Is a farm truck REALLY necessary?

[n9viw]

To cut right to the chase, yesterday the engine of our '95 F250 (7.3L Powerstroke diesel) gave up the ghost. The shop to which I limped it guessed that it could be a cracked cylinder, maybe more than one. Symptoms are oil in the coolant, running choppy with almost no power, and puffing exhaust from the oil filler. It cost us $500 just to get the truck and trailer home, a 100-mile trip.

I know I can get a short-block for $2k, but would have to have a shop with heavy crane do the removal, install and rebuild- the engine weighs over 900# with no fluids in it, and I don't have a shop. Depending on the extent of the damage to the engine, the repair estimates can vary between $2-8k!

In considering our options, Pony and I are debating rebuilding the engine over time (my stance) versus parting the truck out and scrapping the remains (her stance). I think having a truck for heavy chores (moving hay, towing loads, etc) is good; she believes we can 'make do' with small vehicles, and rent a truck for those times we need more 'oomph'.

What do you think? Is it REALLY necessary to have a farm truck at ready access? Pros, cons of having/not having one, and notes from personal experience are appreciated.

[SFM in KY]

Originally Posted by n9viw

What do you think? Is it REALLY necessary to have a farm truck at ready access? Pros, cons of having/not having one, and notes from personal experience are appreciated.

It depends on how much 'heavy' work you actually have. Our only vehicle IS a full sized 3/4 T 4 x 4 and we could not operate without it. We haul hay in, don't put up our own, so are hauling big rolls of hay once or twice a month at a minimum, plus grain and rabbit pellets in 50# sacks, stock trailer to haul horses, etc. We also need to haul steel posts, wood posts, fence wire, hog panels/ cattle panels and the occasional 4 x 8 sheets of plywood for building/repair, which pretty much requires a pickup. No way would a small pickup or a passenger car work for most of this.

The only time I ever 'managed' with just a small passenger car was when the kids were little, we lived in town and I boarded a couple of horses. I could haul a bag of grain a couple of times a month in the car, hay was hauled in to the boarding stable and if I had to haul a horse somewhere I got one of the other boarders to do it. There was, essentially, no 'heavy hauling'.

Our neighbors have half a dozen horses and had a couple of pigs and have gotten by with just a small pickup. They have to buy their hay in small square bales once a week so pay much more for it than we do for the big round bales. They have also had a difficult time finding people to haul livestock for them when they needed it done. The farmers are often tied up with their own work so not available when they need it done and anyone who does it commercially is expensive. That has proved to be very difficult at times for them.

I'd say if you are hauling feed in larger amounts and hauling livestock or anything else that requires a trailer on any kind of a consistent basis, you need a full sized truck.

[MO_cows]

In the last year, how many times would you have had to rent a truck to get enough "oomph" for the task at hand? Then do a little math of your cost to fix/own/insure your truck versus the cost of renting.

Something else to consider - if you need to haul a large animal to the vet clinic on a Sunday afternoon due to an emergency, is the rental place gonna be open??

[jwal10]

I ran a 1000 acre wheat and peppermint farm from 1976 to 1992 with a 1976 Chev short bed, 1/2 ton pickup with a 6 cyl and a 4 sp. I hauled fertilizer and seed on a 7'x12' bed over tilt trailer. I did have 2 1950's 1 1/2 ton trucks to haul grain to my bins at harvest, they were never licensed for the highway though. Seems silly to me all these people that have less than 20 acres and a 1 ton dually. To each his own....James

[ErinP]

Frankly, I can't imagine running our place without a full sized pickup. And I'm knocking on wood reading your post, because our '97 7.3 has 250K on it.
We legitimately use our for trailering, heavy loads, etc. at least once a month and it's usually 100-200 miles roundtrip.

However, I will say it's not enough that we would ever consider getting something new. When our pickup starts looking shakey we're going to get a newER one.

