3.5t lorry - is this possible?

Paint Me Proud

Paint Me Proud

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Do you think there are any 3.5t lorries out there that would carry two fine thoroughbreds with a combined weight of 985kgs?

I know my answer but interested in other peoples.
 
Paint Me Proud said:
Do you think there are any 3.5t lorries out there that would carry two fine thoroughbreds with a combined weight of 985kgs?

I know my answer but interested in other peoples.
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Look at Boss Horseboxes. They say they have the best payload on the market as the boxes are manufactured of aluminium and honeycombe stuff. Lovely boxes too. A bit pricey, as you might expect, but they seem to be worth it.

I know the horses I tend to travel (470kg cob, 500kg ID/TB) are well below the capacity.
 
what if you only have a budget of £2700??

I saw a wanted ad on preloved wanting 3.5t for the two horses mentioned for the budget as above.
I messaged to advise of weights etc incase they didnt know and got told bluntly that they would be fine.
Made me second guess myself so wanted to ask on here.
 
Most of the Movano/Master type van conversions will carry the weight of your horses - but by the time you're in, any passengers,tack, nets and other equipment, you'll be right at, or over your limit.....
 
Holly Hocks said:
Most of the Movano/Master type van conversions will carry the weight of your horses - but by the time you're in, any passengers,tack, nets and other equipment, you'll be right at, or over your limit.....
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i would query that as my renault master coachbuilt only had a payload of 800kgs. I think alot are much heavier than you'd think - i know i was surprised when i weighed mine.
 
My old Bedford has a payload of 1.1 (not including one 65kg driver - me!) ... so those two horses, two haynets ... and errrr someone following behind with the tack in a car?!
 
MissTyc said:
My old Bedford has a payload of 1.1 (not including one 65kg driver - me!) ... so those two horses, two haynets ... and errrr someone following behind with the tack in a car?!
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i think the person who put the ad up is going to have to be very very careful about what she buys.

i am glad i was right to contact her, I wasnt being a know it all, just genuinely concerned that people may be unknowingly overweight and at risk.
 
Well I think you are on track - my BOSS 3.5T has a weighbridge certificate of 1.16 payload with just under 1/2 tank fuel and it's a high spec model with overnighting capability, so a far better payload than my old Marlborough and yes it would carry your specified horse load, but there would be no gear capacity taking into account driver and full fuel tank etc. I have travelled 2 in it, but mine come in lighter than 985kg combined and share a set of tack.
 
Paint Me Proud said:
i think the person who put the ad up is going to have to be very very careful about what she buys.

i am glad i was right to contact her, I wasnt being a know it all, just genuinely concerned that people may be unknowingly overweight and at risk.
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I think a lot of people don't realise how "on the brink" the weight limits are. The guy who sold mine told me they carried two horses in it + two passengers, all tack, etc ... Sure, there was SPACE for all that but I knew just from looking at it that it wasn't constructed in a way that would allow for that payload. One of the first things I did was weight bridge it for my own piece of mind and I only needed it as a pony wagon! I carry no more than two 14.2hh or pref one 14.2hh and one smaller one! It feels most balanced with one 14.2hh pony and one 11hh on the left side ...
 
Thanks for the link.

I wasn't particularly scientific when I bought my lorry but I did have a look into payloads and was surprised to find how often 3.5t lorries don't take two horses even though they are STALLED for 2 horses. It's quite a different thing!! And having lots of fancy extras limits the carrying capacity quite significantly.

I have a basic box with fex extras on it that I uprated to a 3.9t to allow for 2 horses to be carried. It has a carrying capacity of 1.4t now, which is probably just about ok if we travel light, but doesn't give me bags of extra scope for tack etc.

Someone else with a 3.5t with a few extras - she had hers checked and she has 800kg of payload. Lawks.
 
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My Equitrek only has 1050kg but I only take one anyway, there is no way I would feel safe taking two ( only if they were 2 small ponies).
 
Mine has a payload of 1.2 tonne. I do take two horses but not with any tack, water, passengers or anything bar the horses and me. Friend follows with all the gear. Wouldn't even think about taking two with passenger and all the gear.

That is with a half tank of fuel maximum.
 
When I was looking at lorries, I saw a couple of VW LT35 horse boxes, they were old, but coach built. They had twin rear axels and weight certificates to say they could carry 1400kg payload. A horseboax man told me that these VW's were the best small lorries around, but of course there aren't many around now.
 
When I was looking and asked very few people knew the payloads, there was a lovely old LT35, but its unladen weight was 2.8t!! Yet it regularly took out 2 horses. Dread to think how much it was over!

I got a lovely old Leyland 3.5t for bargain price of £1800 - has sailed through MOT with no work. I've repainted it inside and changed partition but other than that it's been cheap as chips to own. But I only carry 1 14.2hh Sec D as there isn't room for 2 (its herringbone).

I'm fine weight wise for what I want to do - as can take 2 passengers and my little coblet, tacke tc with no issues (it hs no living just storage area). But if I ever have to travel 2 I'll need to do lorry test and get a bigger box. The very new 3.5t are ok for 2 horses if you're careful on what you take - I used to hire one. But I could never afford to buy one sadly :(
 
we build 3.5 ton horseboxes on the renualt Master or the Movano

we do 2 types one with a payload of 1150kgs and one with upto 1400kgs depending on what tacklockers you have.

