others, it's just that they can become very heavy once the accessories start getting welded on like rear diamonplate fenders, etc. Mine weighs a stout 27,000 lbs. by itself...kind of beefy.Our other one is about the same specs, only a little different series, and it's 6K lighter. The dealer we purchased 2 brand new ones from this year, plus the used 50 tonner, is the biggest deterant to the brand name now.

When I picked mine up last February, the right rear running light was wired wrong, and stuck on the "high" side of the brake light all the time. Also, the safety pin in the gooseneck was almost impossible to unlock/relock without major :cussing . I could have easily fixed both issues myself, but figured for 65K, they ought to at least give us a little warranty service. I brought it 100 miles over to New Hampshire where it was bought, and all the numb "mechanic" did was cut the wires with his jack knife, switch them around to the right way, and taped them back up. Nice place for a taped splice...right at the rear wheelwell, on a 65K dollar trailer. The safety pin got similar attention. Took the gas axe and mowed a bigger hole into the eyelet on the bottom of the gooseneck so the pin will slide easier. Not even a round hole; it's egg shaped now. Real mechanical engineer, he was...So when I got back home, I took it back apart, soldered the wires and shrinktubed them, like they should have been in the first place.The eyelet in the gooseneck is still ugly, but in reality, it's safe and everything, so I live with that mess.

I was inspecting a Liddell lowbed that looks like a really well built trailer recently. They're a spin-off of Fontaine, but substantially lighter. This one was a dropsided 55 ton, really nicely set up. But again...there's so many different configurations that it's a tough call. Dealer service would be a selling factor to consider on the next one for us.