[n9viw]

Originally Posted by SFM in KY

It depends on how much 'heavy' work you actually have... I'd say if you are hauling feed in larger amounts and hauling livestock or anything else that requires a trailer on any kind of a consistent basis, you need a full sized truck.

I'm not hauling feed in large amounts; we get our feed in 50# bags from the local stores. Our livestock is currently limited to goats, birds, and buns, but Pony's been talking raising a couple weaner pigs. Hopefully we'd never have to transport those once fully grown!

I bought the truck with the express intention of using it to help us move back in '08 from NE IL to NW MO. I bought this one because it had the manual trans, 4wd, diesel (reputed to have long life, ha!), and a gooseneck hitch. We borrowed Muller's Lane Farm's 24' gooseneck stock trailer for a goodly number of those trips.

I bought the trailer to ultimately transport our Farmall M, which, ironically enough, was too big for the trailer. I wound up selling the tractor to the fellow who bought our house. The trailer still comes in handy, though.

Previously, I've used the truck and trailer to tow small tractors, I've loaded the truck bed up over the roof with square bales of hay, transported goats, towed Jeeps, helped a friend move a 20' wood deck, and helped people move. I also used the truck and trailer to transport Pony's ailing Subaru to a local repair shop, as it lacked the ability to make the trip on its own. That trip saved me the cost of a tow, probably at least $100.

Recently, the 'heavy' work has been going back and forth to our old place in NW MO, towing an 18' flatbed trailer, retrieving the last vestiges of our stuff from our move. As a matter of fact, that's where I was bound yesterday, when all hades broke loose in the engine.

In the future, who knows? As I mentioned, Pony's talking future pigs, and I'd eventually like to get another tractor (compact 4wd if possible). Can't move that with her Suby, nor with my old Jeep! Her Suby does have a trailer hitch, but it's restricted to 200# tongue weight and 1,000# tow weight, and I think even that is a little optimistic.

Originally Posted by MO_Cows

In the last year, how many times would you have had to rent a truck to get enough "oomph" for the task at hand? Then do a little math of your cost to fix/own/insure your truck versus the cost of renting.

I'd considered that, too, and mentioned it to Pony earlier. With the exception of the recent move, which was a rare thing, we'd have needed a truck (borrowed or rented) maybe a half-dozen times in the last year, mostly for moving Jeeps and hay. None of this is on anything remotely resembling a "consistent" basis, however. Could we have rented? Perhaps. What would it cost? Judging by the rates seen online, anywhere from $75-100 a day, plus a dollar or more a mile, on top of fuel costs.

Given the proposed engine repair/replacement costs, I'd have to rent a truck twenty to thirty times. Do I think I'll ever need a truck (for more than just transportation) that many times? I think it's quite likely.

Two other items of consideration: one came from my friend Colin, who said one must consider whether he's gotten the PURCHASE VALUE out of it. Back in '08, we paid $4400 for the truck. Between parts and tires and not including fuel, we've put in another $2000 ($1500 of that was tires, the rest in misc. parts and shop labor charges). Have I gotten that much use out of it? Undoubtedly, considering how stuck or limited I'd be without one. So technically, I could let this one go and not be out too much, although every vehicle is ultimately a loss.

The second question comes from Joel Salatin, who asks, "Considering the cost of repair, could you REPLACE the vehicle?" A quick search on Craigslist shows I could, but I'd be buying in to someone else's troubles. Every used vehicle is an unknown, and depends entirely on how scrupulous and honest the seller is (or how gullible the buyer is).

Alternately, if I fixed this truck, it would be a known entity, an essentially-good truck with brand-new tires and a brand-new engine. I would never be able to recoup the cost of the repair if I sold it, so I'd pretty much have to keep it forever.