However, the older ones will be very unlikely to have a good payload as they were built when people werent very aware of the issue
 
You have to be careful that by getting the weight down doesn't compromise on strength. My mechanic who also builds lorries refers to some as 'a gazebo stuck on top of a chassis'!! I'd stay well clear of some of these van conversions, they just don't look strong enough and if god forbid you were unfortunate enough to be involved in a crash, would they offer any protection for the horses?
 
christine48 said:
You have to be careful that by getting the weight down doesn't compromise on strength. My mechanic who also builds lorries refers to some as 'a gazebo stuck on top of a chassis'!! I'd stay well clear of some of these van conversions, they just don't look strong enough and if god forbid you were unfortunate enough to be involved in a crash, would they offer any protection for the horses?
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Exactly the bare chassis cab weighs 1700kg so the total payload left for the bodywork patitions ramp etc and driver and passinger is 1800 kg giving a 3500kg total It looks like around 1200kg is a very good payload , anymore yes it would be wise to question the strength of the body... I think people need to understand they carry one horse or two ponys safely, are people realy that useless or lazy to take a test but will pay a fortune for one of these toy lorrys, a dosy bint round here paid nearly £40,000 for a thenault thing!!!! and underneath they are just a cheep tradesmans van a b renault :D
 
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Just bought a great LT35 and it is stalled for three with living. I only carry a couple of ponies and have arranged to take it loaded with the two main ponies and have it weighed then I will be able to see where I am at. A lady at a show recently with the same type asked how many we carried, we said that only two as we would be overweight we thought. She said that she carried two horses no problem. My other half was surprised and said crikey how much payload have you got then and she said 3.5 ton. He did explain to her but she just wasnt interested.
I want to know that the brakes are going to work so will be very careful with mine.
 
it seems that so many people dont understand weight limits.

I had someone interested in buying my lorry and she was really keen, but when she said she was going to carry two i told her it wasnt suitable and i wouldnt sell it to her. Once i had explained about payloads etc she was fine with it and thanked me for making her aware of it.
 
If you want to know what kind of difference weight makes to safety try this:

- take your 3.5 out with your normal load (horse, tack etc)
- take it out again on the same route empty

Your breaking distance and general handling will improve *dramatically* when it's empty. I only noticed this when I took mine out for a battery run between proper trips. I hate to think how long an overloaded 3.5 would take to stop...
 
helenalbert said:
Look at Boss Horseboxes. They say they have the best payload on the market as the boxes are manufactured of aluminium and honeycombe stuff. Lovely boxes too. A bit pricey, as you might expect, but they seem to be worth it.

I know the horses I tend to travel (470kg cob, 500kg ID/TB) are well below the capacity.
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Have you actually weighed the horses? My 15hh connie x tb weighed 475kg on the AHT weighbridge in Newmarket and I would regard her as a lightweight type and takes more from the tb in her build.
 
burge said:
Have you actually weighed the horses? My 15hh connie x tb weighed 475kg on the AHT weighbridge in Newmarket and I would regard her as a lightweight type and takes more from the tb in her build.
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Yes they were weighed. On a proper weighbridge thing a the vets rather than just a weigh tape. I personally would have guessed they were far more, but they aren't. I keep a close eye on my boy's weight too because when I got him he was obese so I am very careful about it.
 
perfect11s said:
Exactly the bare chassis cab weighs 1700kg so the total payload left for the bodywork patitions ramp etc and driver and passinger is 1800 kg giving a 3500kg total It looks like around 1200kg is a very good payload , anymore yes it would be wise to question the strength of the body... I think people need to understand they carry one horse or two ponys safely, are people realy that useless or lazy to take a test but will pay a fortune for one of these toy lorrys, a dosy bint round here paid nearly £40,000 for a thenault thing!!!! and underneath they are just a cheep tradesmans van a b renault :D
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I am not too useless or lazy to take the lorry test, I am too poor! Also we have a 3.5T for work so there is no need! We only have two yearlings (no tack they are TB's) or a mare and foal on it so well within the weights. What can be even more scary is the 7.5t lorries driven by older people that are stalled for 3 but really should only have 2 on due to the stupidly over equipped living!
 
Laafet said:
I am not too useless or lazy to take the lorry test, I am too poor! Also we have a 3.5T for work so there is no need! We only have two yearlings (no tack they are TB's) or a mare and foal on it so well within the weights. What can be even more scary is the 7.5t lorries driven by older people that are stalled for 3 but really should only have 2 on due to the stupidly over equipped living!
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Fine if it works for you and have access to a box that does the job, Im not having a go just expessing an opinion, my coments were aimed at people who would rather than spend about £1200 doing a test they will spend or have daddy spend upwards of 15k on a small 3.5 lorry then overload it with two large horses endangering themselves and other road users same metality as getting the smallest 4x4 possible like a new freelander instead of a second hand discovery because "we dont want to be seen in a older car" or they are happy to lose a small fortune in deprication to save
a few pennies on fuel rather than buy something that's up to the job and costs less in the long run....
 
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