Converting a lorry to a side unload????

[Lea1985]

Hey!!

I have a lovely little 3.5 tonne lorry. Its rear load and unload and the horses travel on the heringbone (sp)

My Cob doesnt fit very well but fits in my friends lorry that is rear load and side unload. So Im looking to convert mine to this...

Anyone know the rough cost of doing this?? Has anyone had this done before?

Thanks for reading

 

[Sagittarius]

Think very carefully before doing this.

Apart from the cost of rebuilding - if you're thinking about having both rear and side ramps it will increase the weight considerably. Ramps are obviously much heavier than box sides. You may find that you end up with insufficient payload for your cob.

Swapping the ramp from back to side will keep the payload much the same, but require a fair amount of work, thus cost. I'd guess you're looking into the thousands - especially if a respray is needed, which can be upwards of £3k for a whole box alone.

Your best bet it to talk to a few reputable lorry builders, explain what you want and see what the quotes come out at. You may well find it is less expensive to sell and buy what you need.

 

[smiffyimp]

I have just bought a 7.5 tonne in this configuration - not because of it, because it was a good lorry and happened to be that way. It will cost a bomb to do. I asked for a price on changing mine from 2xforward facing to 3xherringbone and got a price of about 1.5-2k. So i can only wonder what putting an extra ramp in would cost. As Sag says it will inc weight a lot as well. If its a problem you may be better changing for one with the side ramp

 

[Lea1985]

Thank you