[terry stewart]

YES I need a farm truck. Have you ever been stoped by the police for having a goat in the front seat its not pretty

[n9viw]

Originally Posted by jwal10

I ran a 1000 acre wheat and peppermint farm from 1976 to 1992 with a 1976 Chev short bed, 1/2 ton pickup with a 6 cyl and a 4 sp. I hauled fertilizer and seed on a 7'x12' bed over tilt trailer. I did have 2 1950's 1 1/2 ton trucks to haul grain to my bins at harvest, they were never licensed for the highway though. Seems silly to me all these people that have less than 20 acres and a 1 ton dually. To each his own....James

I can understand your point, in that some people OVER-buy their trucks, and some feel the need to have the big, chrome-covered full-package dually, but I think that has more to do with image and less with actual farming. On the other hand, you DO admit that you did need (and use) A truck for farm duty.

My question is, could you have done that job with a car? Ultimately, what is it worth to HAVE a truck, of ANY sort, versus having to rent or borrow one?

[Old Vet]

Originally Posted by n9viw

My question is, could you have done that job with a car? Ultimately, what is it worth to HAVE a truck, of ANY sort, versus having to rent or borrow one?

Most of the time you can do with a car what a truck will do better. What makes you think you must have a car and a truck? A truck will do the job of both but a car can't do all things a truck can do.

[jwal10]

Never been without a pickup....James

[n9viw]

Originally Posted by Old Vet

Most of the time you can do with a car what a truck will do better. What makes you think you must have a car and a truck? A truck will do the job of both but a car can't do all things a truck can do.

We need a car, because Pony works an hour from home, and drives over 80% of the day, covering eight counties for her job. Driving a truck is impractical for her, primarily due to fuel mileage. We already have her Subaru Outback, and while we have hauled feed and small animals with it, we can't handle the large animals without a trailer.

The flipside, of course, is the gist of my original post: do we NEED a truck? The more I'm going on, the more I'm thinking I probably don't, but I just want one so I don't have the inconvenience of renting or borrowing one. Plus, I'm biased, because I already OWN one. I just don't know if it's worth it to fix it up to keep it, versus taking whatever money we can get from selling it (whole or in parts) to buy another one.

[edcopp]

Originally Posted by terry stewart

YES I need a farm truck. Have you ever been stoped by the police for having a goat in the front seat its not pretty

Some of these dogs that "old Timers' date are pretty shabby as well.

[jwal10]

How many miles a year? Maybe an older pickup will work for you. Lighter? 2 wheel drive? If so might be better to get a different one with the the money from the old one....James

[sammyd]

we dairy farmed for years without a truck of any kind.

[airotciv]

We have always had a pickup, until 2 years ago. Now, my Explorer and a trailer are the workhorses. We do have a tractor to move things around the pastures. It came down to Insurance/expenses on the truck that we used maybe 4 times a year. As for heavy loads, this became a problem even with a pickup. When I need 3 tons of gravel or a ton or more of hay I have it delivered. When I just need to trailer animals or go get a few bales of straw/hay/grain I use the Explorer and the trailer. When the DH has to haul lumber/etc. he uses the trailer, it can handle up to 3/4's of a ton and the Explorer can handle it.

[michiganfarmer]

I need a truck. Id never spend the money on a diesel again. Id buy a 3/4 ton 4x4 with a straigh six, and a stick

[Danaus29]

We don't use a truck but I can't manage without my extended van. Need to make trip next week for some trellis material and fence posts. There were a few times a truck would have come in handy though. Mostly I prefer a full sized van because no matter how hard it rains, as long as the doors are closed your cargo stays nice and dry.

[Silvercreek Farmer]

We get by with a minivan and a 4x8 trailer on our 6 acre homestead. There are a lot of times when I wish I had a truck, but just can't justify the expense for our "non-profit" farm. If I did get one, it would have to have a dump bed, as it would make my composting efforts much easier...

[furholler]

All I know is that we "Limped" around without a truck for the first 12 years on our homestead, relying on friends and neighbors when we needed something hauled. I bought a 3/4 ton '84 Chevy last year and will never go without again.

[olivehill]

No way we could do without a truck. But then, we use ours a lot more than six times a year.