There's just something wrong here.

[LarryH]

Although i really like the looks of my T-Bucket with nothing on the back but the 12 gallon spun aluminum gas tank i really wanted a pickup bed. I finally found a 30" bed from Old Dog Street rods that looked like it would fill the bill. So i gave 'em a call to get a price, dimensions and shipping cost. Price wasn't to bad ($345), the dimensions sounded good, but the shipping....$350 to ship from Missouri to Kalifornya????????? Guess i'll just make a small flat bed of some sorts.

 

[Mike]

For years, I've said the only guy getting rich in the racing industry was the guy driving the brown truck. Freight is out of hand, but can you afford to drive Missouri and back, to save the freight? There's the rub.

 

[one finger john]

30 in. is not the standard T Bucket fiberglass length. Could it be either wood or metal ? Hence the extra weight or size require extra "care" in shipping.

John

 

[Gerry]

yeahhh
Go build it. More satisfaction and less freight. Way to go.If the first one dont cut it build another one. then another one. Bet it costs less than buying and freighting one.

Gerry

PS Whats wrong with a gas tank out back?? They re cool

 

[LarryH]

30 in. is not the standard T Bucket fiberglass length. Could it be either wood or metal ? Hence the extra weight or size require extra "care" in shipping.

John

I wanted something longer than the shorty beds. It fiberglass.

PS Whats wrong with a gas tank out back?? They re cool

Yes they are. But i just like pickup beds. Guess it's the farm boy in me.

 

[Gerry]

I wanted something longer than the shorty beds. It fiberglass.



Yes they are. But i just like pickup beds. Guess it's the farm boy in me.

Then get some wood and go to it. Bet it will look great. Post pics of the build. Secretly I like wooden beds. Just wanted a gas tank with stars.
Gerry

 

[Ted Brown]

Another big rub with shipping fiberglass and calling it fiberglass, the costs are real crazy, I learned a neat trick from Tex Collins the old owner of Cal Auto years ago, call then Cal Hides, never mention the word fiberglass any time... Costs go way down... Same as shipping diamonds... Send as junk... Yes building your own bed is not a hard thing to build...Then you will get just what you want on the cheap...

 

[Youngster]

Some shippers have trouble wit shipping f'glass because they consider them a chemical. I know someone who got a K&S body and they gouged him this way. Call them back and ask if they'll shipp by Grayhound. I've shipped and recieve large items this way and it's very reasonable. In most cases it's also much quicker, like next day even.

Wood boxes can be cool depending on the hardware used. Look at old pics of horse drawn wagons and note the hardware. Formed corner brackets, round rod bed side supports, etc. If you want something resembling an A or T box, have some sheetmetal broke up at a local heating shop. There really isn't much to them. I've even made a tailgate that has had good reviews. When welding these together remember Henry used spot welds and rivets. I drill 3/8" holes in one panel and make a "MIG rivet" lol. If you want to do this, pm me and I'll give you some diamentions and proceedures.

Ron

 

[GT63]

Although i really like the looks of my T-Bucket with nothing on the back but the 12 gallon spun aluminum gas tank i really wanted a pickup bed. I finally found a 30" bed from Old Dog Street rods that looked like it would fill the bill. So i gave 'em a call to get a price, dimensions and shipping cost. Price wasn't to bad ($345), the dimensions sounded good, but the shipping....$350 to ship from Missouri to Kalifornya????????? Guess i'll just make a small flat bed of some sorts.

Part of that cost is all the fees and taxes California charges freight carriers. Several NTBA members are Over the road drivers and they complain all the time about it.

 

[Whiplash]

One question for you Larry,is not California the home state of hot rodding in America and if so surely there is a manufacturer of fibreglass T bodies and parts local that you could purchase from??? I agree with you though about the look of the pickup bed as my is 24" long with the fuel tank sitting down through it leaving storage space on either side and on top of the tank which is accessed by the hinged tailgate.

 

[409T]

You can make one out of plywood and paint it. I did that for my wife's T-bucket bed and EVERYONE that has seen it has thought it was steel. Call a local cabinet shop and ask where they buy Baltic birch plywood. Go there and get a sheet or two of 1/2" or 3/4" ply and have at it. It will paint dead smooth and because the material has multiple ply's (the half inch has 9, the 3/4 has more) it will be strong as well.

Jeff

 

[rooster57]

What about CCR they are right there in cali check out their website and call her she will help.

 

[RPM]

For years, I've said the only guy getting rich in the racing industry was the guy driving the brown truck. Freight is out of hand, but can you afford to drive Missouri and back, to save the freight? There's the rub.

Yes and we just got a notice from UPS that their rates go up 5% Jan 1st.

You guys wanting to ship bigger items try Uship.com we have used them several times and it is a LOT cheaper than truck. They haul a lot f stuff that is sold and traded on Ebay.

Uship

 

[Mike]

Yes and we just got a notice from UPS that their rates go up 5% Jan 1st.

Yessir, you always knew the letter that announced their holiday schedule would also inform you of the next year's price increases.

What really wound me up was the way they would always slip in their fuel surcharges, after the fact. We used their Worldship software at the shop and it was a rare day to not get an update or two from them. So why couldn't they keep their rates adjusted for the volatile fuel prices in those updates?

I really missed DHL when they stopped their domestic shipping program. I could get product to my customers quicker and often as much as 30% cheaper than UPS. Ron, if you're not reliant on using COD services, look into FedEx. They really have a good program and if they see your volume is increasing, they'll start extending you discounted rates. If you send a lot of product COD, UPS is likely your best bet. As you'll know, I used to ship a LOT of packages, so I'm more than a wee bit familiar with the available services. I'd like to have a nickel for every roll of packing tape I've used. :jawdrop:

 

[LarryH]

Maybe it's the fuel cost, Kalifornya's regulations or a combo of many other factors. It's just insane that Jeg's shipped a GM crate engine to my garage door for $150 (went up to $159) and they want $350 to ship a 30"x44"x19" box. How much can the thing weigh?

 

[TubT]

For years, I've said the only guy getting rich in the racing industry was the guy driving the brown truck. Freight is out of hand, but can you afford to drive Missouri and back, to save the freight? There's the rub.

Just to put the "freight is out of hand" comment in a slightly different light, it should be noted that it's less expensive today to ship many things today than it was 30 years ago, when fuel has gone up almost 15 times what it was 30 years ago, a truck costs 5 times what it did 30 years ago, a trailer has increased about that much, and labor costs for drivers and unloaders has quadrupled in that amount of time.

Freight rates today are actually only slightly higher than they were 30 years ago, but since most trucks have a much higher capacity than they did then (with the adoption of the 53 foot trailer instead of the 40-footer, and an increase of at least 10% in weight allowances), the actual rates have not gone up, and have actually gone down to about 1/4 what they were 30 years ago. Right now, fuel surcharges are the only thing keeping many trucking companies afloat.

That said, I used to joke about going down the UPS store to visit my money when the Tub T was under construction.

 

[TubT]

Part of that cost is all the fees and taxes California charges freight carriers. Several NTBA members are Over the road drivers and they complain all the time about it.

Many owner-operators will no longer accept loads to CA, and there are several good reasons, not the least of which is the threat of banning all trucks built before 2007 and requiring all refers to be brought up to 2007 standards. Maximum idling time is 5 minutes, even in L.A. in the summer at 110 degrees. Put on an APU? Illegal to run a gasoline APU on a diesel truck, and a diesel APU has to be plumbed into the truck's exhaust system on any truck 2007 or newer.

And Oregon just raised it's ton-mile tax so that what was once ridiculous is now impossible. Their fuel tax is an effective $1.00 per gallon. The next highest state is only 1/3 of that. I quit accepting loads out there a long time ago.

The trucking industry is poised for a big reorganization, and it will involve a massive hike in mileage rates and the elimination of fuel surcharges. Total truck revenue right now has to be over $1.75 per mile to break even, and I expect a rise to $2.50/mile in the coming upheaval.

 

[San Diego T]

Larry, Did you call California Custom Roadsters (CCR in Chino, CA.) ? They may have what you are looking for.
Flathead

 

[RPM]

Yessir, you always knew the letter that announced their holiday schedule would also inform you of the next year's price increases.

What really wound me up was the way they would always slip in their fuel surcharges, after the fact. We used their Worldship software at the shop and it was a rare day to not get an update or two from them. So why couldn't they keep their rates adjusted for the volatile fuel prices in those updates?

I really missed DHL when they stopped their domestic shipping program. I could get product to my customers quicker and often as much as 30% cheaper than UPS. Ron, if you're not reliant on using COD services, look into FedEx. They really have a good program and if they see your volume is increasing, they'll start extending you discounted rates. If you send a lot of product COD, UPS is likely your best bet. As you'll know, I used to ship a LOT of packages, so I'm more than a wee bit familiar with the available services. I'd like to have a nickel for every roll of packing tape I've used. :jawdrop:

Tape omg the tape we were going through. We finally bought a pneumatic stapler, it is a lot faster and stronger.

 

[Mike]

Tape omg the tape we were going through. We finally bought a pneumatic stapler, it is a lot faster and stronger.

When I was at McKinney Corp. Race Cars, we had a pneumatic stapler. You can imagine some of the things we were shipping out of there. We would buy cardboard sheets, so we could make up our own packages to send wings, fuel and oil tanks, forward wing struts, seats, noses, fuel manifolds, etc.

We did have a hand stapler at the "other place". A pneumatic stapler was out of the question, as they sell for more than 16¢. Had the princess needed one for her race car, she would have had three, so there would be spares.

I can think of at least five or six tape guns I wore out. The tape rollers would wobble on the shafts, they would get so bad. And woe betide when someone had to ask permission to get new guns. I may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but I quickly learned when we needed something, I would send the princess in to make the request. :wolf: